On Monday 15 June a number of events occurred throughout Victoria to raise awareness of the serious issue of elder abuse on the United Nation’s World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD). See https://elderabuseawarenessday.org.au/events/
Seniors Rights Victoria held a special event at the Melbourne Town Hall, which was lit up in the WEAAD color purple for the night. Jenny Blakey, the Manager of Senior Rights Victoria, welcomed guests including the Victorian Minister for Ageing, Martin Foley, the Deputy Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Susan Riley, the Commissioner for Older Victorians Gerard Mansour, the Public Advocate, Colleen Pearce, Frank Vincent QC and Barbara Mountjouris, Manager, Senior Programs, Department of Health and Human Services.
“Tonight we are in this magnificent building to turn the light on elder abuse. The Town Hall will light up in purple, the colour of WEAAD, and banners are hanging from the balcony to tell all who pass that elder abuse exists and help is at hand to empower older people to deal with it,” Jenny Blakey said. See Jenny Blakey WEAAD speech.
Guests enjoyed canapés, drinks and a musical performance from the band Cello Squared. The comedian Rod Quantock offered a humorous take on ageing, which lightened the mood after serious talks on elder abuse. To learn about our 2014 Forum, please click here.
