Media Release
July 7, 2021 – Have you given any thought as to where and how you want to live out your later years? Have you discussed your preferences with your family or friends? Do you worry about needing care but not being able to access it where you chose to live? Is your current home safe to age in?
The Golden Dawn Senior Citizen Home has launched a community survey to learn about current and future housing and care needs from residents of the Northern Bruce Peninsula. The information collected in the survey will help inform redevelopment planning to better meet the needs of our community.
“There is a lot of national and regional data around housing and care preferences in Canada, but we are a uniquely situated community with a mix of permanent and seasonal residents that may have very different ideas and plans from the trends we are seeing in cities.”, says Trace MacKay of the Golden Dawn board of directors and chair of the Redevelopment Task Force. “It’s important to hear from as many Northern Bruce Peninsula residents as possible to figure out what our community wants and needs so we can plan for the future.”
The Golden Dawn has been mandated by the Ministry of Long Term Care to redevelop their facility by 2025. While the Golden Dawn plans to continue to deliver licensed long term care as long as we have the support of the provincial ministry to do so, a task force of board members and community members is exploring all options on the table to make sure our redevelopment plan fits with community needs and other existing community services. The purpose of the survey is to gain a better understanding of what housing and care services our community members are thinking about or planning as they age here, and which needs the Golden Dawn can meet in our redevelopment planning.
Even if you haven’t made any firm decisions, or your plans are to seek housing and care elsewhere as you age, we still need to hear from you. The Redevelopment Task Force has different options to consider and would prefer to make the right planning recommendations on representative, community input rather than on assumptions or data collected from elsewhere. Some residents may retire here, but move closer to family in their final years when they need more support. Some residents may plan to live out their lives in their own homes, but haven’t considered how to make their home safe and accessible for themselves and caregivers. Others may be planning on moving into a long term care facility in their later years because that’s the only option they’ve ever known. Still others see long term care as a last resort or non-option for themselves or their family members. Our community may have an increasing need for caregivers, no matter where residents chose to live, but no housing for caregivers to live and work here and this may be a priority issue.
Working with local research and evaluation consultants, Sara Hsiao and Dominic Wong, with funding support from Community Foundation Grey Bruce, the task force has launched a survey that will be available for all residents, permanent and seasonal, 30 years of age or older, until August 9th.
While we hope that as many people as possible will complete the survey on-line at www.goldendawn.ca/Re-development.php (for environmental reasons and easier data analysis), paper surveys are available at numerous locations across the Northern Peninsula for those who do not have reliable access to internet or may have difficulty reading and completing a survey on-screen. Pick up locations for paper surveys include the Golden Dawn, Peninsula Health Team offices in Tobermory and Lion’s Head, Peacock’s Foodland in Tobermory and Hellyer’s Foodland in Lion’s Head, Rona in Miller Lake, and By the Bay General Store in Pike Bay. Summer students at the Golden Dawn will be assisting our long term care and apartment residents to make sure everyone has the opportunity to participate in the survey. Northern Bruce Peninsula residents are encouraged to assist their family, friends, and neighbours to complete a survey if help is needed.
Contact the Golden Dawn at 519-793-3433 if you have any questions, need assistance with the survey, or are having trouble with the on-line link or tracking down a paper copy. Completed paper surveys can be dropped off at the Golden Dawn, both Peninsula Family Health Team locations, and library drop-boxes in Lion’s Head and Tobermory.
The results of the survey will be analyzed and reported on by the consulting team after the survey closes on August 9th, and shared back to the community in the Fall. We can’t know what your plans or preferences are without asking – so have your voice heard and fill out your survey today!
