There’s A Party Goin’ On - And it Comes with a Message
By Carole Jeffries
There’s a party goin’ on right here
A celebration to last throughout the years
So bring your good times, and your laughter too
We gonna celebrate your party with you.
From “Celebration” by Kool & the Gang
If these lyrics start a melody wormin’ in your ear and your toes tappin’ to the rhythm, then you might be among the many people who danced the night away to the hit song “Celebration” when it was released in 1980.
If you were going to nightclubs then, you’re likely a senior now—and you may want to come out to the Summer Picnic Celebrating Seniors on Tuesday, June 13 from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm at The Sorrento Centre.
Everyone is welcome at this FREE event—especially seniors and all those who one day will become one.
Hosted by the South Shuswap Community Response Network (SSCRN), the picnic offers something for everyone throughout the day: food, prizes, lawn games, music, entertainment, information booths, and more. At 10:30, the Seniors’ Health & Wellness Institute will present a short workshop: Keeping Seniors Safe. At this optional workshop, participants will learn how to identify suspicious signs and symptoms of abuse and neglect, and they will review potential causes, intervention techniques, and where to find help. Then, after a picnic lunch and some cake, an Elder and storyteller from the Little Shuswap Lake band will share ancient wisdom about aging.
The event’s purpose is to have some fun while celebrating seniors and Elders for their integral role in keeping our South Shuswap communities vibrant. Whether they’re running businesses, delivering essential services, operating farms, volunteering thousands of hours, managing projects, presenting the arts, raising children, or offering wisdom, seniors and Elders enhance our lives.
So, it’s time to celebrate these fabulous folks—and also to raise awareness about something more serious: abuse of older adults in the South Shuswap.
In our friendly communities, it’s sometimes hard to imagine that seniors suffer mistreatment, but the SSCRN originated because the South Shuswap needed a coordinated response to abuse, neglect, and self-neglect in vulnerable adults—including seniors.
Some sobering facts published on the World Elder Abuse Awareness Day website demonstrate how pervasive the problem is:
1 in 2 people are prejudiced against older people (Global Report on Ageism, World Health Organization)
1 in 5 Canadians say older people are a burden on society (Report on Ageism, Revera, 2012)
1 in 6 people age 60+ are victims of elder abuse (World Health Organization)
An estimated 7.5% of Canadians age 55+ experience abuse (Into the Light National Survey on the Mistreatment of Older Canadians, National Initiative for the Care of the Elderly, 2015)
Nearly 80% of seniors report age discrimination in healthcare (Report on Ageism, Revera, 2012)
For more information, see www.weaad.ca.
Coinciding with World Elder Abuse Awareness Day and BC Seniors Week, the picnic will be a fun and inclusive way to celebrate seniors and Elders in our communities and to raise awareness of discrimination and abuse against them, so we ultimately can stop it. After all, human rights don’t get old.
The South Shuswap Community Response Network (SSCRN) launched in 2022 to create a coordinated community response to abuse, neglect, and self-neglect in vulnerable adults. The Sorrento Centre serves as SSCRN’s community hub and first point of contact for people in Blind Bay, Eagle Bay, Notch Hill, Sorrento, Sunnybrae, Tappen, White Lake, and surrounding area. The Sorrento Centre also hosts SSCRN prevention and education programs. For more information, see the BC Community Response Networks website at bccrns.ca or contact SSCRN by email at CRN@sorrentocentre.ca or by phone at 250-675-2421.
Sorrento Centre - Rose Garden (photo credit Ashleigh McNear)
