At the end of March, the Estes Valley Voice helped coordinate An Elder A-Fair, a symposium about aging issues in the Estes Valley. The symposium brought together 70 people to focus on the older population of Estes Park, which is demographically more than 40% over 60.
As a rural, mountain community of almost 12,000 people, that means about 4,800 people in the Estes Valley are 60 and older. That is significant. According to Nancy Gideon, the keynote speaker at the symposium and one of the demographers at the state’s demography office, Estes Park is the second-oldest community with 1,000 or more residents age 60 or older.
And while there are a few communities with populations under 1,000 that statistically have a larger portion of the population over 60, Gideon cautioned about dancing on the head of a pin about bragging rights to being “the oldest” community.
What is important is that the Estes Valley is significantly a community with a large percentage of older residents, and because we are about an hour from the next biggest community – Loveland, Longmont, Boulder – we lack many resources and services that larger communities offer, including many medical and rehab services, a nursing home, a community hospice program, and other amenities that seniors need to age in place.
Estes’ economy is driven by tourism. Estes is a tourist destination. It is also a community of residents. Communities need to provide infrastructure and amenities for the residents who call Estes home. Toward that end, our local town and county government offices, as well as our special districts, provide a variety of services, including utilities, road maintenance, fire protection, schools, a rec center, a library, and many others.
Over the past few years, the community has come to grips with the need to provide support for affordable, accessible housing for community members and childcare opportunities so people can work and know their children have safe, dependable care.
In 2023, the community passed a ballot measure that allows a lodging tax to be collected on all motels, hotels, lodges, and short-term rentals. That tax – often referred to as 6E – generates $5 million a year, of which $4 million is designated for workforce housing and $1 million for childcare.
Participants at An Elder A-Fair indicated a need for the community to provide enhanced services to meet the needs of the senior community so they have options for aging in place.
What exactly that looks like will take some time to address, but it could perhaps be additional funding for the senior citizens center, which offers a variety of important services, including nutritious, subsidized meals, fitness classes, and social activities, including bridge, pinochle, and live music, and important opportunities for social connection.
Funding could perhaps take the form of a community end-of-life care program to fill the gap left by Estes Park Health’s termination of in-home hospice and in-home health care. That might look different than a traditional Medicare hospice, but perhaps it could include a caregiver support program and death doula services. And the support could also include ongoing financial assistance for the new Estes Dementia Day Center opening this spring.
The Estes Valley Voice is interested in providing a platform for an ongoing community conversation about the services we have, what is needed, and how to fund them.
One thing that came to light during the symposium was the need for information about the local services that we do have. As presentations and conversations unfolded, the words “I didn’t know about that” were frequently heard around the tables. The Town of Estes Park maintains an online Senior Resource Directory, and Larimer County has an Office on Aging, but many people at the symposium said they did not know about either resource.
To address that information gap, the Estes Valley Voice will dedicate a weekly column over the upcoming year to local authors with expertise and insights on a variety of topics of special interest to senior residents.
The weekly columns will be written by a rotating group of authors with expertise and insights into the topics grouped monthly by themes, including:
- Active Living and Purpose – staying physically active, mentally engaged, and socially involved; travel and volunteering
- Caregiving and Family Dynamics – navigating roles with aging parents, caregiver stress, and family coordination
- Independence and Mobility – driving, transportation, assistive tech, emergency readiness, and maintaining independence
- Brain and Cognitive Health – normal aging vs. dementia, memory support, and cognitive wellness habits/resources
- Financial Planning and Medicare- Social Security timing, Medicare basics, long-term care planning, and investment pitfalls
- Legal and End-of-Life Planning – estate planning, documents, legacy, funerals/memorials, and family conversations about wishes
- Community and Giving – volunteerism, neighbor support, holiday family dynamics, and charitable/financial giving
- Emotional Health and Resilience – grief, seasonal depression, isolation, and meaning-making
- Annual Reset and Life Planning – New-year goal setting, health and financial checkups, legal updates, downsizing
- Relationships and Social Connection – maintaining relationships, companionship, and partner support later in life
- Safety and Fraud Prevention – scams, home safety, fall prevention, digital security, and choosing advisors
- Housing and Aging in Place – home modifications, financial tools (e.g., reverse mortgages), assisted living decisions, and overall aging-in-place strategy
Next week’s topic will focus on fitness over 60: strength, balance, and mobility. The Estes Valley Voice is interested in connecting with writers who would like to share their expertise on these columns.
Also, we asked readers to help pick a name for the column. Sixty-six readers weighed in, and three titles rose to the top: Silver Linings, Second Wind, and Aging Matters. Second Wind sounded a bit too much like passing gas, so Silver Linings and Aging Matters were given a heads vs. tails coin toss, and Aging Matters came out on top.
We also offered a $15 gift card to an area coffee shop, and Karin Swanlund’s name was drawn from the list of survey respondents using a random computer selector app.
Congratulations, Karin. We will be in touch.