Caribou, ME

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2023

Project Category: Addressing community health

Description: Caribou faced a hidden crisis of abuse of older adults, and volunteers were without tools to educate or intervene. The group built a multimedia toolkit with expert-backed content, video vignettes and safety features to guide prevention and reporting. The resource will be shared statewide and used in local programs, strengthening community capacity to protect older adults and empowering them to speak up and access help.

Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.

Indianapolis, IN

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020

Project Category: Addressing community health

Description: Staff at Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana noticed that many food-insecure older adults had mobility challenges that prevented them from easily transporting their groceries. This forced many food pantry patrons to collect the amount of food they could carry rather than the amount they actually needed. To address this, the food bank purchased 54 shopping carts for agencies participating in its Senior Shopping Day program. To ensure the carts remained in the agencies' possession, Gleaners outfitted each one with a security tag. Project organizers say chronic hunger is particularly damaging for older adults, leaving them susceptible to chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, heart disease and depression. The new carts represent one way to customize hunger relief services for this population.

HI

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2020

Project Category: Addressing community health

Description: At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Robin Bush stayed home, alone except for her cat. Fortunately, Bush and more than 100 additional kupuna (the Hawaiian term for grandparent or elder) found a way to develop intergenerational connections through Purpose Pals. A partnership between Hawaii's Afterschool Alliance, Age-Friendly Honolulu, Blue Zones Hawaii, and AARP, the program has matched more than 100 kupuna with young adults ages 18-24. The pairs socialize during regularly scheduled video and phone calls. The initiative takes personal interests, skills, life stories and experiences into account when making matches. Participants can then talk about anything, from favorite recipes to career advice to current events. "We looked for ways to promote social connectedness and, in particular, create a more age-friendly community by fostering friendships across generations," Purpose Pals organizer Christy Nishita said.