for Retired Elderly) volunteers pitched into snow banks with shovels to free isolated elderly. CETA workers removed snow. Area agencies purchased sump pumps to clear out flooded basements, ladders to reach snow laden roofs, chain saws for emergency wood cutting for fuel, and paid hundreds of dollars for emergency toll calls.

Isolation, compounded in some cases by insufficient food, fuel and medical supplies, was the principal problem affecting the elderly in this snow/blizzard disaster. Even though the area agencies on aging in the nine counties, which were declared disaster areas, reported a tremendous outreach effort immediately following the storm, the needs of some elderly persons went unmet.

These needs included snow removal and home repairs for damage caused by snow that had blown into every conceivable opening in homes and then melted, creating water damage. Emotional problems also surfaced as a result of the isolation. Combined with the anxiety many elderly persons in the disaster area

were experiencing because of an inability to pay the high fuel bills this winter, the isolation resulted in severe emotional hardships for many older persons.

At a meeting of the directors of the area agencies on aging from the declared disaster counties, it was agreed that spring flooding is almost certain to occur because of the unusually large amount of snow in the western region of New York State. Aging network plans of action are now being developed that address evacuation methods, alternative living arrangements, and meal delivery procedures. Hopefully, by doing some pre-planning, the aging network can help save not only elderly persons' lives, but also keep property loss to a minimum in the flood area.

The New York State Office of Aging and the Region II Office of Aging also assumed another significant role following the snow/blizzard disaster. Both offices worked with Federal and State agencies administering disaster relief programs to alleviate assistance application requirements that discriminate against

the elderly. Such requirements include the provision that all persons applying for assistance must first apply for a Small Business Administration loan, and that they must secure flood insurance.

require

These well-intentioned ments are of questionable benefit to the elderly. Most elderly are unlikely to be eligible for SBA 30-year loans, especially those living on fixed incomes, and since many of the elderly in the disaster area are having problems meeting fuel bills this winter, they lack money to pay for flood insurance.

U.S. Department of Agriculture requirements for food stamp eligibility in the disaster area were also questioned because of a clause indicating that a loss of income must be shown before being eligible for food stamp benefits. Again, the procedure discriminated against the elderly. They may not have lost income because of the disaster, but have increased expenditures as a result. Consequently, they have as much need for food stamps as others who did lose income. Corrective efforts are continuing.

Aging Network Responsibilities in Disasters

The Administration on Aging and the National Network on Aging must continue to be involved in disaster planning and follow-up activities because elderly persons in every area of the country are vulnerable to some type of natural disaster. As advocates for the elderly, it is crucial that the aging network be prepared to cope with any disaster situation and to insure that elderly persons' needs are met through assistance provided by disaster relief agencies.

The National Network on Aging is engaged in an on-going process of planning especially linked to the preparation of State and area plans. This includes an identification of the needs of older persons and the establishment of objectives and action plans designed to meet those needs through the development of comprehensive and coordinated services for the elderly. Under normal conditions, this is an orderly process. When a natural disaster strikes, however, the orderly process is disrupted, needs become intensified, time for action

is immediate, and the organized delivery system may be eliminated. Consequently, it is essential that State and area agencies on aging, and Title VII nutrition project agencies jointly plan for disasters which could seriously affect older persons.

In planning for disasters, the network on aging should utilize information gathered in the on-going planning process, and take into account the various contingencies disaster might create, such as concentrations of older persons suddenly deprived of services, the need for physical relocation and expanded nutrition. services, and the need to launch a modified outreach service.

The plight of the elderly in the Wilkes-Barre, Pa. disaster of June, 1972, which required Presidential intervention to provide services to older persons, led Commissioner Arthur S. Flemming to institute the AoA response to disasters in the April, 1974, 11-State tornado sweep. As a result, over the past several years, the Administration on Aging has been involved in disaster planning and follow-up activities on be

half of elderly disaster victims in Rapid City, S. Dak.; Idaho Falls, Idaho; Omaha, Nebr.; Loveland, Colo.; Alabama; Indiana; Kentucky; Ohio; Tennessee; and most recently, in Buffalo, N.Y.

Even though the Administration on Aging and the National Network on Aging are not a disaster relief network, they have the mechanism to prepare for, respond immediately after, and continue followup over a long-term period, on the special needs of elderly disaster victims. A disaster situation provides an opportunity for the network on aging, especially at the area agency and nutrition project level, to demonstrate its effectiveness as an advocate and service provider during a time of special need.

