April 13, 2016
Do We Live in an Age-Friendly World?
Susan Hoskins
Executive Director of the Princeton Senior Resource Center
Do We Live in an Age-Friendly World?
Susan Hoskins
Executive Director of the Princeton Senior Resource Center
Minutes of the 28th Meeting of the 74th Year
The 28th meeting of the 74th year of the Old Guard of Princeton was called to order.
Julia Coale led the Invocation.
Minutes of the April 6th meeting were read by Miquelon Weyeneth.
Copies of all minutes are available on the Old Guard website.
Guest of the Old Guard: Charlie Miller introduced his guest, Betty Miller, his wife.
Announcements:
Arthur Eschenlauer will conduct a new member election on behalf of the Membership Committee
Our next regular meeting will take place next Wednesday, April 20th at 10:15 in the Convocation Room of the Friend Center
Our speaker will be: Michael Lemonick, Visiting Lecturer in Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University. His topic will be “The Mystery of Memory, and How a Princetonian With Profound Amnesia Is Helping Neuroscientists Figure It Out.”
Minute taker for April 13 is Shirley Satterfield. Ruth Miller introduced our speaker
THE SPEAKER: Susan Hoskins, Executive Director of the Princeton Senior Resource Center
TOPIC: Do We Live in an Age-Friendly World?
Susan Hoskins, executive director of the Princeton Senior Resource Center was pleased to see so many familiar faces and some new ones and hoped that we all left feeling a little more optimistic than we probably did for the last one -- that statement received some chuckles!
Susan started by introducing the PSRC, stating that many know about the organization because they go there for XYZ. She stated that the PSRC is many things to many people but that one knows the center through one portal but not through some of the others.
MISSION
PSRC is the Princeton area‘s “go-to place” where older adults and their families find support, guidance, educational and social programs to help navigate life transitions and continue to be active, healthy and engaged in the community.
PSRC FAST FACTS
A nonprofit organization serving the greater Princeton area, which means if you live in the neighboring communities you are welcome to attend the programs
Membership and many activities are free
There are modest fees for some programs and services
Serving diversity of ability, age, ethnicity, economics and education
More than 1,300 attend programs and 75 receive support and guidance services weekly. There are 464 volunteers
PSRC PROGRAMS
The Senior Resource Center addresses all aspects of wellness:
Physical fitness
Health and wellbeing
Education
Enrichment
Social opportunities
Recreation
Spiritual
Purpose
EVERGREEN FORUM
Classes are designed to be interactive and participatory
Lifelong learning (or as Ms. Hoskins calls it, “senior college”)
College-level courses taught by professionals
1,171 enrolled in 45 courses last year. There are fall and spring semesters
Science, philosophy, literature, art, religion, history, economics and more
PSRC SUPPORT AND GUIDANCE SERVICES
“Partners in Caring Princeton”
These support services address those seniors who are dealing with despair and loneliness
Care coordination -- such as transportation, a volunteer, an aide
Help with care planning -- with the input from the individual and the families
Information and linkage to area resources
Assistance with benefit applications -- for seniors who are eligible for medical assistance and tax assistance
Education on aging issues
Individual and family consultations
Brief counseling, family caregiver support
Volunteer visiting program called “HomeFriend”
Seventeen different support groups -- a great time to connect with other people
All of these services are in coordination with other care providers
PSRC VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
GrandPals - currently 100 to 115 older adults reading with young children
HomeFriends - Companionship and help for home-based older adults
Office -- instructors, facilitators, events, front-desk assistance, mailing, computer lab
Ms. Hoskins talked about university students who come to the resource center to assist with computer knowledge for older adults; one South Asian student assisted a man from China who was downloading Chinese characters in his Gmail account so that he could communicate with people back home!
