Many seniors in our province are living well below the poverty line. It’s a dire situation that has a ripple effect not just on seniors but the family and friends who care for them.

Yesterday a group of senior activists got together to share personal experiences of economic struggles faced by people in their 70s and above.

Mary Moylan is one of the organizers of Support our Seniors (SOS), a new group sharing stories and calling on government for change. She says government has normalized senior poverty, and ideas like seniors needing to use food banks to get by rather than addressing the crisis that is occurring, aren’t helping.

Moylan says there are around 6,000 impoverished senior women in the province, many homeless or couch surfing in the 70s.

And it sends shockwaves through society. With the economy being what it is, adults can’t afford to support their parents and, she says, shouldn’t have to.