Every time we get ready to send an update to our dedicated supporters, I think about how important you all are to this work. Whether you've given a gift, joined a Community Conversation on Aging this fall, or attended a webinar, your engagement has been vital! All of these relationships are essential to the work we do on behalf of older Oregonians and their families. Thank you for being a part of the AGE+ community and joining the movement to create lifelong communities where all generations can thrive. - Stephanie Hooper, President AGE+

Comprehensive Plan for Aging in Oregon

One in 4 people will be 65+ by 2035. This permanent shift in our population affects individuals, families and communities, especially in rural areas where this shift is already underway. AGE+ is proposing a comprehensive strategy to rethink how aging affects the way society perceives, plans for and responds to older adults—a Comprehensive Plan for Aging.

This population shift means that we will experience a greater demand for comprehensive services, as COVID-19 made clear. But there are also many opportunities, as older adults are often untapped assets. They are key contributors to the economic and social vitality of their communities. By creating a framework for cross-sector supports and services across the lifespan, we can create lifelong communities for all. Key to the creation of this framework is our Community Conversations initiative, as well as our statewide survey on aging.

Participate in Our Statewide Survey on Aging in Oregon

We are excited to invite you to share your thoughts on what our state and communities need to support us all as we age. Please fill out this survey if you live in Oregon or if you are caring for an older person who lives in Oregon. The survey is confidential. Take it today and please share it with your network! If you'd like to have a paper survey mailed to you, please call (503) 408-4752 or email admin@ageplus.org.

Complete the Survey!

Circles of Care

Our Circles of Care program in The Dalles continues to pair volunteers with older adults to provide assistance and social connection. Service recipients have grown by over 60% since the beginning of 2021! As we look to the future of Circles of Care and its essential role in our Housing and Services initiative, we are expanding to additional program sites in Molalla and Madras.

Highlight: Our partnership with the Columbia Gorge Orchestra Association has been bringing live music over the phone to isolated older adults, and our yard cleanup events continue to be successful with a group of local high school students taking great initiative to care for their older community members.

Highlight: The Wasco County Ageless Awards returned in 2021. This event, planned in partnership with the Mid-Columbia Senior Center in The Dalles, celebrated the continued contributions of people 75+ in Wasco County. This year's award recipients were: Sherry Munro, Mary Davis and the Fort Dalles Floozies, Duane and Sue Powell, and Darrell France.

COVID-19 Education

AGE+ continues to expand our COVID-19 education efforts, now working in 16 Oregon counties to address vaccine hesitancy and to promote boosters. Our efforts, including direct mail, have reached nearly 20,000 older Oregonians in rural areas with low vaccination rates.

Highlight: We identified low-income senior housing complexes as opportunities to increase vaccine uptake and worked with the Oregon Health Authority to schedule on-site clinics. In Hermiston, this resulted in about 1/3 of the residents in a 34-unit complex getting their first vaccination!

Save the Date for the 2022 Ageless Awards!

The 2022 Ageless Awards will be celebrated on Thursday, April 21, 2022. The event will be virtual with a possible in-person option that will be decided in the spring. Watch in the coming weeks for our honoree announcement!

Interested in becoming a sponsor? Please contact Stephanie Hooper at shooper@ageplus.org.

Community Conversations

As a leader in aging with more than 20 years of experience, AGE+ knows that progress happens when everyone, especially vulnerable communities, has a voice. We are amplifying these voices through various strategies including our Community Conversations initiative. We are engaging diverse community members and leaders throughout Oregon in meaningful and culturally appropriate discussions on aging. By listening and gathering information, we are learning what it will take to create a Comprehensive Plan for Aging.

Highlight: AGE+ recently held 4 virtual Community Conversations in rural areas of Oregon, as well as 1 for a group of gerontology professionals. We have plans underway to hold conversations for Spanish speaking communities in early 2022.

If you would like to request a Community Conversation in your area, contact Julia Brown at jbrown@ageplus.org.

Housing and Services

AGE+, along with our development partner, Community Housing Solutions (CHS), has developed a new model of hybrid modular construction that allows older adults to age in the communities they love. This approach helps keep rents affordable without the need for individual subsidies. What really sets this model apart from other affordable housing models is that we form partnerships with local groups to create community-based supportive care volunteer networks to assist residents with light chores, transportation, friendly check-ins and more.

Highlight: CHS and AGE+ have secured sites in Madras and Molalla for 24-unit affordable housing projects for older adults. Our goal is to break ground by summer 2022!

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in Oregon

Ties That Bind, our grandparent and kinship caregiver program, is growing its impact. Our dedicated website continues to be a hub for information and resources, and our Facebook support group welcomes new members regularly.

Highlight: On November 17th, AGE+ held a virtual chat for grandparents and kinship caregivers in Oregon to talk about topics and resources most important to those parenting a second time around. Over 100 people joined!

Commitment to Equity

Thank you to Drs. Shirley Jackson and Andres Lopez for joining our AGE+ Board of Directors and staff meeting in October to discuss how we can be mindful of and practically apply the tenets of Critical Race Theory to our work. This type of critical and inward thinking is crucial for AGE+ as we explore the intersectionality of age and race, and move forward with the development of our programming and advocacy efforts. Stay tuned for the release of our next briefing paper series that focuses on equity in aging.

Webinar Recording

Did you miss the November 16th Oregon Health Forum event, "Breaking Ground: Building a Framework to Age Well in Oregon," presented by AGE+ and the Jessie F. Richardson Foundation? Click here to view the third session in a three-part series focused on a new vision for successful and equitable aging for all Oregonians.

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If you're just learning about AGE+ and the work we're doing on behalf of older Oregonians, please join our mailing list by clicking here and follow us on social media!

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