Retired...or ReWired? Episode 9: Work and Volunteering

9.  Work and Volunteering:

In this episode we discuss inding work and finding help with Elders in Action, and we talk about age discrimination with Jeannette Liardi,

Barbara Bernstein, Executive Director, Elders in Action

Overview of Elders in Action---the various programs, community connections.

The Personal Advocate Program

Challenges for elderly in Portland.

The Business-Friendly Program

JoAnn Herrigel, Deputy Director

Housing:  the crisis and how your org is addressing it.

Volunteer and civic engagement.

The legislative process:  key players in the legislature, important issues, ways to get involved.

Jeanette Liardi

“I am a Portland, Ore.--based social gerontologist and community educator who presents insightful and engaging workshops to older adults and to professionals and the general public about such older adult issues as brain fitness, creativity, ageism, boomer marketing, intergenerational communication, and formal and informal caregiver support. Through these efforts, I am slowly changing perceptions about the aging process and helping people appreciate elders’ inherent dignity, wisdom, and unique value as mentors and catalysts for social change. I also teach expressive writing workshops and courses (e.g., journaling, storytelling, memoir writing, personal mythmaking) to various audiences (e.g., youth, caregivers, older adults, religious groups, cardiac rehab patients, the bereaved) as well as to business and health-care professionals. My successful classes have allowed participants to discover their personal values, expand their creativity, and manage their stress. You can see the kinds of offerings I have created by visiting my website, www.jeanetteleardi.com. There you can also see testimonials from previous clients about my work.” 

Discussion Points:

• What is ageism, and how does it affect our society?
• Do you think that ageism is any more prominent in a youth-centered culture like Portland?
• Why did you make ageism the central focus of your work?
• Social attitudes toward age and the elderly are negative.  Isn’t this inevitable?
• What do these terms mean:  Positive aging and. anti-aging?
• Is ageing an illness or disease? 
• If so, will there be a remedy for it someday?.