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News and list of events | |
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Seniors Assisted Transportation Society of Greater Edmonton is looking for unneeded and unwanted vehicles, running or not. The donors of such vehicles receive a charitable donation receipt from SATS for the value of the vehicle and the organization receives net proceeds from Donate a Car Canada, which picks up and sells the vehicle. For more information and to fill out a vehicle donation form, go here. |
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Home Instead Senior Care Edmonton is providing free Senior Emergency Kits to help ensure that family caregivers have quick and easy access to important information. “This toolkit will provide you with all the important information you need in a centrally located file so you are ready for a crisis, day or night.” For more information, call 780-439-9990 or go here to view a poster. For more information about HISC Edmonton, go here. |
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Home Instead Senior Care is looking for nominations for its Salute to Senior Service Awards. Volunteers who contribute more than 15 hours per month and are over the age of 65 are eligible. Both provincial and national winners will be selected. The national winner will receive $5,000 to donate to the charity of his or her choice. For more details, go here or call 780-439-9990. |
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“Is our board helping or hurting? A board of directors can be
a nonprofit’s most important asset, expanding its footprint in the community, bringing in resources, driving a bold direction, ensuring accountability and transparency. Or it can be a group of people who show up to network, meddle in minutiae, and bog the organization down. A nonprofit’s board needs to take a hard look at itself, as individual members and as a group, to determine if they are an effective governing body or not, whether they are moving the mission forward, or just getting in the way.” For more, take a look at Five Things Board Members can do to Build Organizations by going here. |
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Feb. 5 is the early bird registration deadline for Board Leadership 2012: Board Basics and Beyond offered March 17 from 7:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Grant MacEwan University. The program focuses on board members of voluntary and nonprofit organizations, and will provide “a variety of sessions and networking opportunities addressing not-for-profit board fundamentals and new trends”. For more information and to register, go here. |
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All Seniors Care is hosting its third annual All Seniors Care Senior Games Feb. 6 to 10. For an event poster, go here. Events, open to all seniors age 75 and older, include non-competitive walking, Wii bowling, board and card games, Wii golf and billiards and bocce. For more information, call Charlene at 780-432-6900 or email cgray@allseniorscare.com. Events will take place at the Rutherford Heights Retirement Residence, 949 Rutherford Road, Edmonton. |
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Edmonton Police Service is accepting applications for the spring session of its Citizens’ Police Academy. It enables participants to gain knowledge about “police issues, practices and operations in the City of Edmonton”. Applications from individuals who live in the target community of West Edmonton and whose community involvement and/or organizational affiliation will enable them to pass on their knowledge to others will be given priority. Sessions will be held Tuesday evenings from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., March 20 to June 12, at the EPS training facility located at 10173 - 97 Street. For more information, go here. |
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“Over 50? Life is for learning.” The Edmonton Lifelong Learners Association (ELLA) offers spring classes for older adults April 30 to May 18. “Join the association today and turn your retirement into the rich experience of learning something new.” ELLA offers members dozens of classes on the University of Alberta campus. “No exams, no papers and, best of all, no prerequisites. Some of the best U of A professors and other fine instructors deliver quality classes.” To find out more, call 780-492-5055, go to www.extension.ualberta.ca/ella or email exella@ualberta.ca. |
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The fifth annual Creative Age Festival will take place in Edmonton June 8 to 10. This year’s festival will focus on theatre performed by and for seniors, but is expected to also include community events such as arts cafes and an art exhibition. A collaborative team of community partners, including representatives from GeriActors & Friends, Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council, University of Alberta Drama Department and City of Edmonton, is organizing festival events and activities. To view a highlight video of the 2011 festival, go here. |
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The Seniors Assisted Transportation Society of Greater Edmonton is selling tickets to all Edmonton Oil Kings games for $15 (the regular price is $20 to $30). They can be bought as gifts or used by the purchaser. Game nights may include Top Shot hockey shooting stations and PlayStation NHL 2011 kiosks. “There will also be an exclusive autograph session after each game with three Oil Kings players.” Games are at Rexall Place, 7428 - 118 Avenue. For ticket vouchers or more information, call 780-732-1221 or email info@satsofedmonton.org. |
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Calder Cuties, at the Calder Seniors Drop-in Centre, 12963 – 120 Street, Edmonton, invites everyone who loves to sing, especially soprano singers, to join them. The invitation is extended to both male and female singers. “We are also looking for someone who enjoys playing the piano.” For more information, call Fran at 780-377-2887. |
