A bi-monthly roadmap for navigating life after 50
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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
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The Village Chicago is the premiere networking and services organization in the city focused on life after 50. Whether it’s social connection, health and wellness, career and purpose, lifelong learning, thought leadership or community engagement, the Village represents a vibrant intergenerational organization.
"Alert, engaged, continually taking the temperature of the environment; recognizing and acting on opportunities, and responsive to community needs and desires," is how one major supporter describes The Village Chicago.
Through this attentiveness we have identified and we are implementing specific initiatives this year in response to member and community feedback. These initiatives span the member experience throughout the arc of life after 50.
Health and Well-Being
Chicagoans overall and a growing number of members and their family caregivers are challenged by the complexities of living with memory loss. In response, we are developing comprehensive information and resource referrals to help manage these health transitions and improve outcomes.
The Future of Work
For the first time in modern history, a record number of people are continuing to work through their 60s and 70s--and beyond. At the Village, nearly 30% of members are working or seeking employment; we are developing innovative new programs to help them to succeed in the new multi-generational workplace while helping companies understand the value of experienced workers.
Engagement
The Village is a fully engaged community, with myriad ways for members to engage with each other, and with members engaged throughout the city, giving generously of their time and talent to non-profits and civic institutions. To inform and support this mutual engagement, we continually seek out and learn from thought leaders who, like our vibrant community, are committed to changing the narrative about life after 50.
We are making these commitments to keep pace with change and the needs and interests of members. We hope you will join us as a part of the Village community – members, partners, sponsors and supporters - joined together to meet the future with optimism, fresh thinking and solutions!
Darcy Evon
CEO
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The Health Care Initiative: Supporting Health and Well Being
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Several years ago it become clear that Village members were having unsatisfactory interactions with the health care system. Members were concerned about preparing for hospital stays and their aftermath; conflicting information from providers; passivity based on the belief that "doctor knows best;" not being heard; being too nervous to listen … and more.
These concerns were the origins of the Village Heath Care Initiative (HCI) – a program designed to make sure that Village members who request it have the support, knowledge and resources to manage their health care.
A major component of the Health Care Initiative is the Ally program which provides a Village-trained volunteer to any member who wants support through a heath care event and beyond.
"Lisa" had been hospitalized for a serious illness and the Village provided an Ally to help prepare for her release. The Ally, "Joan" supported Lisa through that transition and a cascading
series of events and issues that subsequently arose. This included accompanying Lisa to medical appointments; helping to get her medication list and dosages in order; supporting Lisa through two further minor surgeries; and helping navigate changing insurance needs and interactions with Social Security.
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An Emerging Challenge: Memory Loss
Now, in response to a growing concern in our community about brain health and memory loss, The Village Chicago is expanding the Health Care Initiative by developing a comprehensive plan to integrate memory loss programming and services.
Part of this plan will include identifying best-practice sources of information and referrals to support our members, care partners, and significant others who are facing early stages of memory loss. The plan will also include community programs designed to increase awareness and knowledge on memory loss and its many causes – some of which are related to natural aging and others that are caused by some form of dementia – or in some cases late stage Parkinson’s. Illinois ranks second in the country for prevalence of this disease
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What We’re Doing Right Now
We have already begun to offer many educational programs and to partner with experts in memory loss and brain health to identify resource information. In collaboration with our Village partners, we have also provided some excellent programs including these:
- “The Walk to End Alzheimer’s” The Alzheimer’s Association
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"For Most of Us, a Journey We Did Not Choose ...
-it helps to have companions along the way," says Bruce Hunt, who is himself a care partner and leads the Support Group at Artis. Village member Dan Miller has been attending in his role as primary caregiver for wife Michele who has a mild cognitive disorder. Through the sessions, Dan has learned the forms of dementia, their potential severity, and the paths they take. He says, "This knowledge gives me credibility with the neurologists. It gives me confidence and courage."
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"But," he says, "the best part of these sessions is the shared experience. There is no stigma, we don’t have to go back to square one and explain everything—it’s understood. And there’s humor—it’s not a pity party." He has found value in asking others in the group if they could go back to the beginning, what would they do differently? Dan says, "For me it has been an instructive and invigorating experience."
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Coming in 2020
A committee of volunteers (Ruth Ann Watkins, Marcia Opp, Liz Metzger, Beth Joosten; Village CEO Darcy Evon, staff members Niki Fox and Jonathan Tague and Project Consultant
Kris Cichowski are hard at work completing a comprehensive plan for memory loss programming which will include:
- Researching, educating and training ourselves in best practices.
- Identifying and utilizing the best existing community assets through partnerships and collaborations.
- Supporting members through a combination of referrals to trusted resources, and compassionate, engaged direct support.
Kris Cichowski says, "We want to shift thinking about memory loss so members, friends, and family are less afraid, more open, and knowledgeable in addressing concerns and supporting each other. As a Village, we want to enable and include. Think of it as 'cognitive accessibility.'"
