CHATHAM, ONTARIO, March 27, 2009—Mr. David Van Kesteren, Member of Parliament for Chatham-Kent-Essex, today announced federal support for the Chatham-Kent Falls Prevention Coalition and the Moravian of the Thames Indian Band under the Government of Canada’s New Horizons for Seniors Program.

Mr. Van Kesteren made the announcement on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, and the Honourable Marjory LeBreton, Leader of the Government in the Senate and Minister of State (Seniors).

Mr. Van Kesteren highlighted $48,000 in funding for two projects to help ensure that seniors have the opportunity to participate and take an active leadership role within their community.

“The Government of Canada is proud to support seniors in strengthening our communities and building our country,” said Mr. Van Kesteren. “These projects will encourage seniors in Chatham and Thamesville to continue sharing their skills, wisdom and experience to benefit others.”

The Chatham-Kent Falls Prevention Coalition received funding for its project, Exercise at the Kitchen Sink, in which seniors will contribute to the creation of a video that will demonstrate seven activities that will build strength and balance to prevent falls. The video will be distributed to the public library and seniors’ groups.

The Moravian of the Thames Indian Band received funding for its project, Elder’s Community Garden Initiative, which will allow seniors who are knowledgeable in gardening to transfer their knowledge of planting, seeding, cultivating and canning to youth in the community.

The investment highlighted today falls under the Community Participation and Leadership component of the New Horizons for Seniors Program, which encourages seniors to continue to play an important role in their communities by helping those in need, providing leadership, and sharing their knowledge and skills with others.

With two additional components of the New Horizons for Seniors Program—Capital Assistance and Elder Abuse Awareness—the overall budget of the Program is now $35 million per year.

Since its beginning, the New Horizons for Seniors Program has funded over 5,000 projects in hundreds of communities across Canada. For more information about the Program, please visit www.hrsdc.gc.ca/seniors.

In Canada’s Economic Action Plan, the federal government made a clear commitment to protect Canadians, including seniors, in difficult times by implementing several key measures:

Increasing the Age Credit by $1,000 for 2009 and beyond to allow eligible seniors to receive up to an additional $150 in annual tax savings.

Providing seniors with $200 million in tax relief by reducing the required minimum withdrawal amount for 2008 from Registered Retirement Income Funds by 25 percent, in recognition of the impact of the deterioration in market conditions on retirement savings.

Helping older workers and their families through these tough economic times by investing an additional $60 million over three years in the Targeted Initiative for Older Workers, and by expanding the number of eligible communities to include older workers in small cities.

Providing $400 million over two years through the Affordable Housing Initiative for the construction of housing units for low-income seniors.

Establishing an independent Task Force to make recommendations on a cohesive national strategy on financial literacy for Canadians.