News & Blog

“Checkmate,” Ian says. “Hang on, oh yeah,” Ken laughs. “Again. You beat me again!” Ken has been visiting Ian for about two years as part of the Age Concern Wellington Region Accredited Visitor Service. When Ken, a doctor from the Philippines, moved to New Zealand a little over two years ago, he looked for a

People think about memoir writing for many reasons – some, like Michelle Obama, are approached by a publisher and asked to ‘write’ it (sometimes with help). Most, however, decide at some point in their lives that they’d like to put down a few things on paper. Maybe they fought in a war or had what

After working in the printing industry for over forty years, Allan had a serious arm injury. He went through a series of operations, and he is still recovering from the nerve damage that he has been left with. With time on his hands, Allan became involved in several walking groups, and also increased his involvement

As Christmas approached, Annette felt the need to help those who may be alone over the holidays. She comes from a village in France where the inhabitants will share meals and prepare gifts for those who might be alone at Christmas, especially seniors. Annette contacted Age Concern Wellington Region with the offer of gifts for

When Jeanette first volunteered with Age Concern Wellington Region for the Companion Waking Service, she didn’t really know what to expect. She looked forward to meeting her new walking companion, and hoped there would be a connection between them. She also knew there may not be a connection, and she tried to convince herself that

Janice walked quickly towards me with a large brown and white dog trotting by her side. The beast, Molly, looked like the kind of dog you wouldn’t want to meet in a dark alley – but she wagged her tail when Janice greeted me. If Janice said I was ok, then we could be friends.

A poem on friendship and ageing, by Rachel McAlpine And why. But you know why. You get comfy cosy in your huddle your bubble of old friends and then it pops, they move away or die and you shut yourself away forgetting there are other people not your darling gone friends but people and you

The way we’re banking is changing. That’s mostly because banks are phasing out cheques and closing some branches. The banks are encouraging us to bank online or use their mobile phone banking apps. That’s not great news for some of us who cannot, or prefer not to, change the way we’ve always done things. The

Are you starting to feel your walking days are coming to an end? Do you worry that your age or disabilities are discouraging you from enjoying our lovely waterfront or Wellington’s interesting attractions? Well, with Age Concern Wellington Region’s Companion Walking Service, there is no need to be missing out. The Companion Walking Service aims

Mary* is 85, little, friendly and active. When I joined Age Concern Wellington Region’s Companion Walking Service, I looked forward to walking weekly with her. We live in the same suburb. But after a couple of walks near her rest home and dozens of repetitions of how she was born, schooled and lived all her

Psychological First Aid It is now well recognised that traumatic events like floods, earthquakes, and pandemics have an ongoing effect on mental health. It is important to not only look at rebuilding the physical foundations of a community but also healing mental well-being. In recent years there have been many programmes initiated internationally to formulate