Making It Happen

Volume 1.4 Spring 2007 Seniors’ Transportation Steering Committee

Following the November 3, 2006 Roundtable on Seniors Transportation, a steering committee has been working to move ideas to action. The steering committee includes representatives from the City of Edmonton departments of Transportation, Transit and Community Services, representatives from Alberta Infrastructure and Transportation, and Alberta Seniors and Community Supports. The group also includes representatives from Seniors United Now (SUN), Millwoods Seniors Outreach Connection, Capital Health Homecare, the Alberta Motor Association (AMA), Lifestyle Helping Hands, the Geriatrics Department of the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital, and the Seniors Driving Centre. (Continued on page 9)

Operation Friendship Seniors Society

Inside this Operation Friendship Seniors Society is a non-profit society, incorporated since 1974, that provides community-based issue: preventive social services and housing to seniors in Edmonton’s inner city. The mission of the society is to offer The Board Bus 2 services to improve the quality of life of inner city seniors. ED’s Message 3 The Society currently operates the McCauley Senior’s Grandparents 8 Drop-In Centre, seven days a week, as a safe gathering place where seniors can socialize, develop friendships, volunteer, and become part of the community. Both Presentations 9 recreational and wellness activities are available, as well as free nourishing meals. Foot care, flu clinics, a visiting public Elder Abuse 10 health nurse, showers, a change of clothing and haircuts are also provided. S.C. Funding 12 Operation Friendship Seniors Society’s Housing Registry Better Websites 13 Program helps seniors find appropriate housing and provides follow-up. The Helping Hands Program helps seniors stay (Continued on page 6)

Next Board Chairs Putting the Board Bus Back on the Road: and Executive - Attracting and retaining Directors Meeting good board members and other volunteers.

Friday, May 18, 2007 Val Mayes, Edmonton Chamber of Voluntary Organizations: 10-12 noon Board Chairs and Executive Directors Meeting

At Westend Seniors There are 8000 not-for-profit organizations in Edmonton. Activity Centre They all have boards. What can we do to help the ones we (9629-176 Street) are associated with to run better?

What makes the differences between boards?:

HEALTHY BOARDS NOT SO HEALTHY What is needed on BOARDS the Board Bus? Mutual respect Fun! Boring A Destination Dynamic Micro-managed (Vision, Mission) Productive Procrastination Esteeming Distrust Check out: (Goals) Debriefing Individual egos - Who else is there? Evaluative Off-topic - Who has got what? Passionate Close-minded - Who is driving? Everyone has something Negativity With a license? important to do Limited ownership - Who is navigating? Prepared Lack of leadership With maps? Willing and able to learn Two sets of rules With GPS? Trust No shared purpose Shares vision Make sure: (Plans) Appreciation - To pack everything needed - That maintenance Recruiting: is done • Organizations that require volunteers to have police information checks should mention that in their advertisement. This will discourage some inappropriate volunteers. What would attract • Think about creative places to advertise, for example at you to serve on a CNIB, where as their representative stated, “there are board? many people willing to become volunteers, but are never asked by anyone.” Positive Outlook • Do a needs-assessment to figure out what skills are Challenge needed on your board. Recruit specifically to find A place to people who match those skills. (Visit the ESCC website contribute to see a sample Board Skills Questionnaire.) Passion • Have potential board members fill out applications. Caring (Continued on page 5)