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The Sunshine Singers at Strathcona Place Senior Centre, 10831 University Avenue, welcome more participants, male and female. "If you love to sing, come out of the shower and join our choir." No audition required. The group meets every Thursday from 1 to 3 p.m. For more information call 780-433-5807. |
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The Sage Singers perform sing-along favourites every Thursday from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Sunshine Cafe (SAGE, the Seniors Association of Greater Edmonton, is located at 15 Sir Winston Churchill Square). "This is a fun-loving choir for all skill levels. They are always looking for new members to join in." For more information, call 780-423-5510 or email info@MySage.ca |
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GeriActors and Friends meet Thursdays at 1 p.m. at SAGE (Seniors Association of Greater Edmonton), 15 Sir Winston Churchill Square. "This is a dynamic theatre group with stories to tell and the passion for performing in front of live audiences. Consider joining a group that loves to have fun. A student ensemble from the University of Alberta has joined to create an exciting inter-generationsl theatre experience." The cost is $20 per year. For more information call 780-423-5510 or email info@MySage.ca |
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The Next Page Book Club meets the second Thursday of every month at 1 p.m. at SAGE, Seniors Association of Greater Edmonton, 15 Sir Winston Churchill Square. For more information call 780-423-5510 or email info@MySage.ca |
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The Over the Rainbow Discussion Group is a support group for gay, bi-sexual or transgendered seniors, and/or seniors who would like to better understand their gay family members. The group meets every Wednesday from 1 to 3 p.m. at SAGE, Seniors Association of Greater Edmonton, 15 Sir Winston Churchill Square. Participants are invited to just drop by or phone Jeff at 780-488-3234 for more information (he can also be reached by email at tuff@shaw.ca). |
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“The Bridge is the Edmonton Journal's community newsroom. It is a place for readers to take a more active role in covering the news in a meaningful and relevant way. We're asking you to submit your photos, videos and stories in response to assignments. You can also suggest assignment ideas for events, celebrations and issues that are most important to you.” To learn more, go here. |
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If you’re not familiar with the concept of seniors cohousing, as a do-it-yourself form of senior living that some consider friendlier, more autonomous and less expensive than the usual options for housing and elder care, go here. The New York Times and Columbia Graduate School of Journalism have recently posted a number of features and videos on various forms of senior shared housing arrangements in the U.S. To check out the other features on a shared housing arrangement, an urban village and an RV community, go here, here and here. |
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As the number of seniors using the internet increases, services that make the internet easier to understand and operate are also growing. Internet Buttons, a website launched by We Are What We Do, a British charity, was set up to help bring seniors over age 65 online and to “show there is loads of stuff different generations can learn off each other”. To find out more, go here and here. |
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Brain exercise is vital to maintaining memory. “Anything that engages and challenges your brain counts as brain calisthenics.” But eating brain food is important too. David H. Murdoch, 88 year-old president of the Dole Food Company, recommends eating beets, spinach, fish, berries and fruit and vegetable juices. To read his column in the Huffington Post, go here. |
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The ReSkilling Edmonton Network is a group that “seeks to bring seniors and youth together to pass on traditional self-sufficiency skills in a workshop environment”. The group believes that “a good way to take strong, local action on climate change and environmental degradation is to re-learn various skills from a pre-globalization era”. The network “seeks to meet with interested seniors for a consultation on what kinds of elements would make for a good learning environment (things like venue, number of attendees, what kinds of materials to get, food/refreshments, and promotion). We take on the bulk of organizing these workshops, but do seek to design them in conjunction with seniors.” For more information, go here. |
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The Glenrose Senior’s Continence Clinic provides an “expert outpatient service for older people with problems related to their bladder or bowel function”. Services are available to older adults age 60+ in the Edmonton area. You can ask your family physician to make a referral or refer yourself. To make an appointment, call 780-735-8820 or email seniors.continence@gmail.com. For more information, and to complete a bladder control questionnaire that provides feedback on the seriousness of your symptoms, go here. |
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As you prepare for the transition from driving to being a passenger, or deal with the cost of transportation as an older adult whether or not you have ever driven a car, it may be helpful to budget for expenses with the knowledge of how much it costs to own and operate a vehicle on an annual basis. The Alberta Motor Association can help you with those calculations, based on national averages. For more information, go here. |
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Interested in using public transit but concerned about mobility difficulties? Edmonton Transit System’s Mobility Choices Travel Training provides free customized group and one-on-one training on how to use the transit service and features that meet your needs. Training can also be arranged for newcomers and agency representatives who work with seniors, newcomers and clients with mobility challenges. For more information or to book a training session, phone 780-496-3000 or email ETSTravelTraining@edmonton.ca. |