On September 30, the Town of Rochester signed an agreement to become one of a growing number of communities in the state that finds value for its senior citizens in joining TRIAD, a multiagency consortium with one goal: assisting senior citizens.
From the state website Mass.gov, we find that TRIAD is a nationwide community-based initiative to reduce criminal victimization of seniors with enhanced law-enforcement services through a partnership of police, fire, senior protective services and the seniors themselves.
A brief presentation of the importance of TRIAD was given by the team, a partnership of Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz, Plymouth County Sheriff Joseph McDonald Jr., Rochester Police Chief Robert Small, Rochester Fire Chief Scott Weigel, Rochester Town Administrator Glenn Cannon and Rochester Council on Aging Executive Director Eric Poulin, who also hosted the event.
The TRIAD team talked about enhanced services, such as reduction of criminal victimization of seniors, the File of Life program that gives first responders immediate details of a senior’s health status and medications, personal safety tips for private information such as credit cards, how to dispose of medications properly, safety tracking for seniors or others with compromised cognitive functioning and the availability of support services for grandparents raising grandchildren.
Small said that for a small community like Rochester, “It’s worthwhile to have this program.” That sentiment was echoed by Cannon and others.
Another agency on hand to support TRIAD and local programming was Coastline Elderly Services. Zach Boyer of Coastline said they offer budgeting, bill paying and money-management assistance to elders.
It was noted that each agency represented has an area of responsibility that when brought to bear with other services, works to provide seniors with a safe, secure, at-home environment.
New to the Rochester Police Department is Officer Katie Connolly, who said her expertise is in working with seniors at the local level who may, “…call me anytime with questions or concerns.” Those concerns might be potential scams, abuse, or how to find services.
With a growing senior population (nearly 14 percent of the state’s population is 65 years of age or older), TRIAD is recognizing that multiple services are needed to keep seniors functioning in their homes. McDonald said, “This is a very useful partnership.”
Next steps for the town include the development of a local SALT council, which leads the TRIAD initiative in the town. SALT stands for Seniors and Law Enforcement Together. SALT will help to define the needs and concerns of the senior community. Its mission is to bring the SALT council into meaningful dialog with seniors with the stated goal of improved public-safety awareness.
To contact Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Support Groups, contact Pat Gagnon at 508-273-7241 or by email to pgagnon@wareham.k12.ma.us or Pat Simonelli at 508-272-7241 (pas45552aol.com.) To learn more about File of Life, contact the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Senior Protection Unit at 508-584-8120. To learn more about Safety Net tracking devices, visit safetynettracking.com. To learn more about TRIAD, contact either District Attorney Cruz’s office at 508-584-8120 or the Rochester COA at 508-763-8723.
By Marilou Newell