Creating Community for a Lifetime sponsors:
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Greetings!
Welcome to the Creating Community for a Lifetime
newsletter, a periodic resource to help Core Council and
Community Advisory Team members keep current on initiative
activities and support continuous learning about aging issues.
Over the summer, the CCFL newsletter will provide learning
opportunities to help prepare us for our September work
sessions.
This issue includes brief readings on aging trends,
research on baby boomers, and the Aging in Place initiative to
support your learning.
In future newsletters, we will provide materials focusing
on innovative approaches to creating communities for a
lifetime as well as ideas for structuring community-wide
planning on aging issues. We welcome your suggestions for
future readings and responses to ideas in the newsletter!
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Summer
Reading - Introduction |
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While the AdvantAge Initiative survey being conducted
this summer will give us valuable insights into how older
adults in Kent County view their community's
"elder-friendliness", it's important also to consider what
aging experts and those approaching 60 have to say about the
future. It's also vital to start considering integrated,
holistic approaches to addressing the AI survey findings for
the four domains: meeting basic needs, maintaining physical
and mental health, promoting civic and social engagement and
optimizing independence for frail and disabled adults. The
following readings provide helpful insights into aging trends,
baby boomer perspectives and one approach to integrating a
variety of older adult needs/opportunities into community
planning. |
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Trends |
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Ten Trends That Will Change Retirement "Retirement
beyond the year 2000 will be influenced by increased
longevity, the size and influence of the boomer generation,
and higher expectations for retirement life," according to
Helen Dennis, a lecturer at Andrus Gerontology Center,
University of Southern California, Los Angeles. Dr. Dennis'
summary of these trends has broad implications for
professionals in aging, policymakers, employers and midlife
adults. |
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Read on... |
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Baby Boomers
View Retirement |
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These Four Walls - Americans 45+ Talk About Home and
Community reports that "community characteristics and
services are just as important as home features for successful
aging in place." Read
on...
Help Wanted in Reinventing Work discusses the
need to create a "lifespan-friendly" workplace to accommodate
the needs and ambitions of baby boomers as they reach
retirement age. Read on...
Reinventing Aging: Baby Boomers and Civic
Engagement is a comprehensive report spotlighting "key
issues that must be addressed to involve large numbers of baby
boomers in volunteer activities as they reach retirement." Read
"Report Highlights", pages 5-8 |
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Making
Connections |
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Aging in Place "Changing health care needs,
loss of mobility, financial concerns, home maintenance and
increasing property taxes. present significant impediments to
this simple and primary desire for older adults to remain in
their communities. Aging in Place is a diverse range of
programs that address these impediments, seeking to retain
senior citizens as integral and productive members of their
communities," according to Aging in Place - A Toolkit for
Local Governments. For a good overview of this integrated
approach to creating community for a lifetime, see three short
articles:
Making
the Case for Aging in Place pg. 22-23
Five
Successful Aging in Place Programs pg. 24-25
Solving
the Healthcare/Housecare Equation pg. 4-8
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