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Your Own Executive Director’s Message Web Pages Having worked for the ESCC for about nine months now and Each member with my previous experience as an executive director for the organization has Calder Seniors Drop In Society, I am starting to see the big pages on the ESCC picture of community services for seniors in Edmonton. I Website. You can understand the stresses that senior-serving organizations are update these as often experiencing in the areas of staff recruitment and retention, as you like. Send low wages, funding challenges, space constraints, risk news to David or be management, and volunteer recruitment and retention trained to do updates (especially for volunteer board of directors). These challenges yourself. Make it as impact services and programs. I also understand how fancy as you like. (For essential it is that seniors all over the city are able to access example see the services they need. Lack of adequate transportation for Association of Day seniors and the changing demographics and population add Support Programs to the challenges and altogether you have a sector that could web pages). really benefit from joint planning, coordination and problem solving. If your organization doesn’t have a I sense that the time is right to really dig in and plan for the website of your future so that organizations can grow and evolve, fill gaps own then these pages and meet increasing needs. Here’s how I see that ESCC can are even more help. In working with the City of Edmonton Community important. Many Services to come up with a long-term strategy for funding people now search the senior centres, I have tried to get a sense of service coverage World Wide Web for for Edmonton. All senior-serving organizations, not just services and senior centres, are unique and have evolved to fit the needs organizations. If you in their community. That has worked well up to now, but are a member of there are gaps in services. For instance with all the snow that ESCC – get your web (Continued on page 4) pages up to date. If you are not a member - become one now and enjoy your organization’s presence on the web.

Executive Director Sheila Hallett executive director @seniorscouncil.net

Member Services David Loper memberservices @seniorscouncil.net Executive Director Sheila Hallett at the Greying Nations Conference

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(Continued from page 3) Edmonton received this past winter, a strain was put on snow-shovelling programs. There were times when agencies Future Plans couldn’t handle anymore phone calls from seniors needing Meeting assistance and they had to refer the seniors elsewhere. Offers of help from volunteers through community leagues Organizational raised the issue of security clearance procedures as a representatives potential barrier to volunteer recruitment. Seniors calling (executive directors agencies to request help in getting their walks shovelled were and board chairs) are required to take out memberships in some locations and not invited to discuss how at others. Services cover certain areas of the city well, but service gaps could be not so well in other areas. Some services are provided by addressed in a broad volunteers for free, and in other cases there is a charge. strategic plan at an upcoming meeting: Through the Task Force on Community Services for Seniors (which wrapped up in 2003), participants spoke loud and clear about five key principles that programs and services for May 18th seniors should reflect: sustainability, diversity, accessibility, 10-Noon equity and community involvement. The snow shovelling Westend Seniors service example demonstrates that there are problems with Activity Centre accessibility and equity. That is where the Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council comes in. We were set up to take a leadership role in helping organizations to plan and We will also be coordinate programs and services for older adults. The seeking input on a ESCC’s key responsibility is to develop a broad strategic plan process for developing for addressing the needs of seniors in Edmonton that will the broad strategic provide guidance for planning by its member organizations plan for senior and others. services in Edmonton. The challenges I noted above are really pushing agencies and frustrating both seniors and occasionally volunteers. One Please RSVP to possible way to help organizations would be to have some executivedirector@se common understanding and definition of services and niorscouncil.net and programs and then ample resources to support these across also let us know if the whole of Edmonton (sustainability). In order to honour there are other the principles of accessibility and equity and eliminate service agenda items you’d gaps the system should have basic standard services (and like to discuss. potentially programs) seniors could expect to find across the city (i.e. snow shovelling) and these services must be affordable for seniors living on a low income. Beyond the We hope all senior- basics there will always be for-profit service providers for serving organizations those seniors who can afford them and there will be some will become involved special services/programs that organizations design to meet as we begin this the needs of their own specific clientele (diversity and important work. community involvement).

Sheila Hallett, Executive Director, ESCC

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(Continued from page 2) How people are prepared for participation on the Contents of the board: Board Orientation Binder: The Community of Practice concept

