Seniors invited to safety conference Tuesday
It's easy to get senior citizens to come out for a party or a bingo game. It's a lot harder to lure them to educational programming, says Mary Stamstad, program coordinator for RSVP of Dane County.
But Stamstad expects more than 100 people to turn out for the sixth annual Dane County TRIAD Crime Prevention and Safety Conference and Expo. The event will be held from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 9, at Blackhawk Church, 9620 Brader Way, Verona. There is a $12 fee that covers lunch and materials.
Dane County TRIAD is part of a national and statewide program that promotes safety and crime prevention for older adults.
Stamstad said her organization tries to educate people about scams and frauds, and warns seniors never to let anybody into their homes uninvited. She also advises them not to engage telemarketers, but she hears from older people who say they feel sorry for the telemarketers, since they don't make much money.
"And people are lonely," Stamstad says. "A lot of people who live alone, they kind of welcome a phone call. They get taken in."
Glen Loyd, public information officer for the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection, said that before addressing the group, he will check with his department's investigators and hotline employees to inform himself on the latest scams and frauds happening in the area.
He was happy to find a workshop on the schedule about home repair and hiring a contractor; he said people can lose their life savings to crooked contractors. Three construction firm representatives who are members of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry are on the program, as is Madison Police Chief Noble Wray.
A workshop on neighborhood building and neighborhood watches will be especially useful to people in southwest Madison who are trying to organize such efforts, Stamstad said. "If people really know their neighbors, it's much safer," she said.
While older people may not be targets of gangs, a session on juvenile gangs will be educational, Stamstad said, explaining that fear of crime is a real problem for seniors, even if they are not necessarily the targets of gangs.
