From the Desk of Charmaine Brent, Director of Programs & Services
Charmaine Brent, Ki’ev Harris, Monica Kirkland
At Empowered Aging, our team members spend their days on the front lines, advocating for the rights and dignity of residents in long-term care facilities. The challenges they face are often complex and personal, but we know our impact can be multiplied when we work in concert with partners who have a shared vision for systemic change.
That’s why it was a distinct pleasure to welcome Monica Kirkland, State Policy Director with the Senior Services Coalition of Alameda County (SSCAC), to our office. Her visit was an opportunity to connect our on-the-ground work with the broader state policy and advocacy landscape. Empowered Aging has stood beside Monica and SSCAC at Board of Supervisors hearings advocating for increased funding to support local seniors, at the State Capitol raising our voices to impact change, and at events and fundraisers throughout the community. Her visit to Empowered Aging, however, created a unique opportunity to directly connect the daily experiences of our Ombudsman team with the broader statewide advocacy landscape.
In our discussions of the most pressing issues we’ve seen in our daily work: the rising costs of care, staffing shortages, and the critical need for a dignified quality of life for all residents. She was able to hear firsthand accounts from our Alameda County Ombudsman Program Manager, Ki’ev Harris about the challenges he and his team encounter during a ride along, providing her with the kind of real-world insights that simply cannot be captured in a report.
Our work is fundamentally about a simple promise: that every senior has the right to age with dignity and respect. Thanks to our partnership with the Senior Services Coalition of Alameda County and the tireless work of leaders like Monica Kirkland, we can be confident that our efforts are not only making a difference in the lives of individuals but also helping to shape a more just and equitable future for all.
SSCAC unites over 40 member organizations—including Empowered Aging—to create a powerful and influential voice for seniors. This collaborative approach allows us all to pool our knowledge and resources, making our collective advocacy far more effective than any of us could be alone. To learn more about the critical work of our partners at the Senior Services Coalition of Alameda County, please visit their website. Together, we are building a stronger safety net for our seniors.