Are you 55 or older with chronic conditions? If so, the free Health for Life Program (HeLP) offers you a sensible and enjoyable way to enhance your quality of life by showing you how to manage your chronic health conditions, such as high blood pressure, pain, depression and diabetes.

HeLP empowers you through a greater understanding of physical activity, healthy eating and stress management. You’ll learn about managing your medications correctly and improving communication with health care providers and family. By practicing decision-making techniques and action plans, you’ll be more confident about taking control of your life.

The program takes place for two-and-a-half hours a week for six weeks at community-based locations such as houses of worship, senior centers, nonprofit organizations and housing developments throughout Westchester.

HeLP follows a model developed at Stanford University’s School of Medicine. It is a nationwide program that has been in existence for more than 20 years, with proven benefits for the participants.

For more information and to learn when HeLP information sessions and workshops will be presented in your area, contact Marikay Capasso at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or
(914) 813-6263.

Thank you for volunteering to take part in our Livable Communities Speakers Bureau.

Your expertise will prove valuable in helping to educate seniors and the general public who live in Westchester County and make a positive difference in their lives. We appreciate your support.

The Speakers Bureau Directory is part of the Livable Communities Initiative, the signature project of Westchester County’s Department of Senior Programs and Services.

The goal of the initiative and its more than 370 Livable Villages is to improve the quality of life for people of all ages and to enable seniors to live active, engaged lives as they age in their homes and communities.

One of the best ways to reach those goals is through education, and that’s why the Speakers Bureau was created. Knowledge is power, and the directory offers a great way for groups and organizations to develop programs that interest their members.

The directory lists more than 65 speakers who have volunteered to share their time and expertise to present free programs in more than 14 categories, which range from money management to caregiving and education.

We welcome you to browse through the directory at your leisure. If you find a topic of interest for your membership, please contact the speaker directly by clicking on his or her e-mail.

The directory is a collaboration between the Department of Senior Programs and Services (DSPS) and the Westchester Public/Private Partnership for Aging Services. It was originally geared toward people 60 and older, but the topics are also appropriate for a broader audience.

If you would like to volunteer to be a speaker, complete the application form.  

For more information, please contact (914) 813-6263 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. We thank you in advance for your willingness to share your expertise.

New York State AARP announced today that it has presented a Social Impact Award in honor of its 50th anniversary to Commissioner Mae Carpenter of Westchester County’s Department of Senior Programs and Services, for her “creative and innovative” development of  the livable communities initiative.

DSPS Commissioner Mae Carpenter, who is spearheading the initiative, has received an award for her work from the New York State AARP.

Livable Communities are places where seniors can grow old in their own homes with independence, dignity and civic involvement. Livable Community features include affordable housing, adequate and accessible transportation and safe roads and sidewalks.

Launched in 2006, the Livable Communities initiative is bringing honor to the county. Westchester is way ahead of the curve in developing such communities. The Livable Communities program is a priority quality-of-life issue for us, and Mae Carpenter’s leadership is the reason why we are in the vanguard of this movement in New York State and nationwide.

Carpenter said she was honored to receive the recognition but did not achieve it on her own work alone.

“It’s an acknowledgment of the conscientious teamwork in Westchester County to improve and sustain our wonderful quality of life for older persons and people of all ages,” Carpenter said. “I like to compare the county to a symphony orchestra, she said. “Each department is like a musical instrument which makes its own unique contribution. But they come together in a harmonious partnership and the residents reap the benefits.”