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The program will include guidance on safe home environments; communication and interpersonal relationships; life enrichment and engagement; and care partner support. Committee member and Occupational Therapist, Liz Metzger adds, "Bringing resources and support for people with memory loss and their care partners to the community level is a huge step forward."
"Already, we are seeing a tremendous interest in our educational and activity programs related to brain health and memory loss," says CEO Darcy Evon. "Our future goals include reaching out to family care givers to help them understand and navigate the transitions a loved one may be experiencing and to help them address their own emotional needs."
The planning phase of the Memory Loss and Brain Health program will be completed this year and will become an integral part of the Health Care Initiative next year. With sufficient funding, the program will be expanded based on changing needs of the Village community.
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The Village and The Future of Work
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You might be surprised to learn that nearly 30% of Village members are either working or seeking employment. This is consistent with demographic forces which are having a significant impact on the labor market:
- As of February, 2019 more than 20% of adults age 65+ are either working or looking for work (twice as many as in 1985).
- Over the last 10 years, the share of Americans workers in their 70's has risen from 10% to 15% ... and for those with Bachelor's degrees, to 20%.
People want to work for a variety of reasons: they don’t have sufficient retirement savings or need extra money; work provides them with a sense of purpose and accomplishment; or work allows them to maintain more expansive social connections.
Whatever the reason may be, the Village wants to support members to address the challenges of finding meaningful and sustainable employment after 50.
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A Pervasive Challenge: Age Bias
Here are some disturbing facts:
- It takes adults 55+ approximately 46 weeks to find a new job. It takes younger people 43 days.
- Only 8% of companies and organizations currently include older adults in their diversity hiring goals.
A plethora of recent research shows that age diversity in the workplace improves organizational performance, problem solving and productivity. Mixed-age work teams, if structured to minimize bias, bolster innovation and help drive the bottom line. The challenge is that companies are scrambling to understand and develop best practices to build multigenerational work teams.
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What We’re Doing Now
To delve into the multigenerational secrets of success, the Village partnered with Chicago Innovation to develop
Ageless Innovators
, a remarkable co-mentoring program for younger and older entrepreneurs and business leaders. Now completing its second cohort,
Ageless Innovators
is identifying challenges, opportunities and solutions to help build a more age-integrated and productive workforce.
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Program Manager Avery Stone Fish points out that we have entered a new paradigm with five generations working together for the first time. He says, "At different ages, the stories and language we use may be different, but the challenges are the same."
Village board member David Baker discovered this as a participant in the second cohort of the program.
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The Experience of Two Ageless Innovators
David flunked retirement when he left Illinois Tech as the VP External Affairs and was named Executive Director of America’s Urban Campus, the city's consortium of universities and colleges. He has deep knowledge and a comprehensive network in the learning, business and entrepreneurship communities. He was paired with Kelly Page just as she was offered the position of Director of Bennett Labs at Bennett Day School. Kelly says, "David guided me through the decision." The two have worked out a process for their meetings which occur monthly, over a meal, alternating between some of Chicago’s favorite neighborhood restaurants.
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David Baker and Kelly Page
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David's goal was to utilize Kelly's social media skills to help with his organization. "She mentored me in how to do it, organize it, and stick with it." Through David's sharing of his skills in developing spaces for creativity and innovation Kelly has come to look upon him as "a friend and peer." She added, "We have similar aspirations and outlooks; he listens with consideration and an open mind."
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The Way Forward
Outcomes such as this are not going unnoticed. Noted thought leader Chip Conley states,
"Sharing wisdom across generations - that's the new sharing economy. Mutual mentorship is the future."
Forbes reports that 28% of companies want to expand their age diversity programs (
See Forbes study, Innovation Through Diversity)
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The Village Chicago and Chicago Innovation are further collaborating to fill this new need. The experiences and learning generated by Ageless Innovators will be the basis for creating an Ageless Innovators Management Workshop we can share with organizations to help them employ best practices in creating successful age integrated workplaces.
"We now have worked with more than 50 co-mentors, representing large companies, innovation labs, service firms, startups, nonprofits and large institutions," said Darcy Evon, CEO of the Village. "By focusing on an individual’s strengths, participants were able to diminish bias and tap into the expertise and insight of their co-mentors all across the board."
Given the stake that Village members have in age-integrated workplaces – a stake that is likely to increase in the years to come, we are excited about this program which has the potential to reduce age bias, and contribute to an age-friendly city.
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Feeling connected, useful and valued is why many people join the Village, and in turn, they strive to give back to the community by helping one another, volunteering for a myriad of organizations and sharing their expertise and knowledge with companies, nonprofits and civic organizations throughout the city.
