Shire set to celebrate its older residents throughout October

OCTOBER is Positive Ageing Month, and the Surf Coast Shire council is embracing its older residents by running a series of free online events over the space of five Fridays.

Every Friday during October, residents can join interesting conversations featuring renowned guest speakers, including psychologist Chris Mackey and sociologist Anne Ring.

A few of the events that will be featured over the next handful of weeks will include a history of the Great Ocean Road, a trivia quiz, and a livestreamed music event.

Surf Coast Shire councillor Gary Allen, who is a member of the Positive Ageing Committee and will help present some of the online events, is encouraging all locals to take part.

“Age is just a number; it does not define anyone. We want the Surf Coast Shire to be a great place in which we age, where everyone feels valued, supported and empowered to live well,” Cr Allen said.

“While we’d prefer to all be catching up in person for Positive Ageing Month, due to the pandemic, the events will all be online.

“But we promise there will be some really interesting and engaging discussions, as well as fun events that you can join in from the comfort of your lounge room.”

Keynote speaker and 79-year-old sociologist Anne Ring will help launch the council’s events, talking on Friday, October 1 about a range of topics such as destigmatising the word “old” and the recent WHO finding that it is those who hold positive views about their own ageing who live longer.

“Events like these ones are important because there are concerns about the sort of ageism we have not only in Australia, but internationally as well,” Ms Ring said.

“It’s something we really need to be addressing and the Surf Coast Shire is doing a wonderful job of addressing that.

“The thing about ageism is it can have devastating effects on people who develop very negative images about themselves being older people.
“It can affect your health and your longevity, and it also has a societal connection where it can affect the economy.”

Andy Pobjoy of the Piano Bar Group is also contributing to the events providing a live-streamed event over various online platforms such as Facebook and YouTube aimed at various retirement villages and communities.

“This is just one way we can at least try to have an event on and hopefully there is that sense of community that we get from live music events, even it is just getting a reaction from a song request or having a song bring back some happy memories,” Mr Pobjoy said.

As part of Positive Ageing Month, council is launching its Active Communities: A guide for over 55s living on the Surf Coast booklet that lists a range of local community groups and activities that people can connect with.

You can download a copy via the above website or call council to arrange for one to be posted to you.
To view the full range of events on offer, go to surfcoast.vic.gov.au/over55s or call council on 5261 0600 if you need help using Zoom.