• Code of conduct Four concentric circles 4 • Confidentiality 3 1) Board 2 statement 1 • Skills needed to do 2) Volunteers the job 3) Members • Expectations of the 4) Others (the outer circle) board members • Liability The second circle is an important one to identify as a place on • Bylaws which to draw for new board members. People in that circle • History are ones who already have enough interest in the • Vision organization to help out by volunteering. They are the ones • Policies not on the board who organize and run special events or do • Procedures various programs such as the travel club. They are the • Job description natural pool that should be considered for board recruitment. • Emergency procedures There are many strategies to help move these valuable • Strategic plan people from that second circle into the inner circle of the • Mission board. They could be recruited to be assistants to board • Budget members for specific tasks. If part of a board member’s job • Example of funding is to oversee the library materials or a fundraising venture, application give an interested person part of that job to do. • Minutes (a years worth) Also, try mentoring projects where you match a board • Financial member with someone who may be interested, but is statements apprehensive about applying for a position on the board. That • Contact info – way the person could learn more about the job. Some board & staff organizations use • Brochure probation periods where • Annual report the volunteer has the • Space (in the opportunity to see if the binder to add commitment fits their more goodies) expectations and needs and the organization has an opportunity to see if the person fits in that Websites of volunteer position. Interest www.ecvo.ca www.rcvo.org Val Mayes, Edmonton www.govolunteer.ca Chamber of Voluntary Organizations

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Operation (Continued from page 1) Friendship Seniors in their homes as long as possible. Workers accompany Society seniors on shopping trips, transport seniors for medical and dental appointments, provide friendly visits for isolated or 9526 – 106 Avenue shut-in seniors, and help connect seniors to the larger Edmonton, Alberta community. The Outreach Program reaches out and brings T5H 0N2 services to inner city residents. Outreach workers respond to 429-2626 referrals from agencies and the community at large by linking [email protected] people to needed resources and services. The Volunteer www.ofss.org Program provides individuals, groups, and organizations with opportunities to become involved with their community, Gail Sopkow especially with people in need. Executive Director [email protected]

Rosalie Gelderman Client Services Director [email protected]

Mission Statement

Operation Friendship Seniors Society's mission is to offer services to improve the quality of life of inner city seniors. In 1985, Operation Friendship Seniors Society began building and managing housing. The society now offers a continuum Regular of housing: a forty unit Rooming House built for hard-to- Membership house seniors; Hutton Place, a twenty bachelor unit in ESCC apartment building, for independent seniors; and two lodges: May be held by not- Sparling Lodge and McCauley Lodge. It also manages an for-profit senior- additional apartment building for Capital Regional Housing serving organizations and are working on a Designated Assisted Living Building. In incorporated under total, the society manages 158 housing units. the Societies Act or Part 9, Companies Operation Friendship Seniors Society serves close to 1,200 Act. “Senior-serving older individuals. There are about 50 paid society staff and organizations” are over 1200 volunteers. Services may be accessed in person groups that provide or by telephone. social and recreational programs and/or Operation Friendship Seniors Society is a place with a great social support services spirit, vision and values, and great food. It is also a great specifically for place to volunteer. Edmonton’s aging population.

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ESCC Membership Values of Operation Friendship Seniors’ Society One hundred percent of last years members Non-judgmental: have renewed their OFSS believes our clients have membership in ESCC. a right to live their own We have also had lifestyles. Services are offered many new members in a non-judgmental way to fill the list. without expectation of rehabilitation. Membership 2006 2007 Choice: Reg 29 34 OFSS presents healthy Assoc alternatives, allowing seniors to Org 8 8 make choices to improve their Indiv 4 6 quality of at their own Total 41 48 initiative.

Welcome to new ESCC Friendship: members since Mid- OFSS seeks out inner city December 2006: seniors in need and establishes a supportive friendly environment. Regular Members • Bernadette N. Dignity: Swann Social Care OFSS believes everyone should be treated with dignity, Foundation respect, honesty and fairness regardless of their life styles. • Edmonton Senior Slo-Pitch Assoc. Safety: • Golden Horizon OFSS believes that clients and staff have a right to work and Seniors Society receive services in a safe, non-violent setting. • Jewish Drop-In Centre Independence: • Korean Seniors OFSS will offer services to foster independence. College Society • Millwoods Seniors Community: Outreach OFSS values the community of inner city seniors and the Connection support they provide to each other and the wider community • Seniors Outreach of Edmonton and the support provided to Operation Network Society Friendship Seniors Society. • South East Edmonton Seniors Transparency: Association OFSS will conduct business as a responsible member of the • South-West community, valuing transparency of decision making and Senior’s Outreach protection of individual privacy and confidentiality. Society Staff Support: Associate members: OFSS will support its staff to achieve the mission and vision Capital Health Home of the organization. Care

