Commission Focus Topics

2023 Community Engagement Focus

The commission spent most of the year holding public events related to the update of the Aging Readiness Plan (ARP or plan). You can learn more about the ARP and the update project here.

For the final four months of the year, the commission chose to focus on community engagement and begin moving forward two priority strategies from the ARP related to this topic.

From the Healthy Communities chapter, the Commission chose strategy HC-4.4: Educate older adults and caregivers on information and resources provided by the Area Agency on Aging and Disabilities of Southwest Washington, or AAADSW. This strategy received the highest number of votes overall for the plan as a whole in the priority strategy workshop.

And, from the Civic Involvement chapter, the Commission chose strategy CI-1.1: Team with the Area Agency on Aging and Disabilities of Southwest Washington (AAADSW), Neighborhood Associations, and other partner agencies to share and distribute best practices for reaching older adults.

The Commission partnered with AAADSW to implement its priority strategies this year. AAADSW is a regional agency tasked with enhancing the lives of older adults and people with disabilities within the five Southwest Washington counties. Their purpose is to promote the independence, dignity, and well-being of people with disabilities and those over the age of 60 using a coordinated system of home and community-based services. Learn more about resources that AAADSW can provide in this document.

Three interactive moderated “fireside chats” were conducted with community experts, including:

A dialog featuring Christina Marneris from the Area Agency on Aging & Disabilities of SW WA. The discussion revolved around how AAADSW and the Commission on Aging can work together on community engagement.
A discussion with Alan DeLaTorre from Portland State University, an area expert on aging, who shared his experience with effective community engagement.
A talk with Laura Poskin, Executive Director Age-Friendly Greater Pittsburgh to learn about the creative and wide range of initiatives this age-friendly organization has pursued.