Friendly for all: Lincoln’s age-friendly committee focuses on inclusivity

By Luke EdwardsReporter

Thu., June 3, 2021

When Lincoln’s age-friendly committee formed, members were eager to make the town welcoming not just to seniors, but to people of all ages. 

After all, the group’s mission statement describes ensuring quality of life for people at all stages of life. 

But what they couldn’t have predicted was a global pandemic that would highlight some of the issues many face in maintaining that quality of life. Despite the issues brought to the fore as a result of COVID-19, not to mention the challenges in meeting and running a committee during restrictions and lockdowns, its members are thrilled with the work they’ve accomplished to date.

“We’ve been able to achieve a lot for the circumstances we are under,” said Lynn Timmers, deputy mayor and one of council’s representatives on the committee.

One of the biggest achievements — being designated age-friendly by the World Health Organization — hasn’t been finalized yet, but members are hopeful it will be in the next year. 

“Being age-friendly designated would really elevate our status as a community, that we are all inclusive,” said Timmers.

“It was a really in-depth and comprehensive application,” added Charlotte Sheridan, chair of the committee.

During her time on the committee, and especially since the onset of the pandemic, Sheridan said she’s learned just how crippling isolation can be if the community doesn’t work together.

“For me, I think it’s the isolation piece that really hit home,” she said. She has friends who essentially haven’t left their small apartments in over a year. Others had to face the isolation of living in long-term-care homes on lockdown, or who simply didn’t have means to connect with people.

“That’s an issue, and COVID just made it worse,” she said.

But the municipality and local agencies have figured out ways to help. Lori Laird, recreation co-ordinator with the town, described some of the ways they changed programming to ensure isolation was kept at a minimum. Its Seniors Centres Without Walls program, for instance, has elderly people connect regularly through phone calls.

“That’s a really simple way for seniors to connect with each other and chat without having to have that technology knowledge,” said Laird.

Town staff have also continued regular wellness checks, something that other groups like Rose Cottage Visiting Volunteers also conduct.

And for those older people who want to learn how to connect with technology, the Cyber Seniors group is able to get them set up, added Timmers.

As the pandemic hopefully recedes in the coming months, in-person programming will return. However, Laird and Timmers said there are some things they’ve learned throughout the pandemic that can be used in the future to make Lincoln more age-friendly.

Laird stresses that age-friendly doesn’t just mean senior-friendly. While June is Seniors’ Month and a lot of the town’s programming seems focused on seniors on first blush, in many ways, she said it’s all encompassing.

“If you have an accessible walkway, it’s (also) good for parents with strollers, or children in a wheelchair,” she said.

One area Laird sees as having potential is with intergenerational programming, bringing together Lincoln’s residents of all ages.

“Our seniors have so much to teach, but also have such great opportunity to learn from our young people and youth,” she said.

Lincoln Mayor Sandra Easton said Seniors’ Month is a great time to “honour the ongoing contribution of older adults to our community.”

“Through initiatives such as the age-friendly advisory committee, we are prioritizing the voice of older adults and ensuring that their views, desires and needs are considered in everything we do.”

Must-see Movie: Cyber-Seniors

05/15/2014 01:08 pm ET Updated Dec 06, 2017

Cyber-Seniors premieres in New York on May 16 and Toronto on May 30

I attended the screening of Cyber-Seniors, a heartwarming — and surprisingly funny — documentary about the extraordinary journey of a group of senior citizens as they discover the world of the Internet through the guidance of teenage mentors.

Walking into the theater at the Movies for Grownups Film Festival, I expected Cyber-Seniors to be a dry, informative info-nugget on how the Internet could enhance the lives of the older set. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Honestly, I’ve never been to a theater where the crowd was howling with this level of laughter.

Maybe because it was so unexpected (I hope I’m not spoiling the surprise here), but the interaction between the old folks and the young whippersnappers is just priceless:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=STslZX26yJc

After the screening, I was honored to sit down with the documentary’s producer, Brenda Rusnak, to get the inside scoop:

Go see this movie, you’ll walk out with a brightened outlook on the world and the people that populate it.

Staying connected through technology

https://www.thespec.com/opinion/contributors/2021/04/30/staying-connected-through-technology.html

By Pat Spadafora

Fri., April 30, 2021

I remember when my mother, who lived in Ottawa, used to call me on Sunday evenings after 7 p.m. when telephone rates were lower. We rarely connected outside of those highly anticipated Sunday catch-up conversations. In today’s world, catching up with others is more likely to involve a cellphone, tablet or computer and to take place at any time of the day. That is, more likely for some of us.

Innovations in technology are far-reaching. They include communication platforms like Zoom, FaceTime and Skype, virtual and augmented reality, wearables such as fitness and health trackers, telemedicine, robotics, phone applications for detecting falls, 3D printing and game technology. Technology enables connections between family and friends and can support lifelong learning. It can be a portal to enriching and new experiences originating from anywhere in the world. It can also exclude those without or, with limited, access to technology.

