BrooklineCAN Blog

New housing for seniors is coming to Brookline. A virtual forum sponsored by BrooklineCAN on September 10 at 6 pm will look at the new housing developments for seniors that are in the works in Brookline. Jennifer Molinsky of the Harvard University Joint Center on Housing will provide the context by speaking on “Housing America’s Older Adults.”

The panel will include:
  – Mike Jacobs, chair of the Brookline Housing Authority speaking about plans for replacement and expansion of the Col. Floyd development.

 – Rhonda Glyman of Center Communities will speak about Hebrew Senior Life’s plans for a new residential building on Centre Street.

– Cheryl Fever and Michael Schonbrun will speak about the Welltower/Balfour  senior living community planned for the Newbury College site on Fisher Hill.

– Cindy Katzeff  and Amy Schectman of 2Life will speak about both the Brown Family House on Harvard Street that is currently under construction and plans for an affordable senior housing development on the site of the Kent-Station Street parking lot.

The forum is being produced in conjunction with the Brookline Interactive Group (BIG) and will be conducted on the Zoom platform. To watch the webinar go to: https://brooklineinteractive-org.zoom.us/j/99631815251 .  To listen on a telephone, go to: +1 929 436 2866  or +1 301 715 8592. The Webinar ID is
996 3181 5251

The forum also will be available for viewing on Brookline Access Television. In addition the forum will be available at a later date on YouTube through a link on the BrooklineCAN website (BrooklineCAN.org).

In September Goddard House is beginning three new programs to help sufferers of Parkinson’s, their family members and care givers.  The new programs are funded in part by a $15,000 Grant from the Parkinson’s Foundation.

Support Group – Starts Sept. 2 at 2:15 pm to 3:30 pm facilitated on Zoom once a month by a licensed healthcare professional. Caregivers, family members and persons living with Parkinson’s are invited. For information on how to join email Bob DePeron at  bob@rahbostonmetro.com

Speaker Series – Listen on Zoom, Sept. 17 at 7 pm and learn about the amazing “Beauty and Power of Music on the Effects of Parkinson’s Disease” from Kathleen Howland, Ph.D, Berklee College of Music professor, and TEDx talk speaker on How music can heal your brain and heart.  Register in advance for this meeting: http:/bit-ly/goddard-music-and-brain.

Movement and Expressive Therapies – Kicks-off on Zoom September 22 at 11:30 am, with Tai Chi for Parkinson’s weekly class instructed by Stanwood Chang, Founder & Director of the Sun Tai Chi Institute of Boston. For more information, contact Erica Curcio at ecurcio@goddardhouse.org

The new Executive Director of the Brookline Housing Authority, Michael Alperin, will be the guest speaker at the next Livable Community Advocacy committee meeting on Monday, September 21 at 3:00 pm. Michael will be speaking about the Housing Authority’s efforts to upgrade all of its senior/disabled buildings near Coolidge Corner. The meeting will be an opportunity for BrooklineCAN members to inform Michael about its housing advocacy agenda and its efforts to enlist participation among residents of the Housing Authority’s senior/disabled developments. The meeting will be held on the Zoom platform with the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89361349555

Currently the deadline for completing the US Census is September 30, 2020.  The hope is the date will be extended. But it is best to record your census information as soon as possible. An accurate and complete census count determines the number of seats MA has in the U.S. House of Representatives; defines our congressional and state legislative districts, school districts and voting precincts.   It determines our share of the annual allocation of $675 billion of federal funding for programs such as Medicaid, SNAP, highway planning, Title 1 grants, Head Start, and National School Lunch Programs.

BY PHONE: Call 844-330-2020. For information and list of phone numbers in languages other than English see https://2020census.gov/en/ways-to-respond/responding-by-phone.html  

ONLINE: Go to https://my2020census.gov/ . If you do not have your Census ID, you can still record your information online.  Under the place to put in your ID number is the sentence “If you do not have a Census ID, click here.   Click and you will be taken through the form.

The current environment has left many organizations challenged and seeking support. The Fall term for BA&CE will look a little different this year, with many of your favorite classes returning in October.

