Retirees eye branch in Carleton Place

Posted Feb 2, 2012 By Desmond Devoy

EMC News - Gray is the new black.

In 10 years, Canadians over the age of 65 will outnumber people 15 and under, vastly shifting the dynamic of life in this country.

With that in mind, the Canadian Association of Retired Peoples (CARP) is planning to open a new chapter in Carleton Place.

"Sometimes, the smaller communities do a better job of it," said Janet Gray, president of the CARP chapters in the Ottawa Valley, of the reasons for expanding.

"There tends to be a more committed nucleus of volunteers."

The group advocates on behalf of seniors on a variety of issues.

Gray pointed out that Prime Minister Stephen Harper's musings at the World Economic Summit in Davos, Switzerland, about changing Canada's retirement age to 67 would also be an item that they would be keeping a close eye on.

"We'll go toe to toe with the federal finance department when the budget comes out,' said Gray.

CARP's advocacy regarding changing the way Canada deals with a mandatory retirement age even extended to a case taken up by former Air Canada pilots who wanted the airline to change their policy on making pilots retire at a certain age.

Though the case went all the way to the Supreme Court, the pilots were not successful in overturning the rule.

"Retirement is a fluid target these days," said Gray. "Some people retire at 55, others at 75 ... It should be your own choice whether you want to continue to work.

Another issue close to CARP's heart is elder abuse. "We're not sure if it is because there are more incidents or more people are comfortable reporting it," said Gray.

CARP was started by a retired couple in Toronto 27 years ago. It now boasts 350,000 members and 50 chapters. The Ottawa chapter launched three years ago has more than 3,000 members.

The Leeds-Grenville chapter has 1,500 members.

In the early days, only Canadians aged 50 and older could join the organization.

"It is now open to members of any age," said Gray.

"We are fighting against age discrimination, so why are we discriminating based on age? ... (Now) our youngest member is 22. He wanted more information on what his grandparents are going through."

Lee Brebner, chairman of the board of directors of the Mills Community Support Corporation, said he was glad to have another group in the area that would complement its seniors advocacy work, especially regarding affordable housing.

He pointed to the new seniors housing complex on Country Street in Almonte as a good example of solid work requiring continued action.

"We had to have a lottery for people to get an apartment," said Brebner.

"We now have a waiting list of 70 people who need seniors housing ... A group like CARP will help us to advocate on seniors' behalf."

Brebner commended the help shown to seniors by municipal governments, "but (we need) to get the federal and provincial governments."

Carleton Place Mayor Wendy LeBlanc also welcomed CARP to town. She also poked a little bit of light-hearted fun at herself, while underlining people's changing attitudes towards aging.

"I never care if people know my age," said LeBlanc. "I celebrated my Beatles birthday recently," referencing their 1967 hit "When I'm 64."