Winner of 2012 American Society on Aging MetLife MindAlert Award

2012-03-23T08:53:00.000-07:00

WINNER OF A 2012 AMERICAN SOCIETY ON AGING/METLIFE FOUNDATION

MINDALERT AWARD

MindAlert: Recognizing Innovations in Mental Fitness Programming for Older Adults

The American Society on Aging, in collaboration with MetLife Foundation, is pleased to announce that the Move with Balance™ program was selected as the winner of the 2012 MindAlert Award in the category for programs designed to enhance mental fitness for the general population of older adults.

The MindAlert Award is designed to recognize outstanding programs throughout the United States that have been developed to improve mental stimulation and creative outlets in later life. The award recognizes high-quality, innovative programs that enhance functioning and quality of life, or prevent functional decline, among older adults. Research has shown that cognitive decline is not an inevitable part of the aging process. New findings in brain health research offer a striking, newer model of aging as a time of brain health and growth in which elders may lead qualitatively better lives—lives filled with more knowledge, wisdom, and an increased capacity to contribute to society.

The Move with Balance™ program of Giving Back in Paia, Hawaii, is a unique, cutting-edge program that uses movement to help prevent falls and enhance cognitive function in older adults. Founded in 1994, the program has been developed over the past eighteen years, integrating research in vision training, kinesiology, and brain plasticity. The program carries out its mission of enhancing quality of life for older adults by pairing active elders with frail elders in loving intergenerational relationships. www.MoveWithBalance.org

The Move with Balance™ program will be honored at the National Forum on Brain Health, held on March 29, 2012, in Washington, D.C., during the Aging in America Conference.

Spokesperson Karen Peterson said, “On behalf of our nonprofit Giving Back, I am thrilled to receive this prestigious award for our Move With Balance program. I’d like to thank the Review Committee, MetLife, and the American Society on Aging for honoring us with the MindAlert Award 2012.”

“’The Review Committee found the Move with Balance™ model to be innovative, unique, and easily replicable, and we are extremely pleased to have an intergenerational program named the recipient of this year’s award,’ said MindAlert Review Committee Member Ruth Heller, Program Director at the University of Oregon’s Osher Lifelong Learning Center in Eugene, Oregon. Review Committee members noted that this is a program that truly engages older adults cognitively, physically, and socially.”

The mission of Giving Back is to enhance the lives of all older adults by pairing active seniors with frail elders in loving intergenerational relationships. We meet this challenge by offering learning opportunities that include integrated movements, vision training, confidence and balance exercise skills in our goal of preventing injuries from falls and enhancing cognitive skills for all seniors.

Move With Balance

2011-09-20T17:19:00.000-07:00

Move With Balance is the new name for The Giving Back Fall Prevention Project!
Please go to www.MoveWithBalance.org to learn how to bring this award-winning program to your community. We have 3 models: Group Model for senior organizations; Caregiver Model for caregiver agencies, professional caregivers, and family caregivers; and Personal Model for individuals. All Models use unique, innovative activities and exercies to improve balance and cognitive skills.

Giving Back Named Merit Finalist for the 2009 Mutual of America Community Partnership Award

2009-12-21T02:00:00.000-08:00

The project, developed by Giving Back®, received the award for recruiting and training active seniors to mentor frail, at-risk elders in movement exercises that enhance balance, vision, coordination and cognitive functions. Click here to read the full Press Release.

Replicating the Giving Back program in your Community

2009-12-20T13:51:00.000-08:00

Good News! We have received many inquiries about replicating our program. We will soon have the Site Coordinator/Program Director manual integrated with a video available for you. It will be very user friendly and ready to bring to the elders in your community. Stay tuned. If you would like to leave your email address, we will notify you when everything is ready.

Giving Back News

Winner of 2012 American Society on Aging MetLife MindAlert Award

Move With Balance

Giving Back Named Merit Finalist for the 2009 Mutual of America Community Partnership Award

Replicating the Giving Back program in your Community