ONTARIO – The creative work of the Ohio District 5 Area Agency on Aging in Ontario is showcased in a new book distributed by the American Association of Retired Persons.
The book, “Where We Live: Communities for All Ages,” is the second in the series sharing new and inspiring ways to respond to the needs of aging populations. District 5 CEO Duana Patton, Ontario Mayor Randy Hutchinson, and the rest of the Area Agency team are specifically mentioned.
“The purpose of the book was to highlight 100 communities around the nation for doing something inspiring and creative to benefit not only the population that’s age 50 and up, but also to benefit all ages,” said Ken Davis, Manager of Outreach and Volunteer Engagement for AARP Ohio.
Davis was in Ontario on Thursday to present copies of the book to Patton and Hutchinson.
The book focuses on seven areas of livability, including housing, transit, streets and sidewalks, public places and sidewalks, health and wellness, community engagement, work, volunteerism and opportunity, and arts, entertainment and fun.
The District 5 Area Agency on Aging was chosen for the book based on a program offering educational grants and scholarships of $800 to $2,500 to students who want to further their education goals in a field benefiting the aging network. Recipients of the educational grants have chosen to study nursing, occupational therapy, neuroscience and social work.
“We’re very proud of the work you’ve done, and we’re very proud of this very creative thing you’re doing with the scholarships,” Davis said. “We’re going to hope other communities around America will see the ideas in this book and will do the same.”
District 5 encompasses residents in Richland, Ashland, Crawford, Morrow, Huron, Knox, Marion, Seneca or Wyandot counties. In addition to furthering education, an older person working on volunteering for an aging-related effort can also use the funds to improve his or her skills.
Patton announced on Thursday that applications will soon be available for the next round of scholarships, in which two scholarships in the amount of $2,000 will be awarded.
“I’m always inspired by something like this, when I can read about what’s going on around the state of Ohio for the aging network, and it’s quite an honor to be part of this book with our scholarship program because it really is a community effort,” Patton said.
For more information or to order a free copy of “Where We Live,” visit AARP.org/WhereWeLive.
