Elders of color often are involved in their communities across the generations.

In cooperation with ASA’s Civic Engagement Program, three participants in the current class of ASA’s New Ventures in Leadership (NVL) will focus on civic engagement. NVL promotes the leadership potential of professionals of color and their involvement in the national aging arena; participants -- referred to as partners -- take part in a yearlong program designed to help them enhance their skills in key areas related to their careers. We asked the three partners to discuss how their NVL projects will support older adults of color in becoming more involved in their communities.

AKIRA OHIOSO

Naturally Occurring Retirement Community Director & Education Coordinator
Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center
New York City

My NVL project aims to promote civic engagement at a naturally occurring retirement community (NORC) in New York City. The NORC is situated in a city housing project where many older adults live on fixed incomes. There is a large Latino and African American baby boomer community living in the NORC; they have been difficult to engage due to cultural barriers and a limited understanding of their aging experience, which is not the media-portrayed baby boomer experience that permeates society. There is a conspicuous silence when it comes to baby boomers of color.

Through an oral history project, I hope to foster cultural empowerment, which may lead these elders to continued civically engaged choices that will improve their lives and our understanding of their unique strengths and needs within a NORC. The project will culminate in The Silent Boom, a published work and a Web-based presentation of the unique yet universal stories of Latino and African American boomers. My hope is that the project will increase awareness and facilitate an important discourse about an often neglected minority cohort.

KYAIEN O. CONNER

Postdoctoral Research Scholar
Western Psychiatric Institute & Clinic
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Pittsburgh, Pa.

My project focuses on further developing a peer-education program that provides older adults of color an opportunity to give back to their communities in a way they may not have been able to give in a long time. The project identifies elders of color with a history of depression who have recovered and who are willing to share their stories and offer support to newly diagnosed peers.

The peer educators are trained to offer accurate information about depression and effective treatments, to provide social support and to help connect their peers to useful resources. Through this work, the elders become resources in their communities, able to provide a wealth of knowledge and support that is desperately needed. In the studies I have already conducted for the project, the peer educators themselves identify feeling proud, having higher self-confidence and feeling that the opportunity to be civically engaged and help others has improved how they see themselves.

SIKIZI ALLEN

Program Manager
City of Inglewood Senior Citizens Center
Inglewood, Calif.

For my NVL project, I will develop a community-service and membership organization to engage caregivers of diverse and underserved communities in an informal, relaxed and culturally appropriate environment designed to promote a better quality of life for both caregiver and care recipient. Caregivers will assist each other in the caregiving process through discussions, hands-on techniques, shared stories, best practices and positive reinforcement. The object will be to lessen stress and prevent caregiver burnout, which is very common, especially among caregivers of color.

My project will create a venue to develop a respite buddy-system and fellowship events that will connect caregivers to resources in the community. Health and wellness programming, music and art therapy, cultural events and fellowship will support caregivers’ self-development and self-care and will promote stress relief and healing. Empowerment, education, advocacy and recognition will be some of the avenues addressed to ensure that caregivers have a voice in the community. The ultimate goal is to celebrate caregivers of color as they continue to enhance the well-being of their significant others.

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