Toronto Seniors Master Class Series Speaker

Presented by the Toronto Council on Aging

Toronto Seniors Master Class Series: Combatting Ageism, Celebrating Diversity and Promoting Inclusion

About this event

Meet Starr Smith, the third speaker in our TCA Masterclass Speaker series. Throughout her career, she has called Toronto and Edmonton home. Her curiosity and desire to learn led her to pursue an education in Journalism. A trailblazer as one of the few female journalists and business executives in her early career, the lessons learned informed her work as an Editor at MacLean-Hunter and later as a communications consultant advising medium-sized organizations. She credits her confidence and strong sense of self to the encouragement and support she received from her parents. She is passionate about tenant advocacy and now has grown into a role as a seniors' advocate. When the paralegal hired by her tenant association quit in the middle of her first case, she could not find another legal counsel. This led her into human rights and tenant law. The “eviction” legal counsel for her landlord told her she spent more time at The Landlord and Tenant Board than he did. In her talk, she will highlight the importance of affordable housing and senior-friendly communities to promote opportunities for aging in place. She will speak to how she began her journey as an advocate. Next, she will speak to the value of community among tenants as a source of both peer support and strength. Finally, she will share how her own experience of aging plays a part in her advocacy work.