Model Projects Awarded

A number of model projects have been funded in disaster areas to enable the Administration on Aging to study the proper role of the aging network in responding to disaster situations. As a result of these projects, a series of technical assistance docu

ments have been produced and distributed to the aging network. They include a document entitled, Planning for the Elderly in Natural Disasters, produced under the auspices of the Eastern Nebraska Office on Aging, and an assistance memorandum produced by AoA as a composite of experiences in other model projects. The assistance memorandum outlines the specific roles of the various levels within the National Network on Aging and links these roles to those outlined in a Memorandum of Understanding between the Administration on Aging and the Federal Disaster Assistance Administration (FDAA). Very briefly, the role assumed by the network on aging will be to:

• Provide in conjunction with FDAA and voluntary oragnizations, a minimum level of training through the National Network on Aging on disaster preparedness and follow-up.

Encourage the State and area agency (s) on aging, having jurisdiction over areas affected by a major disaster, to immediately begin assessment of the scope of the disaster and its effect on older persons.

• Advise the Regional Office on Aging and State agency on aging staff to immediately join the area agency on aging and/or State Director to conduct, assist, and direct efforts as necessary.

• Inform the appropriate State/local officials and the Regional Office of FDAA, of the needs identified by the local and State Network on Aging. • Upon learning from the Federal Disaster Assistance Administration of a Presidentially-declared major disaster, the Regional Office on Aging is to notify the Director of the State agency on aging of the initial meeting between FDAA and State disaster officials. If the Federal Coordinating Officer deems it appropriate, the State

agency on aging will be asked to participate in the meeting.

• Notify the area agency on aging to participate in the staff meetings called. by the Federal Coordinating Officer, when required, and assist in reaching victims of the disaster to put them in touch with the one-stop center or the appropriate disaster assistance agencies through outreach by staff and/or volunteers.

• Determine what resources may be tapped at all levels in the National Network on Aging.

• If necessary, require the expansion of area agency and/or Title VII nutrition project services to meet the special needs of the elderly and/or the affected population in general. If it is determined that the Older Americans Act resources are not available or sufficient, then the State and area agencies on aging will provide such services, when previously agreed to by the Regional Office on Aging and the FDAA Regional Office, with the understanding that there will be reimbursement from FDAA to AoA when there is provision in the FDAA regulations.

• Direct Regional Office on Aging representatives to remain on-site until there is agreement between FDAA that they are no longer needed. State agency staff will remain until there is agreement with the Regional Office on Aging and the area agency that they are no longer required and the area agency staff will remain active until the needs of the older victims have been met.

Training Sessions

In order to facilitate the development of disaster plans of action for each component of the network on aging, the AoA Central and Regional Offices are encouraging the State and

area agencies on aging and the Title VII nutrition project agencies to avail themselves of training scheduled by AoA in conjunction with FDAA and State Emergency Preparedness Offices. Thorough planning and training should result in actions like those taken following the Teton Dam disaster in Idaho.

Teton Dam Disaster

Within a few days after the break in the Teton Dam near Rexburg, Idaho in 1976, the Idaho State Aging and the Seattle Regional Office on Aging requested AoA Central Office assistance in following up with elderly persons affected by the disaster. Commissioner Flemming dispatched a member of the Field Liaison Staff to Idaho who met with the Director of the State office on aging and traveled to the disaster area where he met with the Director of the area agency on aging. Together, they consulted with FDAA and local officials to determine steps the aging network should take to ensure that elderly disaster victims were given needed assistance following the dis

aster.

An area agency on aging desk was set up at each of the one-stop assistance centers in the disaster area. Any elderly person coming to the area agency desk could obtain information. about the disaster assistance programs available at the center, receive help in filing applications for assistance, and in some cases, obtain almost immediate help from clean-up crews. These were formerly winterization crews reassigned to undertake immediate clean-up operations for the elderly.

A determination was made regarding the need for outreach in the disaster area and a model project pro

posal was funded to provide for such outreach. A special factor considered in the model project was the organized effort of the Morman Church and the role of the aging network in coordinating their disaster follow-up

activities with those of the church. Conclusion

In order for the National Network on Aging to be able to respond to disaster in the effective manner dem

onstrated in the Teton Dam disaster, planning ahead, keeping plans and preparations current, resourcefulness, and advocacy when the need arises were required. Disaster can strike anywhere.

The two and a half year struggle of Extension Home Economist Billie Hagler and Rev. Gordon Blunt proves persistence can sometimes overcome obstacles in a complex bureaucracy.

