It was so appropriate that AARP sponsored a Age Friendly Panel discussion this month in Portland OR, and the room was packed. Being Woman’s History month – it was amazing to learn about AARP’s founder.
Metro, Portland’s regional government, predicts that while the regions population will grow by 35% the number of people aged 65+ will grow from 251,000 in 2010 to 518,100 in 2030.
The founder of AARP in 1958 Dr Ethel Percy Andrus was an educator who had vision for our aging population. Red-haired and soft spoken with glasses she stood out in the Mans world. Her advice about retiring. DON’T.
The speakers included Dr Alan DeLaTorre, who is a research associate at Portland State University’s Institute on Aging. Alan is a self described “urban gerontologist” who can turn research into policy and practice.
Corey Nagel PhD, RN is an assistant Professor at Oregon Health & Science University. His research focuses on understanding how social and environmental conditions influence the health of older adults. Like sidewalks are a good thing – so we walk more and do not sit in front of televisions.
Kari Schlosshauer discussed the transportation choices on our health and the environment for people of all ages and abilities for a more walkable community.
Joan Corella with Elders in Action trains and develops Age-Friendly advocates in our community. I wrote about them in another blog, about how volunteers rate retail stores for ease of use.
On October 16, 2013, the Portland City Council passed a resolution approving the development of the Action Plan for an Age-Friendly Portland, intended to enhance Portland’s age friendliness.
There were many polls taken before the panel spoke and of the five areas that AARP are working on:
Care Giving & Long Term Care
Economic Security
Livable Communities
Hunger
Diversity & Aging
The main concern and lively discussions was about HOUSING- how to age in place and stay in your home, or how to afford the rising rents, or pay for taxes, or be pushed out by development.
The positive take away that Dr DeLaTorre shared was that next month Metro is applying for grant money to start a pilot program for designing our homes to make them age friendly.
AARP has many events planned to engage more discussion and provide informative and fun events like Movies for grownups, Portland Sunday Parkways, Life Re imagined Check-up and Guide, and Womens Expo. Go he
Life Reimagined is a movement that encourages us to discover new possibilities as we face mid-life transitions. When it come time for you to explore new directions, or consider “what’s next?” what are your ideas for imagining the next chapter of your life?
I have helped many of my clients navigate this next step, if you have questions give me a call and I can share how others have moved forward. Woman’s History month has led me to some incredible women!
