· 2015 Senior Picnic Schedule Announced
· HEAP Cooling Component Now Available
· Brain Games Orientation Program (5/14)
· Free Adult Computer Classes (6/4)
· May Events at the Fountains
· Relatives as Parents Program Meetings
· No Cost Healthcare for Chronically Ill
Join a Senior Walking Group! Meet Tuesday mornings on the Walkway Over the Hudson or Friday mornings at the Morgan Lake entrance to the Rail Trail. Both groups meet at 9 AM. New members are always welcome!!
Golden Living . . . News for Senior Citizens
Mary Kaye Dolan-Anderson, Director
Dutchess County Office for the Aging
The Office for the Aging Senior Picnic Program will kick off this year on June 3rd. Residents age 60 and over are invited to come out and socialize with their friends and neighbors at the event designated for their hometown, enjoy a nutritious meal, and learn more about the programs and services offered by the Office for the Aging. All picnics begin at 12 noon.
The Senior Picnic Program has been held annually since 1993 and is made possible through private/public partnerships with support from many local municipalities and businesses. Special thanks to Wingate Healthcare, Hudson Cadillac Buick GMC, Prime Health Choice, The Pines at Poughkeepsie, Elant Community Health Services, Zounds Hearing, Hamaspik Choice and the Dutchess County Department of Social Services – Protective Services for Adults which are this year’s platinum sponsors. Additional sponsorships are available for businesses who would like to reach out to the senior community. Volunteers of all ages are needed at each picnic to help with set-up, bringing meals to the handicapped attendees and clean up. Call the Office for the Aging for more information.
Twelve senior picnics are scheduled this year and are open only to the senior citizen residents of the village/town(s) specified and their guests. Space is limited; therefore reservations and proof of residency are required. There is a $4 charge for anyone 59 or younger, or non-resident guests.
The 2015 Senior Picnic Schedule is as follows:
June 3 – Towns of Dover, Pawling, Amenia & Union Vale – Boyce Park, 6423 Route 55, Wingdale
June 10 – Village & Town of Fishkill – Sarah Taylor Park, 17 Old Main Street, Fishkill
June 17 – Towns of North East, Pine Plains, Washington & Stanford – Pine Plains Lions Club Pavilion, 82 Beach Road
June 24 – Rhinebeck & Red Hook & Milan – Tivoli Memorial Park, 1 Katherine Lane
July 8 – Town of Wappinger – Recreation Park, 95 Robinson Lane, Wappinger
July 15 – Towns of Hyde Park & Clinton – Fran Mark Park, 337 Clinton Hollow Road, Clinton Corners (Salt Point)
July 22 – City of Beacon – Memorial Park, 298 Fishkill Ave, Beacon
July 29 – City of Poughkeepsie – Waryas Park, 75 North Water Street, Poughkeepsie
August 5 – Town of Pleasant Valley – Cady Field, 1554 Main Street, Pleasant Valley
August 12 – Town of Poughkeepsie – Bowdoin Park, 85 Sheafe Rd, Poughkeepsie
August 19 – Towns of LaGrange & Beekman – Freedom Park, 212 Skidmore Rd, LaGrange
August 26 – Town of East Fishkill – East Fishkill Recreation Park, 330 Route 376
To make a reservation for the picnic corresponding with your municipality, call the Office for the Aging at (845) 486-2555.
HEAP CAC benefits provided on a first come, first served basis. Clients are encouraged to apply as soon as possible after program opening.
HEAP CAC benefits may provide:
· Air conditioner(only one per dwelling)
· Fan (when an ac cannot be safely installed)
· Minor repairs essential for installation
· Labor
· Materials
In order to be eligible clients must:
· Meet income requirements for HEAP.
· Have at least one household member with a documented medical condition that is exacerbated by extreme heat.
· Not have a working air conditioner less than five years old, as determined by the vendor.
· Not have received a HEAP-funded air conditioner within the past 10 years.
NOTE: household that receive a Heap benefit of $21 or less are not eligible for this component.
Required documentation:
Applicants who received HEAP during the previous HEAP season and /or are in receipt of recurring TA or SNAP benefits need to submit:
· Heap Cooling Assistance Application, LDSS-4992.
· Medical documentation from a physician, physicians assistant, or nurse practitioner for the household member with a medical condition that is exacerbated by extreme heat.
Call the Office for the Aging for more information at 486-2555.
The Office for the Aging’s Brain Games classes are looking for potential new volunteer leaders. With fourteen classes located from Beacon to Red Hook to Stanford, co-leaders are always in demand in just about every corner of the county and many areas would love to have a class, but do not have a volunteer to handle the responsibility. Current leaders, as well as anyone interested in becoming a volunteer Brain Games leader, are welcome to participate in a training session on Thursday, May 14th from 1:30 – 3:30 PM at Pleasant Valley Town Hall, 1554 Main Street (Route 44) in Pleasant Valley. Current leaders are asked to bring some of their favorite games or activities and to demonstrate at least one. To register for the workshop, call the Office for the Aging at (845) 486-2555.
