When Carlos Alvarez was elected to the position of Executive Mayor of Miami-Dade County in November 2004, he knew that designing a program for the elderly would be one of his points of focus. “It’s one of the main things I wanted to work on,” he admitted. “My oldest sister has been involved in issues with the elderly for most of her adult life, so I was aware of the needs that are out there.”

Alvarez said his sister has worked with various social agencies for the past 25 years, “and every year she faces issues with budgets. So I had knowledge when I started campaigning, and many who I saw (during the campaign) were elderly folks; I saw that a dire need existed in a number of areas.

“So I announced when I took office that this would be my initiative.” And the “Mayor’s Initiative on Aging” is ready to kick off in January 2006.

The Initiative includes a series of 12 (one per month) promotional, educational and fitness programs for Miami-Dade County’s seniors, aged 55-and-older. They will feature such offerings as: health education, disease prevention, fitness activities for all levels, nutrition education, senior safety, and screenings for cholesterol, blood pressure, diabetes, glaucoma, bone density, and depression. In addition, seniors can receive information on federal, state and community programs and services, and take part in symposiums focusing on the health and well-being of older adults.

The Mayor has received the support of more than 50 key and diverse companies and organizations in the Miami-Dade area, including AARP Foundation, the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, Florida Department of Children & Families, Florida International University – Center on Aging, International Association of Hispanic Firefighters, Jewish Community Services, Little Havana Activities & Nutrition Centers, the National Kidney Foundation, the United Way of Miami-Dade, and Women’s Fund of Miami-Dade County.

Two of the organizations that have particularly worked closely with the Mayor and his Initiative are the Alliance for Aging and the Miami-Dade County Health Department Consortium for a Healthier Miami-Dade. And an individual who was happy to come on board when he learned of the Initiative was Dr. Rene Rodriguez. A resident of Miami, Rodriguez is President of the Interamerican College of Physicians and Surgeons in Washington, D.C. and, in Miami, is Chief of the Orthopedic Section in the Surgery Department of the Veterans Administration Medical Center. He has also been appointed to the White House Conference on Aging and attended a conference there at the beginning of December.

Rodriguez said he wanted to get involved with the Mayor’s office, and when they learned he was part of the White House Conference, they invited him to join. A senior himself, Rodriguez is well-versed in problems facing the elderly. “We have the largest population of older people in South Florida,” he said. “Since I live here I know about them, it’s close to me. They face a lot of problems. They don’t know the regulations, they need a lot of orientation.”

He described his role with the Initiative: “I volunteered to advise, and I will be a speaker at many of the conferences and centers.” He added, “I think we can have a big impact in a year of campaigning.” Rodriguez has also written a book entitled You and Your Doctor. Written in Spanish, the book is being translated into English because of the demand.

Rodriguez is one of a number of health care professionals with whom Alvarez has been working. The Mayor said his Initiative “has been a one-year process. We started working the day we took office, and we’re kicking off the program one year after that. There were a lot of meetings, a lot of ‘wanna-do’s,’ but we’re here now.” Alvarez pointed out that he consulted with a number of doctors and health experts during that planning period. “We decided what we wanted to address, whether it was nutrition, cholesterol, exercise.”

Alvarez said he hasn’t received any opposition, but he is aware of other potential problems. “Nobody’s going to say ‘no’ (when approached about participating),” he said, “but getting the necessary resources can be hard.” He gave an example by saying an agency that provides assistance to the elderly might have a budget of $100,000, but then finds it has been cut by $15,000. They then say that they can’t provide lunches any more because their budget has been cut. “I say, ‘Cut somewhere else!’” Alvarez exclaimed. “Some of these people would be in dire straits if it wasn’t for the lunches or transportation that these agencies provide.”

To help deal with that, the Mayor made an important move right after taking office. “I put room in the budget for a coordinator for elderly affairs,” he said. He believes such a person would help to direct those types of endeavors. “That’s why it’s important to have a coordinator in a high-level position.”

Hiring a coordinator is just one of the Mayor’s actions to help assure the success of his program. Efforts to assist the elderly undoubtedly have been made in the past, but Alvarez states, “Nobody has taken the initiative I have.”