some of in her eighties she developed paranoia and many friend did not recognize this was an early sign of mount dementia and withdrew their company. at that point, she had outlived her relatives except one in eastern canada and she was low income. a few neighbors kept up their friendship with her. and she began to fall while shopping, route began to decline, several neighbors assisted her in her home and got her the help she needed. we obtained power of attorney, delivered medical and grocers supplies, managed her finances. eventually, we hired a wonderful home care professional to look after her. she had visitors but died at 91 in her home. her resources would have been completely exhausted in another

two months. if neighbors had not stepped in to manage the situation, all live would have to have been taken i care of by public programs much earlier. now the village movement has grown to organize and encourage this type of name for network in the face of growing senior population and diminishing resources, it is important villages develop these resources and make this a recognizable and reliable way of helping communities. thank you. >> my name is patricia born. i, on the board of sf next. janet has given a nice example of the way that critical support can be provided to elders who would otherwise be forced to draw on public-sector resources. by the spontaneous action and good neighbors.

next sf is not fully functioning in its formal manner. we have already provided some of the spontaneous, neighborhood support. let me read a note. i would like to express my support for next sf. last year i had an injury that required several injuries. i had no family members in this city, so i got in touch with next sf to help me. they have helped me through a difficult time and i am deeply appreciative. these are hard news stories of old tiny neighborly ness in action, but we cannot rely on such good luck. frail individuals will have to connect to a number of willing individuals, but i am sorry to

say, most will not. what next sf is all about is finding a way to systemize such serendipity. at the heart of our program is a program called neighbor to neighbor. we know what they love to do, are willing to do, and when they are available. we are developing a database that will allow us to find the right match when someone needs help. we use on-line tools to help communicate with them and track them so that a minimum of staff hours are used. we see nothing less than the creation of community 21st century style. we call our neighbors neighbors, not volunteers. we aim to growth in our communities and help out. being connected to those around us is simply and not so simply a

taken for granted part of life. >> thank you. >> good morning. i am dr. amy it there, an emeritus professor and former chair of the department of counseling at san francisco state university. one of my accomplishments during my tenure in the department was creating and implementing a specialization n gentle on the counseling in partnership with the master's program in gerontology more than 15 years ago. i am a friend, if you will, of the next program, as i am a resident of maryland law park. i am here to do a test to the dedication, talent, and the plain hard work of these board members who wish to provide a

vehicle for services and support to their neighbors as they age. they exemplify the notion of each one, help one, which makes me proud again to live in this terrific city. i strongly support the funding of a full-time paid staff person using funds under increasing participation in senior villages. i urge this committee to support the work of next sf by proposing the 2011-2012 budget include legislative option to, "provide a san francisco-based millage organization with general funds from the subsidy to pay for a member of reach and targeted demographics, such as low income and immigrant seniors." perhaps we might see a similar

program modeled in next sf in district 7 sometime in the future. thank you. >> thank you, professor. the next five speakers are from sf village. i want to thank jail for coordinating this. i believe susan will walk us through the history of the sf village. >> thank you. i am a founding member and board member of san francisco village. i am also a senior policy adviser to the village to village network. in full disclosure, i am also co-chair of the long term care coordinating council, although i am not representing us todathem. examples you have heard here today, really some of the heart

of what the village movement is about. committed to building, supported people in their homes and buildings. i appreciate the difference in the report in the differencagine community. the hallmarks of the village movement, self-governing, supporting grass roots that can coordinate services, do not duplicate what is already there. they are holistic. they are a person-centered consumer directives. this model applies across income levels, which is one of its great strengths. people change in their lives. this model allows people to dip in and out of services as they need, depending on what transitions they may be going through or what health status changes there are. so it is a preventive care model in addition to a community-

building and strengthening model. there is no one way to do this. the report was wonderful in terms of putting together so much information that focuses the thinking on what the needs are in the community. thank you for that. looking ahead to the future, there are a lot of issues for villages. it is a new movement. it has a ton of interest. all the villages are going to deal with things like funding, sustainability, how to replicate it affectively, diversity issues, bldg. evidence for it. i just want to say, on behalf of the village to village that mark and san francisco village, we are ready to work through these issues with you and see what is best for the city. >> thank you. next speaker please. >> good morning, supervisors.

i am a founding board member of san francisco village. i became interested in sf from my work as president of the richmond presidio neighbors, a collection of hundreds of neighbors in the richmond district bordering the presidio. i came to understand and appreciate how fiercely our city residents are about preserving their quality of life in their own neighborhood. there are no residents more interested in preserving their neighborhood and our seniors. on my block alone, of the 30 houses, single-family homes, about half are owned by residents in their 70's, 80's who have lived there for more than 40 years. san francisco village is a nonprofit community-based membership organization that empowers the adults to remain in their own homes as they age.