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For full information The Grandmother to Grandmother Campaign about the “The GANG” - by Vicki Strang Grandmothers to Grandmothers and on We have all heard about the HIV/AIDS pandemic, particularly the Stephen Lewis as it affects the African continent. Many of us have been Foundation see moved by the wrenching words of Stephen Lewis in his www.stephenlewisfou Massey Lecture Series and book Race Against Time, ndation.org specifically how the pandemic is shredding the fabric of the African family. Productive adults are dying leaving orphaned To get involved locally children. The children are caring for their dying parents and or for more end up living in child-headed homes. The African information on the grandmothers, who have lost their own children to AIDS, GANG contact Vicki have been stepping into this family void. They are the ones [email protected]. who are caring for the orphaned grandchildren and propping up the very foundation of African society.

Right now the GANG Realizing the dire circumstances of the African grandmothers, and the other groups the Stephen Lewis Foundation launched its Grandmother to across Canada are Grandmother Campaign in March, 2006. The Campaign took urging our federal hold with the Toronto Grandmother Gathering in August, Canadian government 2006 when the Foundation brought 100 African grandmothers to honour Bill C-9 from their villages to share their stories with some 200 which was passed Canadian grandmothers. It was a gathering like no other! The unanimously in 2004. energy from that gathering surged powerfully across the It was a Bill allowing country. Today there are more than 150 grandmother groups the manufacture and in Canada; the number is increasing all the time. They are export of generic also beginning to form in the USA and other countries. drugs including antiretroviral drugs The grandmother group in Edmonton is the GANG, or for HIV/AIDS to poor Grandmothers of Alberta for a New Generation. We started countries, but so far out with 10 in the fall but quickly grew to more than 80 not a single pill has members strong. It is the love and deep devotion to our own been shipped to any children and grandchildren that fuels our desire to stand in country. solidarity with the African grandmothers who struggle against great odds to give the best they can to their children and See the launch of the grandchildren. It is our mission, therefore, to give voice to DVD “A Generation of the plight of African grandmothers, to share our resources Orphans” produced by with them, and, most of all, to give them hope. We stand the Stephen Lewis with them when they say “Our children, like all children, Foundation. May 11, deserve a future. We will not raise children for the grave.” 12 noon at Centre The GANG is organizing regionally, with sub-groups forming Stage in the CBC in Sherwood Park, Morinville, and St. Albert. To date, we Atrium (123 10062 have held informational events, organizing workshops and 102 Avenue) to one fundraising event. It was deeply moving and reaffirming celebrate Mother’s to meet with Stephen Lewis personally on April 11, 2007 as Day. We are indeed he was passing through on one of his many speaking giving voice to our engagements. He again emphasized that grandmothers have African sisters. tremendous power to effect change.

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ESCC Presentations in the community: The presentations mentioned here along On February 7th and 9th the ESCC and the City of Edmonton with the ESCC booth Community Services spoke to three classes of first-year at the Greying Nation nursing students at Grant MacEwan Community College. Conference March 21- About 240 students learned what is available in the 23, 2007 allowed us community to support seniors and they were treated to some to feature the many chuckles and the insights of ESCC board member Arlene programs and Meldrum as she provided a first-hand account of healthy services that our aging in the community. Brenda Wong, Seniors Coordinator member agencies with the City, David Loper and Sheila Hallett all contributed provide in Edmonton. demographic information, case examples and tips for nurses to round out the presentation and it was very well received.

On March 7, 2007 Sheila attended ‘The Pursuits of Leisure’ The next meetings of event hosted by the Strategic Financial Concepts. The event Executive Directors was for their clients who will be retiring in the next year or and Board Chairs will so. Sheila presented a talk on Healthy Active Aging and be May 18th, from Wellness in the Community to inform soon-to-be retirees 10 a.m.-Noon at about all the options for activities within their communities. Westend Seniors Activity Centre (9629-176 Street).

