Chair’s Corner: Aging and Engaging!

Members of the Seattle-King County Advisory Council on Aging & Disability Services are very engaged. All of our members are active in Aging Network advocacy, and each one has more stories to tell than the next! Here are just a few:

ADS director Cathy Knight (left) and Advisory Council member June Michel stopped in front of the the Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building on their way to N4A policy briefings in Washington, DC.

June Michel attended the annual N4A Policy Briefing in Washington, DC, and met with members of Congress on Capitol Hill. June is a civil rights lawyer whose career has focused on women’s rights, employment equality, and protection of older adults. A Latina, June was an early champion of workforce diversity, both as a trial lawyer and later as an affirmative action manager. In her spare time now, she is a Master Gardener.

New Advisory Council member Zelda Foxall also has a civil rights background, having worked for the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights for 35 years. What’s more, she has served as a volunteer advocate for an anti-poverty organization, working to promote the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Medicaid, awareness of income and wealth inequality, and tax reform. She is also an AARP volunteer.

ADS Advisory Council member Zelda Foxall is also an AARP volunteer. Listen to her talk about why Congress needs to find commonsense solutions so that healthcare is available to all.

Diana Thompson is no stranger to Aging Network advocacy. She serves as legislative liaison on the board of trustees of a volunteer-based advocacy group, Hearing Loss Association of Washington.

In addition to his duties as mayor of the City of Kenmore, including service on county and regional committees, Advisory Council member David Baker owns businesses and—wait for it—drives for Uber. And recently, Mayor Baker discovered his birth family. See the KING5 News story from March. He’s got a lot of stories to tell!

Click on the image above to read the Crosscut article about Kenmore Mayor David Baker.

Advisory Council member Larry Low serves on the board of directors at Chinese Information and Service Center and volunteers at Kin On Community Care Center.

Advisory Council member Mac McIntosh is active in Pride at Work and SEIU Lavender Caucus, as well as Puget Sound Advocates for Retirement Action and Washington State Alliance for Retired Americans.

Advisory Council member Tom Minty is passionate about serving people with disabilities. A Realtor and small business owner, Tom also takes time to educate builders and remodelers about Universal Design—good design for all ages and all abilities, all the time—as well as strategies for aging in home and community.

Advisory Council member Dick Woo is on the executive committee of the InterIm Community Development Association, which is committed to building affordable housing in the International District.

Advisory Council member Sue Weston is passionate about all things Vashon Island—and the special needs of rural elders. Advisory Council member Molly Holmes hikes and kayaks. I am on the board of directors of the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust.

My apologies to those I missed. My point is that we are active and engaged in many ways within the Aging Network and other ways that are beneficial to our communities, our families, and our health and well-being.

Older Americans Month is a good time to think about your own involvement in the community. How will you engage others, younger and older? How will you make a difference?

Contributor Ava Frisinger chairs the Seattle-King County Advisory Council on Aging & Disability Services, which publishes AgeWise King County. She welcomes input from readers via e-mail (advisorychair@agewisekingcounty.org) as well as applicants for open positions on the council. For more information, visit www.agingkingcounty.org/advisory-council.

Following are some of the events that ADS Advisory Council members will participate in during Older Americans Month:

• Engage at Every Age: An Older Americans Month Forum on Social & Civic Engagement (Friday, May 4, 1–3 p.m., Seattle Mirabella)
• ADS Advisory Council Meeting (Friday, May 11, 12–2 p.m., Seattle Municipal Tower 4050/60)
• Age Friendly Seattle Coffee Hour (Thursday, May 17, 10–11 a.m., Central Building)
• Mayor’s Council on African American Elders (Friday, May 18, 2–3:30 p.m., Seattle Municipal Tower 4090)
• Stress-free Aging: Planning for Health & Long-Term Care (Wednesday, May 23, 12–4 p.m., Renton Community Center)

The Seattle-King County Advisory Council on Aging & Disability Services meets monthly, except January and October, and holds periodic forums. Open to the public, agendas are available within a week of the meeting. For more information or to request an accommodation, contact Gigi Meinig at gigi.meinig@seattle.gov or 206-684-0652.