Date/Time
Date(s) - 10/25/2022
6:30 pm
Location
Walton Theatre
Categories
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Delhi, New York
Delaware County Office for the Aging Presents ‘All The Lonely People’: A Local Film Screening and Community Conversation on Social Isolation
Delaware County Office for the Aging presents a local screening of All the Lonely People, a social-impact film examining the epidemic of loneliness. The in-person screening is free and open to the public on October 25th, 6:30 pm at the Walton Theatre. It will include a facilitated Q&A with the film’s producers and local officials, offering a forum for community discussion about ways to develop resilience and implement strategies to combat social isolation.
The event is part of a statewide screening tour organized by the New York State Office for the Aging (NYSOFA), the Association on Aging in New York (AgingNY), and locally by Delaware County Office for the Aging.
In 2017, the U.S. Surgeon General declared social isolation to be a “global epidemic” – one that has only worsened in the COVID-19 health emergency. According to the AARP Public Policy Institute, social isolation drives $6.7 billion in additional associated Medicare spending per year. The health consequences of loneliness and isolation are equivalent to smoking almost a pack of cigarettes daily. The added stress of feeling alone increases heart disease and even earlier onset of dementia.
All The Lonely People examines this epidemic on a deeply personal level. It follows a handful of people from different walks of life as they overcome social isolation and chronic loneliness, including New York residents Ari Rossen and Tony Westbrook, as well as people like Mary Hill, an 89-year-old caregiver who faces isolation in the rural countryside of England.
Delaware County Office for the Aging Director said: “I had the opportunity in see this documentary at the June ACUU Conference. I personally was able to relate to the feeling loneliness with the loss of a loved one. I truly believe that everyone will sometime in their life experience loneliness. Their will be a panel of experts to answer the audience questions related to loneliness and vendors that you can speak regarding loneliness. I would highly recommend that you attend this documentary.”
NYSOFA Director Greg Olsen said: “About a year ago, I had the privilege of previewing this powerful documentary. I immediately saw its alignment with the work that NYSOFA and the aging services network are collectively doing to combat social isolation for older adults. I also saw it as a tool to raise awareness about the need for this work on multiple levels, including a broader community reach, as isolation impacts people of all ages. The film examines an issue that profoundly affects older adults, but it also features people from all walks of life and age groups, showing the many ways that we are all touched by social isolation. This is an issue that existed prior to the pandemic. Yet the social disruptions of COVID-19 fundamentally exacerbated it – and, in many ways, helped open our eyes to the problem. NYSOFA is proud to work with filmmakers from the Clowder Group and local partners to host these screenings and use the power of film to inspire conversation about one of the most pressing cultural issues of our time.”
All The Lonely People Producer Joe Applebaum said: “We are thrilled at this opportunity to support organizations across the state that are doing amazing things to ease loneliness and isolation. New York is making a meaningful commitment to easing loneliness and isolation.”
All The Lonely People Writer and Director Stu Maddux said: “This is more than just watching a film. It’s a chance to reconnect after a life-changing few years of isolation.”
