Dutchess County Office for the Aging’s
AGING NEWS
For the week of March 4
Golden Living . . . News for Seniors, Their Families and Caregivers
Todd N. Tancredi, Director
Dutchess County Office for the Aging
2019: THE YEAR PHONE SCAMS END?
The only people we know of who haven’t gotten at least one phone call from somebody trying to scam them are the people who don’t own a phone – in other words, virtually nobody.
The Office for the Aging is among the many local organizations who can help you and your community protect yourselves against phone scammers. We make scam prevention presentations available to groups throughout the county, but some general anti-scam information can be passed along in this column – especially since there’s a good chance your phone may ring with a possible scam call while you’re reading this column. That’s how common the calls can be. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) estimates that up to half of all phone calls made in 2019 could be scam attempts.
Now, for the good news. 2019 may be the last year phone scammers can operate in relative impunity, if the plans of the FCC, phone providers and manufacturers come to fruition.
In November of last year, the FCC gave phone carriers a year to come up with a robust system that would validate that a call is coming from a legitimate source. As it stands now, wrongdoers can illegally “spoof” a phone number. Spoofing is the practice of masking a real phone number with a fake phone number that appears to be from a legitimate source, making it more likely that a recipient will answer the phone and potentially fall for a scam attempt.
There is a legitimate reason why businesses and governments may mask their phone numbers, most often being that they want to show a caller a single central phone number that’s easy to remember. That’s what happens when the Office for the Aging makes calls; a caller ID will always read (845) 486-2555 when we’re calling.
But while we wait for the FCC and carriers to act, what can we do about phone scams?
The simplest answer is just two words long: don’t answer.
That’s because the scammers are trying to manipulate your emotions by scaring you, offering a prize, getting you angry, presenting an offer that looks too good to be true…anything to trick you into giving up personal information. The only way to beat them is not to play their game. As satisfying as you might think it is to read the scammers the riot act, picking up the phone tells scammers that there’s a potential target on your end of the call. The result? You get even more scam calls.
Besides, it looks like phone scammers’ days are numbered. If all goes according to plan, you’ll be able to use your phone with confidence again by Thanksgiving.
After that, we doubt the scammers will simply give up and get honest work, and that’s why we’ll continue to give continually-updated scam prevention presentations throughout Dutchess County. If your group would like OFA Outreach Coordinator Brian Jones to speak at one of your gatherings, email bjones@dutchessny.gov or call (845) 486-2555.
Golden Living is prepared by the Dutchess County Office for the Aging, 114 Delafield St., Poughkeepsie, New York 12601, telephone (845) 486-2555, email: ofa@dutchessny.gov website: www.dutchessny.gov/aging
2019 OFA EVENT SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES NOW AVAILABLE
If you manage a business that wants to reach potential customers over age 60, as well as their families and caregivers, an Office for the Aging event sponsorship is an excellent opportunity to do so.
We still have space available for our May 20th “Celebration of Aging” event in Wappingers Falls, at all twelve Summer Senior Picnics held at locations all over Dutchess County, and at the Senior Prom coming up in October.
Each event is a unique opportunity for your business to reach out to hundreds of active seniors.
For additional information, contact OFA Outreach Coordinator Brian Jones at bjones@dutchessny.gov or (845) 486-2555.
SEARCH FOR SENIORS OF THE YEAR CONTINUES
The New York State Office for the Aging estimates that there are 10,000 seniors volunteering in at least one capacity here in Dutchess County. This means that everyone reading this newsletter knows at least one senior who could be worthy of the county’s annual Senior Citizen of the Year award.
You have until Friday, March 29th to nominate the seniors you think are worthy of an award, and it’s easy to do so.
You can find a nomination form on page 4 of the winter 2018-19 “Spotlight on Seniors” newsletter, available at this link – https://www.dutchessny.gov/Departments/Aging/Docs/Spotlight-On-Seniors-Winter-2018-2019.pdf – and at libraries around the county. All the instructions you need are on the nomination form. Your nominees need only meet three requirements:
- Be a resident of Dutchess County
- Be age 60 or more
- Must not have won an OFA award in previous years
If a person was nominated in the past but didn’t win, you can nominate them again. If somebody else has nominated the person you want to nominate, that’s fine – the more, the merrier.
