Those who remember when you ‘let your fingers do the walking’ to find services in the Yellow Pages that came with the now obsolete telephone directory, can grab a slice of the old days thanks to Papakura Local Board.
It has produced its first Senior Directory, listing resources for Papakura residents who might have a few trips around the sun to their credit.
Launched at the recent Positive Ageing Expo at Sir Edmaund Hillary Library, board chair Brent Catchpole admits to being part of the Yellow Pages generation.
“Many of our young ones don’t know what a phonebook is, let alone the Yellow Pages. Those of us with ‘life experience’, would use them to find the things we needed, particularly in a crisis.
“Nothing stays the same and we moved to the internet but that left people behind. Members of our older community told us they’d value a place where the resources they might need were easy to find.
“The response at the expo was good, with people leafing through and finding things they might not have known they could access, everything from games and clubs to medical, housing and social needs.”
The expo gave member of the senior community the chance to speak directly to service providers.
The directory was made possible using the board’s Age Friendly funding, but only after some impressive research by Maree Bevan from Bloom, who assembled the content.
Former board member Sue Smurthwaite attended the expo because she was instrumental in advocating for age-friendly projects, while library staff filled Accent Point with 40 stands and stalls that gave locals the chance to talk with organisations working with older people.
Stalls ranged from Whiri Aroha and its weekly korowai weaving classes, to Driving Miss Daisy taxi services for older women.
Catchpole says only small numbers of directories have been printed because of the cost, but an online version will be kept and regularly updated so new services and groups can be added, and print copies can be produced depending on the response.
A limited number of copies are available at the Papakura Library, and will soon also be at Te Paataka Koorero o Takaanini and Papakura Art Gallery.
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