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Three Senior Ride Programs Show Superior Service, Earn Awards The AAA Foundation, in partnership with the Beverly Foundation, has given awards to three senior transportation programs that excel in serving their communities. These programs were selected because of their dedication, commitment, and high level of service. The three honored programs are: Project Dana, Honolulu, Hawaii Shepherd's Center of the Northland, Kansas City, MO Rensselaer County Department for the Aging, Troy, NY "These programs help seniors stay in their homes and lead independent lives," says Peter Kissinger, President of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. "They provide essential transportation in a caring, compassionate, and effective way." While the three programs differ in their scope and structure, all share a mission of providing essential transportation that helps older Americans continue living in their own homes. The awards are one aspect of a unique partnership between the AAA Foundation and the Beverly Foundation, which are working together to help supplemental transportation programs meet the demands of a growing senior population. The partnership is compiling information on existing senior transportation programs and preparing a guide on how to start new programs Project Dana In 1989 the Moiliili Hongwanji Mission, a Buddhist temple, decided there was a need to help homebound congregation members and the neighboring community, says Rose Nakamura, Project Dana's administrator. The result was Project Dana. The group received a startup grant from the Public Welfare Foundation in Washington, D.C., and has continued to expand its services ever since. "Today we are ecumenical and there are 31 church sites throughout Hawaii offering at-home services to the frail, elderly, and disabled," Nakamura says. "We have several islands, so there are four projects on Maui, 8 on the Big Island, and 17 on Oahu. The Project Dana office coordinates referrals, training, education, and insurance. The word "Dana," pronounced "dah-nah," is Sanskrit for "selfless giving," Nakamura says, and while Project Dana does offer a stipend, most drivers pay for their own expenses as a charitable gesture. Drivers use their own vehicles but receive group volunteer insurance through Project Dana. However, Nakamura says, "in all these years we have never had any accidents." Drivers receive training in how to deal with the elderly, including getting them in and out of the vehicle and transporting equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers, and canes. Each driver is assigned a specific individual for whom they are responsible and with whom they build a relationship. "Volunteers have a faith commitment, so there is a warm relationship that takes place," Nakamura says. "The services are very much appreciated. The heart of our program is really the success of how the volunteers do their services. And Hawaii is so multicultural, there is a great sensitivity of cultural diversity, and that contributes to the success of the program."
"We have 68 volunteers who put in 2,300 hours last year for our transportation program," says Rebecca Gordon, director of the Shepherd's Center of the Northland. The senior transportation program "really meets a need here in the Northland," Gordon says. "In the last five or six years it's taken off." The Shepherd's Center of the Northland has been in operation since 1990 and is part of a national organization, Shepherd's Center of America. Drivers take seniors to doctor's appointments, pharmacies, and banks, and the center also has a grocery van service, all at no charge. "If people who use the service want to make a donation they can," Gordon says, "but our volunteers do it out of the goodness of their hearts. Most are seniors themselves. A lot of our seniors can't afford taxis, and the bus service isn't very good in the Northland." The program also helps seniors stay in their homes longer. "We offer handyman services who do minor home repairs, people to call or visit, personal grocery shoppers, respite care two to four hours a week for caregivers, and we have a grief and loss group," Gordon says. "Our office is an information and resource center where we give callers the phone numbers for the various agencies if Shepherd's Center can't help them." The office uses just four part-time paid staff, with all other functions run by volunteers. Volunteers are drawn from approximately 60 churches as well as word of mouth, and the Center also advertises for drivers in the newspaper. "If we weren't here, a lot of people couldn't have access to health care and continue to be independent. Their families, if they have anyone close, would have to take more time off from work," Gordon says.
"Everything we do is to facilitate getting seniors to centers and getting them out of the house," says Michael Angley, Deputy Commissioner for the Rensselaer County Unified Family Services Department of Aging. "We do grocery shopping and banking, but our goal is to get people to senior centers. They come to the center, enjoy the activities, have a meal, and on the way home we'll stop by a grocery store." Shut-ins receive home-delivered meals and visits, and "we have keys to some peoples' homes because they can't answer the door," Angley says. The service uses a mixed fleet including eight 15-passenger maxi-vans, two 12-passenger vans, three minivans (used for medical trips), and a passenger car. The vehicles were chosen specifically because they are easily accessible for seniors, and one van has been modified to accommodate wheelchairs and walkers. Rensselaer uses professional drivers, many of whom are retired seniors themselves, with an added pool of replacements when the usual drivers can't make it. Money for the program comes from the county, with additional contributions from the state, local governments, and Federal funding from the Older Americans Act of 1965. There is a suggested contribution of $4 per trip for medical visits and 25 cents each way for other rides, but seniors who can't afford the fare travel free. "Those who are the most vulnerable are the priority, because they don't have a choice," Angley says. He stresses that transportation services aren't limited to essential trips; seniors go out for entertainment as well as for necessity. "We get requests to go out at night to different locations. Sometimes they go to the racetrack; they pick a day and we bundle our vans together. A while ago we had four or five vans go to the track and it must have scared the security, because they just opened the gates and let them all in."
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