This year’s honorees will be chosen by a subcommittee of the OFA Advisory Board in early April, and will be honored at the May 20th “Celebration of Aging” luncheon in Wappingers Falls.
Questions? Email bjones@dutchessny.gov or call (845) 486-2555.
OFA SPRING TAI CHI CLASSES ARE FULL
We’re delighted at the interest shown in the Office for the Aging’s new Tai Chi classes which are beginning later this month in Fishkill and Poughkeepsie – but now the two classes are booked solid.
You still have an opportunity to sign up for future classes; in fact, it would be a good idea to get on the waiting list now so that you’ll improve your chances of finding a space in a class this fall.
Participants must be Dutchess County residents age 60 or above. For more information, including on how you can volunteer as a tai chi class leader, email ofa@dutchessny.gov or call (845) 486-2555.
HAVE GREETING CARDS, WILL TRAVEL
If you have unused greeting cards taking up space at home, with no plans to use them, the Office for the Aging can put them to good use. The occasion mentioned on the card doesn’t matter – it can be a birthday card, holiday card, get-well card, blank card, anything at all.
Email clefebvre@dutchessny.gov or call (845) 486-2564 to find out more.
MEDICARE AND SKILLED NURSING CONVERSATION AT THE PINES
The Pines at Poughkeepsie (100 Franklin St.) is hosting a discussion on Medicare and skilled nursing facility-related issues, with locally-based advisers Samantha and Aaron Beverley, on Monday, March 26th at 1:00 p.m.
RSVP by March 15th at (914) 506-9026. Light refreshments will be served.
In related news, the Office for the Aging also hosts monthly informational events related to Medicare, in Poughkeepsie and Rhinebeck. To find out more, check out the Calendar of Meetings and Events at the newly-redesigned county website, www.dutchessny.gov.
Other aging news online:
The senior population is growing all over New York State, and Dutchess County shows some of the highest growth rates of all…in fact, Dutchess is #1 statewide in the increase of the 85+ population: https://nycfuture.org/research/new-yorks-older-adult-population-is-booming-statewide?fbclid=IwAR3CvKoYG3vMDQqPO_ctIC7lD5PJQGWGV0H5s8A9eqWf8448mmxz3U7LDU4
New York State now provides identification cards for people with developmental disabilities. Application and requirements at this link: https://opwdd.ny.gov/opwdd_services_supports/iddidcards
A useful article for those with chronic diseases, and their caregivers: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/18/smarter-living/five-things-i-wish-i-knew-chronic-illness-crohns-disease-ibd.html?fallback=0&recId=1HeePyf0Ru8i9Jsp5d2A9EJKsai&locked=0&geoContinent=NA&geoRegion=NY&recAlloc=control&geoCountry=US&blockId=home-living-vi&imp_id=747527618&action=click&module=Smarter%20Living&pgtype=Homepage
In rural America, providing services for seniors is tremendously difficult because of geography, poverty, and younger residents moving away: http://www.wvpublic.org/post/aging-appalachia-state-programs-stretch-care-elderly-young-people-leave-state#stream/0
Free money, sort of: https://seniorplanet.org/looking-for-money-find-it-here/?mc_cid=55b7a2930b&mc_eid=4149ad7bda
This week’s senior birthdays:
3/4: Actress Paula Prentiss (81)
3/5: Actor/singer Murray Head (73)
3/6: Guitarist/songwriter David Gilmour (73)
3/7: TV personality Willard Scott (85)
3/8: Writer/Yankees pitcher Jim Bouton (80)
3/9: Former New York US senator James Buckley (96)
3/10: Actor/martial artist Chuck Norris (79)
And the Bad Joke of the week:
Q: What do you call 100 rabbits walking backwards?
A: A receding hare line.
Brian Jones
Outreach Coordinator
Dutchess County Office For the Aging
NEW ADDRESS
114 Delafield St., Poughkeepsie NY 12601
