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Speak Up

Mark Twain once wrote that "wrinkles indicate where smiles have been."

As the population continues to age, wrinkles are one small concern that seniors have.

Hollywood has glamorized youth to the point that aging is a foreign concept easily averted by injections, surgeries and air brushing.

However, Hollywood isn't reality. In the real world, aging is something we all have to face.

Below is an excerpt from Canada's Aging Population, a report prepared by Health Canada and the Interdepartmental Committee on Aging and Seniors Issues.

"Seniors (those 65 and older) constitute the fastest growing population group in Canada. In 2001, it was estimated that 3.92 million Canadians were 65 years of age or older, two-thirds more than in 1981.

"During the same period, the overall Canadian population increased by only one quarter. The proportion of seniors in the overall population has gone from one in twenty in 1921, to one in eight in 2001. As the 'baby boomers' (born between 1946 and 1965) age, the seniors population is expected to reach 6.7 million in 2021 and 9.2 million in 2041 (nearly one in four Canadians)."

As we creep closer to these dates, much research and interest is being shown in the issues facing seniors.

One local organization, the Third Age Centre at St. Thomas University, has a mandate to identify and carry out informational workshops and lectures, to participate in research projects and to advocate on behalf of seniors.

Research has shown that as we age, not only are we blessed with "laugh lines," but we have to work harder at maintaining our physical and mental capabilities.

The Third Age Centre is an autonomous, non-profit organization who empowers seniors to maintain lifestyles that are "mentally stimulating and physically healthy."

The centre does this in a variety of ways. They are involved in the Atlantic Senior Housing Research Alliance, a project on Prescription Drug Use and Abuse, and a dialogue with the Fredericton Rachlis Group and primary health-care providers.

In addition, they offer workshops, talks and lectures, partnerships, advocacy and public education. There's also a speakers' program for local school classrooms.

Some areas of interest are housing options for seniors, food and nutrition for seniors, health issues, long-term care, end-of-life issues and fitness.

Over the past year, some of the events sponsored by the centre included: seniors and the health-care system; rights and responsibilities; International Day of Older Persons breakfast; reading and writing our lives: the poetics of growing old; stay on your feet; aging, development and compulsory retirement; senior's housing; end-of-life care; between your home and the nursing home; and various health-care related topics.

As you can see, the Third Age Centre is focused on education and information on issues that can affect many seniors and their families.

If you or someone you know might be interested in getting more information on the centre, you can contact them at Brian Mulroney Hall on the STU campus, e-mail at 3rdage@stu.ca or call 452-0526.

Aging is something we all have to face, but, in the words of Oliver Wendell Holmes, "Men do not quit playing because they grow old; they grow old because they quit playing."

Cindy Sheppard is the executive director of the Fredericton Community Foundation. Her column profiling non-profit agencies appears every second Thursday. Please send comments to letters@dailygleaner.com.