PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten —Today is the International Day of Older Persons and we should be reflecting on the strides made to improve the lives of older persons in our community, but so much more needs to be done according to Member of Parliament for the United People’s UP Party Grisha Heyliger-Marten.
The MP issued a press release on Thursday reflecting on the many times in her life in which older persons imparted wisdom to help her in her new role as Faction Leader for the UP Party in Parliament and politics in general.
“I was raised by grandparents who were always there to reason with me whenever I faced challenges and I hope that even today our new leaders and scholars in various fields and industry can gravitate to an older person to learn from their life experiences and tap into their wealth of knowledge.”
She lamented that much still needs to be done on St. Maarten as older persons still receive less than adequate pension and have fewer privileges here than elsewhere within the Netherlands Kingdom.
“I have pledged to work for the older persons in our society and I will dedicate this month in their honor and putting my efforts behind launching initiatives that will be both a benefit and convenience for them now, and for seniors in the future,” said Heyliger-Marten.
“The International Day of Older Persons is observed on October 1 each year. On December 14, 1990, the United Nations General Assembly voted to establish October 1 as the International Day of Older Persons as recorded in Resolution 45/106. The holiday was observed for the first time on October 1, 1991. Wikipedia.”
