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You are cordially invited to attend the American Library Association’s pre-White House Conference on Aging (WHCOA) Forum, “Libraries, Lifelong Learning, Information and Older Adults,” to be held on Friday, June 24th, 2005, from 8:30 am-12:30 pm in Chicago. The meeting is sponsored by the Office for Literacy and Outreach Services (OLOS) and Reference and User Services Association (RUSA).

The theme for the 2005 White House Conference on Aging “The Booming Dynamics of Aging: From Awareness to Action” reflects the unique mandate of the 2005 WHCOA to focus on the aging of today and tomorrow. This group includes the 78 million baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), who will begin to turn 60 in 2006. The theme highlights the changing face of aging in the United States encouraging Americans of all ages to participate in developing plans for aging generations now and in the future.

Attendees at our ALA forum will discuss issues and develop recommendations surrounding the White House Conference on Aging and how libraries can serve older adults through these six major conference categories. The recommendations that attendees develop will be sent in an official report from this Forum and read by the 1,200 delegates attending the conference in October.

The overarching theme is comprised of six major categories. These categories are:

  • Planning Along the Lifespan
  • The Workplace of the Future
  • Our Community
  • Health and Long Term Living
  • Social Engagement
  • The Marketplace

Position papers from organizations with delegates to the Forum can be found below under "Related Files." More information about these categories may be found in an Adobe® Acrobat® file on the WHCOA Web site.

This Web site has been specifically designed for the Forum for June 24th, and will be available for participants and the entire library community to read. Registration for ALA’s forum is FREE but please register prior to June 1st. A Web page will be devoted to each cateogy listed above to provide links to papers and other documents. Use this link to access online registration form and registration contact information. Attendance is limited to 150 participants.

This forum is a unique opportunity for the library community to come together and develop a set of recommendations that will promote libraries at the WHCOA and how we will serve older adults in the next decade and beyond. You and your organization will want to participate in this exciting event. For further information about the June 24th forum, please contact the forum chair, Allan M. Kleiman or (908) 789-4090, ext. 4122.