March is Social Work Month and at LiveOn NY, we celebrate our members who are essential to the work we do in making New York a better to age. Throughout the pandemic, social workers in the human services sector have been on the frontlines working tirelessly to ensure all New Yorkers have the support they need. Here are quotes from some of our members on what moved them to become social workers and their experience as an essential worker.
Today, LiveOn NY announced a partnership with the Reframing Aging Initiative, which is a multi-year strategy to counteract ageism and improve the way policymakers, stakeholders, and the public think about aging and older people.
LiveOn NY unequivocally opposes the continued, systemic attacks on older adults in need of assistance, namely low-income seniors, immigrants, communities of color and other marginalized populations.
At LiveOn NY, we work hard to make sure that the public hears about the issues affecting older New Yorkers, as well as the incredible momentum that exists as we grow old. To this aim, we are proud of each and every time we are able to share this narrative with the press and our local communities.
Among other challenges, the ability to remain fed, access to community-based supports, and an insufficient technology infrastructure were some of the primary issues facing older adults during the pandemic. Further, efforts to mitigate risk of exposure to COVID-19 had the unintended consequence of exacerbating issues of isolation across our state.
Today, that very program, GetFood, which laudably worked to keep thousands of New Yorkers fed throughout the pandemic, is poised to come to a close with preparations underway for clients to transition to alternative or existing meal programs by October 15th. For the more than 16,000 older adults still receiving meals through GetFood as of August, the success of this transition will be critical to their ability to remain nourished.
LiveOn NY and Hunter College’s Brookdale Center for Healthy Aging is proud to release Aging is Everyone’s Business: Policies for Building a New York for All Ages, a comprehensive policy agenda that seeks to inspire the City’s incoming elected leaders to make New York a better, more equitable place to age.
