Dutchess County Office for the Aging’s
AGING NEWS
For the week of June 3rd
Golden Living . . . News for Seniors, Their Families and Caregivers
Todd N. Tancredi, Director
Dutchess County Office for the Aging
SUMMER SENIOR AND CAREGIVER TRAVEL TIPS
Making plans for travel with a senior can bring challenges for a caregiver that go above the usual travel-planning concerns – and that’s in the best of situations when you’re traveling for recreation rather than necessity.
Ideally, it will be possible to make plans many weeks in advance, but that won’t always be the case, so keep this information handy for any senior-related travel situation. One good time to plan for travel is when you’re not planning to travel. You’ll have the best opportunity to do the essential research when you’re not under pressure to complete plans by a certain date.
Before looking at destinations, the first step is to check in with your loved one’s primary care doctor, to be sure that a trip is something that everyone concerned can handle. Get a doctor’s note to explain the presence of any surgical implants or medically-necessary needles, especially if you’re flying. The Transportation Security Administration (www.tsa.gov, 1-855-787-2227, weekdays 8 a.m. – 11 p.m. Eastern time) makes notification cards available for individuals with disabilities and medical conditions.
If you’re at the bag-packing stage of vacation planning, here’s a checklist of the basics. Your specific situation may require something more.
A backup pair of prescription glasses, plus sunglasses;
Spare hearing-aid batteries;
A smartphone will come in handy, to take pictures of all identification, medical information and prescription bottles, in case of loss;
If daily medication is needed, leave it in its original containers, and do not separate medication into daily doses as is often done at home. This is essential to remember when traveling by air.
When booking a hotel room, find one on the ground floor or near an elevator. Check with your hotel that rooms promoted as being in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act have appropriate grab bars and enough space to maneuver a wheelchair;
Resist the urge to fit 12 hours of activities into an 8-hour day; if anything, leave enough free time to allow for extra breaks.
There’s no one “right” way to travel with a senior companion. Driving is logistically easier but takes the most time, while flying takes less time but requires more planning.
If you’re a caregiver for a senior and planning a much-deserved break, the Office for the Aging can help you locate resources for respite care and services for the time you’re away. Contact us using the information below.
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
Office for the Aging events schedule
See the online calendar at www.dutchessny.gov to find out more
(All events subject to change)
Mon 6/3 and Mon 6/10, 2:45 – 5:00 p.m. – OFA volunteering opportunity
We’re looking for assistance at OFA headquarters in Poughkeepsie in filling 1000 small bags with magnetic puzzle pieces, as part of an elder-abuse-prevention effort. Please call us in advance (486-2555) if you’d like to help out.
Fri 6/14, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. – OFA at World Elder Abuse Awareness Day 2019
Drumlin Hall, Dutchess Community College
Free, with required advance registration
Space is limited to 450 attendees – fewer than 60 seats left!
Call (845) 486-2555 to reserve a seat
Thu 6/20, 1 p.m. – OFA Scam Prevention Presentation
With OFA outreach coordinator Brian Jones
St. Joseph’s Church Parish Hall, 15 North Ave., Millbrook (NEW LOCATION)
ANOTHER HUDSON VALLEY HONOR FLIGHT COMING IN OCTOBER
Hudson Valley Honor Flight (www.hvhonorflight.com, (845) 391-0076) is preparing another flight to Washington D.C. for veterans of World War II, the Korean War, and terminally ill veterans of other wars, at no cost to them. The veterans get the opportunity to visit their memorials in Washington, for which they sacrificed so much.
The next Honor Flight departs from Stewart Airport in Newburgh on Saturday, October 12th. For more information and ground rules, call or visit their website.
Hudson Valley Honor Flight serves veterans from Dutchess, Ulster, Orange, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, and Sullivan Counties in New York, and will consider veterans from other neighboring counties.
“FRIENDS OF SENIORS” SEEKS VOLUNTEERS…AND GOLFERS
Friends of Seniors (9 Vassar St., 485-1277, www.friendsofseniors.biz) is a key resource for Dutchess County seniors in need of non-emergency medical transportation; shopping trips for those with no means to obtain food; visiting, companionship and respite services, and more.
Their volunteer services are much in demand, to the point where a waiting list exists for some services. You could have a role in eliminating that waiting list, by volunteering for Friends of Seniors.
Volunteers’ hours are flexible, excess insurance coverage is provided for when a client is in your vehicle, and for volunteer drivers mileage is reimbursed at 30 cents per mile.
To step up and help Friends of Seniors, contact them using the information above.
Friends of Seniors is also hosting its second annual “Driving for Seniors” golf tournament on Monday, June 10th at McCann Memorial Golf Course (155 Wilbur Blvd., Poughkeepsie). As of this week there were a handful of spaces still available.
It’s a four-player team scramble with a 9:00 a.m. shotgun start. Registration is $135 per golfer and includes 18 holes with cart, complimentary beverage carts, continental breakfast, lunch at the turn, a dinner and awards ceremony at Christo’s, closest-to-the-pin and long-drive contests, team awards, raffles and a 50-50. Every player will have a chance at a $25,000 hole-in-one, with one player having a chance for a $1 million (20 year annuity) hole in one.
Call 485-1277 for more information on either volunteering, the golf tournament…or both.
Other aging news online:
This week marks 75 years since the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II, and the son of filmmaker George Stevens has unearthed some color footage his father took: https://bangordailynews.com/2019/05/30/news/nation/rare-color-footage-brings-d-day-memories-alive-75-years-on/
More on this year’s D-Day observances here: https://www.airspacemag.com/military-aviation/mission-over-normandy-180972145/
That recipe for “homemade sunscreen” you may have seen online…is likely to cause sunburn itself: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/the-homemade-sunscreen-you-find-on-social-media-is-a-recipe-for-sunburn?utm_source=atlantic&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR0bXMSjg-3UXF32pX5ap7lTbTy6CEx184rh4OeE8E4xTVxm50p3ZwKZcxg
The former manager of the late comics legend Stan Lee was arrested late last month on elder-abuse charges: https://www.apnews.com/1b056b3a0ad847f6829693f1a0dcc234?fbclid=IwAR1xI7qdaRoEcpCFktS1aYaRKbqLjeSavYAN1CsHIznIPxtQBlEwb_aWJ3s
It’s never too late to get your high school diploma, even if you’re 94. Or 95: https://denver.cbslocal.com/2019/05/29/george-anita-ramirez-graduate-manual-high-school-denver/?fbclid=IwAR2y8QgyzwS9QspZbHQKRdUDOndEictZ_zPo8x7FhXPxTDR6gFMyjtT9CCs
This week in senior birthdays:
6/3: Golfer Hale Irwin (74)
6/4: Therapist/author Dr. Ruth Westheimer (91)
6/5: Journalist Bill Moyers (85)
6/6: Astronaut David Scott (Apollo 9 and 16): 87
6/7: Director/producer/screenwriter James Ivory (91)
6/8: Actor/comedian Jerry Stiller (92)
6/9: Sportscaster Dick Vitale (80)
And a Bad Joke to send you off:
My friend keeps telling me to cheer up. He says things like “It could be worse; you could be stuck underground in a hole full of water.”
I know he means well.
Brian Jones
Outreach Coordinator
Dutchess County Office For the Aging
Main office: (845) 486-2555
Direct line to my desk: (845) 486-2544
NEW ADDRESS
114 Delafield St., Poughkeepsie NY 12601
