Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
MEMBERS OF the Iron County Human Services Department and other community partners wear purple Thursday to mark World Elder Abuse Awareness Day at the Iron County Courthouse, where 45 pinwheels marked the number of elder abuse reports in Iron County from 2016 to present. Among those taking part in the day were, first row, from left - Chelsea Wimer, Ed Zeliska, Samantha Peterson and Julia Rosa; second row kneeling - Trista Olson, Amy Nosal, Leah Koski and Tonya Isaacson; third row - Paula Vernetti, Teresa Way, Jewel Yanko, Becky Rein, Clara Maki, Diane Schmidtke, Deb Leonard, Jennifer Sukanen, Dianne Trolla, Amber Zanella and Mike Saari; fourth row - Jessie Chaney, Marisa Perlberg, Alyssa Evsich, Dianne Coolidge, Dustin Pitrone, Rebecca Holm, Heather Verbos, Jason Hellen and Lauren Snyder.
By RICHARD JENKINS
Hurley - If anyone happened to notice a large number of people wearing purple in Iron County Thursday, it wasn't some strange coincidence, rather the employees of the Iron County Human Services Department and other community partners wore the color to mark World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.
In Wisconsin, elder abuse applies to anyone over the age 60 being physically, sexually or emotionally abused, as well as those being neglected or financially exploited, according to Iron County case manager Trista Olson.
Caregivers aren't necessarily the only ones who can commit elder abuse, although she said statistics show abusers are generally someone the victim knows.
"Most of the time it is a relative, or somebody they know," Olson said. "Often times, the statistics are, it's somebody you know rather than a stranger."
While several of the other types of abuse can also happen to other demographics, financial exploration is frequently targeted at senior citizens specifically.
"There's a lot scams with banking (information)," Olson said. "They target people that are elderly, who may be having some dementia starting, so they can take advantage of that person."
There are a variety of warning signs for potential elder abuse, including isolation, signs of depression, lack of desire to take part in normal activities, sudden weight loss or frequent hospitalizations.
While none of the signs necessarily guarantee elder abuse, Olson said something as simple changes in habits could be an indication of something being wrong.
"Usually, you always saw your neighbor outside, and now you aren't seeing them outside, or their normal routines seems to have changed, or relatives you've never seen before are now in their lives - those could be pointers to say (relatives) are coming to take advantage now that they are getting up in age and have money," Olson said.
In addition to wearing purple, there was a banner outside the Iron County Courthouse, surrounded by 45 pinwheels - each representing an incident of reported elder abuse in Iron County from 2016 to present.
Olson said anyone, including neighbors or friends, can anonymously report suspected elder abuse by calling the department at 715-561-3636 and asking for an adult protective service worker.
"We just want people to report when they see something that is out of the norm," Olson said.
In some cases, even if there isn't elder abuse occurring, Olson said the department can provide the person with services he or she didn't receive earlier.
"These people, they live alone and they don't realize what is available in our little towns," Olson said. "Sometimes we'll get a case and we'll talk to them and we realize it's more of a case where they just need help in the house."
