Madam Chair and committee members, thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak about my experience. That's what I was asked to do.
In was born in 1935 in Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, in the Lower St. Lawrence. I'm the eldest of a family of 16 children. I think that the modest environment where I grew up is similar to the environment of many women across the country. Above all, I want to identify the needs of the senior women who live near me.
I obtained my first teaching certificate at the age of 16. I say “first” because I obtained other certificates along the way. I completed a bachelor's degree in education, and I worked as a teacher for 35 years. I took a three-year break to work in the Catholic action diocesan services, a one-year break for my family and a one-year break to attend university. I have a daughter. We didn't plan to have only one child, but we expanded our family by welcoming four young refugees from Southeast Asia. They arrived in 1977, 1979 and 1981. Very early in my adult life, I was drawn to outside causes, in particular the plight of working children. In 1974, I signed the federal charter incorporating an international aid organization whose mission is to help children in developing countries.
As you pointed out, age is a cruel leveller. It affects all women to varying degrees of intensity. They have essentially the same concerns and they must face the same challenges, whether they were teachers and wives at home, or professionals in a mission or on the labour market. However, the stress is different for women who live with their partners in this last season of life. It's also different for women who are financially secure. I heard the people who spoke before me talk about all the financial needs related to the situation of senior women. Obviously, it's also different for women who have a social network.
Senior women want to continue to share their wealth of life experience. They still need to be valued and consulted. They want to remain in touch with the public, social and community life around them. I'm fortunate to experience this reality. Yes, I consider myself lucky to still be active and engaged. My family and social networks don't have the overly protective attitude that involves organizing things for me. My children didn't try to “place” me in a residence when my husband died. My friends and family stepped up.
Our world moves fast. Institutions that focus on efficiency, performance and labour market demands often turn seniors into victims of their slowness and of the time it takes them to act, move around or understand the use of new technology. Just think about what's needed in order to understand how to use a bank machine.
There are the challenges faced by women who aren't financially independent, women who know nothing about managing a budget, women who are mothers of 30- or 40-year-old children with a disability or women who are exploited by their family and friends. There are also women who live in CHSLDs and who experience loneliness in the midst of a population of forgotten people such as them. I think that these are the major challenges, which are a reality for many people.
Since they must face alone a reality that seems too harsh, a number of senior women have chosen to live in establishments for seniors.
They would have preferred the assistance of a family member or friend, but who wants to leave their job to become a caregiver? It's difficult to obtain the caregiver status and it's very poorly paid. The status needs to be reviewed. On a social and human level, leaving people at home benefits everyone.
A real educational movement is needed so that the active society doesn't exclude senior women from its ranks and gives them the chance to experience everyday situations where people of all ages come together.
Right now, talking about old age security is an ideal plan, but it's only a plan. The programs and services for seniors provided by the government meet the needs of healthy and independent senior women who can freely move around and who are well supported. Senior women who are less agile also want to stay in their familiar environment. They want to be respected and they want to move around and continue to feel like full members of society. These desires are difficult to address, because they require much more money than the amount available.
Seniors who end up in establishments need—