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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, D ec em be r 2, 20 21 | 8 oakville.ca W at er St 11B 11A 10 Tr af al g ar R d D u n n StG eo rg e St Th o m as St N av y St LakeshoreLakeshore Rd E Robinson StRobinson St 21 15 16 7 5 Randall St 8 14 Church StChurch St Downtown Oakville Parking Kerr Village Parking 12 17 Westside Dr Herald Ave Washington Ave Florence Dr Deane Ave NNorma nnddyy Pl K er r St K er r St R ey n o ld s St R ey n o ld s St 8 Church StChurch St A lla n St A lla n StRandall St Going out for a late night dinner or party? This holiday season, you can park between 6 p.m. and 9 a.m. at no charge in all town parking lots, with the exception of the 300 Church Street Parkade. Available November 27, 2021 to January 3, 2022. Need more time? Use the HonkMobile app to pay for any extra time you need past 9 a.m. For more information Visit the parking page on oakville.ca Overnight holiday parking made easy Downtown Oakville and Kerr Village Claudia Stewart fared a bit better, keeping to her daily walks during that period. Despite this, there were -- much like for Agrell -- certainly some hard times. "I'm a widow, and I have no children. I found it quite upset- ting at the beginning of the pan- demic because so many of the ac- tivities I was involved in were shut down," said Stewart, a 64- year-old from Burlington, who listed Zumba and aquafit as some of her regular activities. Scientists are keeping track of mental-health issues across the age populations, as social isola- tion brought on by the lockdown continues to take its toll. A study by Statistics Canada published in March of this year reported that "almost 38 per cent of Cana- dians reported that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they expe- rienced feelings of loneliness or isolation." Of those 38 per cent, people had four times higher preva- lence of major depressive disor- der and generalized anxiety dis- order. Cases of probable post- traumatic stress disorder were also higher. Twelve per cent of those reporting loneliness or iso- lation also reported post-trau- matic stress disorder. Community Development Halton conducted its own survey in August of 2020. It asked older adult members of Halton about their well-being during lock- down. The results of that survey were concerning. A followup survey, conducted in June of 2021, showed mixed results. "Comparing data from the two surveys, respondents were more likely to leave their home during the first survey period (August 2020) than in the second survey period (June 2021) when Onta- rio's vaccine rollout was begin- ning to accelerate," read the sur- vey titled "Senior Wellbeing Dur- ing COVID-19: Part 2." "Despite the increasing levels of inoculation in June, it is likely this third wave peak was fresh in the minds of people across Hal- ton, particularly older adults, and those in COVID's higher risk categories," the survey results said, offering an explanation. However, those saying they were very comfortable leaving their homes increased between the two survey periods from 14 per cent to 17 per cent. Yet 30 per cent said they were somewhat uncomfortable leaving their homes in the second survey com- pared to 22 per cent in 2020. The "very uncomfortable" category had a slight dip be- tween the two periods. Nine per cent said they were very uncom- fortable in 2021, whereas 12 per cent said the same last year. How often the older adults left their homes showed some de- cline. The number of people who said they left almost every day to socialize dropped by six per cent, and those who said they left home every day for supplies dropped by two per cent. Increases in the second sur- vey were seen in the category of less than once a week for social- izing (50 per cent versus 36 per cent in the first study) and sup- plies (31 per cent compared to 27 per cent). The only other second survey increase happened in the once-a-week category, where a two-per-cent increase was regis- tered for leaving the house to buy supplies. However, the older adults do appear to see going out as gener- ally less risky. "What I found in- teresting was that it lined up with the type of feedback we're seeing," said Tom Carrothers, president of the Canadian Asso- ciation of Retired Persons' Hal- ton chapter. "The loneliness came from not being able to see their grand- kids or their kids. The frustra- tion of not being able to go down and have that Friday morning coffee get together." Halton Region's partnership with Halton Regional Police Ser- vice delivers programs in the Community Safety and Well- Be- ing Plan. "This has included spe- cific actions to address older adults at risk of isolation," said a Halton Region spokesperson. This includes "development of the Older Adult Isolation Action Table to address social isolation among older adults." The spokes- person added that to date, "near- ly $380,000 has been provided to the Action Table through the HRCIF." The HRCIF, or the Hal- ton Region Community Invest- ment Fund, is a support system for non-profit human service programs. STORY BEHIND THE STORY: While some pandemic restrictions have been lifted in recent months, COVID-19 contin- ues to take a toll on many, in particular older adults. We wanted to examine how they are coping during this difficult time. NEWS Continued from page 1 SOME OLDER ADULTS STILL NOT COMFORTABLE LEAVING HOME Tom Carrothers, chair of the Canadian Association of Retired Persons' Halton chapter, has been especially concerned about area seniors since the pandemic's onset. Graham Paine/Metroland