I attended the Baby Boomer conference and really thought they did a great job of addressing multiple areas of concern for baby boomers and seniors. I met an aging in place specialist from a remodeling company who was articulate, kind and listened with patience to my many questions. And I had quite a few. How nice to offer such a service to the public. It would be helpful if you had these kind of specialist interviewed sometimes. There are many of us who are interested in this up and coming issue, thank you for writing about it.

Thanks for the comment Mary. Glad you found the Boomer U. event worthwhile. I thought it was very good in many aspects as well. There was a good turnout, some interesting speakers and workshops, and various vendors with senior-focused services and products. It seemed like slightly more folks 75 and above than there were baby boomers, but much of the information could apply to both groups. And your suggestion to interview some of the folks such as the re-modeler is a good one and I will work on that. In the "alternative" housing options presentation it was nice to see the topic of "Tiny Houses" discussed. I think there is something to be said about down-sizing our lives to fit into one, even if we don't plan to move into one. I also went to a talk by a long term care insurance broker (something I am particularly exploring - see a previous post.) Is there any one else out here who would like to write a review of the Boomer University event today?

Avenidas events seem so connected to commercial entities, vendors, not what I traditionally expect from a non-profit.

Almost everything costs quite a bit at Avenidas, classes, lectures, etc. again, not what I believe a non-profit should do.

Observer: I'm not sure how to answer your comment about Avenidas events being connected to businesses and costing "quite a bit." There definitely is a strong connection to businesses who sponsor their larger events (like the Boomer U and previous year's housing conference.) Those events are costly to put on and I assume the sponsorships cover a significant part of the production costs. There is definitely money to be made in the senior market (especially the affluent market in Silicon Valley) and it does attract for-profit businesses. At the same time, the events are a way for seniors to be exposed to the various businesses (as well as non-profit businesses and organizations) and become aware of their services, plus in many cases meet the owners and have a more relaxed, leisurely way to check them out.
Regarding what events and classes cost, perhaps fees can be on a sliding scale, left to folks' ability to pay. A $40 fee for an event could have a sliding scale of $10-40, plus suggesting people make an additional donation if they can afford it. Palo Alto and area seniors are in a peculiar situation. A portion of them are house rich but have limited income since they are no longer working, widowed etc. Thus their disposable income may be limited. Of course the definition of "limited" is in the eyes of the beholder. I think sometimes the seniors in our midst who don't own their own home and who aren't sitting on all that equity are forgotten, and most likely won't be attending an event that costs $40 to get in. Maybe next year Avenidas can try running a housing or Boomer event and not charge anything to get in. Perhaps the vendors who are picking up the business by sponsoring can pay a little bit more to make up for the loss in ticket sales.
Anyone else have any ideas on this subject?