Thanks very much for printing this letter from town nurse Jennifer Fitzgerald. The Deerfield Valley is especially in need of elder services, and we applaud Ms. Fitzgerald's efforts to bring together residents and organizations to make it happen.
In 2010, the Governor's Commission on Healthy Aging warned that Vermont needed to prepare for a 42-percent increase in elderly population by 2017.
With more than half of that time elapsed, our state and its organizations still have a tremendous amount of work to do. Individuals, too, need to face the inevitable changes that will happen with age, and they need to understand the resources available.
Waiting until a crisis happens will limit the available options, whether we're talking about the individual, the region, or the state. We all must be proactive so our families will have good choices available in the future.
Senior Solutions encourages people to learn about their options by doing some research at www.SeniorSolutionsVT.org or calling our Senior HelpLine at 1-800-642-5119.