Age My Way : What's Your Way? People Are Asking.

Age My Way is this year's theme for Older Americans Month, May 2022. Last week we told you about a survey that AARP Age My Way NC is conducting. This survey is for North Carolinians age 45+ and addresses various "domains of livability" (see image below); domains that make up a community. In order for us to imagine aging in place, or better, aging in community, we need to consider the quality of each such domain in our actual communities. The Age My Way NC Survey is designed for and about our communities. "It will help those that support the aging community be better informed on the types of needs and challenges they face." 

For Age-Friendly Buncombe County our leaders have already committed to supporting the aging community in many tangible ways. In 2017, the Commissioners supported the County in joining the WHO/AARP Network of Age-Friendly Communities. The County added $500,000 on top of the $1,500,000+ in Home and Community Care Block Grant funds for Aging Services in 2022.  Work is underway to bring the vision of an Active Aging Center to life in Buncombe County. We continue to grow our age-friendly "big tent" to include new working groups and initiatives addressing many of the domains of livability. Evidence abounds that Buncombe County is hard at work becoming "an age-friendly community where older adults are safe, well, and engaged."

In addition to completing the Age My Way NC survey to help community leaders, service providers, and others continue preparing to meet your aging in place needs, here's another opportunity for you to weigh in:

Jewish Family Services of WNC (JFS), with support from Dogwood Health Trust, is undertaking a project to explore one particular model for aging in place -- a membership program that would help its members stay connected with others, volunteer to assist others, receive referrals to and support from agencies and service providers, and get other needs met. The project is conducting a survey of people age 50+ who reside in Buncombe, Henderson, or other area WNC counties and who identify as a member of the Jewish community. If you meet this description, please complete their survey, linked here. 

You may be familiar with aging in place membership models that are organized around a neighborhood, such as the Beacon Hill Village. Well, the JFS project is exploring whether an affinity group, in this case those of a particular faith group rather than a group within physical proximity to one another, may be a viable approach to a membership aging in place model for Western North Carolina. 

So, as you continue to envision our Age-Friendly Community, what features of it will best allow you to Age Your Way? Tell us! Both surveys are linked again here:

Age My Way NC Survey

JFS Aging in Place Survey