To the editor:
What I witnessed at the Senior Expo was disappointing.
Last week, our Seniors gathered at Suttons Bay High School, to get help with just about any issue that accompanies aging.
Seniors struggle with: falls, urinary incontinence, isolation, loneliness, ageism and end of life preparations.
I saw a large number of people helping seniors to get better access to healthcare services, address financial insecurity, to get help along with everyday tasks like mobility, and legal advice.
However, I also saw local citizens being threatened with arrest for trespassing. What kind of leader calls out for that sort of unnecessary authority?
What we really need in our heartland is more visible exhibitions with far reaching sustainability initiatives, that address basic needs such as food, shelter, education and programs that create opportunities for people to improve their lives.
Request that our municipalities offer more Expos that build connectedness like actually learning about social support and trust. Let’s foster civil engagement for all members to participate in democracy.
I imagine “students want an education, to learn more about the economic benefits of sustainability and waste cutting choices that happen to be good to the environment and climate.
They can envision a rural town with electric buses or public transit, students manning countywide composting operations, cows gazing beneath elevated solar panels that provides them with shade when it gets too hot, and windmills powering the manufacture of fossil fuel-free fertilizer for local agriculture.”
Source: “Total Garbage” by Edward Humes Robert M. LaPorte MD Elmwood Township
