Age-friendly movements can take shape in all sorts of ways, often steered by government entities, nonprofit organizations or academic institutions.
In Bernards Township, a budding new age-friendly community initiative is led by the leaders of a local YMCA in partnership with the local government.
Officials from the Somerset Set Hills YMCA, first became aware of the value of participating in age-friendly community work after attending a Y conference in Chicago on the topic, said Lisa Pensabene, the Y’s senior director of wellness.
Soon after hearing about the new state grant program, Brenda Crespo, the Y’s director of grants, collaborated with Mayor Ana Duarte McCarthy, Bernards Township, to design a grant proposal that would incorporate age-friendly principles and practices into both the community and the Y organization.
“The motivation was to learn what more we could be doing for the seniors who come to our Y and the seniors in the extended community,” Pensabene said. “Isolation among seniors is a big issue and addressing that has been a big part of our focus.”
Bernards Township, originally formed by royal charter on May 24, 1760, is located on the eastern end of the Somerset Hills region and bounded by several notable geological features, including the Second Watchung Mountain, the Dead River swamp, the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, the Passaic River and Millington Gorge. Its 24 square miles contain parts or all or parts of several unincorporated communities and localities, including Basking Ridge, where the Somerset Hills YMCA is located.
In recent years, Bernards Township has seen an influx of senior living communities, many of whose residents are new to the area and less informed about resources in the region.
Outreach to these communities was prioritized as grant project leaders conducted focus groups and a community needs assessment survey and the Y began offering new on-site and satellite program targeted to older adults.
The Somerset Hills Y – one of seven operated by the Greater Somerset County YMCA organization – has used the feedback it received from older residents surveyed during the grant period to revamp its Healthy Aging Program, which features classes on fall prevention, water aerobics, weight-training for seniors and other exercise targeted for older adults. Also coming soon to the Y is a monthly Social Café, where members can get digital training on how to sign up for the Y’s classes and lectures, as well as an informal system of wellness checks for older members who suddenly stop showing up for their regular Y activities.
“We’re trying to promote more connections among the seniors,” Pensabene said.
Other partners in the project include the Bernards Township parks and recreation department, the local library, senior living operators and Healthier Somerset, a coalition of over 50 local organizations—including businesses, hospitals, and government agencies—collaborating to improve community health.
New Jersey Future helped the Township and Y design its community needs assessment survey, which was promoted at Township facilities and events such as Charter Day, and the Veterans’ Flag Day run, and garnered 285 responses. Some main themes that emerged were a desire for more transportation options, more walkability and more centralized communication strategies.
“I think seniors are finding it very difficult to find out what’s going on,” Pensabene said. “We need to figure out a way to put all the information that seniors need to know in one place.”
The input gleaned from the survey, focus groups and interviews will now be reviewed by an age-friendly committee in Bernards Township, whose members reflect a cross-section of older residents, municipal staff and leaders and local organizations.
“These are all residents and local leaders who have expressed a desire to keep working on age-friendly goals beyond the grant period,” Pensabene said.