AARP Goes One-on-One with Thomas Menino
By: Source: AARP.org Date Posted: 2007-08-13 13:36:42.102733-04:00
Thomas M. Menino is serving his fourth term as Mayor of the City of Boston. During this tenure, Mayor Menino has worked to improve the quality of life for Boston's 589,000 residents. His main priorities include creating affordable housing, revitalizing Boston's neighborhoods, promoting a healthy lifestyle for all residents, and providing every child with a quality education.
As Life@50+ | AARP's National Event & Expo comes to Boston, AARP Massachusetts asks Mayor Menino to tell us what makes Boston a friendly city for the 50-plus population.
Q: During Life@50+ | AARP will work to promote volunteer opportunities with Boston-based Generations Incorporated, an organization that provides 50-plus mentors to Boston Public Elementary Schools. How does this initiative enhance your education goals?
A: Volunteerism is a vital part of community building and strengthening our neighborhoods. Volunteers allow us to provide quality education at no additional cost, by tapping into resources that we already have: All of us. The City of Boston elderly commission also has two volunteer programs that have sites within the public school system. In addition, I recently signed off on the "property tax work-off volunteer program" which will also help strengthen our educational system.
Q: How are you engaging 50-plus residents to stay active?
A: The City of Boston offers 100-plus events a year, free transportation, continued support of community based care, and numerous volunteer opportunities. Additionally, I have a senior advisory council that is a voting body and makes many decisions pertaining to regulations and services that affect the elder population in the city. We encourage our seniors to get involved and make their own policy decisions. For example, members of my advisory council tell me which senior services programs to fund. It's that simple.
Q: What steps are you taking to help Boston prepare for the aging Boomer population?
A: In Boston, we are shifting the way we think about senior citizens. The days of grandma in the rocker are over. We are providing people with meaningful volunteer opportunities that are attractive to them. We need to tap into the tech- savvy and policy-minded seniors and utilize their input into how we shape policy. We know the Boomers are coming; I am one of them, and we as policy makers need to continue to provide significant and rewarding opportunities for the members of my generation. We would be foolish not to!
AARP Massachusetts thanks Thomas Menino for taking the time to answer our questions.
This article was originally published in the AARP Massachusetts Update newsletter, Summer 2007.
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