In 1999, the International Year of the Older Person, a very successful
Seniors Summit was held to celebrate seniors.
This first Summit was coordinated by a number of organizations and
individuals, including 411 Seniors Centre Board members and key staff. An event planner was hired to work with the
Steering Committee and sub-committees to put on the conference. The Summit follow-up was organized and
directed by some of the original members of the Summit Steering Committee, and
facilitated by a coordinator. Several
groups were formed to carry on the activities of the first Summit including
committees on health and housing, income and poverty, and transportation.
In 2003, people began to talk about organizing another Summit. A gathering of people from organizations, as
well as individuals, met and agreed to put on Seniors Summit II. Out of that gathering a steering committee
was formed. Sub-committees were also formed to deal with venue, programs,
volunteers, cultural events, administration and fundraising. The Seniors Summit II will be held on
November 6 and 7, 2004, at the Hilton Vancouver Metrotown
in Burnaby, BC. The conference website,
constructed by one of the talented 411 staff, can be found at http://www.seniorssummit.ca.
John Kennedy will be the Summit’s keynote speaker. John is a long-time volunteer at 411 and at
several other organizations including the United Way, the Leon and Thea Koerner Foundation, and the
Crane Disability Resource Centre at UBC.
He is an articulate, warm, intelligent person who, while home grown in
Toronto, now makes his home on the North Shore.
A retired broadcast executive, he spent 36 years with the Canadian
Broadcasting Corporation.
Eight patrons, who
bring varied and remarkable backgrounds, have agreed to lend their support to
the conference. They are:
• Dr. Milton Wong
• Margaret Mitchell
• Mary Hill
• Bikkar and Surjit Lalli
• Leonard George
• Dr. K.C. Li
• Wil Holland
The conference program has been designed to generate interest in the
issues of an aging population, and to have some fun along the way.
“The success of Seniors Summit II will see delegates emerging with renewed
energy and a focus for action. We
expect, like the first Summit, the Seniors Summit II will be the remarkable
achievement of a number of people working together to create a lasting legacy
for seniors in British Columbia,” said Grace Owens, steering committee
member.
~Joyce Jones and Ivan Cumming