HelpAge Canada Raises More Than $400,000 to Support Canada’s Vulnerable Aging Population in the Fight Against COVID-19

Friday, May 29, 2020

 – The Seniors Can! Emergency Relief Fund urges Canadians to help low-income seniors living in communities across the country face the coronavirus pandemic –

 – The program’s newest expansion, Seniors Can Connect!, provides technical support and a tablet-lending service for isolated seniors and their loved ones –

Ottawa (May 26, 2020) – Helping older persons live with dignity in Canada and around the world since 1975, HelpAge Canada was the first to respond to the signs of the COVID-19 impact on isolated, vulnerable, and lonely seniors living in local communities from coast to coast. Since the launch of Seniors Can! Emergency Relief, HelpAge Canada has raised more than $400,000 to help 150,000 seniors across Canada, through local community partners, receive the social support they need.

By partnering with charitable agencies across Canada, the program provides delivered meals, groceries, hygiene products, personal care, social support, and safety products for volunteers and front-line staff. Additionally, the national Seniors Can! grant program provides grants for low-income seniors for mobility and communication-enhancing equipment, transportation, meals, social and wellbeing-promoting activities, and support for agencies to offer innovative programming addressing senior isolation and loneliness.

For the full list of charitable agencies partnering with HelpAge Canada to serve seniors in the COVID-19 crisis, see here. Interested and qualified donees can apply here.

Visit HelpAgeCanada.ca for more information and to make a donation

Led by HelpAge Canada and charitable partners, the Seniors Can! Emergency Relief campaign also features notable Canadians Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid’s Tale), Sandra Oh (Killing Eve), former interim Liberal Party leader Bob Rae, and Mary Walsh (This Hour Has 22 Minutes).

Additionally, HelpAge Canada has partnered with Connected Canadians to launch the newest expansion to the Seniors Can! program – Seniors Can Connect! – implementing a toll-free hotline to provide digital literacy and technical support for older persons, as well as a supported tablet-lending program for isolated seniors and loved ones. Set to expand across the country in the coming weeks, Canadians can learn more about this innovative new program at HelpAgeCanada.ca/Seniors-Can-Connect.

For more information on the HelpAge Canada COVID-19 Seniors Can! Emergency Relief campaign and to make a donation, visit HelpAgeCanada.ca. All funds raised directly support isolated seniors through delivered meal programs, groceries, hygiene products, personal care, access to technology, social support and to provide safety and support for volunteers and health workers.

About HelpAge Canada

Since 1975, HelpAge Canada has been Canada’s only organization dedicated exclusively to helping older persons in Canada and the developing world. With 45 years of experience, HelpAge Canada has been working for older persons and helping them overcome poverty, claim their rights, challenge discrimination, andlead dignified, secure, and healthy lives.  HelpAge Canada is a founding member of HelpAge International and is part of a global network of organizations operating in more than 80 countries. The HelpAge Canada Mission is to work in partnership with others to improve and maintain the quality of life of vulnerable older persons and their communities in Canada and around the world.

For interview opportunities, or for more information, please contact:

Stephanie Perron
BAE Communications
steph@baecommunications.ca
647-278-6799