Vermont's Aging Population - 25% Will Be Over 65 By 2030

As the population continues to age, folks who work with the elderly are working on a plan to make sure their needs are met. Today, the first annual "UPdate your aging toolbox" conference was held at the Sheraton in South Burlington. Over 300 people, from first responders to housing authorities, came out to learn about caring for the older generation.

In 2000, the number of people over the age of 65 was 12.7 percent, it's going to double to 24.8 percent by 2030 and it's going to have a big impact on the work force, healthcare issues, transportation, housing and entitlement programs. A second conference has been scheduled for this fall.

One of the things that Maryann and I did several years ago was to make our house handicap accessible. Hopefully that will give us an opportunity to remain in our home which we love for a few more years. We weren't able to make the total house that way, but at least getting into the house, kitchen, living room, one bedroom and one bathroom. It certainly is something to think about, whenever your are renovating or building a new home.

We hired an architect by the name of Mike Dugan who made sure everything would work out and he did an excellent job converting our old attached garage to a handicapped bedroom and bathroom and adding a handicapped ramp to an entrance to the house with 42 inch doors.