Summit to focus on aging well in Whatcom County

An upcoming summit will explore ideas for creating a more supportive environment in Whatcom County for older adults and senior citizens.

On Friday, September 27, the first Aging Well Whatcom Summit will take place from 8:30 to 11 a.m. at Northwood Hall, 3240 Northwest Avenue in Bellingham. Sponsored by the Chuckanut Health Foundation (CHF), the event will be an opportunity for policymakers, nonprofits, social service agencies, donors and other stakeholders to exchange ideas for creating an optimal environment in Whatcom County for aging well.

“Our hope is that getting all these people together will generate excitement, new ideas and possibly new programs or a new vision,” said CHF executive director Heather Flaherty.

Flaherty said that her team at CHF has spent 18 months reviewing best practices and research from around the world. They also conducted surveys and listening tours with older adults in the community. Based on all that work, they came up with six areas of recommendations that will be discussed at the summit.

The six areas of recommendations include connecting youth and older adults to spend time together, affordable housing, transportation and healthcare and wellness. Another theme is information and navigation – transitioning from a complex system to a one-stop shop for community resources.

CHF also hopes to achieve a larger cultural shift. “We are hoping to shift the conversation from aging being a burden to aging being an asset,” said Flaherty. “As a culture globally, we value youth but we don’t value aging.”

Following the summit, CHF plans to encourage the development of new programs and resources for supporting elders in Whatcom County. CHF will review program proposals to possibly fund some of them in the future, said Flaherty.