it became a private 5013 c in 2007 and after a couple years planning, we successfully launched in 2009 and currently have 130 members with five reduced the members. we are financially sound with a balanced budget projected to 2015. we have both foundation and individual support, and if we were able to obtain city backing, it would allow us to obtain water foundation support so that we conserve more members. our members live throughout the city from the richmond district to mission bay and in between. our goal is to have 450 members by the year 2015 with a minimum of 10% reduced the members. we are looking to the city of san francisco to help the funding of the board membership for low income seniors. right now we have reduced the membership of $100 a year for

those who cannot afford a full membership of $50 a month. our intent has always been to be at the gate and economically diverse. one of the ways that will help seniors maintain their sense of meaning and purpose in their lives is to provide opportunities for them to help other members. members helping members across the economic spectrum will be possible if we have the support of the city to grow our low income membership base. >> thank you. next speaker please. >> thank you very much. and i want to thank supervisor mar and his staff for spearheading this important study on aging in san francisco. i also want to thank joan levy for getting us here today. i also want to apologize for christina chung for not being

here today. she is on medical leave of absence. i am the board president of san francisco village. we began in 2007 as richmond village, became richmond village, and then just san francisco village. people want to be a part of a city-wide organization that includes people from all over san francisco, all at the same time, getting to know people in the neighborhoods. the macro and micro in one package. our strategic partners are particularly interested in supporting one central organization. we are also an organization committed to representing diversity in the city. if the city funds villages to reach out to low income members, this is what we will do, working with the city. first, we want to acknowledge this is a major task. very important, a team effort that will be required. we will collaborate with our

partners, service providers, and next sf. we will create new partnerships with senior centers and aging organizations throughout the city. we will work with the leaders of major aging organizations. many are already on the advice rick council. we will participate in developing criteria and protocol for selecting low income residents. we will help deliver an instrument to develop attitudinal and a real memberships. if money is provided for a rich, we will provide the city and identify key target audiences, help to determine the most cost- effective approach for reaching these targets, participating in research to better understand the needs, and to help develop and test messages to communicate the benefits of the village membership. the bottom line, we are ready to work with the city, next sf, and

other organizations to make these options possible to implement. thank you very much. thank you for the fabulous study. >> thank you. next speaker please. >> good morning, supervisors. i am here to talk about the transition's work. our goal, as you know, is to allow older people to remain in their homes. one of the crises that often leads to removal from the home is hospitalizations, particularly, unexpected hospitalizations. a smooth transition from the hospital back to the home is one of the goals of san francisco village. the recent study in san francisco which found 20% of people on medicare were hospitalized, readmitted within 30 days -- there are a number

of reasons for this. mostly relating to adequate services when a person returns home. there are at least five important issues. first, there are repair are their relatives, friends, or other service providers to welcome them? is there a refrigerator full? does the patient have adequate food at home? does the patient understand the discharge orders? does he or she know what medicines to take and how often? is there anyone at home and to help the patient understand? does the patient know when their first doctor's appointment is aspirate -- after the hospital? do they have a way to get to the appointment? is the patient getting help in connecting with formal services? is there trusted informal help, like a neighbor, a village member, or friend, when the

patient member is being connected? san francisco village have been working with continue on and destroyed planners at kaiser, cpm see, st. francis hospital, to develop a smooth transition process for members. it requires education both of future patients to know what the hospital needs to know to facilitate the discharge and hospitals need to have ways to notify the village that a patient is being discharged. we hope that with increased funding from the city, more elderly can come under our umbrella so that we can coordinate care and transition from the hospital to the home. thank you. >> i know folks from sf village are speaking, but i will read a couple of cards. >> my name is ralph baron.

i am a member of the village. i am here to talk about the social benefits, really, of being a member of san francisco village. last night, as i was watching the academy awards, i was sitting with a young friend of mine, around 30. she was say to me, ralph, you know, it is so hard to find a quality friend. i said i am going to say that tomorrow. this is part of what we are faced come as older citizens, to find quality people. this is what we find in a community like san francisco village. we all know the old -- i think -- chinese saying. crisis equals opportunity common dangers emerge. we know what the dangers are.

mental, physical, and emotional. but the opportunities in the village are wonderful. opportunities to reinvent yourself. i do mean reinvention. speaking personally, i have really ramped up my own seminars on jewish comedy. jewish comedy can be very funny. the connection between comedy and queuing -- hewing. that is the sort of thing that happens at san francisco village. how can we build a community that really contributes to the well-being of the community, to the help of the community, and having people that really connect with each other? i think that is what it is. it has been a wonderful

experience for me and many others. thank you. >> thank you. nec's speaker. -- next speaker. >> good morning. i am vera hale. i was happy to see the report and i was happy that they used the age of 64 aging. that is the same age that the older americans act uses. also, that is a age at which people ought to start thinking about when they retire, if they have not already, if they have not gotten sick or lost their job. it is nice to see that standardized. it is 20% of our population. one thing missing in the report, they need to identify the tenderloin as a neighborhood with a high concentration of seniors. it seems to have slid into pulp

