HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-01-08 Council on Aging Minutes OFR
. , Town of Reading
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Board -Committee- Commission -.Council: 2811 AUG 23 PM 12: 22 .
Council on Aging
Date: 20.18-178 Time: 6:30 PM
Building: Pleasant Street Senior Center Location: : Lounge Room
Address; 49 Pleasant Street
Purpose: Session: General Session
Attendees: Members - Present:
Joan Coco, Jolyn Ek, Margaret Havey, John Parsons, Thomas Procopio,
Sandy Shaffer, Marilyn Shapleigh, Brian SneII;.Pooja Parsons.(Associate.
Member), Jayna-Stafford (Associate Memer),.Jane Burns (Admin),
Members - Not Present:
Sally Hoyt (Associate Member)
Others Present:
Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Marilyn Shapleigh
Topics;of Discussion:
Call to Order: 6:30 by Brian Snell.
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Acceptance of Minutes from 12/12/2017: Accepted
Elder Services.December Report (Admin): Statistics indicate that the Center-is reaching
capacity; to document this trend, the Center will start to track wait-listed people to quantify
any unmet needs due to capacity limitations. Kerry Valle:does.not have time to manage
volunteers to the extent she did in the past because of the rising demand for her case
management services. As a result, volunteer hours (e.g.; shoppers) are down. The Council
discussed modifications to the monthly report-(e.g. eliminating monthly reportingof van
mileage) effective 1/1/2018 to make room for"wait list" statistics on future Elder Services
reports.. Accepted.
Financial December Report(Admin): Accepted.
MVES Report (Brian Snell): There was no December meeting, but the Annual Report was .
included in the Council on Aging January packet for review.
Old Business•
Christmas'Meal Delivery: Jane Burns thanks all who came out to:deliver meals in spite of
the terrible weather. Thirty-five dinners (and .gifts) were delivered. The recipients were
very appreciative. Delivering on the 23rd instead of Christmas Eve worked:out well.
Dementia Friendly Reading Next Steps: The Mass Council onAgingwas awarded a
$300,000 3-year grant from-the Tufts Health Plan Foundation; options to apply for mini-
grants are being developed. A follow-up Dementia Friendly Reading.meeting is planned for
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next.Wed with.the DKJ Foundation..Lots-of.interest has.already developed. Creative.Arts is. . .
:exploring ways that the program mission might be involved in programming. The Fire Dept,
went through trainingon how to:respond.to patients with dementia. The YMCA..is having all
staff go through training with the Alzheimer's Association to recognize signs of dementia
and looking_ to.bring'a chair yoga type-program-(like one piloted in Andover) to Reading.
The.library is anxious to get all staff trained and plan additional :programming. If we can.
get a-few sectors onboard, we'll.aim.for a ripple-effect to engage other-groups &.
organizations. Jane Burns is working on an inventory of sectors and their status:in terms of
getting on-board. There are 2 openings on the COA...in looking-for new members it would
be good.to look for people who have availability to take a lead on these efforts.. .
25th Anniversary Planning. An Art Show is planned, probably'for spring. An outside
barbeque was suggested. Other suggestions included: a cake, a special lunch:with .
:staggered seating to:accommodate as many as possible, posters based on archives, and
interviews with elderly residents. The tentative.plan is to announce the anniversary in
March and build up to something bigger through the spring/summer. Jane Burns will try to
outline a plan by our next meeting.
Donation/Grant Update: Brian Snellspoke with the Reading Cooperative Bank. They said
they had not realized that the computer replacement described in our proposal was integral-
to the Center's tax preparation services. They suggested that Jane Burns resubmit the
application; she has done this (emphasizing tax preparation,:SHINE,.and computer training .
for low income folks.and providing numbers to quantify the need) --'no response yet. The
computers have been ordered and they will be in the computer room by February 1St
Burbank funds approved-at"the December COA meeting.will be used if we do not get the
grant. Use of the donation for the facility improvements around the reception desk is still
under discussion.
New Business:
Staffing Updates: -Sharon Thomas is going to.retire.June 29th. .
Upcoming:Events: Listed: in Pleasantries: Programs include a special lunch for Valentine's
Day and a heart healthy cooking,event. -
Adjourned: Motion by John Parsons,.Second by Tom Procopio. Adjourned by Brian Snell
at 7:47.
Next COA.Meeting: .Monday, February 8,:2018.
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