NJ Age-Friendly Blueprint and Community Grant Program Announced

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Better With Age NJ team
June 03, 2024 • Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes

It's Monday, New Jersey! Here’s your daily digest of news and events for seniors living in the Garden State.

☀️Weather: Partly sunny, high 85.

👀What's on tap today:

  • State unveils NJ Age-Friendly Blueprint

  • New help for dealing with aggression in people with dementia

  • Upcoming events in NJ this weekend

Up first...

NJ Age-Friendly Blueprint and community grant program

The New Jersey Department of Human Services has unveiled the NJ Age-Friendly Blueprint, a comprehensive strategy aimed at enhancing communities for older adults, allowing them to stay in their homes and communities as they age. Alongside this blueprint, the department has allocated $5.5 million to initiate an Age-Friendly Community Grant Program. This program will support communities in implementing age-friendly practices highlighted in the blueprint and is set to launch later this year.

Strategic Changes for Inclusivity: Human Services Commissioner Sarah Adelman noted that New Jersey is experiencing a significant demographic shift, with a growing older adult population. The NJ Age-Friendly Blueprint, developed by the Age-Friendly State Advisory Council, outlines strategies to make communities more inclusive and integrated. Recommendations cover housing, healthcare, transportation, socialization, employment, communication, and outreach, ensuring that older adults can remain independent and connected to their communities.

Enhancing Community Livability: Communities across New Jersey are already making strides in becoming more age-friendly. For example, Teaneck has implemented numerous improvements over the past eight years, such as safer pedestrian intersections and support for affordable housing. With the NJ Age-Friendly Blueprint and upcoming grant program, more communities are expected to follow suit, creating environments where older adults can thrive. State officials, including those from the Department of Community Affairs and the Department of Health, emphasized the importance of policies that support aging in place, highlighting ongoing initiatives and future plans to foster age-friendly conditions statewide.

Read the blueprint here.

NJ News Briefs

  • The Route 71 Drawbridge over Shark River between Belmar and Avon-by-the-Sea finally reopened on Friday following the completion of emergency repairs. The bridge, built in 1932, had been closed since a mechanical malfunction March 1, causing frequent traffic jams in the area. NJ Dept. of Transportation

  • Task force releases report on Stay NJ tax credit program. NJ Monitor

  • A revamped ballot design in New Jersey. NJ Monitor

  • New Jersey attorney general blames shore town for having too few police on Wildwood boardwalk during melee. Associated Press

Etcetera

New help for dealing with aggression in people with dementia. KFF Health News

Upcoming Events

June 5 – 9 – Lighthouse International Film Festival (LBI, Ocean County)
June 6 – First Thursdays at the Farm — A Distinctive Dining Series (Princeton, Mercer County)
June 6 – 9 – Annual Bayshore Greek Fest (Holmdel, Monmouth County)
June 6 – 9 – Annual Feast of St. Anthony (Roselle Park, Union County)
June 7 – 9 – 38th Annual Lebanese Festival (Somerset, Somerset County)
June 7 – 9 – Annual Flemington Opa! Festival (Flemington, Hunterdon County)
June 7 – 22 – Princeton Festival (Princeton, Mercer County)
June 8 – Praise in the Park (Cranbury, Middlesex County)
June 8 – Czig Meister Brewing Company’s 8th Anniversary (Hackettstown, Warren County)
June 8 – Stafford Founders Day (Manahawkin, Ocean County)
June 8 – South Jersey’s History Fair (Gloucester Twp, Gloucester County)
June 8 – Glassboro’s CommUNITY Day (Glassboro, Gloucester County)
June 8 – Rose Day Festival (Somerset, Somerset County)
June 8 – Westfield Street Fair & Craft Show (Westfield, Union County)
June 8 – NJMP Free Food Truck Festival (Millville, Cumberland County)
June 8 – Festa di San Antonio (Woodbridge, Middlesex County)
June 8 & 9 – Pour Into Summer Wine Festival (Lakewood, Ocean County)
June 8 & 9 – Lions, Tigers and Beers (Forked River, Ocean County)
June 8 & 9 – New Jersey Renaissance Faire (Columbus, Burlington County)
June 8 – 30 – August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean at the Two River Theatre (Red Bank, Monmouth County
June 9 – Polish Heritage Festival (East Brunswick, Middlesex County)
June 9 – Montvale’s Mile Long Street Fair (Montvale, Bergen County)
June 9 – Annual Irish Festival (Oceanport, Monmouth County)
June 9 – Medford Art, Wine & Music Festival (Medford, Burlington County)
June 9 – Paramus Food Truck Fest (Paramus, Bergen County)
June 9 – The Allman Betts Band Live in Concert (Newton, Sussex County)
June 10 – 16 – The North To Shore Jersey festival (Atlantic City, Altantic County)

NJ History Book

📆On Monday, June 3, 1833, New Jersey saw the establishment of its first-ever railroad. The Camden and Amboy Railroad, chartered in 1830 and fully operational by 1833, began operations, linking the cities of Camden and Amboy. This event marked a significant milestone in the state's transportation history, facilitating the movement of goods and passengers between New York City and Philadelphia and spurring economic development in the region.

  • Also on this date: On June 3, 2016, heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali, whose athletic feats and activism put him among the most revered athletes of all time, died at a hospital in Scottsdale, Arizona, at age 74.

  • In 1888, the poem “Casey at the Bat” by Ernest Lawrence Thayer was first published in the San Francisco Daily Examiner.

  • In 1935, the French liner Normandie set a record on its maiden voyage, arriving in New York after crossing the Atlantic in just four days.

  • In 1937, Edward, The Duke of Windsor, who had abdicated the British throne, married Wallis Simpson in a private ceremony in Monts, France.

  • In 1965, astronaut Edward H. White became the first American to “walk” in space during the flight of Gemini 4.

Today's birthdays

🥳Imelda Hernandez of Paterson is celebrating her 78th birthday today. 🎂 May your day be filled with joy, laughter, and all the things you love. 🎁 Cheers to many more wonderful years ahead! 🥳✨

A few other notable people sharing a birthday today with Imelda include Anderson Cooper, 57, journalist and television personality; Rafael Nadal, 38, professional tennis player; actress Penelope Wilton, 78; singer Ian Hunter (Mott The Hoople), is 86 and World Golf Hall of Famer Hale Irwin, 79. 

Refer this newsletter to a friend and receive a free birthday wish for yourself or a friend. Refer 10 friends and receive a free Better With Age New Jersey t-shirt!

Thought for Today

"Aging is not 'lost youth' but a new stage of opportunity and strength." — Betty Friedan

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