FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

05-07-10 340PM

Brentwood Police Department recently invited representatives from Brentwood’s senior residential areas and those responsible for providing senior services in our community to join a Triad Council.

The purpose of the council is to educate and protect the seniors living in Brentwood and offer a program of a shared community response to a growing problem in America: senior crime. The council will be composed of the triad of law enforcement, community groups and senior citizens. Its focus is to make seniors more aware of the services available to them throughout the community and offer them a safety net to protect them from becoming victims of crime.

It is a fact that 31 percent of seniors live alone, and those 85 and older are the fastest-growing segment of seniors. In 2011, the first of the baby boomers will turn 65 and by 2030, one in five Americans will be over 65. This fast-growing demographic has encouraged con artists to focus their scams on this group. The Triad Council will work to counter this trend by educating seniors about the scams and how to report them when they are discovered.

While much of the focus of the National Triad Program revolves around crime prevention, the local council will also incorporate the educational aspect of informing seniors and their caregivers of the myriad programs available in Brentwood and Contra Costa County. Some of these programs will include emergency preparedness for those with special needs, Adopt-a-Senior, home safety awareness, and driver safety issues. From the law enforcement side, seniors will be given information about how to protect themselves from financial and physical abuse, Internet and telemarketing scams, and how not to be a target of crime.

The Brentwood Triad Council is committed to improving the quality of life for the senior citizens of our community by enhancing their health, safety and security through communication, education and outreach.

In the coming months, the council will develop a survey to be distributed to seniors in Brentwood for the purpose of determining what types of programs are of most interest to the senior community. The survey will assist the council in focusing its efforts and energy on those projects that fill the greatest need and provide for the interests of the majority.

The Triad Council meets monthly at various locations around the city, and those interested in participating in this program are encouraged to attend. Dates and times of each meeting will be printed in the Brentwood Press and the Contra Costa Times.

For further information, call the City of Brentwood Police Department’s Lt. Doug Silva at 925-809-7712.

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