Community Success: Senior Resource Fair
Last week, our community seniors had the chance to learn about all the assistance and benefits available to them during IBA’s resource fair held in partnership with Caregiver Homes. Caregiver Homes is a MassHealth program which provides support to family caregivers. A multitude of city organizations and private initiatives attended the event to advertise different services for senior care options and adult day health services. The agencies in attendance ranged in services and included FriendshipWorks, Boston Foods, the City of Boston’s Commission for the Elderly, Cathedral Health Services, Operation A.B.L.E, Lion’s Club Eye-Mobile, and many more. (For a complete list click here).
Caity Axelrod-McLeod a representative from FriendshipWorks, a 30 year old organization who works to end elder isolation, exuded praise for IBA’s very first senior resource fair: “It seems like a lot of people are interested in volunteering, we can always use more volunteers,” she said. “We have a number of seniors who are helping other seniors.”
Seniors from Villa Victoria and surrounding communities enjoyed talking to different organizations and receiving personalized information for their unique needs. A resident shared that she always attends social events organize by IBA, however “ it’s really nice to be able to go and chat with people about [other] things I can do in Boston, I don’t like staying at home,” she said.
Romina Wilmot, account manager for Caregiver Homes, explained that there is a strong need to promote services and resources specifically for seniors. “It is a very multicultural audience that we all serve, so it’s important that we reach out to them,” she said. The turnout couldn’t have been better, “There have been many seniors. It’s hard to bring the seniors out, but they came out and they were interested in learning,” said Wilmot.
The atmosphere was filled with excitement and an eagerness to learn more. The community had the chance to take time to socialize with coffee, courtesy of David’s Tea. We were pleased with the results, and seniors left with a wealth of useful knowledge and connections.
We are so grateful to all the organizations that donated their time and resources to support community seniors. We will be planning more of these in the future.
If you have any feedback or questions do not hesitate to reach out or leave a comment below.
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