Sixteen community-centred groups and projects geared toward helping improve the quality of life of senior citizens have received funding up to $25,000 to continue their efforts.
The Age-Friendly Community Grants Program’s latest round of recipients was announced by Seniors Minister Leo Glavine Thursday morning.
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With one of the oldest populations in the country, Glavine said, the Nova Scotia provincial government has put an emphasis on supporting seniors.
“We want to be a leader in the country,” Glavine explained. “This is one of those initiatives that can help foster and help our communities come alive.”
The announcement was made at the Dartmouth North Community Food Centre, which is being provided with $10,000 to fund their programs.
Those programs include an urban farm, peer-led assistance, kitchen skill building and much more.
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It’s a place those in need can go to help themselves, their neighbours, or just get a healthy meal.
“People are retiring and just looking for something to do,” explained Amanda Nickerson, who works at the centre.
“We’re like, ‘give them either a chef’s knife or a backhoe to work around here,'” she joked.
Nickerson said that whenever new people start at the centre, it’s only a short amount of time before they’re impacted by what they have going on.
“Sometimes in their head space it’s not ‘what can I give anymore?’ it’s ‘how can I keep going?'” She explained. “They come here and realize that, ‘oh, I have so much more to offer, I have those skills that are never going to be shown to anybody else if I don’t show them.'”
“Everything from how to crochet and canning produce,” Nickerson said. “Things that we’re actually losing because it’s not being shared across generations anymore.”
It’s help that is reciprocated, Nickerson said..
“It’s really heartwarming to see a senior come in here for the first few times and then all of a sudden they’re coming in here with a family and they’re an honourary grandmother,” she said.
The province plans to give out around $200,000 on top of the $160,000 provided in this round of grants.
The deadline for community groups to apply is February 1.
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