_edited.png)
GCOA's Senior Issues Newsletter
Senior Issues Newsletter September 2022
Work Groups Are Starting Soon!
One of the greatest benefits to being a CO-AGE member is the opportunity to participate in issue work groups. Now that the 2023 priorities have been selected, monthly work groups will be created for each issue to help flesh them out and determine the best strategies for advocacy.
CO-AGE Issue work groups are critical to the success of our advocacy efforts as we prepare for the upcoming legislative session. It is easy to join a work group and, to keep you safe, the meetings will be held via Zoom.
The kick-off meeting schedule for each work group is as follows:
Medicaid in Assisted Living: 9/7 at 10 am
Funding for Home and Community Based Services: 9/14 at 2pm
Teledentistry: 9/19 at 2pm
Work & Save Program: 9/29 at 10 am
Email Eric Ryan at eric.ryan@gcoa.ga.gov to participate!
In this Issue:
Work Groups
National Senior Center Month
2023 CO-AGE Priorities
Three new issues join the GCOA perennial budget issue: Home and Community Based Services. Congratulations to those whose issues were chosen! GCOA would like to thank everyone who submitted an issue. We encourage those who were not selected, or were unable to get a submission in, to start planning early to have an issue considered for the 2024 legislative session. The next call for issues will go out in April 2023.
Visit www.gcoa.org/2023-priorities for the 2023 issue summaries and see the schedule above for information on work group meetings.
GGS Conference
Council members and GCOA staff alike had a wonderful time at the 67th Annual Georgia Gerontology Society (GGS) Conference. Aging advocates, colleagues, and students from across the state gathered to share in the power of "storytelling as a catalyst for growth."
GCOA Legislative Chair, Maureen Kelly led a session called "Interventions Targeting Social Isolation" while GCOA Executive Director and Deputy Director alongside advocacy partners of the Alzheimer's Association, led a session called "Storytelling for Advocacy to Inspire Collective Action."
In Memoriam
The Georgia Council on Aging remembers the incomparable Mrs. Lorene Lindsey. Mrs. Lindsey has been a faithful member of GCOA since August 2011. She was appointed to the Council by then Department of Human Services Commissioner, Clyde Reese.
Lorene was a fierce advocate and the pride of the Aging network and Henry County. She was elected in 2000 as the first female mayor of Locust Grove at the age of 78. Even in her late 90’s, Lorene never hesitated to advocate for the rights of older Georgians. At 99 years old, Lorene checked another item off her bucket list by flying in a hot air balloon! She enjoyed a variety of lively recreational activities.
Always full of smiles, hugs and energy, Lorene passed just 31 days before her 100th birthday. Mrs. Lindsey will always take her place in our hearts as a legend in the aging world.
You can read her full obituary HERE.
National Senior Center Month
Celebrated every year in September, Senior Center Month is a time to shine a light on senior centers, showing the entire nation how vital they are to the health and well-being of a community. Senior centers provide countless hours of support and encouragement to older adults, and have become integral to health care delivery in our communities by providing COVID-19 guidance, vaccine education, and vaccinations to their participants. And they've played a role in addressing an issue that we all knew was important even before the pandemic: social isolation.
Learn more about this special observance on the National Council on Aging website HERE.
Intern Wanted
Intern Wanted
Save the Dates
Are you a current college student or do you know a current college student who has an interest in Aging? GCOA is looking for an intern for the Fall 2022 semester.
Apply through the Division of Aging Services website by clicking HERE or by contacting Nikaela Frederick at nikaela.frederick@gcoa.ga.gov
Last Call for Fall Intern
News You Can Use
Older Generations Are Reclaiming Rites of Passage
August 1, 2022
Retiring soon? Here are some new outdoor hobbies to try
August 1, 2022
Protecting senior citizens from identity theft
August 9, 2022
United Healthcare Donates $1 Million to Nonprofits in Georgia
August 10, 2022
Are you a senior citizen dealing with high drug costs? Share your story with CNN
August 10, 2022
August 23, 2022
4 Ways Adult Children Can Support Their Aging Parents
August 24, 2022
Retirees who go back to work for travel
August 28, 2022
Best national parks for senior citizens: senior pass, accessibility
August 29, 2022
Bringing Together Orphans and Seniors Without Family Under One Roof
August 30, 2022
© 2022 Georgia Council on Aging
2 Peachtree St., NW, Suite 32-270, Atlanta, GA 30303-3142