Hello everyone.
The mission of the Centre action générations des aînés de la Vallée-de-la-Lièvre is to foster the well-being, autonomy, and vitality of seniors in Vallée-de-la-Lièvre, in the Outaouais region. All our services are designed to develop the full potential of seniors to remain in their own homes as long as possible, as they wish to do.
The organization's objectives are to prevent isolation and loneliness in seniors; to foster contact among seniors and retired persons; to encourage retired persons to devote their time to seniors; to utilize seniors' skills; to inform seniors about their rights; to emphasize the personal and collective responsibility of seniors; to change the community's perceptions of seniors; to facilitate cooperation among the various stakeholders who work with seniors; to support the civic participation of our seniors; and to help seniors stay in their own homes. In short, we are familiar with the needs of our seniors and know what is happening with them.
We also offer various services that enable us to reach out to seniors. The services are tailored to their needs. For example, we offer: transportation assistance for medical appointments; the Bouf' Mobile service, which delivers fresh or frozen meals to their homes; friendly visits and phone calls through our volunteer matching system; a tax clinic; a reference and information centre in both official languages; and help filling out various forms.
We also have a support group for seniors' family caregivers and local employment initiatives for vulnerable seniors, which we call ITMAV. We have two ITMAV officers in our offices.
We also offer various activities to help seniors maintain their autonomy and foster their vitality. These activities focus on prevention and the promotion of healthy lifestyle habits, including presentations and crafts workshops, cultural workshops, and discovery workshops. We also offer recreational and cultural workshops.
We support the development of seniors' potential by getting them involved in democratic life though community kitchens and a community garden. We support individuals in their natural environment by offering all these services and all these activities. As a result, we are often in the field and converse with seniors. Finally, we encourage them to be active in their community.
The area we serve extends from Val-des-Bois, in the north of the Outaouais, to Thurso, and includes Buckingham, Masson-Angers, Mayo, and Lochaber. We serve about 16 municipalities.
Since we know our clients well, we are in a position to make certain recommendations. Further, I would add that our organization has 1,000 members and 120 volunteers.
I will now give the floor to Ms. Michèle Osborne, who will tell you about our recommendations.