With these commitments to each other and to our city, we are a community fully engaged in advancing the well-being and status of older people. Part of that commitment is expressed by being a convener of experts on the challenges and opportunities facing older adults.
This year, Marc Freedman, author of
How to Live Forever, exposed more than 300 people to the notions of strengthening literacy skills in children to forming intergenerational networks to find purpose, meaning--and as research has shown, a much longer and happier life. Age segregation and confining people to "senior communities," he pointed out, is a waste of human potential.
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A part of the intergenerational audience that came to hear Marc Freedman.
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Chris Farrell, author of
Unretirement and
Purpose and a Paycheck, also spoke at a Village event this year and inspired people to think differently about aging by turning it into a positive by developing a sense of 'age pride,' or a conceptual shift in understanding the unique strengths inherent in each individual. Substantial value, productivity and economic growth can be realized by harnessing the capabilities of an age diverse workforce.
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Chip Conley, author of
Wisdom@Work: the Making of a Modern Elder, proved first-hand the value that older adults can offer from starting successful companies like Joie de Vivre Hospitality to joining the management team of venture-funded startups like AirbnB. When he joined Airbnb in 2013, Conley was by far the oldest employee of the executive team. And the rest, of course, is history.
The Village Chicago will develop a Thought Leader Series in 2020 by bringing in speakers to help us underscore the value of a truly engaged, age-diverse community at the neighborhood level to the national level. As we begin to change the narrative on aging, help older adults, children, teens and families through volunteerism, and celebrate the strengths and diversity that older adults bring to the table, we will create a better Chicago for all citizens.
The Village is a unique place where shared interests and two-way engagement thrive. Come join the Village as a member, donor, sponsor, partner, resource provider or advisor as we tackle the barriers to an age-integrated and age-friendly Chicago.
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At the Village's Annual Board Meeting on October 7, the Board expressed their thanks and gratitude to these Directors who had complete their terms: John Craib-Cox, Joan Goldstein, Hollis Hines, Beth Joosten and Alan Lougée.
They also welcomed these seven outstanding individuals who were elected to the Board:
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Judith, a native Chicagoan, is a strong and passionate leader with an impressive combination of private and non-profit experience, specializing in building and stewarding successful start-up organizations.
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Theresa has 30 years of experience in the financial services industry and is currently a Financial Advisor and Senior Vice President, Investments at Raymond James.
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Linda is a semi-retired psychotherapist, with over 30-years of experience working with individuals, couples and groups.
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Wally came to the United State in 1961 after graduating from the University of Bombay majoring in chemistry and physics. He worked for architectural and engineering firms in Chicago on several high profile projects and started his own engineering company in 1979.
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Before rejoining the Board in 2019, Lois served two terms and was instrumental in developing the Program Committee.
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Jan trained as a Psychiatric Social Worker, receiving her MSW from the University of Michigan after which she practiced for a decade as a clinician at Children's Psychiatric Hospital and the University's Psychiatric Clinic.
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Joyce's background is a rare combination of journalism, business strategy, marketing, PR and communications.
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Mark Your Calendar! Village Programs
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To view our full calendar of upcoming programs,
click here.
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Village Member Pastime Groups
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Are you...
Looking for a new career, about to retire, wondering what's next? Seeking companions that share your interests? Searching for a way to utilize your abilities? In need of occasional help? New to Chicago? Worried about changing needs? An adult child with aging parents?
Village members are part of an inclusive, intergenerational community, connected to others and to the resources that support growth and well-being as we navigating longevity together.
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Leadership of The Village Chicago
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Board of Directors
Karen Terry,
President
Nancy Felton-Elkins,
Vice President
Ruth Ann Watkins,
Vice President
Charles G. Cooper,
Vice President
Angie Levenstein,
Secretary
Richard W. Sullivan,
Treasurer
Kathy Kolodgy,
Immediate Past President
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David E. Baker
Donald M. Bell
Judy Carmack Bross
Patricia Clickener
Thomas C. Eley III
Judith Gethner
Bruce Hunt
Ira Kohlman
Therese Meike
Gail C. Moss
Linda Randall
Leatrice Berman Sandler
Wally Shah
Bob Spoerri
Lois Stuckey
Janey Walters
Melville Washburn
Joyce Winnecke
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Advisory Council
Neelum T. Aggarwal, MD
Robyn L. Golden, LCSW
Joanne G. Schwartzberg, MD
Mary Ann Smith
CEO
Darcy L. Evon
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The “new longevity” means that later life can span 30 years or more. Whether we’re working, retired or farther along on our journey, we all seek well-being, to be valued and to contribute. The Village Chicago is an inclusive membership community of people 50+ that provides services, expertise, social connection, engagement, volunteer opportunities and health/well-being resources - all to support members’ growth and quality of life, keeping us connected to each other, our communities and the city as we navigate longevity together.
2502 North Clark Street, Chicago, Illinois 60614.
773.248.8700
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