South San Francisco, CA November 27, 2023
Editors Note: This is an excerpt from the Letter to Editor submitted by Cynthia Marcopulos which deserves a stand-alone post. As someone who has worked with seniors my whole life, I can attest these words are felt by a majority of those standing at an age we (hopefully) will all one day reach. We all can, and should, learn from these words.
I wanted to share some other roadblocks the (city) has perhaps unintentionally created for seniors who need services. These comments should not be interpreted to mean I am any more or less deserving than any other senior living in SSF.
Today I turned 83! For the most part I am very independent, own my own home, and have tried to make a contribution as a volunteer during my retirement years. I am well educated with advanced degrees.
In 2016 I learned I could qualify for services from Rebuilding Together, San Mateo County. On several occasions their programs to help seniors age in place allowed me to have help with home maintenance I couldn’t afford on my own.
In Oct. 2021 Meals on Wheels didn’t come through despite many calls. I was informed by the Pacifica Program that SSF residents were not eligible for their deliveries because SSF didn’t help fund the program. The Meals on Wheels San Francisco program was beginning to deliver into SSF but again only had a few available slots because SSF didn’t contribute enough to cover the number of requests for help. I waited over 1 year to receive Meals on Wheels. There appear to be levels of service within MOW and SSF residents were on the lowest level because of the low support from my city.
I do not think I should receive things I am not entitled to. I have worked very hard, never received unemployment, always paid my taxes, maintained my property, been a good neighbor and wanted to grow old in my home where I am comfortable. Retirement is a strange transition into an unknown phase of life. Being very senior with a mobility issue is another challenge. It is difficult to ask for help if you have been successful and independent for a very long time. It is also difficult to know how many programs there are to help people who need them but in fact the senior citizens appear to be under served in my city.
We also become invisible in the whole scheme of things since our phase of living may become slower and more reflective. Our circle of influence with friends and family often shrinks. I wanted to write these thoughts because seniors should not be just a demographic.
I recall a City Council meeting years ago when some retirement apartments were being planned for the downtown area. There was a comment by Mark Addiego about encouraging all the seniors living alone in their single-family residences to move out into apartments with senior amenities so that families could have their homes. It was a stunning and insensitive comment which disregarded all that the single-family home might represent to that senior.
Every senior in this City deserves to be treated with respect and services provided to help them where they are!
A free box of groceries doesn’t help if you have no car, can’t carry the box up a flight of stairs, and the food is designed for a family. Free money is wonderful to give to foster youth aging out of the program, or immigrant families just getting started, or as transition for individuals in special circumstances.
Hiding behind an aging body lives a vibrant intellect we have overlooked.
In other cultures the elderly are respected, and revered, and not forgotten/
This neighbor is surviving because she’s intact emotionally and sharp as a tack!
We voted for a sales tax to help her kind stay independent, the City needs to spend the money on this kind of neighbor,who is deserving
Thank you for sharing this information to my neighbor cindy a great writer on sutton avenue and esc on this topic on meals on wheels. My parents do recieve meals on wheels as a affordable resource. But I still develop recipes for my co workers, other family members and community members and write culinary content. Tomorrow I am meeting with ssf parks and recreation for a important meeting on expanding my culinary journey and I have to make it or break just started writing purposals for tomorrow. My parents are in their 70s and I have to love and care for them and live a free life.
Just to touch on Meals on Wheels, my understanding is that the County funds Meals on Wheels SF, not the City. The County also places some strict restrictions, compared to San Francisco, and requires recertification roughly every six months. In addition, the offerings from Meals on Wheels SF is only for frozen meals for San Mateo County residents. This program just expanded this year.
For those interested, here are the details from Meals on Wheels SF: https://www.mowsf.org/get-started/
Regarding Addiego, I was a little shocked when he was re-elected, but not entirely surprised, and even more so with the referenced comment. It has been shown that he has financial interests in some of the biotech companies in SSF. Same with Nicolas, who ran unopposed.
Thank you, ESC, for the sensitivity of this publication.