PSRC AS YOUR RESOURCE CENTER
Takes this aspect of their mission very seriously
They are the “go-to place” for older adults, family caregivers near and far, and area professionals
All aspects of aging and life over 50, including retirement, lifelong learning, care giving and life transitions
A possible motto: If we don’t have the answer, we’ll do our best to find it
PSRC is unique as a valuable resource
SENIORS IN PRINCETON
Susan thanked Ralph Widner for his research on the population of Princeton residents from the ages of 65 to 85-plus compared to the senior population in New Jersey and in the United States. This report was based on the 2010 United States Census.
Princeton has a higher percentage of older adults -- higher than both New Jersey and the United States
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PSRC
Based on adults over 65
57 percent female
29 percent live alone
78 percent live in owner-occupied homes
Ethnic makeup
84.8 percent Caucasian
3.4 percent Latino
12.9 percent African-American
7.6 percent Asian
ECONOMICS
Ms. Hoskins stated that Princeton residents consider this town to be diverse, but said to look around in a room like this and go -- where is the disconnect? Are we not connecting? She thinks that in the older population it may be less diverse than in some of the others but that at PSRC they are constantly working on finding new ways to reach out to make sure that it serves all of the populations that live in Princeton.
She gave an account of the estimated income of 2,581 Princeton residents 65 and older.
28 percent have incomes in the lowest 20 percent of the annual income
38 percent have housing costs over 30 percent of their income
The poverty level for a household with two people is $16,020, which means that you can’t live in Princeton unless you are in low-income subsidized housing
EDUCATION - AGE 65-PLUS
Less than high school – 10 percent
High school or higher - 89.9 percent
Bachelor’s degree or higher - 13.5 percent
AGE-FRIENDLY PRINCETON
Ms. Hoskins said that the following is what we all came for!
In 2014 Princeton was designated an “Age-Friendly Community” by AARP and the World Health Organization. The World Health Organization is making this designation for communities throughout the world. PSRC is the first in New Jersey to win the designation as an Age-Friendly Community
There are currently 78 such designated communities in the United States and 287 in the world
An Age-Friendly City encourages active aging by optimizing opportunities for health, participation and security in order to enhance quality of life as people age. In practical terms, an Age-Friendly City adapts its structures and services to be accessible to and inclusive of older people with varying needs and capacities.
--A definition by the World Health Organization
WHO’S EIGHT DOMAINS
The World Health Organization has eight areas focused on terms of evaluating a community’s age friendliness:
Outdoor spaces and buildings -- safe recreational facilities -- are buildings accessible?
Transportation -- safe public and private
Housing -- wide range of options and focusing on aging in place
Social participation -- access to leisure and cultural activities, civic engagement with peers
Respect and social inclusion -- ethnic and cultural diversity
Civic participation and employment -- paid and volunteer work and activities
Communication and information -- use of technology for residents connected to community, friends and family
Community support and health services -- including access to home care, clinics, wellness and active aging programs
Ms. Hoskins said she hopes we got the same reaction as she did -- looking at those eight areas and saying: “Check, check, check; Princeton does this, Princeton does this.” Then she thought why shouldn’t Princeton achieve this designation and that is what got the process started, she read about it in the AARP literature and thought that that sounded a lot like Princeton -- let’s get the process started, let’s get this “Gold Seal of Approval.”
Focus groups were formed to find out which of the areas were of major concern and to turn that report into the AARP. The PSRC is actively working on it and will submit it in June. They are three-fourths of the way there. After that report is submitted, with areas of addressing the main areas of concern, then there are three years to submit a follow-up that includes plans for addressing those concerns. There is a “Crowd Sourcing Model” -- everything that is submitted is put on the website for other communities to see and use -- AARP has grabbed on to this and sees that one of the main concerns is safe streets. By looking at the website, communities can see how other states used resources and how it can be applied to our community.
IS PRINCETON AGE FRIENDLY?
Now Ms. Hoskins involved us in her presentation by asking the following questions with responses:
What advantages are there to being “age friendly”?
