AARP in Your Community - Pittsburgh

Franck Boston

 

This spring has been a busy month for AARP Pennsylvania staff and volunteers across the Commonwealth. As the weather warmed up, so did activities in Pittsburgh. In addition to carrying on our community service work through volunteers, AARP has continued its partnership with key stakeholders on initiatives to ensure that Pittsburgh is a livable community for all. AARP has also been active on caregiver issues and fraud prevention. Here's just a sample of what AARP has been up to in Pittsburgh:

 

Action Planning for Home and Community Based Care

On April 21, representatives from 50 organizations, including AARP, met to continue developing an Action Plan for Caregiving and Home and Community Based Care in Pittsburgh. This plan development could help older Pittsburgh residents remain at home and in their communities for as long as possible.

Shred Fest 2016

On April 25, AARP hosted a shredder event at the Ross Township Building – more than 450 cars brought old paper records to be shredded, generating more than 17,500 pounds of shredded material.

Shred Fest 2016 took place in almost 40 states across the nation in order to help people protect themselves from identify theft. Pittsburghers were invited to bring unwanted documents containing sensitive or personal information and watch them be shredded. This free event drew a tremendous crowd and kept the shred trucks grinding for four straight hours. AARP staff and volunteers were hard at work helping with boxes of documents, and encouraging people to sign up for AARP Fraud Watch Network to learn more about how to protect oneself from fraudsters.

 

Department of Aging Testimony

In May, the Pennsylvania Department of Aging held the first two of three scheduled hearings on the 2016-2020 State Plan on Aging, which must be submitted to the federal government as required by the Older Americans Act.  AARP volunteer Connie Kovka testified at a Department of Aging hearing in Pittsburgh on May 18. She spoke about the State Plan on Aging, discussing the need for greater attention to caregiving issues in the State Plan.

Any member of the public was invited to present a five minute statement to the Secretary of Aging and other Department of Aging officials. AARP Pennsylvania volunteers Connie Kovka and Jim Palmquist each testified at a hearing, focusing on different aspects of the State Plan. At the May 18 hearing in Pittsburgh, Kovka discussing the need for a greater emphasis on family caregiver issues.

To learn more about this issue, click here.

 

Pittsburgh Open Streets

AARP PA participated in the first of three Open Streets Pittsburgh events on May 29, focusing on making Pittsburgh a more livable community.  AARP volunteers and staff hosted an information booth where they engaged with many of the 25,000 attendees to ask Pittsburghers what they thought would make Pittsburgh a more age-friendly city.

The next Open Streets Pittsburgh event  will be held on Sunday, June 26, 2016 from 9AM – 1PM. Join AARP PA in Market Square in downtown Pittsburgh for some fun and to learn what we’re doing in the community!

 

Missed out on these events but want to stay connected? Like us on Facebook to learn about upcoming events in your area.