Discover Sixty-Five: August 2022

More documents

Info

Aging in Place is Better at Home ~ Karma Halleran We can probably all agree that Home is one of our favourite places, if not our MOST favourite place. It is often a space we share with our spouse, children, family and friends. The place we socialize, or relax and recharge our public personas - a place we get to be king or queen. As we age, some chores become more difficult. It may be that the care of one's spouse is an added duty that takes attention away from other day to day responsibilities. You may suddenly realize that the standards you set for yourself when you were younger can no longer be achieved. If you don't have family close who can help pick up the slack, it may seem to be time to move into senior housing of some sort. This can be very disheartening when we know that all we need is a little help with minor chores - like changing the light bulb over the front stoop, fixing a leaky tap or toilet, shovelling the driveway (it is short, but snow covered) fixing the broken step, installing the safety bars in the bathroom and tightening the wiggly rail on the deck. Many of these jobs are small so it is difficult to find someone to hire for 20 minutes. And sometimes the cost of hiring is prohibitive as well, since a 20 minute job might cost you an hour anyway. You know that you are very capable of looking after yourselves in every other way, you just need a little help with the chores. Well good news! Our culture has realized that 'Aging in Place' is the best! For us to remain at home as long as possible. We are generally happier if we do so, which makes our quality of life greater. To remain surrounded by our memories and friends in a familiar setting is ideal. Stephanie Haukaas Better at Home Program Coordinator, Trail Better at Home is one of these organizations who is funded by the Province and managed by the United Way. Volunteers, contractors and paid staff from local non-profit organizations provide Better at Home services in many communities now. By helping seniors remain at home longer, they support a diverse, inclusive and vibrant neighbourhood for everyone. The Trail Chapter came into being at the beginning of 2020 and Stephanie Haukaas was hired to coordinate the service through Trail FAIR Society. By March covid had hit and everything shut down. The Better at Home program managed to provide a number of the basic services through it all, and now that things are opening up, Stephanie is excited to offer more. Stephanie has two contractors and 6 volunteers who provide services to 30 clients in the Trail, Genelle, Warfield, Rossland, Rivervale, Fruitvale, Beaver Valley and Montrose areas. "We have room for more clients." says Stephanie. "More volunteers are always welcome. 2-6 hours a month can make a huge difference in someones ability to remain in their home. Contractors are paid and are welcome to register also, agreeing to do those tiny jobs for those in need." "All contractors and volunteers are vetted and criminal checks are done. We take our clients safety seriously, and they trust us to do our due diligence when we connect them with a volunteer. We make great efforts to connect clients and volunteers who may share some interests. Many long term friendships have evolved from first providing the service. Right now our volunteers range from 30 years old to 80! Everyone has something to contribute and we encourage anyone who is interested!" They offer a range of non-medical support services: • Friendly visiting • Transportation for appointments and shopping • Light yard work • Minor home repairs • Light housekeeping • Grocery shopping • Snow shoveling (it is hard to find snowshovellers!) There are some costs associated with some of these services, on a sliding 4 July 2022 Discover Sixty-Five
scale. They are made affordable so anyone who needs them can access them. If you can't afford them, there is still access, so please contact us. What do I need to do to sign up? If you live in or around Trail call Trail FAIR Society, 250-364-2326 and ask to speak to Stephanie. She will take down your information and discuss the types of services that they can offer you. They will ask to see last years tax return so they a fair rate for the services that require a payment can be established. You do not have to submit a tax return, and can just pay for the services, gaining access to those contractors who are willing to do small jobs. It is obvious that Stephanie takes great pride in the Trail Better at Home service and finds great joy in running this program. She is kind and knowledgeable and looking forward to meeting you. ~ Karma Halleran West Kootenay Better at Home LOWER COLUMBIA: TRAIL FAIR SOCIETY 2079 Columbia Avenue Program Coordinator Stephanie Haukaas www.trailfair.ca/program-listing/ shaukaas@trailfair.ca 250-364-2326 ext 233 CASTLEGAR AND DISTRICT COMMUNITY SERVICES SOCIETY Program Coordinator Sandi McCreight - 250-365-2104 Ext. 23 www.cdcss.ca/staff-calendar/ castlegar-better-at-home-program/ soscastlegar@hotmail.com ARROW AND SLOCAN LAKES COMMUNITY SERVICES Program Coordinator Louella Cann 250-265-3674 ext.224 aslcs.com/betterathome louella.cann@aslcs.com NELSON: NELSON CARES SOCIETY 250-352-2708 nelsoncares.ca 709A Vernon Street, Nelson info@kootenayseniors.ca CRESTON VALLEY: VALLEY COMMUNITY SERVICES Valley Community Services 230 19th Avenue North Creston Program Coordinator - Ashlene Chadburn 250-428-5520 www.valley.services/programs/ better-at-home betterathome@valley.services If you live in some of the smaller communities, call the nearest Better at Home coordinator to see what could be done for you. You are invited to the Silver City Seniors Circle It is a new social program started by the Better at Home program for that all seniors are welcome to attend. You don't need to be a client of our program, you just need to be a senior, interested in meeting new people and gathering for the fun of it. No registration required, just drop in. Coffee and light refreshments are served. Books, puzzles and games are available. We invite guest speakers and presenters and it runs every 2nd and 4th Tuesday, 11am-1pm, at the Trail Legion Branch 11. All Seniors welcome! Drop by for a game of cards or a chat. August 9th and 23rd are the next sessions. See you there. Discover Sixty-Five August 2022 5
Page 1 and 2: Discover Sixty-Five August 2022 FRE
Page 3: Brass Tacks Cannabis Corner........
Page 7 and 8: News FREE SENIORS DROP-IN PROGRAM!
Page 9 and 10: handsaw might be handy, a hammer an
Page 11 and 12: s & BBq Time LAZY CABBAGE ROLLS For
Page 13 and 14: Emily Tucker RRC Senior Financial C
Page 15 and 16: Call Kaslo,1-800-663-4619 Discover
Page 17 and 18: We too 404 Front St, Kaslo • 250-
Page 19 and 20: My Retirement Travels ~ Liz Ross My
Page 21 and 22: Sudoku Here’s How It Works: Sudok
Page 23 and 24: These are the weekly Horoscopes for

Discover Sixty-Five: August 2022

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?