So we don’t have to move, opportunities to take advantage of free time, maintaining independence, support from others of our age group and younger, a number of Princetonians had to move to Stonebridge and Windrows because Princeton has never established a facility here for those individuals
What are the things that make Princeton age-friendly?
Organizations like The Old Guard, Princeton University, intergenerational population, outstanding public library, walkability, churches, open spaces, PSRC, good police force, proximity to New York and Philadelphia, good health care, Princeton Adult School, historic cemetery (received chuckles from the audience!), the Bryn Mawr-Wellesley Book Sale, the Princeton Wellness and Fitness Center, historic sites, family-owned supermarket, the Whole Earth Center, McCarter Theater, Garden Theater, everything in Princeton is within one square mile, a responsive government
What makes it hard to age in Princeton?
Taxes, staying in your own house, excessive elitism, snow and ice removal, lack of transportation for those who live in the surrounding areas of Princeton, overall cost of living in Princeton (martinis are 12 bucks!), lack of coordination between New Jersey Transit buses and New Jersey Transit rail, hard for the Dinky connections, parking, bagged meters, lack of available parking at the Princeton Junction Train Station, narrowness of the parking spaces that are very age unfriendly, handicap parking (if you have a handicap sticker you may park anywhere in Princeton for free), Princeton Shopping Center moving merchants out
Suggestions?
PRINCETON PRIORITY AREAS
HOUSING
Many worry that they can’t afford to stay
Low availability of age-friendly housing
TRANSPORTATION
Need information about current options
Better linkage between systems
Evening transportation and transportation outside Princeton
COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION
PSRC is a resource center
Access Princeton - can call to find out about services in Princeton
STRENGTHEN MULTI-GENERATIONAL NEIGHBORHOOD AND COMMUNITY GROUPS
Ms. Hoskins talked further about all the programs and activities that are taking place at the Senior Center. There are programs in about 22 different locations in Princeton, such as the Greenway, library, Princeton University Museum. They are looking for other places to present programs, like churches, and she thanked those in the room who donate to the PSRC.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Susan W. Hoskins, Executive Director, LCSW
www.princetonsenior.org
(609) 924-7108
45 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540
Respectfully submitted,
Shirley A. Satterfield
Julia Coale led the Invocation.
Minutes of the April 6th meeting were read by Miquelon Weyeneth.
Copies of all minutes are available on the Old Guard website.
Guest of the Old Guard: Charlie Miller introduced his guest, Betty Miller, his wife.
Announcements:
Arthur Eschenlauer will conduct a new member election on behalf of the Membership Committee
Our next regular meeting will take place next Wednesday, April 20th at 10:15 in the Convocation Room of the Friend Center
Our speaker will be: Michael Lemonick, Visiting Lecturer in Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University. His topic will be “The Mystery of Memory, and How a Princetonian With Profound Amnesia Is Helping Neuroscientists Figure It Out.”
Minute taker for April 13 is Shirley Satterfield. Ruth Miller introduced our speaker
THE SPEAKER: Susan Hoskins, Executive Director of the Princeton Senior Resource Center
TOPIC: Do We Live in an Age-Friendly World?
Susan Hoskins, executive director of the Princeton Senior Resource Center was pleased to see so many familiar faces and some new ones and hoped that we all left feeling a little more optimistic than we probably did for the last one -- that statement received some chuckles!
Susan started by introducing the PSRC, stating that many know about the organization because they go there for XYZ. She stated that the PSRC is many things to many people but that one knows the center through one portal but not through some of the others.
MISSION
PSRC is the Princeton area‘s “go-to place” where older adults and their families find support, guidance, educational and social programs to help navigate life transitions and continue to be active, healthy and engaged in the community.
