Western Massachusetts residents and lawmakers are calling on state leaders to strengthen elder services in Berkshire County, where about half of the population is over the age of 65.
State Secretary of Health & Human Services Marylou Sudders and Secretary of Elder Affairs Alice Bonner visited Elder Services of Berkshire County Wednesday to hear ideas for making Massachusetts age-friendly.
Their stop in Pittsfield was part of their new responsibility on the Council to Address Aging in Massachusetts, which Sudders says was established in April by Governor Charlie Baker’s executive order.
“The governor created the council to really engage with all of our communities to discuss how to ensure optimal aging for all of us,” Sudders says.
Listening sessions were also held in Worcester, Gloucester and Hyannis to answer policymaking questions.
“What factors make your community a great place to grow older? How can we support families that include one or more older adults? How can we promote more human connectedness? What are the top two issues or concerns that create barriers? How can we celebrate innovation – so, like, what are the gems out there, the things we can do to really support innovation? How can we change public perceptions about as we all age and want to age gracefully,” Sudders says.
Judging by the wall to wall people there to speak to the council, many were concerned they or their neighbors may not be aging so gracefully.
Elder Services of Berkshire County is one of 26 organizations across the state that form a network to assist the growing elderly population. Executive Director John Lutz says it’s not easy.
“We serve all 32 towns, all 946 square miles and we are thrilled to do it, and…,” Lutz says.
“How many square miles was that?” Sudders asks.
“946, so we are part of the state of Massachusetts for those that came from the east. We just have to remind you of that sometimes. We are out here paying taxes, those kinds of thing,” Lutz says.
And although he was joking, Lutz’s point was welcomed by State Representative Tricia Farley-Bouvier, who says the region is in dire need of funding.
“Sometimes it feels like as if the funding opportunities and the opportunities for initiatives get stuck, stuck, at I-91,” Farley-Bouvier says.
Lutz says there is growing concern about the physical, social and emotional isolation many older people face.
“An enhanced transportation grid coupled with a state-of-the-art technology infrastructure and service could revolutionize the experience of aging in place in hard-to-reach rural areas such as Berkshire County,” Lutz says.
Lutz points to the region’s spotty broadband internet as an example.
Wayne Dore, chairman of the Western Massachusetts Association of the Deaf/Hearing Impaired, says many regions like Berkshire County only have one, maybe two, elder centers —which often don’t have resources for people with disabilities. Dore spoke through an American Sign Language interpreter
“Where are the deaf and hard of hearing individuals, where do they go?” the interpreter says for Dore.
Dore called for funding for interpreters.
Many at the meeting also said residents just aren’t aware of what services are available. Karen Gold of the Berkshire Alzheimer’s Partnership knows that too well.
“As I usually describe it when I go out in public: We are the greatest small voluntary community organization that no one has ever heard of,” Gold says.
Others in the crowd were seeking more ambulance services, access to adult education, and care for adults with autism and dementia.
