Adding life to years
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Snow Angels Program


Status: Ongoing

Ottawa Canada
Print this page City population: 100000017% over 60Practice started in 2013

Summary

Winter is an important cause of isolation for older adults, especially when their driveways are temporarily unusable due to snow and ice accumulation. In 2013/2014, the City of Ottawa Public Works Department expanded the existing Snow Go program which matches seniors with an individual or contractor to clear snow from private driveways to include a “Snow Angels” appreciation component. The purpose of the Snow Angels program is to thank residents who assist older adults and neighbours with disabilities with snow removal at their residence on a volunteer basis. Once a year, residents are invited to nominate candidates for special recognition and appreciation. The nominees are residents who help older adults or persons with a disability to improve their accessibility during the winter with shoveling and/or de-icing their private walkway and/or laneway.In 2014, there were 48 residents nominated for the Snow Angel program. An appreciation event was held in November 2014 and each nominee was presented with a Certificate signed by the Mayor and a snowflake key chain. The Program has been very well received by the community, with many nominees and their families feeling very appreciated for being recognized. To date in 2015, we have 23 nominations.

Website: http://www.ottawa.ca

Key facts

Main target group: Older people in general

Other target group(s): Older people with mobility challenges

Sector(s): Urban development

Desired outcome for older people:
Be mobile

Other issues the Age-friendly practice aims to address:
  • Accessibility

Contact details

Name: Hoskin, Tracy

Email address: tracy.hoskin@ottawa.ca

Preferred language(s): English

Age-friendly practice in detail (click to expand):

Engaging the wider community

Project lead: Local authorities

Older people’s involvement: Older people were not directly involved

Moving forward

Has the impact of this age-friendly practice been analysed: No

Feedback:
The Program has been very well received by the community, with many nominees and their families feeling very appreciated for being recognized