This year again, the International Federation’s member organizations and partners celebrated the International Day of Older Persons on October 1st. This day, which aims to raise public awareness of the cause of isolation of the elderly, is always an opportunity to implement actions, such as the traditional distribution of flowers.
In the Upper Michigan, for example, Little Brothers Friends of the Elderly distributed flowers and cards to the elderly residents around them. The seniors were also given a slate to help them remember or write down their shopping lists.
In Hungary, Idosek Baratai volunteers distributed a recipe book and a rose to seniors on the street. The volunteers were accompanied by two Hungarian theater actors who are very famous in the country.
In France, the organization launched an awareness campaign using several tools: posts on social networks, a film broadcast on French television, as well as a “loneliness hunters” kit, to encourage people to reach out to elderly people around them who might be isolated.
Finally, in Spain, the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona was illuminated on the evening of October 1st in honor of the elderly!
Photo credit: Idosek Baratai
