Burlington Seniors' Advisory Committee Meeting

Minutes

Meeting #:
Date:	Monday, May 30, 2022
Time:	10:00 A.m. - 12:00 P.m.
Location:	Virtual

---

1.

Members Present:

John Kalbfleisch (Chair), Nancy Gilbert, Peter Buckley, Margaret Doma, Kerry McGregor, Sara Elkabany, Ron Minaker, Deepak Sharma

2.

Member Regrets:

Bob Chepyha, Heather Westhaver

3.

Others Present:

Jim Thurston (Halton Older Adult Advisory Committee), Mandy Kerr (Supervisor of Recreation-Adult Programs), Kristin Sprukulis (Clerk)

4.

Land Acknowledgement

John read the Land Acknowledgement

5.

Declarations of Interest:

None.

6.

Approval of Minutes:

6.1

Approval of the minutes from the meeting held April 25, 2022

On motion, the minutes from the meeting held April 25, 2022, were approved as presented. 

7.

Delegation(s):

7.1

Jim Thurston, Halton Older Adult Advisory Committee

Jim Thurston, Chair of the Halton Older Adult Advisory Committee shared the following information:

• Due to the municipal election OAAC will be taking a break in June, and then recruiting new members when the new council has been elected. Resumption of meetings will occur in 2023. 
• Acclaim Health came to committee to provide information about what they do and how they provide for the community. They help over 25,000 people each year, and have 600 staff. They provide dementia care, education, memory care, nursing support, companion support, fall prevention, bereavement support and more. More information can be found here. 
• The Director of Halton Housing spoke about PACE (Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly). This program is based on a program out of Detroit, Michigan. It is a unique health care plan for older adults. At 410 John St there is the first project for PACE and the idea is to have all things that an older adult would need in one building. The intent it to develop small communities that will have all of these services. 
• The Halton Region puts together an Older Adults Directory and fast fact sheets for the community. The goal was to have these all updated before the term ended and they are now available. To order these call 311. For online access please visit their webpage. 

8.

Regular Items:

8.1

Updates from Recreation, Community and Culture

Mandy Kerr, Supervisor of Recreation-Adult Programs, shared the following information:

• The City of Burlington used to have most older adult programs centralized in one location, but it became apparent the community wanted more neighbourhood hubs for recreation. There are now numerous older adult locations including Brant Hills, Tansley Woods, Mainway, Mountainside, Haber, Central, Burlington Seniors Centre, all pools and arena locations, Tyandaga golf course and the cultural piece at Burlington Performing Arts Centre. There will also be more programs at Skyway Community Centre once those updates have been completed. As of right now, due to construction, Mountainside Community Centre is closed to adult and older adult programs. 
• This past weekend was the registration launch for adult and older adult programs. Participation is slightly down due to the summer and residents getting used to coming back in person. Registration information can be found here.
• PR (Parks and Recreation) Camp is starting soon. This is a process on what the future will look like for recreation planning. There is going to be heavy engagement to help guide the programs and infrastructure for the future. 
• Acclaim Health and Community Development Halton will be having ice cream socials on the following dates and locations:
  • June 1: 513 Walkers Line
  • June 6: 5250 Pinedale Ave
  • June 8: 4100 Longmoore Dr
  • June 24: 540 Plains Road
• June is the Month of Play, including Seniors' Month. Attached is the calendar of events that includes some, but not all programs. Many of the programs are low cost or no cost options. 
• The city partnered with Cycling Without Age (see attached poster), where a group of volunteers will run a Trishaw that allows older adults to have a ride on an electric bike. This will be offered at the Burlington Seniors' Centre on June 13 from 11am to 3pm, and you can register by calling 905-523-8496 ext. 5179.
• Question: Will the Bateman School include an older adults aspect? There are some spaces that will work well for adult programming, however very little is known about this project as of right now. 
• Question: Are there opportunities for North Burlington? We have worked with communities in Lowville before, but there was not a lot of uptake. Happy to try new programming again. 

8.2

Flag Raising- September 29

Kristin shared that the Flag Raising for Seniors' Day will be on September 29 at 9am with the Mayor. 

8.3

Farmer's Market Update

John shared that this Farmer's Market idea was in association with the Burlington Accessibility Advisory Committee, but it is no longer taking place. 

8.4

Seniors' Month at the Library

Kristin shared that the library has many events for Seniors' Month. Information and how to register can be found on their webpage here. Or call the library at 905-639-3611.

Question: Will there be different levels of computer basics at the library? As of right now there are computer basics and Microsoft Word I and II, but no information on Powerpoint, Excel, etc. Kristin will inquire further. 

Question: How are communications provided to residents about these events? Online webpages, hard copy can be mailed, the information is sent out to senior serving organizations and retirement residents, as well as media releases are provided if it is a larger event. Word of mouth and community partner list such as churches and faith groups are very helpful. 

Question: Are programs offered in different languages? Not as of right now. There is language instruction and assistance if translation is needed. Looking at larger municipalities who do this and hope to be able to provide this at some point. 

8.5

Accessible Improvements and Hearing Loops Info Session Recap

John provided an update on the accessible improvements and hearing loops session held at the Burlington Seniors Centre in May. 

• There is a system that connects to the microphone in the room and there is a hearing loop in the ceiling. These work with hearing aids and cochlear implants. If using an older hearing aid an audiologist will need to program the hearing aid so that this frequency is picked up. For those without hearing aids there is a transmitter about the size of an iPhone that residents can put earphones into and everything can be heard through that. Currently only have 12 of these devices, but looking to re-invest in more. 
• These loops were installed at customer service at the Seniors Centre, Haber, Tansley Woods, Brant Hills and Mountainside. Many rooms in the Seniors Centre are also hearing loop enabled. 

8.6

Canadian Association for Retired Persons (CARP) information regarding Elections

John shared information regarding CARP (Canadian Association for Retired Persons):

• Next month we will have the Chair of the Halton chapter of CARP join the meeting.
• CARP puts out a monthly action letter. Canada needs to become more serious about older Canadians- the pandemic has shown that there are problems and change can be made. Canadians over 85 are expected to triple in the next 25 years and the issues of home care and health care are going to be very important. 
• In the upcoming election CARP is hoping for the following issues to be addressed: funding for better home care, transofrming long term care, cutting wait times to get into Long Term Care homes and medical procedures, making vaccines more accessible and funding fitness for seniors. 

8.7

Roundtable Updates

a.

Burlington Public Library

No updates at this time. 

b.

Burlington Accessibility Advisory Committee

John shared the following information from the Burlington Accessibility Advisory Committee (BAAC):

• A presentation was provided regarding the installation of accessible swings in Central Park. These swings allow for residents in a wheelchair to swing easily and safely and a caregiver can easily push the swings. 
• May 29 to June 4 is National Accessibility Week. 
• The Farmer's Market event has been put on hold for the time being. 

c.

Burlington Inclusivity Advisory Committee

No updates at this time.

d.

Integrated Transportation Advisory Committee

Peter shared the following information from the Integrated Transportation Advisory Committee (ITAC):

• June is Bike Month in Burlington. There are giveaways, safety and education seminars, and ways to log your bike rides. More information on this month, the activities, contacts and giveaways can be found here. 
• Many people are using bikes recreationally instead of for actual errands and work. There is a cultural shift and hoping to change this. But it can be frightening to ride- need more visibility, education and something on the bike lanes to be a hindrance, not just paint. 

9.

Other Business:

None. 

10.

Adjournment: 11:20 a.m.