All senior-serving (Continued from page 1) organizations are The group has been very busy welcome to send taking the recommended representatives to this priorities from the Roundtable meeting. and expanding on the ideas, identifying stakeholders and The ESCC will give attaching budget figures to the updates on our work actions. Several of the ideas and will be seeking relate to work that involves the input on a process for City of Edmonton and these developing the broad ideas are going to be submitted strategic plan for in May to City Council. It is senior services in Edmonton. hoped that many of the recommendations will be Please RSVP to included in the 2008 budget. executivedirector@se Other ideas that do not relate niorscouncil.net and specifically to the City, will also let us know if continue to be worked on in there are other the next few months. The agenda items you’d group is also planning on like to discuss. hosting another Roundtable in the fall of 2007. Stay tuned for more developments.

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Cultural Diversity: Elder Abuse Protocols Looking to Models for Consultation. Board Chairs and Executive Directors met on Thursday April 12th at Strathcona Place Senior Citizens Centre to hear a The model of a presentation regarding protocols for responding to family consultation team is violence. Presenter Sacha Aldrich is the Protocols Coordinator being considered by a with the Community Initiatives Against Family Violence group of interagency (CIAFV) Protocols Project. representatives that work with seniors The CIAFV, a standing set of working groups whose from immigrant and membership is community based, addresses the issues of refugee communities family violence in the Edmonton area. Their goal is to reduce along with ESCC. family violence by promoting consistency across systems and agencies and in the detection and response to victims of The group will be family violence. Protocols are guidelines, procedures or meeting again on policies to follow in any given situation. Monday May 14 Sacha brought along tools regarding elder abuse that have 1 p.m. been developed locally or in other jurisdictions and adapted CN Tower for local use. One tool is a Flow Chart regarding the abuse 12th floor and neglect of older or vulnerable persons. It shows what to boardroom do and gives some sample interview questions, strategies (1202). and possible interventions. It also includes referral contact numbers. A Resource Wheel also helps visualize the process. The group will be Sacha also brought along an Elder Abuse Resource List, which discussing a terms of was compiled by the Elder Abuse Intervention Team here in reference and Edmonton. See the following page to read about the Elder identifying key Abuse Intervention Team Model. organizations that should be involved in Following the meeting, Sacha sent a Risk Management Tool the team. and a Safety Plan for Older Adults that were developed by the Protocols Project with input from the Elder Abuse If you are interested Intervention Team and Edmonton Seniors Safe Housing. If in attending this your agency is interested in these tools please visit the ESCC planning meeting, website and look under the Resources for Agencies at (1.j) please R.S.V.P. to for Elder Abuse Tools from CIAFV or click here. ESCC. Outreach workers will be inviting Sacha to one of their interagency outreach meetings this fall. There is potential for Associate them to develop their own protocols (if their agency endorses Membership this process) and then link protocols with other senior- in ESCC serving agencies involved in the interagency outreach group. Is available for In 2006, there were 232 senior clients in Edmonton who were individuals or other receiving assistance for elder abuse. With coordinated organizations that approaches and more awareness about the issues, there can have an interest in be progress made to reduce elder abuse in Edmonton. the delivery of services to seniors.

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The advantage of the Edmonton Elder Abuse Consultation Team is Consultation Team Model that it provides two- way communication The Edmonton Elder Abuse Consultation Team has been and the opportunity meeting together for several years with the purpose of to: having a regular forum for those working directly or indirectly 1. Network with the issue of elder abuse. This team consists of people 2. Share expertise who can help deal with the issues that come up as well as 3. Discuss cases service providers that work directly or indirectly with the 4. Facilitate problem issue of elder abuse. solving 5. Expedite the Representation is from the following groups: AADAC, Alberta referral process Justice Public-Trustee’s Office, Association of Adult Day 6. Identify gaps in Support Programs, Capital Health (Homecare, Alberta service Hospital, Community Health Primary Care, Regional Mental 7. Share new Health, Northern Alberta Regional Geriatric Service, resources Community Care Coordination), Catholic Social Services, 8. Develop strategies Edmonton and Area Child and Family Services Region 6, to create social Edmonton Community Services, Edmonton Police Service, change Family Violence Prevention Centre, Good Samaritan Society, Greater Edmonton Foundation, Human Resources and Skills (federal), Native Seniors’ Centre, Office for the Prevention of Family Violence, Office of the Public Guardian, SAGE, Veterans Affairs and the Victorian Order of Nurses.

