The South Orange Senior Citizens Advisory Committee is hosting a town hall style meeting to address the needs of Village senior citizens on Sunday, Oct. 26, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the SOPAC Loft.
“Our committee has been working incredibly hard over the past few weeks to deliver a great program geared at senior services and aging in place in South Orange,” said Scott Egelberg, Chair of the Senior Citizens Advisory Committee. “This is an opportunity to bring everyone together, share information, and really try to understand the needs of this population and what the Village needs to do to address them.”
From 2:00pm to 2:45pm, an exhibit area will open with representatives and information from various groups that provide senior services including: South Orange Village, EIES, the Essex County Division of Senior Services, the Essex County Time Bank Exchange, Friends of the South Orange Public Library, Grandma K.A.R.E.S., the Healthy Bones Program, Homewatch CareGivers, the Jewish Community Housing Corporation of Metropolitan New Jersey/Daughters of Israel, the Retired & Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) Center of Essex and Hudson Counties, the South Orange Maplewood Adult School, the South Orange Village Center Alliance and the Village to Village Network.
At 2:45 p.m., the forum will open and representatives from the Village’s Board of Trustees, administration, and department heads will be present to provide an overview of existing services, answer questions, and receive feedback on senior services improvements. The formal program will conclude at 4:15 p.m. and attendees are encouraged to network and visit exhibitors until 5:00 p.m.
“The Board of Trustees, our administration and staff are really excited about this forum,” said Sheena Collum, Trustee Liaison to the SCAC. “We know how important it is to hear directly from those we’re trying to serve and hopefully a lot of people will come out and we can turn the feedback we receive into action steps for the upcoming year. Whether it be transportation needs, access to information, age-restricted development opportunities, recreation and cultural needs, or public safety – we know there’s a lot of opportunity for the Village to do more to attract and retain our senior population.”
For those needing transportation, the South Orange Parking Authority is offering jitney services to and from the event. To schedule the service, call the Baird Center by Saturday (10/25) at 973-378-7754 and dial 1 when the menu starts. Leave your name, address and phone number and SOPA will be in touch regarding the schedule for Sunday.
For those unable to attend the event, a video of the forum and will be made available on southorange.org website. No RSVP is necessary and light refreshments will be served.