In September, join in for a Zoom lecture or special walking tour, using a “pay what you will” system. For most lectures you will have four options for payment amount: $25, $20, $15, and $10. For walking tours, you may select $40, $30, or $23. By selecting to pay as much as is possible for you, you will provide critical support for BA&CE. You will not incur a registration fee and no refunds will be given. Join in to hear from names such as Michael Dukakis and Ken Feinberg, or to engage in a discussion about Kids and Screens and Cyberbullying. Think  about Racial Identity, or simply listen in to Bats and Public Health. For a full list and to register, see  https://www.campusce.net/brookline/course/course.aspx?catId=70  or call 617-730-2700.

The risk of catching COVID-19 has become part of our lives. Older people are particularly at risk if they catch the disease. We are in a period when everyone is being encouraged to take steps to stay safe as we consider venturing out to resume some approximation of a normal life.

BrooklineCAN is conducting a survey of older Brookline residents to learn how they are managing the risk of catching COVID-19. What precautions are they taking? In what ways are they resuming normal activities? What adjustments have they made in their activities as they have limited their contacts with other people? Answers to these questions will be helpful to the Council on Aging as it reaches out to serve older residents effectively away from the Senior Center. With help from BIG, BrooklineCAN is sponsoring virtual panel discussions of life with COVID-19. The survey broadens our effort on the topic by making it possible to hear from all Brookline seniors.

BrooklineCAN is seeking extensive participation in the survey to obtain a complete picture of experience of older residents in this extraordinary period. Data will be collected during the month of September. The survey can be completed online by clicking on this LINK Paper copies of the survey can also be obtained by calling the Senior Center at 617 730 2777 and asking for the “Living with COVID” survey.

This Brookline Senior Center program offers four subsidized rides per month with GoGo Grandparent, a national company that provides dispatch service for Uber/Lyft vehicles in our area from your landline or “flip” phone. This program is currently limited to income eligible seniors, 60 and over (individual $67,400 maximum: couple $77,000 maximum). The Brookline Program will offer four discounted rides per month of up to $10 per ride.  The passenger will pay the first $2; the coupon will pay up to the next $10. This option will be available 24/7 but is limited to trips within Brookline and select medical facilities.  For more information, contact Maria Foster, Community Outreach Specialist for the Council on Aging at (617)730-2644 or mfoster@brooklinema.gov

GENTLE YOGA
The Brookline Library offers Gentle Chair Yoga with Keith Beasley, Friday mornings from 10:30-11:30 am. On zoom and on BIG channel 3. The class is designed for those seeking improved strength, flexibility, and balance. The class will be done seated in a chair with some optional standing.The link: https://zoom.us/j/95320738102 PW: yoga

WEEKLY ZOOM EXERCISE CLASSES WITH SHARON DEVINE
Open to any interested older adult, contact Sharon Devine, 617-730-2769, or sdevine@brooklinema.gov for the Meeting ID and Meeting Password, or to join by phone. EXERCISES FOR ACHING JOINTS – This class will be very similar to the Arthritis Exercise class with its focus on improving joint flexibility. Meets Wednesdays, 11:30 am to 12:30 pm . EXERCISES TO IMPROVE YOUR PHYSICAL BALANCE Meets Fridays, 12-12:30 pm.

The 27^th Age Friendly Cities TV show explored COVID-19 issues related to the LGBT aging population.   The guest was Assistant Director at the LGBT Aging Project at The Fenway Institute in Boston.

Bob Linscott is one of the country’s leading advocates on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) aging. Bob is also a board member for LGBTQ Senior Housing Inc. a nonprofit dedicated to bringing LGBT friendly, affordable housing to Massachusetts.

Programs are aired on Channel 3 on Comcast and RCN immediately following The Grandstanders live sports analysis show and are available on DVDs at the Sr. Center, the library in Brookline Village, the BrooklineCAN web site (https://www.brooklinecan.org/index.html#TV) and the BrooklineCAN Twitter and Facebook accounts.