PSRC FAST FACTS
A nonprofit organization serving the greater Princeton area, which means if you live in the neighboring communities you are welcome to attend the programs
Membership and many activities are free
There are modest fees for some programs and services
Serving diversity of ability, age, ethnicity, economics and education
More than 1,300 attend programs and 75 receive support and guidance services weekly. There are 464 volunteers
PSRC PROGRAMS
The Senior Resource Center addresses all aspects of wellness:
Physical fitness
Health and wellbeing
Education
Enrichment
Social opportunities
Recreation
Spiritual
Purpose
EVERGREEN FORUM
Classes are designed to be interactive and participatory
Lifelong learning (or as Ms. Hoskins calls it, “senior college”)
College-level courses taught by professionals
1,171 enrolled in 45 courses last year. There are fall and spring semesters
Science, philosophy, literature, art, religion, history, economics and more
PSRC SUPPORT AND GUIDANCE SERVICES
“Partners in Caring Princeton”
These support services address those seniors who are dealing with despair and loneliness
Care coordination -- such as transportation, a volunteer, an aide
Help with care planning -- with the input from the individual and the families
Information and linkage to area resources
Assistance with benefit applications -- for seniors who are eligible for medical assistance and tax assistance
Education on aging issues
Individual and family consultations
Brief counseling, family caregiver support
Volunteer visiting program called “HomeFriend”
Seventeen different support groups -- a great time to connect with other people
All of these services are in coordination with other care providers
PSRC VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
GrandPals - currently 100 to 115 older adults reading with young children
HomeFriends - Companionship and help for home-based older adults
Office -- instructors, facilitators, events, front-desk assistance, mailing, computer lab
Ms. Hoskins talked about university students who come to the resource center to assist with computer knowledge for older adults; one South Asian student assisted a man from China who was downloading Chinese characters in his Gmail account so that he could communicate with people back home!
PSRC AS YOUR RESOURCE CENTER
Takes this aspect of their mission very seriously
They are the “go-to place” for older adults, family caregivers near and far, and area professionals
All aspects of aging and life over 50, including retirement, lifelong learning, care giving and life transitions
A possible motto: If we don’t have the answer, we’ll do our best to find it
PSRC is unique as a valuable resource
SENIORS IN PRINCETON
Susan thanked Ralph Widner for his research on the population of Princeton residents from the ages of 65 to 85-plus compared to the senior population in New Jersey and in the United States. This report was based on the 2010 United States Census.
Princeton has a higher percentage of older adults -- higher than both New Jersey and the United States
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PSRC
Based on adults over 65
57 percent female
29 percent live alone
78 percent live in owner-occupied homes
Ethnic makeup
84.8 percent Caucasian
3.4 percent Latino
12.9 percent African-American
7.6 percent Asian
ECONOMICS
Ms. Hoskins stated that Princeton residents consider this town to be diverse, but said to look around in a room like this and go -- where is the disconnect? Are we not connecting? She thinks that in the older population it may be less diverse than in some of the others but that at PSRC they are constantly working on finding new ways to reach out to make sure that it serves all of the populations that live in Princeton.
She gave an account of the estimated income of 2,581 Princeton residents 65 and older.
28 percent have incomes in the lowest 20 percent of the annual income
38 percent have housing costs over 30 percent of their income
The poverty level for a household with two people is $16,020, which means that you can’t live in Princeton unless you are in low-income subsidized housing
EDUCATION - AGE 65-PLUS
Less than high school – 10 percent
High school or higher - 89.9 percent
Bachelor’s degree or higher - 13.5 percent
AGE-FRIENDLY PRINCETON
Ms. Hoskins said that the following is what we all came for!
In 2014 Princeton was designated an “Age-Friendly Community” by AARP and the World Health Organization. The World Health Organization is making this designation for communities throughout the world. PSRC is the first in New Jersey to win the designation as an Age-Friendly Community
There are currently 78 such designated communities in the United States and 287 in the world
An Age-Friendly City encourages active aging by optimizing opportunities for health, participation and security in order to enhance quality of life as people age. In practical terms, an Age-Friendly City adapts its structures and services to be accessible to and inclusive of older people with varying needs and capacities.