They meet monthly and allow time for updates from their agency’s perspective regarding elder abuse. They share information, tools, resources or strategies that have been helpful (best practices). They have follow-up time to review/ update cases that have gone through the consultation process and time for any member agency to consult the team on a new case.

To clarify the role of They have terms of reference, a chair or co-chairs, and a the ESCC and the minute-taker. They will also have sub-committees struck to City’s Seniors assist with initiatives and they have a 50% decision making Coordinator position it rule and each agency is only allowed one vote. The team may be helpful to determines membership and reviews requests from consult a chart that organizations who wish to become part of the team—requests was produced to must be made in writing to the chair and it is put on the outline the division of agenda for team discussion. If your organization would like duties. This can be more information about the team you can contact co-chair viewed on the ESCC Bernice Sewell of SAGE (423-5510 extension 334.) website under “Meet the ESCC” and it is called ESCC Role Clarification.

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The Definition of a Senior Centre Funding Senior Centre The City of Edmonton has expanded their 2007 Building 1) Operating Grant for Senior Centres to include all senior “A community facility centres in Edmonton, not just centres which are housed in that provides a City-owned buildings. At a City-hosted meeting of senior diversity of activities centres Feb. 16/07 the group looked at definitions of senior and services in centres and favoured a definition set out by the province (as response to the needs outlined in the “Current and Future Roles and Needs of of the local older adult Seniors Centres in Alberta” (Report of the Seniors Centre population.” Study Group), May 2002) (see Definition 1). The province also adapted the a vision originally developed by the National 2) Council on Aging, USA. ..(see Definition 2) . “A seniors centre is a community focal point At the March 19th meeting of City administration and senior on aging where older centre representatives the group continued to compare persons come service and program information from the centres and together and can strategize about how this information could be used to access services and develop a plan. Though not included in the above definition, activities which they thought the following were important considerations enhance their dignity, during the grant review process: support their • more support to centres with “staff” independence, and • hours of operation/ number of programs encourage their • registered “not-for-profit” involvement in and • open non-restrictive membership with the community. The administration in Community Services is to put forward a As part of the long-term strategy for funding senior centres to City Council comprehensive June 25, 2007. It may be broader than just operating funds— community strategy work continues on this through Brenda Wong, the City’s to meet the needs of Seniors Coordinator. Brenda will call a meeting in May to older persons, seniors share the draft report with the group before it is forwarded to centre programs take City administration. place or emanate from a facility. These The ESCC has been included in these meetings to aid in the programs consist of a planning process. One of the main mandates of the ESCC is variety of services and to facilitate the development of a broad strategic plan for activities in such addressing the needs of seniors in Edmonton that will provide areas as education, guidance for planning by its member organizations. I saw the creative arts, City’s funding strategy as a piece of puzzle in the broad recreation, advocacy, strategic plan. Part of our role at those meetings was to bring leadership forward ideas such as other funding models which could be development, considered. At the March 19th meeting I brought information employment, health, about a potential funding formula from the State of Delaware nutrition, counseling, and you can learn more about this from the ESCC website information and other under Resources for Agencies (Delaware Senior Centre supportive services.” Funding Formula).

