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In response to a Boston Globe editorial on June 2, "Pandemic Generation is interested in public health. We should take advantage," Doug Dickson wrote this comment: How about making these initiatives multigenerational? Yes, we need to take advantage of and support the renewed interest of younger people in public health. But there are many older people who would bring long experience and specific knowledge from adjacent fields, like law, medicine, education and technology. Engaging them in public health service would leverage their expertise for immediate contribution while setting the stage for encore careers in public health. And studies show that when younger and older people work together, they are more productive, flexible and creative. Finally, the opportunity for cross-generational, two-way mentoring would offer a huge bonus at no additional cost.

On Thursday, May 27, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs released it's Year Two Progress Report on the state's Age-Friendly Plan. Encore Boston Network is credited for our Mastering the Job Search and other workshops in 2020, along with our support of Founders Over 55. The report is available at mass.gov/service-details/age-friendly-massachusetts.

As we celebrate our second National Volunteer Week, April 18- 24, since the start of the pandemic, we want to reflect upon the amazing efforts of all of the Massachusetts residents who have stepped up to support their neighbors during these long and difficult months.

At it's January meeting, the Encore Boston Network board elected two new board members: Patricia Latimore and Ray Santos. "We're thrilled to add the depth of experience that Pat and Ray bring to EBN," said Doug Dickson, board chair.

Massachusetts Service Alliance, United Way of Mass Bay & Merrimack Valley, Encore Boston Network, and other regional nonprofit networks partnered to launch an online state-of-the-art statewide nonprofit platform, https://msaconnectsforgood.org, to connect nonprofits with potential volunteers, donors, and partners.

Since 1963, Older Americans Month has been celebrated in May to recognize the contributions of older adults to our neighborhoods, communities, economy and society. This recognition is especially important this year as we emerge from a prolonged period of uncertainty, isolation and overt ageism. There are three times as many older people in the US today than in 1963 and we're now a much larger share of the population. We also start more businesses, contribute more volunteer hours, provide more family caregiving, own more wealth, and have a greater overall impact on society than any other age group. Older Americans bring strength to our communities and that's something worth celebrating!

In the January 8 issue of Newsweek magazine, Phyllis Segal, EBN board member and senior fellow at Encore.org, and Gerald Bourne, director of Encore Physicians, wrote an editorial proposing an intergenerational approach to rolling out the Covid-19 vaccines. "If the Covid vaccine is to liberate us, we urgently need new ways to deliver it," they wrote.

A recent article in Next Avenue and Forbes, written by Connie Bahar, featured comments by Doug Dickson, EBN board chair. The article asks 3 questions to help you plan a post-pandemic comeback that could make your career and life more satisfying and fulfilling. "Don't wait for the perfect opportunity. Don't set the stakes too high," Dickson recommended.

In an Op-Ed article in The Boston Globe on February 22, Joe Coughlin, director of the MIT Age Lab, and his associate, Luke Yoquinto, posed this provocative question. Point by point, they make the case that the Boston area is uniquely positioned to make this a reality. "For companies to truly understand older consumers, they must hire older workers and eldercare-givers," Coughlin and Yoquinto say in the article.

In 2018, Massachusetts became an age-friendly state. In 2019, it completed and began to implement a 5-year action plan. Now the Executive Office of Elder Affairs has released a progress report for the first year of the age-friendly action plan, which cites the work of Encore Boston Network in collaborating with other organizations to help people over 50 master the job search process and advocate for their interests with employers.

This article by Mark Miller for the NYTimes assesses the impact of COVID-19 on workers over 50 and whether they will return to work, find new jobs or retire sooner than they had planned.

Encore Boston Network, like the rest of the nation, is saddened and angered by the recent tragic murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and the litany of other victims’ names spoken and unspoken. Racism and racial violence have existed for far too long in this country and it is unacceptable. We acknowledge the grief, the pain, the exhaustion, and the ongoing traumas of racial violence and oppression felt in the Black community and among people of Color, and stand with them in solidarity.

EBN Board Chair Doug Dickson was quoted in a Boston Globe article about the governor's guidelines for reopening the state's economy. Read the full article here.

If fallout from the pandemic has you wondering if your retirement plans still make sense, you are not alone.

Ageism lurks as an ever-present influence in our society, but it has come roaring onto center stage with the COVID-19 crisis.

This Boston Globe article by Linda Matchan summarizes the ways in which ageism has influenced and characterized the response of society, government and healthcare decision makers to the COVID-19 outbreak. She asks us to think about how to flip these negative stereotypes on their heads.

In this moving blog post, EBN Board member Phyllis Segal writes about the links between earlier life events and the sudden challenge of adjusting to new circumstances. But she also describes the emergence of hope and the possible silver linings of this experience.

Do you want to lower anxiety and build resiliency in this time of uncertainty?