Editor's Desk

Editor’s Desk (05-13-2021) with Connie McMullen:

Segment 1) Barry Gold, Director of Government Relations for AARP Nevada.

Barry Gold, Director of Government Relations for AARP Nevada, talks about bills affecting seniors and people with disabilities moving through the 81st Legislative Session.

Segment 2) Paco Lachoy, Acting City of Reno Senior Citizen Advisory Committee Chair.

Paco Lachoy, Acting City of Reno Senior Citizen Advisory Committee Chair, talks about Older Americans Month in May and the activities that are occurring throughout the month. He also discusses the programs that are now open at all Reno Park and Recreation Facilities now that the pandemic is easing down.

The post Older Americans Month May first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.

Editor’s Desk (04-07-2021) with Connie McMullen:

Segment 1) Anne Pott.

The next 14 min is Anne Pott talking about Parkinson’s Disease and her 4 part series in SeniorSpectrum, on behalf of the Continuum. April is Parkinson’s Disease Month. There is a lot to learn especially from Michael J Fox who has been an advocate and role model.

Segment 2) Ex. Dir. Fayth Ross, Urban Roots.

The next interview in the Ex. Dir. Fayth Ross of Urban Roots, a community farm-grown behind Renown Medical Center. Urban Roots works to teach youth about vegetables, how to grow and eat them. It is expanding the program to people of all ages. Urban Roots is located at 1700 E. 2nd Street, in Reno. 775-636-5105

The post Urban Roots first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.

Editor’s Desk (03-17-2021) with Connie McMullen:

Segment 1) Augustin Jorquez, Program Dir., of the Center for Healthy Aging.

Augustin Jorquez, Program Dir., of the Center for Healthy Aging, Teach Me to Grow Healthy. Teach Me to Grow Healthy is a grant-funded project, to create a garden to grow culturally sensitive indigenous food, Native Ancestral foods that were grown and cultivated by Native Americans. Food grown will be provided to people in need through food pantries, and food bank locations.

Segment 2) Naomi Duerr, Reno City Councilmember Ward 2.

Ward 2, Reno City Councilmember Naomi Duerr. Councilwoman Duerr’s ward has many housing projects being reviewed and approved to meet the housing need. Projects include the Lakeridge Tennis Court site that includes 314 apartments, and across from the site on McCarran, the Lakeridge Town Homes, which includes 45 townhomes near Washoe Golf Course. Councilwoman Duerr also provided information on SB73, a bill being heard in the Legislature to reallocate tax revenue to fund certain services in the city that will be recommended by constituents and placed before the voter on the 2022 Election Ballot.

The post Growing Healthy and Housing first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.

Editor’s Desk (03-10-2021) with Connie McMullen:

Segment 1) Katie Pace, Ex. Director of Rebuilding Together Northern Nevada (RTNNV).

Katie Pace, Ex. Director of Rebuilding Together Northern Nevada (RTNNV). RTNNV is a nonprofit that helps repair homes, revitalize communities and rebuild lives.  Today they have completed repairs for 8 homeowners in Washoe County, and have collected 50 applications for assistance.  The website is www.rebuildingtogethernnv.org.

Low-income communities

There are 10 counties served by Rebuilding Together Northern Nevada. While these communities are almost universally seeing growth, wages have not kept pace with the cost of living increases. Over 25% of jobs in Nevada are low-wage jobs where the median annual pay is below the poverty threshold for a family of four. Furthermore, the current minimum wage is $9.00, estimated to be 3x less than what’s considering a living wage in the area.

The Reno-Sparks area, Carson City, and Fernley are experiencing a housing crisis.

30% of homeowners in the Reno-Sparks area are cost-burdened — they spend more than 30% of their income on housing costs

10% are housing insecure — they spend more than 50 percent of their income on housing costs

These households are particularly vulnerable to poor housing conditions and housing displacement. It is critically important that homeowners with lower incomes be provided with resources to maintain and stay in their homes.

Aging population

Nevada’s senior population is growing, and it has unique housing needs. Seniors interested in aging-in-place may need physical modifications to their homes. In the RTNNV region, the percentage of residents aged 65 and older ranges from 10.50% to 29.8%.

Veterans at risk

Approximately 42,770 Nevada veterans live in homes with one or more major problems of quality, crowding, or cost. Affordability is the greatest housing problem among veterans.

Older structures

For most of the RTNNV region, more than half of the homes are older than 35 years. Low- and moderate-income homeowners who live in these older homes that need repairs will certainly benefit from the assistance that RTNNV can provide.

Segment 2) Donna Clontz, City of Reno Parks and Recreations Senior Services Division (Board Member) Advocate.

Northern Nevada Advocate Donna Clontz has served on several City of Reno boards, including Parks and Recreations Senior Services Division.  The City of Reno has two bills in the Legislature to help fill the gaps needed in city services.  SB11, and SB73, will raise funding in streets and roads, flood control, and parks, recreation, and open space.

The post Repairing Homes and Rebuilding Lives first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.

Editor’s Desk (02-24-2021) with Connie McMullen:

Segment 1) Amy Dewitt-Smith, Executive Director of N4, the Neighbor Network of Northern Nevada.

