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Eastern Carolina Council Area Agency on Aging (ECCAAA) will hold its second annual regional conference, “Living Wise and Aging Well in Eastern Carolina,” on March 6 – 8, 2012 at the New Bern Riverfront Convention Center.
It is increasingly difficult for aging service providers to travel to state and national conferences because of tight budgets and smaller staffs. Therefore, it is our goal to bring information from state and federal agencies to the local level. This year’s conference will feature more workshops and offer pre-conference intensives for providers. Workshops will address Medicare issues, sustaining health promotion programs for older adults, avoiding scams, healthy aging and senior nutrition programs, grandparents raising grandchildren, culture change, aging and driver safety, and many more.
In addition, the “Living Wise and Aging Well” conference will feature interesting workshops for consumers such as researching genealogy at your local library, active outings, positive aging: fitness for the brain, and hoarding. “This year we are reaching out to the older adult consumer. Based on the feedback from last year, we developed workshops related to their requests, and we think they will be very pleased,” says Tonya Cedars, Director, Area Agency on Aging.
The keynote speakers for the conference include Dennis Streets, Director NC Division of Aging and Adult Services; Kevin Robinson, Deputy Commissioner, Senior Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP); and Rodney Kemp, Storyteller and Crystal Coast Historian. The conference is open for everyone including professionals, older adult consumers, caregivers, and advocates.
Eastern Carolina Council Area Agency on Aging is part of a national network of organizations established to respond to the needs of older adults. ECCAAA plans, coordinates, and develops services for adults aged 60 or greater, family caregivers of older adults, and older adults living in long term care facilities according to mandates in the Older Americans Act.
Our agency strives to secure, promote, and provide essential services to enhance the quality of life in a changing society. We meet this challenge through advocacy, coordination, building alliances, and promoting public awareness guided by integrity, vision, and sustained commitment. We serve nine counties including Carteret, Craven, Duplin, Greene, Jones, Lenoir, Onslow, Pamlico, and Wayne.
For more information or to register for the conference call the AAA at 252-638-3185 ext 3015 or visit our website.
Submitted by: Jillian Hardin, Aging Specialist, Eastern Carolina Council Area Agency on Aging, 233 Middle Street, New Bern, NC