COFFS Harbour Older Women’s Network (CHOWN) is celebrating five years of delivering meaningful and engaging events and social connections through its objectives of being an advocate for change and empowering and building resilience in a changing world.
A celebration event will take place on Wednesday 12 November at Shoreline’s Pavilion Room, from 10am to Noon, featuring keynote speaker, comedian and writer Mandy Nolan.
The vision for CHOWN was forged by four passionate retired businesswomen who wanted to help older women in the community age well.
They began considerable research and strategic planning, acquired seed funding, and founded the Coffs Harbour Older Women’s Network in November 2020.
The network has maintained monthly meetings with relevant guest speakers and facilitators addressing key areas of wellbeing, skills learning, empowerment and health in the form of seminars, workshops and collaborative forums.
A strategic component of the group is forming working relationships with relevant organisations like Coffs Harbour Women’s Health, Shoreline Luxury Retirement Living, Healthy North Coast and UTS Business School.
“Essential to the success of any network, especially an older women’s network, is maintaining social interactions,” CHOWN coordinator Lorraine Penn told News Of The Area.
“It exercises the brain and is the best way to improve cognitive health and, of course, social connection.”
The network holds monthly coffee catch-ups, lunches, dinners and outings.
“New projects for 2026 are solutions-based housing for older women at risk of homelessness, and online conversational-style professional development webinars.”
For more information or to attend the celebration event contact Lorraine Penn on 0404 163 136 or coffsharbour@ownnsw.org.au
There are currently more than 23 groups like the Coffs Harbour OWN spread around NSW operating as affiliates of OWN NSW based in Sydney.
The closest one to Coffs Harbour is based in Wyong.
By Andrea FERRARI
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