Two wellness offerings honored with ICAA Innovative Solutions Award

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Award recognizes products and solutions that support wellness for adults ages 50-plus

VANCOUVER--The International Council on Active Aging® (ICAA), an association that leads, connects and defines the active-aging industry, is pleased to announce the winners of the ICAA Innovative Solutions Award (previously the Equipment Innovator Award), a category in the ICAA Innovators Awards program. ICAA’s annual awards honor those in the active-aging industry that are leading the way, setting new standards and making a difference in the lives of older adults. The ICAA Innovative Solutions Award specifically recognizes North America’s most creative wellness products and solutions for active older adults. Offerings target any or all of the seven wellness dimensions—emotional, vocational, physical, spiritual, environmental, social and intellectual wellness. For 2010, the recipients of the ICAA Innovative Solutions Award are:

Palate 360 (Morrison Management Specialists, Atlanta, Georgia)
Sit Strong Systems exercise chair (Sit Strong Systems, Hickory, North Carolina)
“Many businesses share the ICAA vision of Changing the way we age®,” says Colin Milner, the association’s CEO and founder. “ICAA unifies these organizations to create an industry dedicated to better health, wellness and quality of life for this age group—the active-aging industry. To continue to grow and to create quality wellness offerings for clients, however, the industry needs innovative products and solutions. ICAA aims to encourage companies to develop and refine these offerings,” Milner adds, “by highlighting creative products and solutions for this market.”

The recipients of the 2010 ICAA Innovative Solutions Award provide “inspired offerings” to support older-adult wellness, Milner observes. “In the Palate 360 open-kitchen concept, Morrison Management Specialists has transformed a static element such as dining into an engaging, multidimensional wellness experience for residents of senior living communities. And Sit Strong Systems has taken a piece of furniture that, for many, symbolizes an inactive lifestyle—the recliner—and transformed it with hidden resistance bands into a fitness tool. In the process, Sit Strong has also overturned the stereotype of fitness equipment. Congratulations to both organizations on the creativity and excellence of their wellness solutions, and thanks to everyone who entered this year’s awards competition.”

The winners of the 2010 ICAA Innovative Solutions Award will each receive a crystal award of recognition to display in their organizations. In addition, in-depth profiles of each award recipient will appear in ICAA’s flagship publication, the Journal on Active Aging®, in 2011. In the meantime, snapshots of the award-winning offerings are available on the ICAA website at www.icaa.cc/awards/pressreleases.htm.

New this year, ICAA has separately named the winners of the ICAA Innovators Awards for programs and concepts that advance active aging, and the first-ever ICAA Green Award, presented for organizational efforts that encourage environmental stewardship. Announcements, with brief profiles of these award-winners, are posted online at the above website.

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About the ICAA Innovators Awards program
Launched in 2003, the ICAA Innovators Awards program honors excellence and creativity in the active-aging industry. By recognizing organizations that have created cutting-edge programs, concepts and products encouraging wellness, ICAA highlights these innovative solutions for industry leaders and governmental organizations to learn from. Award-winners work on inspiring new directions in older-adult wellness. They not only give us a glimpse into the trends shaping the future of older-adult health and wellness, they also give us hope that it is possible to solve the inactivity problem.

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About the International Council on Active Aging

The International Council on Active Aging® is the professional association that leads, connects and defines the active-aging industry. ICAA supports professionals who develop wellness facilities, programs and services for adults over 50. The association is focused on active aging—an approach to aging that helps older adults live as fully as possible within all dimensions of wellness—and provides its members with education, information, resources and tools. As an active-aging educator and advocate, ICAA has advised numerous organizations and governmental bodies, including the US Administration on Aging, the National Institute on Aging (one of the US National Institutes of Health), the US Department of Health and Human Services, Canada’s Special Senate Committee on Aging, and the British Columbia ministries of Health, and Healthy Living and Sport.

For interviews please contact:

Contact: Colin Milner, CEO, ICAA
Toll-free: 1-866-335-9777 (North America)
Telephone: 604-734-4466; cell: 604-763-4595
colinmilner@icaa.cc

Contact: Marilynn Larkin
Communications Director, ICAA
212-315-3301
mlarkin@icaa.cc