A long time volunteer and advocate for seniors in Cochrane has recently been recognized by the province. Della Robertson was one of nine individuals presented with the Minister’s Seniors Service Award (MSSA) on Oct. 1 in Edmonton, and one of two women to be awarded. The award recognizes individual volunteers over 65 years old and organizations who put seniors’ issues at the forefront. She was selected from 50 nominees. Robertson, who is now retired and was a nurse for more than 40 years, said she does it out of passion, not the recognition. “I don’t think anyone volunteers for the kudos,” Robertson said. “But it’s sure nice to be appreciated.” Robertson has volunteered for multiple volunteer organizations throughout her adult life. Back when smoking was still permitted in Cochrane restaurants, Robertson was a volunteer for an organization at the helm of the movement to ban it. In the last five years, she has been working on plans to increase palliative and end-of-life care in Cochrane as well as improve accessibility for seniors in town. Robertson has chaired both the Cochrane Seniors Advisory Committee and Family Community Support Services (FCSS) and her services have also led to the creation of the Cochrane Hospice Society. Most recently, Robertson joined the Provincial Advisory Council on Seniors (PAC), which looks into seniors’ needs in Alberta and how to address them. “Sometimes it’s a lot of agenda planning and making phone calls and writing letters, and looking at minutes and work plans. Sometimes it’s quieter,” Robertson said. Though her roles keep her busy, Robertson said it’s important work. “There’s just some wonderful seniors in this community and once you spend some time with them and have discussions with them about the community and about their needs being met or not met, it’s obvious there’s some advocacy that needs to happen on behalf of seniors,” Robertson said. “Cochrane is an exceptional town when compared to a lot of other towns, but I think there’s still things we need to improve on.” Senior isolation is one problem Robertson has been working on finding a solution to, and she thinks public transportation in town might help. “A lot of seniors don’t drive or don’t have people who can drive them for appointments and shopping and things that they need to do, even for social and recreational activities,” she said. “I’m really impressed by the town, that they are taking a good look at it and have decided to move ahead with (requests for proposals) for the transit system.” Robertson said she’s seen many positives over the years with the ongoing efforts of advocates for seniors. The award has been in place for over 20 years by the Alberta government. “Alberta is a province of dedicated and talented volunteers who work day after day to improve seniors’ lives. Congratulations to the award recipients” said Lori Sigurdson, minister of seniors and housing. “Thank you for everything you do to serve seniors in your community,”