The two were successful in their campaign to secure a $750,000 loan from the Farmers Home Administration for construction of a retirement community in Nogales, Ariz. The 46-unit complex will serve lowand low-middle income residents of Nogales, a city of 10,000 on the U.S.-Mexican border.

Ms. Hagler, University of Arizona Extension Home Economist in Santa Cruz County, serves as secretary of United Church Village, Inc., the non-profit corporation that obtained the loan.

Rev. Blunt, minister of the United Church fellowship and chairman of the corporation, as well as the Council on Aging in Nogales, said the project was designed to fill a need.

"Many senior citizens can't live in isolation," he observes. "They may not need medical care, but their loneliness is overpowering. When United Church Village opened in September 1975, it gave our senior citizens a place to live where they felt part of a community."

Securing the loan was a frustrating experience for Ms. Hagler and Rev. Blunt, the only two members of the original corporation board who persisted with the project.

Billie Hagler remarks that on several occasions she almost abandoned the idea but persevered because of Rev. Blunt's encouragement.

Neither realized the amount of paperwork they had submitted during the two and a half year period to secure the loan until the final papers were signed in the spring of 1975.

"They had a file at least two inches high," Ms. Hagler recalls.

Because of the problems they encountered, Rev. Blunt developed what he calls his blueprint of action. He received so many inquiries about the project, he decided to outline the steps his group took to obtain the loan.

"We started out as a group of church people who felt a need to help the aging in Nogales. We formed a non-profit corporation to gain recognition as a completely neutral organization," Rev. Blunt explains.

Ms. Hagler adds: "Then we took a survey of the need within our community for a retirement village.

Before we could apply for FmHA funds, we had to establish a need 11⁄2 times greater than the number. of units we wanted to build. Since we are a non-profit organization, we had no funds for the survey. A local church donated $500 to run the survey and get the corporation off the ground."

A building site was also needed. that met FmHA requirements, including a price ceiling. Land was found close to a shopping center which was a convenient location for senior citizens with limited transportation facilities.

The day preceding the signing of the final loan papers, the board discovered the land they planned to buy was not zoned for multiple dwellings. Ms. Hagler and Rev. Blunt then organized a drive to ask residents of the surrounding community to sign a petition that would change the zoning. The drive was a success and the loan papers were signed the following day.

When the project opened in September, residency at United Church Village was based on retirement incomes ranging from $3,000 to $10,000. Rent paid by residents will be used to pay back the FmHA loan.

"You know what business is like. I worked up to the last minute. And then they just gave me my final check and said goodbye."

Stories like this one, told recently by a retired New Bedford bookkeeper about his abrupt plunge into retirement, were the rule rather than the exception until a few years ago. For many years, few employers or employees or the general public recognized the need for pre-retirement planning. Today there is a growing awareness that people must be helped to plan for a life stage that could total one-quarter or even one-third of their lives.

Retirement is a 20th century phenomenon. Among the obvious reasons is that more people are living longer than ever before. Today the average 60-year-old can expect to live an additional 19 years. By contrast, in 1900 a person's life expectancy was 47 years.

The need for retirement planning becomes more apparent with predictions that the population of the Unit

ed States by the year 2000 will consist of 30.6 million people 65 and over, 8 million more than in 1975. And as pension plans and social security benefits improve, more people are taking early retirement, thus swelling the ranks of retirees to include men and women in their fifties. By 1985, the number of workers at or near retirement age will grow by a third to 30 million.

Delivery Methods Vary

Principally in response to requests from business, government employers, and community organizations, several pre-retirement programs and services have been developed both by private and public service organizations. Some offer a monthly magazine or newsletter; others provide guidebooks or manuals for reading and home study. Still other organizations offer lecture or guest speaker presentations. Recently, the highly effective group discussion approach has been adapted to successfully motivate individuals and couples. These discussion groups

increase the pre-retiree's awareness of the areas that require thought and advance planning.

One such discussion program is provided by Action for Independent Maturity (AIM), a division of the American Association of Retired Persons. AIM has created a Retirement Planning Seminar consisting of eight two-hour discussion sessions which cover such subjects as financial planning, legal affairs, housing and location, health and safety, attitudes toward retirement, role adjustments, and meaningful use of time. Each session is held under the direction of a discussion leader, assisted by a resource authority on each topic. To those setting up this type of program the particularly attractive feature is that the materials provided are complete in themselves.

A discussion leader's guide plus a filmstrip are the only materials required by the group leader for each of the eight sessions. The participant receives a manual at the first session which contains eight separate session