Seniors advocate Holly Carmody spoke out Wednesday during a White House Conference on Aging listening session at the Santa Ynez Valley Marriott, calling for more support of food programs for low-income seniors.
Senior citizen advocates and community leaders voiced their opinions Wednesday during a forum that will help direct state and federal public policy decisions regarding elderly Americans.
The listening session, which was recorded and will be sent to the White House Conference on Aging, is one of hundreds taking place throughout the nation.
“Today is your opportunity to have a direct impact on decisions that will be made in Washington D.C. that will affect the lives of older Americans for generations to come,” 24th District Congresswoman Lois Capps told a room filled with senior citizens at the Santa Ynez Valley Marriott in Buellton.
Dozens filed in during the public comment portion, talking at length about institutional injustices and a lack of funding for caregivers and senior centers.
“We’re soldiers. You’re our leader. We need this pot to pass with more money than is in it,” said Rona Barrett, an outspoken advocate for seniors rights who is building the Golden Inn & Village in Santa Ynez. The project is billed as the Valley’s first affordable residential care facility for seniors.
Lori Rose, the owner of Senior Options in San Luis Obispo, said she sees firsthand the types of problems seniors deal with daily.
She told the story of Anna, a 95-year-old woman, who was referred to Senior Options in 2012 after having a stroke. When Anna applied for government financial assistance, she was told she qualified, but would need to travel to Sacramento to be assessed by a nurse. Rose drove Anna to the nurse, but four months later, said she has not heard back about the government assistance.
“It’s unacceptable,” Rose said. “Most seniors will stay in their homes until it’s no longer safe.”
Others took pressure off the government, calling for a greater collaboration between faith-based groups and non-profit organizations.
“The Village movement is starting to sweep the nation because it’s important,” said Naomi Kovacs Executive Director of Santa Barbara Village. “Seniors mostly want to continue living independently for as long as possible. There are people who are very vibrant, but are afraid of what they will be, to continue in a community where they cannot age in a way that is connected … the Village movement is addressing this.”
Boosting funding for research to cure Alzheimer’s, dementia and other diseases that afflict elderly people was also discussed, as well as issues deeper below the surface.
The Latino Spanish speaking elderly population is a “hidden community in Santa Barbara” said Bea Molina, a community outreach coordinator for Visiting Nurse and Hospice Care of Santa Barbara.
“People are dying – people who are severely in pain. Families lack awareness of how bad they [elderly people] are, then we get them and they last a week, maybe two if they’re lucky, but that’s insanely uncalled for. These are people who have worked 30 or 40 years and they don’t deserve to die this way,” Molina said.
Common themes from other listening sessions being hosted across the nation include retirement security, healthy aging and elder abuse and neglect, according to a White House press release.
