About

Kings Seniors’ Safety is a registered not-for-profit organization incorporated in 2006 with the purpose of providing oversight and programming for safety and education initiatives that assist seniors living independently in the communities of Kings County.

We operate a Seniors’ Safety Program with the assistance of our coordinator, and work closely with RCMP and Municipal policing services, Municipal & Provincial Governments, the Law Foundation of Nova Scotia, hospital foundations and other groups in our community to promote seniors' safety.

Our Vision

Seniors in Kings County are living safely.

Our Mission

Improving the safety of seniors in Kings County

Core Values

We embrace our obligations to our members, volunteers, staff and other stakeholders and will work to establish strong ownership linkages between all parties. We will communicate and consult with them when appropriate, and listen and respond to their concerns accordingly. We will exercise due diligence and manage the resources of the association in a responsible and transparent manner, while attending to the needs of our community members.
We value the human quality of communicating and acting truthful and with fairness, as best one is able. We must be truthful, responsible, trustworthy, and honourable in our actions, words and character when addressing any seniors’ issues.
It is imperative that we exhibit cooperative, courteous and polite behavior in our relationship with one another and with all with whom we associate. We must be aware of the need for flexibility owing to the diversity of the groups within our communities. Exhibiting such a professional manner will maintain our reliability as a group.
With our prime concern for the safety, security and well-being of our seniors, we must show empathy towards the problems and issues of our seniors. We will help solve their problems, as best we can, but must show patience and have compassion, as these problems are not always solved as quickly as we would like them to be.
A major objective is to address the welfare and quality of life for seniors in Kings County. It is therefore essential that we treat all seniors with dignity and fairness and remain tolerant of their situation and outlook on life.

Our Team

A woman with dark curly hair and glasses smiling at the camera, wearing a navy blazer and a striped shirt, in front of a bookshelf.

Trishe Colman

Program Director

Close-up portrait of smiling middle-aged woman with short blonde hair, glasses, hoop earrings, and a sleeveless, lace-patterned beige top against a gray background.

Trisha Urquhart

Program Coordinator

Board of Directors

A portrait of an older woman with short blonde hair, wearing a multicolored striped shirt, gold hoop earrings, and a delicate necklace, smiling in front of a bookshelf with framed certificates.

Goldie Fagan

MLT, BT

Retired health care manager with experience serving on boards at both the provincial and national level. Dedicated to promoting dignity, and person-centred care for individuals facing complex social, financial, and aging-related challenges while supporting their desire to remain in their own homes.

A smiling middle-aged woman with shoulder-length blonde hair wearing a light blue and white striped shirt, sitting in an office with a bookshelf in the background.

Alison Lannan

Alison’s lifelong career as a teacher and many life experiences as an active and involved mother of four helped her develop strong organizational skills and a deep sense of social concern that she brings to her role as the fundraising chair of the Seniors’ Safety Board.

A woman with dark curly hair and glasses, smiling, wearing a black blazer and patterned blouse against a gray background.

Katherine Hanks

P.Mgr., C.Mgr
Joined Board 2024

Retired professional manager with broad experience in legal and information technology environments, brining extensive expertise in leadership, governance, finance, and collaborative decision-making to board service.

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Johanna Kwakernaak

BPT, MBA
Joined Board 2016

Johanna is a retired Physiotherapist and Health Care Administrator with clinical and administrative experience in Acute Care, Long Term Care and Home Care. She brings administrative, community and health care expertise and has served as Treasurer since joining the Board.

A smiling older man with glasses, a beard, and a bald head, wearing a checkered shirt.

Peter Kerr

CD, BSc, PSC, PMP(ret’d)
Joined Board 2011

Retired military with considerable governance and managerial experience working collaboratively within not-for-profit organizations at local, provincial and national levels.

An elderly man with white hair smiling, wearing a blue and white plaid shirt, in a room with wooden paneling.

Allan Russell

Joined Board 2015

Retired after 35 years of service with the Dominion Atlantic Railway, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway.

Program Objectives

Kings Seniors’ Safety has an ongoing commitment to the seniors in Kings County to provide a broad range of community-based safety and security services in a close partnership with police services.

The program is unique in its ability to take an individual focused community-based approach to safety and security issues that are not addressed by other agencies serving seniors. The partnership with policing is critical to the ability to address safety and security needs. The flexibility to work collaboratively with the range of senior serving agencies makes Seniors’ Safety a critical initiative in keeping seniors living safely in their community.

Everything we do is made possible by the support of the organizations in our communities.

Operational Structure

Kings Seniors’ Safety is a registered not-for-profit organization incorporated in 2006. It is governed by a Board of Directors made up of dedicated volunteers from across the County of Kings. The society is led by a strategic plan, an operational plan and a cohesive set of policies and procedures.

The society employs a full time and paid Program Director, whose function is to oversee the running of the Seniors’ Safety Program from the Kentville Police Service Office, thanks to their in-kind contribution. The program provides a broad range of community based and in home services delivered to seniors throughout Kings County. The society also employs a half-time Program Coordinator who works closely with multiple community organizations and has a strong and long standing relationship with Kings RCMP. Other contracted services are engaged as necessary.

The Society operates on funding received from the following sources:

The NS Department of Seniors
The Law Foundation of Nova Scotia
The Municipality of the County of Kings
The Towns of Kentville, Wolfville and Berwick
The Valley Regional Hospital Foundation
The Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation
The Western Kings Memorial Health Society

We also receive “in kind" services from the Kings RCMP and the Nova Scotia Health Authority. In 2017 we were recipients of a new vehicle from the Mud Creek Rotary for use by the Seniors’ Safety Program Coordinator.