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Minutes 01-04-10 MINUTES OF THE SENIOR ADVISORY BOARD REGULAR MEETING HELD ON JANUARY 4,2010, AT 3:00 P.M. AT THE SENIOR CENTER, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA Present: Denise Chamberlain, Chair Bernice Begleiter Lillian Bruzzese Betty Spinelli Katharine Cregan, Alternate Jean Young, Alternate Steve Lulkin, City Liaison Absent: Elizabeth Jenkins Rose A. Love I. Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 2:56 p.m. II. Pledge of Allegiance The Board recited the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. III. Roll Call The Recording Secretary called the roll. IV. Approval of Minutes There was one correction to the minutes on page 3. The letter distributed by Wally Majors was a letter from Elder Affairs, and not Mr. Majors. Motion Ms. Bruzzese moved to approve the minutes as amended. Ms. Spinelli seconded the motion that passed unanimously. 1 Meeting Minutes Senior Advisory Board Boynton Beach, January 4, 2010 V. Approval of Agenda Motion Ms. Bruzzese moved to approve the agenda. Ms. Young seconded the motion that passed unanimously. VI. Chairperson's Remarks Chair Chamberlain inquired about Rose Love. This was the third meeting she missed within a year. She reminded members if they missed three meetings, they are removed from the Board. Chair Chamberlain also inquired about Elizabeth Jenkins who missed two meetings. It was known Ms. Jenkins had not been feeling well and it was possible she could lose her membership on the Board due to her absences. .:. Introduce two new alternates New alternate members, Katharine Cregan and Jean Young, were introduced. VII. Old Business .:. "Community for a Lifetime" Committee update When the Board met in December, they identified two projects to work on. One was "A Roadmap for Aging." This project would be held in different areas within the County. One would be held at the Senior Center and two sessions would be held at the Library on May 20th. The second project they undertook was a survey. Chair Chamberlain responded to- date, there was very little response and she would tally the responses in time for the February meeting. The findings would be conveyed to the City Commission. One project the Board would work on was "CarFit." "CarFit" was an educational program designed to help older drivers improve the "fit" of their vehicles for safety and comfort and to give instructions to Seniors on how to adjust mirrors or seat belts, headrests, etc. The activity would be held at the Senior Center in Mayor April. It was also decided that when they have the adult CarFit, they would have a child Carfit as well. .:. Update for High School Response Steve Lulkin, Board Liaison, reported there were three inquiries received in response to their requests for volunteers. One high school student volunteered at the Center for a week. In an effort to obtain more volunteers, Chair Chamberlain would contact the high school again. 2 Meeting Minutes Senior Advisory Board Boynton Beach, January 4, 2010 .:. Update on Flyer to Palm Beach Atlantic University The flyer for volunteer opportunities would be updated and Chair Chamberlain would check with other organizations, as well as Florida Atlantic University, to see if they had volunteer programs. Obtaining volunteers for the Senior Center was problematic because the Center closed at 4:00 p.m. It was thought college-aged students might yield better results than the high-school students. Chair Chamberlain would check with Palm Beach Community College and Christian colleges. It was reported while the Jewish Community Center had programs for volunteers, the participants there volunteered their services to their Center. It was known that Florida Atlantic University has a pharmacy and nursing school. Accordingly, the Board may obtain a better response to their request for volunteers since those students may be interested in working with seniors. .:. Update on Digital Board for Senior Center Mr. Lulkin explained they raised $700 towards their goal of $900 for the purchase of a Digital Board to display the Center's programs in a continuous loop. They raised revenues by selling ads and received donations from several organizations. VIII. New Business .:. Reports from Members on Vial for Life and 211 Chair Chamberlain indicated Ms. O'Connell checked with Humana about the program, but got no response. She also contacted the Humana representative who visits the Center, but received no answer. The Board had previously discussed the possibility of obtaining various services at the Center. A short report on the 211 