(Continued on page 13)

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Website ! (Continued from page 12) Read your website It is basically a means of classifying programs and services regularly! See that and then applying them into a formula which allows for it is up to date and differences in demographics and participation rates. The accurate. Assure that group took the information as food for thought. The ESCC will it has good grammar set up consultation meetings this year to do further work on and no spelling the broad strategic plan and we hope that agencies will really mistakes. Frequently get involved and give their input. --Sheila Hallett, Executive give changes and Director, ESCC.

corrections to your web person. Improving your website Other Web Stuff Help people can find you more easily • Use a hyphen (–) in your URL not an A recent conference in Europe decided to redefine underscore (_) “wilderness.” They said it was anyone or anywhere not • Search for your “plugged into” society. If this is the Information Age, site using both certainly all organizations must be plugged into the Internet www.youraddress to reach many of their consumers. A website presence is not and without the only an important way for people to market goods, but also a www – with just great tool for marketing ideas and services for people. your address. Today there are between 60-100 billion web pages online. Both of these This number grows by an astonishing 64,000 sites per day. should get you to Each week 1.8 million first time users go online, adding to the your site. 550 million searches that occur each day. With these kinds • Site maps with of statistics, how can we be certain that our information is links to all your reaching its target? pages allow the search engine to We must address the rules of the search engines. 85% of all find them all website traffic comes from these engines, with 60% coming easily. from Google alone. How does one appear higher on the left • To see what pages side of the Google search results page? (Those who appear of your website are on the top in blue or on the right side have paid for their visible (to a search placement.) engine) try this: In the Google search First: Read your website regularly! See that it is up to line type “site:” date and accurate. Assure that it has good grammar and no then your web spelling mistakes. Frequently give changes and corrections address (leave out to your web person. the “”). Eg. “site:seniorscouncil Secondly: Follow the following tips: .net”. This yields Formatting – Setting Up Your Page’s Content 314 pages of the • Be certain that page titles relate exactly to page content. ESCC website that Put bold headline text at the top of the page. (This page Google sees. It title is what appears as the clickable title in web search can direct results.) searchers to any of • Limit each page to one topic. Use different pages for those pages. (Continued on page 14)

13 URL (your website (Continued from page 13) address) different content. Every page should be optimized with When it comes to specific words for that specific page’s topic. domain names, • Each page should have 2-4 key phrases that are repeated. usually the older the • Place content headers at the top of each paragraph. better. Do not change • Change the content of your site weekly. Search engines it without a good come daily and respond to new content. reason. If you do, • Avoid conjunctions, abbreviations and contractions. For use a redirect to send Search Engine purposes it is better to use “language people from the old training and cultural training” than to use “language and address to your new cultural training” If someone is looking for language one. training, your website will fall to the bottom of the list. If you must change • Encourage links between your website and others (that your name, change to have appropriate content.) words not numbers, • Make your navigation bar titles specific rather than punctuation or special general. (E.g. not “Programs” but “Programs for Seniors”) characters. • Search engines love text. Have a minimum 100 words per page to a maximum of 300-400 words per page. (See Meta Tags more on Flash below.) Meta tags are o If you have a link to another page don’t use the important. They words “more”, “learn more” or “click here.” Instead should be descriptive use a descriptive word or words for the next topic. & be key words to o Text links are always better than graphic or logo your site. They are links. best if based on study as to the most More Technical Tidbits: searched words. Flash – This is a useful program for creating those neat There are links that animated parts on a website, but: tell you this data. • A “Flash” introduction confuses search engines because it is all graphics. There are no words for the search engine Funding for ESCC to read. (Yes you see words but they as they are Provided by: produced in graphics not in text, Google cannot read them and classify your page.) • Navigation buttons using Flash, blocks the Search Engine’s travel to the rest of the pages of your site. • If you want to check out and see what a Search Engine will actually see on your site, try this trick: o Click on your website home page o CTRL-a (select all) o CTRL-c (copy) o Open the program Notepad by going to (Start/ Programs/Accessories/Notepad) o CTRL-V • You will see all the search engine readable text on that page For more information, check out the website of the people that put on the seminar. http://www.epiar.com/. This whole presentation and others are available there.