gulch when they read the report. on the chip's program, we still have a more active program. i think that one certainly needs to be restored. if they got permission, they did it in residential hotels or as a rose -- as sorrows -- sros. for years we have talked about in law apartments and secondary housing. i remember supervisor thomas shea wanted to implement more housing. he found so many problems that nothing happened. but the idea of exempting certain people from some of the rental projections to rent out a better room may be a good possibility. seniors are strange about sharing housing. if they expected to be home care or make money, that usually

fails. i think it is a good idea to try this. also, i think the idea of providing staff for all these volunteers is good. i have found people say, volunteers are sustainable, but not necessarily, not without some staff back up. that is one of the ideas presented that should be looked at. >> thank you. next speaker please. anyone else that would like to comment on this first item on the budget analyst report, please come forward. >> good morning, supervisors. my name is michael. i am representing san francisco organizing project named in memory of dan ryan. i got involved with sfop. i live in the richmond district.

i am also looking no. 1235 on the waiting list. i am also proud of the fact i will be turning 60 this year because i have had friends that never reached 35. living back home on 10th avenue with my 94-year-old father, who retired from the san francisco police department, and my mother, who is 82, who retired from sears. i am here just to support senior housing and independence. thank you. >> thank you. next speaker please. >> hello, my name is michael job. i am 66 dead year-old resident of san francisco. for the last three years i have been battling the department of forestry, public works, and the

mayor's office with the americans with disabilities act. i loved hearing everything about seniors, but if the supervisors do not coordinate the other departments, there will be a big problem. i am referring to the sidewalks. come to the 600 block of schrader street. for seniors with disabilities, if you do not coordinate the facilities, things will be confusing. you have 49 inches of sidewalk space for people to pass. that is what san francisco says. if a wheelchair, 25 inches, goes down the street and something comes the other way, -- i am just suggesting that other departments court made when you work on senior activities. i am also a vietnam veteran and am up for suggestions. maybe tap into the veterans administration to get senior

housing for us older veterans. also, unions, the school district. we have buildings that can be converted. if you tap into unions and other things like that, there are other ways, churches, to get senior housing developed. thank you. >> thank you. next speaker. >> council community housing organization. we are made up of 20 faith and community-based non-profit corporations and advocates for affordable housing. i just want to complement the staff in its comprehensive report and acknowledge, along with your staff, the principal and primary role of affordable housing in addressing senior needs in san francisco. i want to report to you that things are not good on that front.

the removal of tax increment financing at the state level -- which is a foregone conclusion -- the assault on cdbg homes, section 8 on the federal level, hazmat san francisco is going to have to ask some serious questions about continuing to provide the level of support to the principal provider of affordable housing opportunities for seniors, which are facing community-based nonprofit development corporations, either through new construction or acquisition and rehab. i hope in this year's budget process you will find in your hearts and ledger books the ability to put some money into affordable housing, especially for senior housing development. we have three large projects currently stalled for the lack of federal and state funds. thank you. >> thank you. next speaker.

>> good morning, supervisors. my name is douglas yepp. i have lived in san francisco for 59 years. i would like to think the committee for holding this agenda item. i would like to mention one aspect i do not see mentioned so far this morning, and that is the role of laguna honda hospital, for the issue of senior independence. according to my research, it seems like laguna honda hospital has been cast in a very negative light lately, especially in regards to its new construction. there has also been debate with certain watchdogs on whether the facility is being used for the benefit of longtime seniors in san francisco. maybe the issue of how laguna honda fits in with seniors in san francisco should be addressed, specifically.

the reason why i bring that up is that i notice my own district supervisor has still been reluctant to issue written statements regarding what has been happening at laguna honda, answered allegations to their vocal critics. in regards to this committee, i notice there are only two agenda items for today. i am of the opinion that if taxpayers are going to get their money's worth, we should be holding more agenda items. if the committee would like some suggestions, i would like to mention three items. child porn, medicare fraud, and public official corruption. thank you. but >> walter paulson. you give us a senior housing that makes poll city sing

and all the independence that it brings you are the neighborhood services and you give a house that is what it is all about will you give the seniors a house thank you. >> that was great. i think he should come last. my name is betty trainer. i am here as a representative from senior action network. in particular, their housing program. as you know, senior action network has always been concerned about low income seniors. in particularly, in housing. through our coordinator, we have convened a parallel group that has been discussing particularly

seniors living in sro hotels. that has been going on for at least six months, meetings, coming up with conclusions shortly. i wanted to be sure the committee is aware of this group. we are dealing with issues of who are the poorest of the poor seniors in san francisco, who, in many cases are living in sro hotel that none of us would want family members living in. we would like to give this report an excellent, but it was able to touch on the specific conditions of seniors in sro hotels, recommendations that this parallel group will also be giving you in the future. i would also like to briefly mention an alternate group to the village model called the community living campaign,