By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Wood County officials want to spend $466,495 to help keep aging citizens in their homes and healthy.
The federal Healthy Aging Grants could be used to deliver meals, transport patients to medical offices, repair homes, and hook seniors up to technology. On Thursday, the importance of those services was explained by Wood County Committee on Aging officials.
The aging WCCOA fleet delivering meals to senior centers throughout Wood County carried some precious cargo on Thursday – 1,200 dinners of turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing for early Thanksgiving dinners.
And minivans deliver other precious cargo, taking thousands of seniors to and from doctors’ appointments each year.
So replacing those vehicles is top on the list for the Healthy Aging Grants (ARPA) funding sought by the Wood County Committee on Aging.
The Wood County Commissioners Office has been awarded $466,495 to be allocated to agencies serving the county’s senior population. The grants are intended to foster improved quality of life for older Ohioans so they may remain in their homes and connected to their communities, preserve their personal assets, and promote a healthy, independent, active lifestyle.
On Thursday, representatives of the WCCOA made their best pitch for the funding.
The goal for each dollar requested is to help senior citizens stay at home and healthy as long as they are able.
So in addition to the vehicles delivering food and providing medical transportation, the WCCOA also would like to use the funding for nursing services, minor home repairs, adult day services, and technology for seniors.
“This is our dream,” Wood County Committee on Aging Executive Director Denise Niese said last month to the agency’s board. “This is a one-time opportunity. So we want to invest in things that have longer lives.”
Unlike most ODA funding, these grants cut out the middle man, and won’t go through a regional office. The Wood County Commissioners have said they will not take out administrative costs, Niese said.
Eric Myers, a member of the WCCOA Board, explained the needs to the county commissioners on Thursday.
Three of the trucks that deliver meals to homes and the satellite senior centers have more than 160,000 miles on them, and are 12-15 years old.
“That is something we need to address,” Myers said.
“The trucks are out there every day, delivering meals,” driving up to 90 miles a day, Niese said.
The WCCOA minivans also deliver seniors to and from as many as 2,800 medical appointments a year.
Because so many older adults who need medical transportation have difficulty getting in and out of the current minivans, the WCCOA is looking to buy two sedans, either Impalas or Malibus.
Following is the list of requests from the WCCOA:
- Home-delivered meal trucks – two for the total cost of $110,000.
- Medical escort sedans – two for a total cost of $88,121.
- Contracted nurse services with Wood County Health Department – $50,000 for one year.
- Wood County Probate Guardianship Board providing social connectedness – $33,873 for one year.
- Minor home repair services for 18 homes – $92,500.
- Adult day services – $45,000 for 450 days of client care.
- Technology for seniors, providing laptops and jet packs for connectivity – $47,000.
Many of the laptops were purchased for seniors to use during COVID with CARES Act funding. The latest funding would be used to get wifi to homes without it, and “we hope to reactivate devices and get them back into the hands of seniors,” Niese said.
The commissioners also expect to hear a funding proposal for the funding from the Area Office on Aging.
Commissioners Ted Bowlus and Doris Herringshaw thanked the WCCOA representatives for all the work done on behalf of local seniors, and said a decision will be made on the funding by the end of 2023.
The project period of the Healthy Aging Grants runs until Sept. 30, 2024.
The Wood County Committee on Aging is a self-incorporated non-profit organization that is committed to providing services to support the independence of older adults throughout the county. WCCOA provides programs, services, and activities through eight senior centers throughout the county, including its flagship location, the Wood County Senior Center in Bowling Green.
Additionally, WCCOA is the Older Americans Act senior nutrition provider for the county, preparing and serving more than 53,000 congregate meals and 156,000 home-delivered meals in 2022 throughout the county.
Annually, more than 6,500 older adults, their family members and caregivers access services virtually or at the Wood County Senior Centers. Participants at the centers engage in a variety of programs and services.
These range from: Exercise programs such as Yoga, Dynamic Balance, Get Moving Classic, Tai Chi, Virtual Silver Sneakers; Classic Chronic Disease Self-Management, including Matter of Balance, Delay the Disease classes; Art therapy, art projects, and crafts; Seminars and lunch and learns; Hybrid programs offered both online and at the center, such as Name That Tune, brain games and trivia, and technology training in various forms, including TED talks.
WCCOA’s YouTube channel gives those who are not able to attend the centers access to programs at their convenience. The center also hosts a variety of support groups, legal clinics, podiatry clinics, and much more.
WCCOA has grown and diversified programs and services to address the needs identified by and for the older adults throughout the county. Programs and services include: insurance counseling, support groups, medical transportation, medical equipment loans, technology classes, art classes, discussion groups, income tax assistance, and legal services.