N4 provides programs with the “Village” approach to connect people with community-based services, volunteer opportunities, and affordable transportation. N4 is launching a new project with the help of Feonix – Mobility Rising to make transportation available to more Nevadans. The project will be launched in July to begin serving four counties in Southern Nevada. N4 will connect people with existing providers such as RTC Southern Nevada to provide more transportation services to people in need.

About The Neighbor Network of Northern Nevada (N4):

The Neighbor Network of Northern Nevada (N4) was born from the first Health Care Access Mobility Design Challenge in 2015. The 2015 Design Challenge grants were part of the Federal Transit Administration’s “Rides to Wellness” initiative, a key component of the agency’s Ladders of Opportunity program. Sixteen communities were given grants to design innovative transportation solutions related to health care access. Work on these projects was completed in March 2016.

After successfully completing the 2015 design challenge, N4 received local, state, and federal funding to further develop innovative projects and programs with its “village” approach that connects people living in Northern Nevada for inclusive, community-based services, volunteer opportunities, and affordable transportation. By valuing the assets and gifts of each community member and organization, N4 is shaping the culture in Northern Nevada to ensure everyone has full community access.

About Feonix – Mobility Rising:

Established in 2018, Feonix – Mobility Rising strives to be a leader in identifying improved mobility solutions for rural and urban communities. As a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, Feonix has guided local leaders as they develop community-led strategies to address long-term mobility challenges that threaten cherished communities. Rooted in Mobility as a Service (MaaS), Feonix helps communities and partners integrate emerging technologies into local transportation ecosystems. 

Currently, Feonix – Mobility Rising can be found supporting local communities across the country as they work to eliminate transportation inequities for their neighbors. They address threats to the social determinants of health (economic stability, education, health-care, housing, social/community context) by ensuring that a lack of transportation does not stand in the way of security across these areas of living.

The post N4 Feonix Mobility Rising first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.

Editor’s Desk (02-17-2021) with Connie McMullen:

Welcome back everyone, I’m Connie McMullen and this is Editor’s Desk.

Segment 1) Janel Davis, from the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange or Nevada Health Link.

Nevada Health Link is Nevada’s version of the Affordable Care Act (or Obama Care). By Executive Order, President Biden created a Special Open Enrollment Period which began February 15th through May 15, 2021.  The goal is to get those who are unemployed and may have lost their health insurance due to the COVID-19 virus to obtain health care.  Open Enrollment will bring in Medicaid enrollees, people who lost their employer insurance, and health care for gig workers.

Segment 2) Kat Miller, Director of the Nevada Department of Veterans Services.

The Nevada Legislature is back in session, and many bills sponsored concern our veterans. This week we heard about Assembly Bill 22, a bill to establish and maintain a transition assistance program for veterans and servicemen, and servicewomen.  Another bill is Assembly Bill 76, which will provide Adult Day Health Care for aging veterans whose families may need respite, and care during the day for loved ones living with memory issues.

Currently, there is no Adult Day Health Care program in Nevada that serves only veterans, that understands veterans’ needs and the senior culture.

Both bills will go a long way in helping our Nevada veterans find resources, assistance with the house, jobs, and health care.

The post Veterans and Health Care first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.

Editor’s Desk (02-03-2021) with Connie McMullen:

Segment 1) Sparks City Councilman Donald Abbott, talks about getting high school students to make valentines for homebound seniors on Valentine’s Day.

Segment 2) Senior Advocate Marsy Kupfersmith, talks about a new phone program to call isolated seniors and other programs in Washoe County.

Segment 3) Seniors in Service Ex. Dir. Mary Brock, talks about the kindle tablets provided to homebound seniors to communicate with family and friends. Nevadans, 60 years and older, may qualify to receive a Kindle Fire 8” Tablet free of cost. Applications can be mailed directly to those interested or downloaded from the SIS website, www.seniorsinservicenevada.org.

The post Loneliness and Kindle Tablets first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.

Editor’s Desk (01-27-2021) with Connie McMullen:

Segment 1) Dr. Mark Pandori, Nevada State Public Health Laboratory, at UNR School of Medicine, on the COVID-19 variant found in the Las Vegas Woman, from the SARS-2 Coronavirus.

Segment 2) Philip Ramirez, Chief Compliance Officer for Prominence Health Plan, talks about COVID-19, medical scams on seniors, and how to protect yourself.

The post How To Avoid Scams first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.

Editor’s Desk (01-13-2021) with Connie McMullen:

Segment 1) Kim Schweickert, Washoe County Human Services Agency, on OUR Place Coordinator, talks about the women’s and family shelter and its success in transition people to permanent housing.

Segment 2) Jane Gruner, Senior Conference Organizer. “The Engaging With Aging Conference” takes place on February 23rd, 2021. A Nevada Aging Network: Virtual Conference – A Post Pandemic Promise. For more information visit EWA2021.

The post Engaging With Aging first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.

Editor’s Desk with Connie McMullen:

Segment 1) Randi Thompson, State Director, Nevada Federation of Independent Small Businesses. Talks about the Special Session, impacts on small business, and what is expected for the 81st Legislative Session.

Segment 2) Jocelyn Lantrip, Director of Marketing, for the Food Bank of Northern Nevada, talks about how many people the food bank is serving and hope difficult it has been to meet the needs of people who are homeless for the very first time.

The post First Time Difficulties Serving the Homeless first appeared on Senior Spectrum Newspaper.