CCFL Meeting Dates

For a complete listing of all upcoming CCFL meeting dates and activities click here.

Learning Opportunities

Click here for a listing of upcoming forums and conferences throughout the region.

Conference on Aging Focuses on ãThe Upside of Agingä

ãThe Upside of Agingä÷including the market opportunities presented by baby boomers and their aging parents÷is the theme of the 2006 Senior Summit, sponsored by the Northern Michigan Conference on Aging, to be held Tuesday, April 25, in Traverse City. A key premise of the conference is that responding to boomers and their parents will be the central focus of families, communities, states, and the country for the next twenty-five years.

Dr. Ken Dychtwald, author of Age Wave and The Power Years, will present the keynote address, ãHow the Age Wave Will Transform Our Lives.ä Dychtwald, a psychologist, gerontologist, and international consultant, contends that declining fertility and increasing longevity are creating an ãage wave.ä Read more...

The Purpose Prize:
Supporting Over-60 Innovators

Over-60 social innovators have the potential to make major contributions to addressing local, national and global issues. Thatâs the premise of a new initiative being launched by Civic Ventures, a national nonprofit organization seeking to help America realize an ãexperience dividendä by redefining the second half of life as a source of social and individual renewal.

The centerpiece of the initiative is The Purpose Prize, a $100,000 grant that will be awarded annually to five social entrepreneurs to support their work in addressing critical social issues. Unlike most prizes awarded to older adults, however, The Purpose Prize is not a lifetime achievement award, but a ãdown paymentä on what these 60-plus innovators will do next, according to Civic Venturesâ web site announcement of the prize. Read more...

Transitions and the Power of Groups

One of the recommendations of the CCFL Social and Civic Engagement work group calls for ãlife transitions and retirement planningä opportunities using a peer leader approach. As Creating Communities for a Lifetime moves into the implementation stage, thereâs a role for many Kent County organizations, small and large, in offering these opportunities. Three approaches include longevity groups, circles of trust, and transition talks. Read more...

Mobility Study Gives Voice to Older Adults

Q. Which of these factors would influence more than half of older adults to use public transportation more regularly:

___ The stops were at locations that offered senior discounts?
___ There was a guide available to answer their questions?

A. Both. In fact, 68 percent of older people say bus stops located near sites where they can get senior discounts would influence them to ride the bus, while 60% say having a guide would make a difference, according to a Harris Interactive survey last November of 404 people age 65 and more. Read more...

Welcome Back to Fitness

The International Council on Active Aging (ICAA) is offering a free toolkit, Welcome Back to Fitness, aimed at helping older adults become more active. Available at the ICAA website,the toolkit covers topics such as questions to ask your doctor about exercising, tips on how to become more active, and checklists for evaluating age-friendly personal trainers and fitness facilities. A health tips section provides tools for self-assessment and tracking progress. Read more...