Thanks to a grant from the Mid-Hudson Library System, the Clinton Community Library will offer Free Adult Computer Classes during the month of June. The classes are geared toward older adults who are uncomfortable with computers and would like to increase their comfort level. This beginners’ class will cover computer basics and will take place at the library, located at 1215 Centre Road in the Town of Clinton. Each class will have 2-3 students so everyone will receive personal attention. The same class will be offered on 4 different dates; choose only one: June 3, June 10, June 17 or June 24. Each class will run from 10 a.m. until noon. Register by phoning the library at 845-266-5530. All classes are free.
The public is invited to enjoy the following educational and cultural offerings at The Fountains at Millbrook, 79 Flint Road. The events listed are free and open to the public with advance reservations to 845-905-8000.
Meet the Author. Walter Keady will read from his new book, “Love, Justice and Other Deceptions,” on Monday, May 4th at 2:30 pm in the Allen Lounge of The Fountains at Millbrook. Please RSVP to 845-905-8000.
Music Lecture. Marist Center for Lifetime Learning will present: “The History of Swing Music and Benny Goodman,” on Monday May 11th at 2:30 pm in the Auditorium of The Fountains at Millbrook. Please RSVP to 845-905-8000.
Lecture. Honeybees in the Garden: A Dance with Evolution. Chris Harp and Grai St. Clair Rice of HoneybeeLives will share their insights into the complex world of honeybees on May 14th at 2:00 p.m. at The Fountains at Millbrook. Learn how honeybees and plants have evolved through a seductive relationship that blesses us with many gifts including honey. A honey tasting will close the program. Please RSVP to 845-905-8000.
Personal Transformation Workshop. Professor Ed Wondoloski will present: “Spring Forward to Happiness,” an interactive workshop with a focus on restoring harmony within ourselves, on May 19th at 1:00pm at The Fountains at Millbrook. Please RSVP to 845-905-8000.
Film Screening. Writer and producer Lawrence Richards will screen his film “When Comedy Went to School” on Wednesday, May 20th at 2:00 p.m. at The Fountains at Millbrook. Richards produced the film with Mevlut Akkaya and Ron Frank to answer the question “Why are there so many Jewish comedians?” This film is an entertaining journey inside the “Borscht Belt” of New York’s Catskill Mountains, where young Jewish-American comedians like Jerry Lewis, Sid Caesar, Jackie Mason, Mort Sahl, and Jerry Stiller went to hone their craft. All appear in the film. Refreshments will be served and a Q & A session will follow the film. Please RSVP to 845-905-8000.
Music Performance. Jeff Gonzales and Wanda Houston perform “Big and Bigger,” on May 27th at 2:00 pm in the Auditorium of The Fountains at Millbrook. These two talents have forged a bond seated in a blues that will take you back to a time and place where the pace is slow, the mud is red and the heart longs to beat free. Please RSVP to 845-905-8000.
Family & Consumer Education Program
The Relatives As Parents Program (RAPP) implements monthly Coffee and Conversation support groups for grandparents and other relatives raising children. The Coffee and Conversation support groups are designed to provide education and resources to address the needs and concerns experienced by relative caregivers.
The eastern Dutchess location meets the first Wednesday of every month at the Immaculate Conception Church in Amenia at 5:30 -7:30 pm (a RAPP Youth Group also meets at this time/location), the Poughkeepsie Area location meets the second Thursday of every month at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Poughkeepsie at 6:00 – 7:30 pm (a RAPP Youth Group also meets at this time/location), and the southern Dutchess location meets the third Thursday of every month at St. Mary’s Chapel in Fishkill at 11:00 am – 1:00 pm. No meetings are scheduled in July. For more information about RAPP or the Coffee and Conversation support groups click here or contact (845) 677-8223 ext. 137.
Hudson Valley Community Services is a nonprofit community-based organization that provides no cost care management to individuals who are chronically-ill. Under the Medicaid Health Home program, individuals who are struggling with multiple chronic health conditions are provided a single care manager who helps coordinate medical, behavioral health and government benefits or social services. To be eligible for the program, an individual must have at least two chronic health conditions and Medicare/Medicaid, Medicaid Managed Care or Medicaid. There are more than two hundred chronic health conditions covered such as diabetes, hypertension, Alzheimer’s disease or a mental health illness. The goal of the program is to help individuals achieve their health goals and prevent ER or in hospitalization stays. These services are helpful for individuals who lack support at home, are overwhelmed, or are unable to manage their disease by themselves. HVCS is located at 40 Garden Street, Poughkeepsie and has offices in six other Hudson Valley counties. Please visit: www.hudsonvalleycs.org/healthhome to find out more about these no cost services or call HVCS on (844) 850-0002 or email at: hhcare@hudsonvalleycs.org
