Expo draws seniors

Firefighter Richard Yardley explains fire risk to senior citizens.  Photo by Gregor Richardson.
Firefighter Richard Yardley explains fire risk to senior citizens. Photo by Gregor Richardson.
The Mosgiel Senior Expo gave those over 55 the chance to brush up on some important matters last Thursday.

The Mosgiel Presbyterian Church played host to 39 agencies prepared to provide information about the services available to older people.

East Taieri Church community facilitator Joy Davis said the expo was a great opportunity for the community.

''It's to enable the seniors in the community to get together and catch up,'' she said.

''Older people can find out what services are available to them and how they access them.''

Representatives from agencies including the New Zealand Fire Service, Diabetes New Zealand, Age Concern and Sport Otago were all prepared to help in any way they could.

Firefighter Richard Yardley was keen to explain important aspects of fire alarms.

''We're encouraging people to get their smoke alarms checked on a regular basis,'' he said.

''What we find is that a lot of people don't understand. We're trying to encourage them to ring us and we'll come round and give advice.''

Parish president Leslie Lumsden assists many older people and thought the expo would benefit her work.

''It's a great opportunity to catch up on the things that you don't know,'' she said.

''I thought it would be handy to check it out for their sake.''

The expo also provided seniors the chance to have their say about what it was like living in the Mosgiel-Taieri community.

''We have a survey which they can complete,'' Mrs Davis said.

''We've been doing research around young people and families; now, we're using this time to see how older people feel.''

Mrs Davis was expecting a busy day, with hundreds of people already through the doors.

''It's hard to say how many will come. We're only halfway through the afternoon,'' she said.

- Alastair Lynn

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