COVID-19 has impacted the ways in which we communicate and stay connected with one another. The pandemic has exposed and highlighted gaps in access to affordable technology, initial training and ongoing support that could increase technology adoption by older adults. For many, this lack of access has intensified the social isolation and loneliness that is disproportionately experienced by many older adults. At the same time, there is evidence that technology use has increased and served to connect older adults.

An AGE-WELL poll, conducted by Environics Research (July 2020) indicated that two-thirds (65 per cent) of Canadians 65-plus own a smartphone, compared to 58 per cent in 2019. Most of the 65-plus who own one (83 per cent) say that they use it daily. In addition, 88 per cent of Canadians 65-plus use the internet daily

Since the pandemic was declared, older Canadians have increased their use of video calls to communicate with their friends and family. Approximately one quarter (23 per cent) use video calling on their smartphones which is twice as many as in 2019. Six in 10 report that this increase is a result of the pandemic.

There has also been an increase in older adults participating in phone and online activities that have enabled them to still feel connected to others. Seniors’ Centres Without Walls is a telephone-based program that has grown tremendously in use by older adults in Ontario during the pandemic and is available in Hamilton. In addition, a growing number of older adults have joined virtual programs offered by Seniors’ Active Living Centres (SALCs) across Ontario.

During the first two weeks of virtual recreation programs offered by the City of Hamilton for older adults, over 300 participants reserved spots. Participation was higher when friends or a spouse/partner participated from the same household. Programs offered (subject to change) include Introduction to Fitness, Chair Fit, Stability, Strength and Tone, Restorative Yoga, Painting, tai chi Fundamentals, Line Dancing (Traditional), Cardio Dance, Drawing and Mind Busters.

Older adult participants in these virtual programs shared comments such as:

“I feel like I can be socially involved again without leaving my home during this time of uncertainty”

“My doctor/ nurse practitioner suggested I try virtual video programing, so glad I did.”

The Hamilton YWCA and the Hamilton Public Library are two additional examples of Hamilton organizations that offer virtual programs and that have worked hard to transition to increased online options. There are many other online options offered by organization in Hamilton.

For those seeking technology support, Cyber Seniors connects older adults with one-on-one telephone support. They can assist with computer and online use for up to 45 minutes at a time. Cyber Seniors can be reached by phone at 1-844-217-3057.

Even as face-to-face programs gradually open up, I expect that virtual programs will continue to play a vital role for the foreseeable future. We must do what we can to include older adults who have been disadvantaged during the pandemic.

Let us also dispel a prevailing myth that older adults are too old to learn technology. That is simply not true. Despite the challenges of the pandemic, many older adults have shown themselves to be resilient and open to new learning. One colleague recently shared a story about a woman in her 80s, with limited technology experience, who asked for assistance to learn Zoom and is now teaching piano lessons on the Zoom platform.

I believe in the value of face-to-face connections. However, technology has provided a lifeline for many during the pandemic and there is every reason to believe that the pervasiveness of technology in our society will persist. We must do what we can to ensure more equitable access.

Two of the recommendations in Hamilton’s Plan for an Age-Friendly Community are: (1) Provide affordable access to technology, initial training and ongoing support, as well as access to the internet and; (2) Provide reliable and consistent internet service to everyone living within Hamilton’s geographic boundaries.

Let’s work together to make that happen.

Pat Spadafora is president of Kaleidoscope Consulting and a member of the Hamilton Council on Aging. For more information about the Hamilton Council on Aging or to make a donation please visit coahamilton.ca.

The Internet Isn’t Just for the Young

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/16/movies/cyber-seniors-focuses-on-a-program-for-retirees.html?_r=0</a>

By Neil Genzlinger

• May 15, 2014

Early in the documentary “Cyber-Seniors,” you might find yourself saying, “Ugh, are they really going to make me watch octogenarians poke fruitlessly at laptops for 75 minutes?” But the film soon stops that torture and becomes a likable intergenerational tale with a bit of unexpected pathos.

It chronicles a program begun in Toronto by two high school sisters, Macaulee and Kascha Cassaday, in which students tried to help residents of a retirement community become more computer-literate. At first the film sounds like an advertisement for Facebook, with the teenagers introducing their gray-headed charges to it, generally at too fast a pace for an aging newcomer to absorb.

But eventually one instructor decides to make a YouTube video with his instructee, and soon there’s a contest to see which pair can come up with the best video. Some of the results are funny — here you’ll learn that an iron is actually a cooking tool — while some are bittersweet. And as this is going on, a distressing side story involving Macaulee develops. The film’s director, Saffron Cassaday, is her older sister, and she does a commendable job of melding Macaulee’s personal setback with the film’s overall theme.

It would be nice to hear more from the young mentors about what they learned, and more from the cyberseniors about how computer use might be made more elder-friendly. But in general, this is a sweet tale that will resonate with anyone who has tried to make a Skype call to a grandparent.