COSTA MESA : Campaign to Target Abuse Against Elderly
One out of every six persons over the age of 60 are abused, whether physically or emotionally, according to the Area Agency on Aging and Adult Protective Services in Orange County.
Operating on these statistics, the ARV Housing Group will start putting up billboards today around Costa Mesa, offering public workshops and distributing written material discussing the signs of elderly abuse, said Patti Barbee, the vice president of the group, which develops and manages affordable housing in the city of Costa Mesa.
“The saddest part in all the abuse is that only one out of every 14 cases are reported to authorities,” Barbee said. “The victims usually suffer in silence.”
The group will also provide free temporary housing for victims and make referrals to local senior service agencies, including the Area Agency on Aging and Adult Protective Services, which offers intervention programs on behalf of elder abuse victims.
The prevention campaign was announced last week at the company’s annual “Mr. and Ms. Senior ARV” celebration, an annual event at the Costa Mesa Senior Center. The winners were Bill Welty, a resident of the company’s Villa Bonita residence in San Diego, and Dottie Worthen, who resides at ARV’s Villa de Palma in Placentia.
The company owns and operates nearly 40 residential care facilities, independent senior apartments and multifamily housing communities throughout the nation.
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