program was given with the next item. .:. Re-Issue of important numbers to Senior Center newsletter Chair Chamberlain announced there were new telephone numbers to be published in the Senior Center newsletter, but they missed the deadline. Accordingly, the numbers will appear in the April newsletter. It was announced if residents are 80 years of age or older, they could apply for a photo pass and use Palm Tran free of charge. It was noted the program was strictly age based and not income based. That telephone number would be added to the list. It was suggested announcing the program ahead of time and having the needed photos taken at the Center. The members discussed there was a packet of information which was distributed by CVS Pharmacy. The information would be helpful to senior citizens and it was suggested the Board try to obtain additional packets from them. The Pharmacy participated in the Senior Fair and it was hoped they would attend the next fair in March. 3 Meeting Minutes Senior Advisory Board Boynton Beach, January 4, 2010 An update on 211 was given. Ms. Cregan reported she checked with the Sheriff's Office, the Elder Hotline Aging Resource Center and the Boynton Beach Fire Department. Ms. Cregan spoke with Mike Landress, Fire Life Safety Division. It was thought since the paramedics are the first responders, they could provide information regarding what seniors should have readily available in the event of an emergency. The 211 service was a clearinghouse of information on all kinds of issues and services. There was discussion there should be a sheet of information created with important telephone numbers listed. .:. New Problems on Seniors from members Ms. Begleitter discussed a program in California that was designed to help keep senior citizens in their homes. The program had inspectors inspect the homes of senior residents to point out potential hazards. Discussion followed and it was revealed many senior citizens did not give access to individuals into their home. Mr. Lulkin reported the Department of Elder Affairs has a Senior Companion Program. When a volunteer visits the home, they review it and make a list of items that may be removed or added as they present safety hazards or could assist seniors with daily living. Another suggestion was to print flyers on how to do chair and other balance exercises at home. It was noted sending out flyers was expensive. Chair Chamberlain agreed to check with the instructor of the Chair Exercise program at the Center to see if there were any flyers that could be distributed. Chair Chamberlain distributed a newspaper article detailing Federal monies were available to help seniors install or replace air conditioners with new or more energy efficient models, thereby saving them money. The program was income based, but it was noted the income limits were fairly high. Budget billing from the utility company was also suggested. There was discussion on younger people taking advantage of the elderly. It was pointed out that was an issue for Elder Affairs and in those instances 211 should be called. Calls to report abuse could be made anonymously. .:. Senior Center Report - Steve Lulkin Chair Chamberlain thanked Mr. Lulkin for typing the agenda since, in the past, she hand wrote them. Mr. Lulkin reported the October through December registration tally was 614 people. They have an 80% resident rate. They held their Anniversary Party, the Columbus Day Pizza Lunch, Halloween Party, and H:nmonica Trio Show and over 210 people 4 Meeting Minutes Senior Advisory Board Boynton Beach, January 4, 2010 attended. There would be a Valentines Day event at the Center on February 12th, and the Senior Health Fair would be held on March 3, 2010. They would have a Saint Patrick's Day and Mother's Day event as well. The Center was staying busy and there was much occurring. A new "Senior Day" program at the Boynton Beach Mall was announced. Each month there would be a Senior Day with the first "Senior Day" scheduled for January 12, 2010. There would be a three-act variety show, the Harmonica Trio, a dance team and a singer at 1 :00 p.m. In February, there would be a Valentines Day dance and in the spring there would be a Chair Exercise Day, Tai Chi and line dancing. In June, the second health fair will be held. It was noted this activity counted towards the Center's accreditation. IX. Next meeting Date: March 1, 2010 X. Adjournment Motion Ms. Bruzzese moved to adjourn. Ms. Begleiter seconded the motion that unanimously passed. The meeting adjourned at 3:47 p.m. OJWJju/Y~l Qiuv Catherine Cherry ~ Recording Secretary 011610 5