Winter 2023 Issue of the Beat is here!

2023 • JANUARY

A QUARTERLY PUBLICATION OF THE

SENIORS SERVICES SOCIETY OF BC

Santa for Seniors Success!

Santa for Seniors has another successful year! Thanks to your heartfelt contributions to our annual campaign, hundreds of older adults received gifts of grocery gift cards, meals, warm clothing, shelter, and housing assistance! Our gratitude to the community for their incredible support!

Housing Navigation Success:

Oswald's Story

With the help and advocacy of Seniors Services Society Housing Navigator, good-natured Oswald made the difficult decision to leave his basement suite and seek appropriate housing. He is thriving because SSSBC's Housing Navigation Programs work!

Read Now

Special Thanks!

Seniors received grocery gift cards and gifts with a special handmade touch. Our gratitude to Amy from Soo Crafty and New Westminster Public Library for donating beautiful and uniquely handcrafted cards to give to seniors! Greetings of hope and cheer filled each card, which our seniors greatly appreciated.

Thank you Benchmark Building System Employees for donating to Santa for Seniors for 3 years!

“Benchmark is honored to be a part of an incredible society which helps those that many have forgotten. Every year we look forward to coming together as a community and bringing awareness to the hard work they do for these seniors.”

-Michaela Veljacic, Benchmark

Our gratitude to Amazon for their continued partnership and support of our mission! Amazon provides monthly donations of housing supplies to SSSBC Temporary Housing Program clients. We used the items from the December delivery to provide extra comfort and cheer to older adults who needed it the most. Thank you for being a Santa for a older adult this year!

Thank you Heritage Office Furnishings Employees for donating to Santa for Seniors!

“It warms our hearts that this small contribution we could provide can impact many of the special seniors in need within our communities. We are honoured to have this opportunity to partner with you and SSSBC.”

-Steve Cox, CEO

Oriana Arias from the Coast Capital Savings Cambie & Steveston Branch, Small Business Banking, employees supported SSSBC by donating generous gift bags filled with much needed items for older adults in our Temporary Housing Program!

The Beat is now a digital newsletter and we welcome your feedback!

Please click below for a short 2 question survey!

Feedback

SSSBC staff had a bit of fun this Halloween dressing up in costumes beginning with the first letter of their name!

IPledge Campaign

In November SSSBC decided to create our own campaign about Ageism. The "I Pledge" campaign is a way to spread awareness about ageism in our community. Each month we will post a pledge from members of our staff, board, volunteers, and even some of our seniors! Our January pledge features our board President, Brenda Southam. For more pledges follow us on Faceb ook and check out the World Health Organization's site.

Ageism Consultation

Last Quarter we shared an article defining and discussing ageism.

In November we hosted SSSBC's first annual Ageism Consultation in New Westminster with great success. Read more about what we learned and how you can join the conversation.

Volunteer Voice

Joan and Kelly, two cheery volunteers who deliver gifts to seniors year after year, were asked to shed light on their experience:

"On a snowy day in late December, my friend Joan and I put on our Santa hats and picked up gift bags from Senior Services to deliver to seniors. We were energized and humbled seeing the joy which the visits and gifts brought to the seniors, some even shedding tears as they were so touched."

Thank you Joan and Kelly for your dedication to our mission and loyalty to SSSBC. We couldn't do this without you!

Do you have leadership skills and the desire to help vulnerable seniors? We need your help!

For questions, visit www.sssbc.ca/volunteer or call (604) 520 6621.

Learn More!

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