--A definition by the World Health Organization
WHO’S EIGHT DOMAINS
The World Health Organization has eight areas focused on terms of evaluating a community’s age friendliness:
Outdoor spaces and buildings -- safe recreational facilities -- are buildings accessible?
Transportation -- safe public and private
Housing -- wide range of options and focusing on aging in place
Social participation -- access to leisure and cultural activities, civic engagement with peers
Respect and social inclusion -- ethnic and cultural diversity
Civic participation and employment -- paid and volunteer work and activities
Communication and information -- use of technology for residents connected to community, friends and family
Community support and health services -- including access to home care, clinics, wellness and active aging programs
Ms. Hoskins said she hopes we got the same reaction as she did -- looking at those eight areas and saying: “Check, check, check; Princeton does this, Princeton does this.” Then she thought why shouldn’t Princeton achieve this designation and that is what got the process started, she read about it in the AARP literature and thought that that sounded a lot like Princeton -- let’s get the process started, let’s get this “Gold Seal of Approval.”
Focus groups were formed to find out which of the areas were of major concern and to turn that report into the AARP. The PSRC is actively working on it and will submit it in June. They are three-fourths of the way there. After that report is submitted, with areas of addressing the main areas of concern, then there are three years to submit a follow-up that includes plans for addressing those concerns. There is a “Crowd Sourcing Model” -- everything that is submitted is put on the website for other communities to see and use -- AARP has grabbed on to this and sees that one of the main concerns is safe streets. By looking at the website, communities can see how other states used resources and how it can be applied to our community.
IS PRINCETON AGE FRIENDLY?
Now Ms. Hoskins involved us in her presentation by asking the following questions with responses:
What advantages are there to being “age friendly”?
So we don’t have to move, opportunities to take advantage of free time, maintaining independence, support from others of our age group and younger, a number of Princetonians had to move to Stonebridge and Windrows because Princeton has never established a facility here for those individuals
What are the things that make Princeton age-friendly?
Organizations like The Old Guard, Princeton University, intergenerational population, outstanding public library, walkability, churches, open spaces, PSRC, good police force, proximity to New York and Philadelphia, good health care, Princeton Adult School, historic cemetery (received chuckles from the audience!), the Bryn Mawr-Wellesley Book Sale, the Princeton Wellness and Fitness Center, historic sites, family-owned supermarket, the Whole Earth Center, McCarter Theater, Garden Theater, everything in Princeton is within one square mile, a responsive government
What makes it hard to age in Princeton?
Taxes, staying in your own house, excessive elitism, snow and ice removal, lack of transportation for those who live in the surrounding areas of Princeton, overall cost of living in Princeton (martinis are 12 bucks!), lack of coordination between New Jersey Transit buses and New Jersey Transit rail, hard for the Dinky connections, parking, bagged meters, lack of available parking at the Princeton Junction Train Station, narrowness of the parking spaces that are very age unfriendly, handicap parking (if you have a handicap sticker you may park anywhere in Princeton for free), Princeton Shopping Center moving merchants out
Suggestions?
PRINCETON PRIORITY AREAS
HOUSING
Many worry that they can’t afford to stay
Low availability of age-friendly housing
TRANSPORTATION
Need information about current options
Better linkage between systems
Evening transportation and transportation outside Princeton
COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION
PSRC is a resource center
Access Princeton - can call to find out about services in Princeton
STRENGTHEN MULTI-GENERATIONAL NEIGHBORHOOD AND COMMUNITY GROUPS
Ms. Hoskins talked further about all the programs and activities that are taking place at the Senior Center. There are programs in about 22 different locations in Princeton, such as the Greenway, library, Princeton University Museum. They are looking for other places to present programs, like churches, and she thanked those in the room who donate to the PSRC.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Susan W. Hoskins, Executive Director, LCSW
www.princetonsenior.org
(609) 924-7108
45 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540
Respectfully submitted,
Shirley A. Satterfield