NYSOFA co-sponsored a two-day conference with AARP and New York Association of Homes & Services for the Aging titled Empowering Communities for Successful Aging; Housing, Neighborhood Supports and Services, which was held at the Saratoga Hilton and Conference Center on November 12 and 13.
Produced by the Albany Guardian Society, the event included more than 50 workshops and 100 presenters. The interest and need for such an event was evidenced by over 475 conference registrants from across NYS, maxing out the capacity of the venue.
Presenters offered information and assistance on creating and enhancing elder friendly communities and addressed areas such as housing alternatives, supportive services, civic engagement, zoning and land use, grass roots organizing and financing options. The attendees reached far beyond just the aging field and included community leaders, housing directors, not-for profits, faith-based organizations, elected officials, builders and community planners; demonstrating the interest and support for promoting elder friendly communities.
After keynote speaker Mae Carpenter, Commissioner of Westchester County Department of Senior Programs and Services, provided an example of how Westchester County has successfully taken steps to become a livable community, a regional break-out session was held.
The regional breakout session had more than 200 participants networking and taking the beginning steps toward collaborating to promote elder friendly communities. More than 100 individuals from across the state have volunteered to act as leaders with NYSOFA to promote follow-up activities spurred by the conference. Regional training and a conference tool-kit are items NYSOFA is now working to create post-conference.
A NYAHSA member who attended the conference said:"I found the conference to be one of the most useful conferences I've ever attended. The information presented was relevant, timely, and practical. I left there with a true sense of what needs to be done to create senior housing, how to do it locally and who the key players are. I have to admit, the outlook for senior housing is not always good and I learned some grim truths to the system. But from my perspective this is helpful in assessing the needs and determining next steps and future goals.
