When Angie’s husband of 42 years died suddenly in 2010, her world was shattered. “I was lost. Totally, completely lost,” says the Maple Ridge, B.C., senior. “It was like I was sitting on ice and somehow that ice broke away and I ended up floating. It was very hard to get reattached again.”
Angie was still mourning the loss of her best friend and life partner, when her own health failed. She felt isolated and utterly alone until she was referred to the Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows Community Services Society, where she got help through the United Way’s Better at Home program. Angie received assistance around the house and transportation to her doctor’s appointments, and also enjoyed some much-needed moral support and company.
When a new United Way “Active Aging” seniors program launched in 2016, she jumped in with both feet. The Let’s Walk and Roll program takes seniors on outings twice a month in what’s become affectionately known as the “party bus.” Angie has visited the pumpkin patch, celebrated Canada Day in the park, gone to the theatre during the holiday season and even attended educational seminars.
“Every time we go out, it is quite memorable,” Angie says. “Most of all, it’s the companionship and having something to look forward to. We’re together in a very safe atmosphere and we get to enjoy one another and feel like we belong. It takes us away from the loneliness, the isolation, the feeling that nobody cares.”
Research from Brigham Young University in Utah indicates that loneliness can be as bad for one’s health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. When seniors are socially isolated, they are also at increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease, depression, inactivity, falling and poor nutrition. This is why the United Way of the Lower Mainland is working hard to help keep seniors active, healthy and connected to their communities through Better at Home and through Seniors Active Aging.
Better at Home started as a pilot project in Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows and was so successful that the program, which is funded by the provincial government and managed by United Way of the Lower Mainland, is now offered at 67 program sites from Northern B.C. to the Gulf Islands. Better at Home provides seniors with non-medical supports so that they can continue to live independently in their own homes.
United Way’s Seniors Active Aging runs 16 programs like Let’s Walk and Roll in the Lower Mainland. The goal of this program is to make sure that seniors stay active as they age so that they can stay connected to others and to their communities.
“At United Way, we believe that programs for older adults in their own communities play a fundamental role in delaying the onset of late-life illness,” says Kahir Lalji, Better at Home program manager. “Physical activity, social connectedness and independence are instrumental to the overall well-being and quality of life of older adults, and supports them to age in place.”
Giving seniors the support they need to live in their homes for longer is one of the primary goals of Better at Home. This is important, Lalji says, because being independent is empowering and allows seniors to continue to contribute to the community. It also alleviates some of the pressure on the health care system. Not only that, home and community can be embedded in one’s identity and relocation can lead to a loss of an individual’s sense of self. “There’s also an opportunity for older adults to give back to their community,” Lalji adds. “The older adult population is often a pool of untapped resources. Leveraging those skills increases the capacity of communities.”
John has been volunteering at the Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows Community Services Society for more than two decades. He started after recovering from a car accident that took away his ability to work, but not his desire to contribute to the community. He started out as a volunteer driver, taking seniors grocery shopping and to appointments, and now helps out with Let’s Walk and Roll. “I get so much out of doing this. I’m alone a lot, too, so it’s been a blessing for me,” he says. “I get the companionship and the friendship, not only from the seniors, but also from the volunteers and the staff at community services— they’re just wonderful.”
Reflecting on his career as a volunteer, John says it’s been both heartbreaking and heart-lifting. Visiting seniors who don’t get out much can be particularly difficult. “I can just see their eyes light up when I come in to see them,” he says. “I do whatever I can for them and when it’s time to say goodbye, the light goes out and they’re very despondent. I know they’re going to be alone for a long time.”
Roughly one in four seniors lives alone in Metro Vancouver and that number is steadily increasing. Twenty per cent of them live in poverty, which is why the free or low-cost programs offered through the United Way are so important. John agrees that it’s not enough to just help seniors stay in their homes, they also need programs that get them off the couch and into their communities.
Let’s Walk and Roll does just that, and John is confident the program improves the physical, mental and emotional health of participants. “I enjoy seeing such a difference in these seniors,” he says. “They’ve got a new energy, a new enthusiasm and a new outlook on life with something to look forward to. They didn’t have that before and they really suffered because of it. Programs like this are needed so much and benefit so many people in so many ways.”
Angie agrees. “I’m so grateful for the program. It’s just added so much quality to my life,” she says. “After having a good time, I come home feeling satisfied. I think, gosh, I enjoyed myself. It’s very freeing.”
When these seniors are out “walking and rolling,” they’re also getting some exercise, which is imperative to their health. Only about 15 per cent of the older adult population gets enough physical activity and inactive seniors incur over 2.5 times the health care costs, which adds up to an annual cost of $5.6 billion to the Canadian health care system.
“Anything people can do to increase their level of activity ultimately improves their health,” says Joanie Sims-Gould, an assistant professor in Department of Family Practice at the University of B.C. and principal scientist on the Active Aging Research Team. “We know that physical activity reduces a whole myriad of chronic health issues. If there was one magic pill that people could take, exercise would be it.”
Sims-Gould says the group programs offered through the United Way are an excellent opportunity for seniors to improve their fitness. When she’s speaking with seniors for her research, they usually focus on the social aspects of being active rather than the physical side.
“A lot of people wouldn’t do the physical activity on their own. It’s easier in a group setting,” she says. “It’s really important for people to choose the activities that they like, so it’s terrific when there’s a range of programs in a community. It is about getting people moving, but it’s also about being social connected. These programs are essential to health and well-being.”
(To respect Angie and John’s privacy, United Way has requested that their last names not be used.)