Another community in New Brunswick is now being recognized as age-friendly.
The Village of Memramcook received the designation this week.
It means that efforts are being made to promote social inclusion, intergenerational opportunities and active living for all residents.
It also means that the community is a welcoming place for all ages and is promoting healthy aging and wellness, and also provides infrastructure with accessibility for seniors, including transportation and housing.
The recognition program is administered by the Department of Social Development in partnership with the Association francophone des aînés du Nouveau-Brunswick and Age-Friendly Active Communities of New Brunswick. It is designed to encourage communities to take sustainable action to become welcoming places for all ages and to promote healthy aging and wellness.
“This recognition reflects our commitment, as a municipality, to building a community where active, healthy aging with dignity and respect is fully valued,” said Memramcook Mayor Maxime O. Bourgeois. “It strengthens intergenerational ties and the social fabric of our community, while promoting the social and civic participation of our seniors, so that everyone can age in a safe, welcoming environment.”
Seniors advocate Cecile Cassista says this latest recognition is excellent news, but she feels the province needs to move to recognize age-friendly communities much faster than they are currently.
“I know some municipalities are saying it is too much work, too complex, and they don’t have enough full-time staff to do that. I’m hoping that the government has taken a look at changes and streamlined them. We know communities are very positive with addressing care and those kinds of things,” Cassista adds.
She adds that there are a lot of communities that haven’t been recognized yet, with just 17 out of 60 municipalities.
“I really think there needs to be a faster process to do this, not complicated, but to engage people to move faster and to address our aging population, and particularly being active,” Cassista stressed.
More information about the age-friendly program is available online.
