Senior Beat team: Reporters Judy Goddess, Mary Hunt and Jan Robbins, and Editor Robin Evans. (Photo by Kate Kuckro)
We’re proud to announce The Senior Beat, a new effort to amplify the voices of San Francisco’s older adults. We’ll report on news of interest to seniors, but just as importantly, what they have to offer the rest of the city’s residents: their experiences, their opinions, their stories, and their contributions to their communities and the life of this world-famous city.
The Senior Beat is an initiative of the Community Living Campaign’s SF ReServe program, which matches seniors and people with disabilities with part-time, paid opportunities at local nonprofits and public agencies.
Senior Beat launch
In this debut, Senior Beat reporterJudy Goddess describes the latest sporting trend among older adults – the city is trying to keep up. Jan Robbins writes about the Sunset District’s neighborhood-friendly “blue house,” and offers a comprehensive look at end of life discussions and decisions. With so many new options, what’s a body to do? Mary Hunt has written about building community resilience in Miraloma Park, and how a West Portal clubhouse serves seniors as well as youth.
These stories can be found on the Community Living Campaign’s website. Some also appear in various neighborhood newspapers. Robbins writes for the Richmond Review/Sunset Beacon; Goddess for the Ingleside-Excelsior Light and the San Francisco BayView; and Hunt for the West Portal Monthly.
The Senior Beat is a fledgling step toward creating a society where people of all ages see, hear and benefit from one another.
Just what’s a senior?
One-fifth of the nearly 900,000 people who live in San Francisco are 60 or older. One definition of senior is “holding a high and authoritative position.” That’s not just CEOs and mayors, but all the people who have given the city and its neighborhoods their unique character. These are the people who have lived its culture shifts and felt its growing pains.
Many were around in the ‘60s when Flower Power upended neighborhoods and the nation, and in the ‘70s when New Age ideas challenged traditional spirituality. They have survived war and recessions and witnessed the birth and growth of the digital age. They are still learning, still exploring and sometimes innovating – filling gaps in their communities and society. They have stories to tell, wisdom to impart, ideas worth considering.
Click on the Senior Beat link at the top right of the Community LIving Campaign’s home page, or go directly to the Senior Beat page, which is where you can search for stories or authors. And follow our Facebook page to get new stories right in your mailbox.
Please share this with anyone you know who would be interested, from family and friends and seniors to organizations that work with seniors or adults with disabilities. And if you have a website that offers links to other resources, please consider including The Senior Beat: sfcommunityliving.org/category/senior-beat-reporters.
If you have story ideas, you can contact :
Judy at jgoddess-seniorbeat@sfcommunityliving.org;
Jan at jrobbins-seniorbeat@sfcommunityliving.org;
Mary at mhunt-seniorbeat@sfcommunityliving.org.