Pub. 5 2014 Issue 4

www.wvbankers.org 6 West Virginia Banker I have come to a great conclusion. The longer I live the older I get. I know that sounds amusing but the reality is it’s true. All of us are getting older. Accord- ing to a recent article by Frank Keating, President of the American Bankers As- sociation, in 2010 there were 5.8 million people aged 85 or older. By 2050 it is projected there will be 19 million people aged 85 or older. So you may be saying, “Ok, Joe. What’s the point?” One of the greatest tragedies in today’s world is the exploitation of the elderly. One of the great travesties is financial abuse of the elderly. Sadly, so much of this is being committed by family members. WVBA Education Director Donna Atkinson has joined a coalition of groups called the WV Financial Exploitation Task force. The task force was formed to create a culture and environment where vulnerable adult West Virginians are safe from financial exploitation. Members of the task force involve several agencies in West Virginia, including WV Senior Legal Aid, WV Bureau of Senior Services, AARP, WV State Auditor’s Office, WV State Attorney General’s Office, WVDHHR, Federal Trade Commission and many others. Bankers play a huge role in identifying this, particularly our front line people as they come in contact with their customers. Again quoting Frank Keating, “Recently, AARP and ABA’s Community Engage- ment Foundation announced in June their intentions to work together to protect older Americans from financial abuse and exploitation as part of a commitment to the Clinton Global Initiative.” “Our planned efforts with AARP will help us provide bankers, older Americans and their caregivers, with the tools they need to thwart financial crimes.” Finally, let me mention another one of the growing trends that disturbs me and that is elderly abuse. Every day we hear of stories of abuse in our nation’s senior care facilities. Several years ago, the WVBA endorsed a partner that provides on-going, effective crime prevention programs that promote safe, secure and high quality of life environments for senior housing residents though the Senior Housing Crime Prevention Foundation (SHCPF). For- tunately for our banks it is a program that will allow banks to collect CRA credit for participat- ing. For more information about the SHCPF’s Crimestoppers Pro- gram, contact Diane Harman, WVBA Products and Services Administrator, via email at dharman@wvbankers.org. No matter your age, we all have part in making sure the “older generation” is protected. After all, we are all headed in that direction. n A M ESSAGE FROM THE P RESIDENT & CEO By Joe Ellison Taking Care of the Elderly “Our planned efforts with AARP will help us provide bankers, older Americans and their caregivers, with the tools they need to thwart financial crimes.”