COCHRANE— Family and Community Support Services, in partnership with the Town of Cochrane and Mayfair Diagnostics is hosting a week of activities from June 7 – 13 in celebration of Senior’s Week.
“We know it’s kind of been a tough year for everybody, and we thought now more than ever we need something positive to look forward to and a way to celebrate our seniors,” said Hillary Cornelius Stormon, community liaison and programmer with Family and Community Support Services. “Senior's Week is all about recognizing and celebrating that older adults make to our community, so we really wanted to focus on way that people can participate, focus on doing something that’s good for their wellbeing and doing something together.”
Cornelius Stormon said they had to get creative while planning seniors week this year as everything is being done online.
“We’re doing everything virtually, but we also want it to be accessible. We’ve partnered with the library and they’re able to help people who maybe don’t have access to technology,” she said.
She explained that the Cochrane Public Library has offered to help support seniors who need a hand accessing many of the activities.
Technical support is also available at Family and Community Support Services as well.
“They’re the ones who have built and strengthened our community and really made it what it is today. They’re a very vital part of our community, they make it vibrant, they play many different roles, they’re workers and players, mentors, friends, grandparents, parents,” she said. “We really want to be celebrating them and their presence.”
This year, given the strenuous year everybody has had, Family and Community Support Services wanted to focus on well-being, physical and mental health, Cornelius Stormon said.
One such event, she said, is a workshop on achieving balance in the second half of life.
“That one is really about challenging some of the negative thoughts about getting older, and how do we create a more balanced, meaningful and fulfilling life, and focus on the positives of aging,” she said. “There can be a lot of misconceptions around aging as well, and it doesn’t have to be a negative process. It can really be about thriving in older age and really about growing and continuing to grow and living a fulfilling life.”
She said they also wanted to focus on the history of the area as well.
Family and Community Support Services has partnered with the Stockmens Memorial Foundation, Storytelling Alberta and First Nations partners to host storytelling events throughout the week.
“We really wanted to focus on well-being right now, we know everybody is kind of needing a little bit of a pickup,” she said. “We really wanted to focus this year on building people up, promoting wellness, while honoring our history and the people who came before us.”
There are prizes available at several of the events throughout the week.
People can participate in the week’s events online, or over the phone. Family and Community Support Services is asking everyone who wants to participate to register before the events.
When you register, you will be sent the information you need to tune into the Senior’s Week festivities.
To find out more about the week visit cochrane.ca/seniorsweek/ or call Family and Community Support Services at 403-851-2250.
