HomeMy WebLinkAboutWUSSB Minutes12-13-2012West University Senior Services Board Meeting December 13 , 2012 Present: Stan McCandless (chair), Joan Johnson, Michelle Moore, Toby Brooks, Virginia Lootens, Dick Yehle, Joe Mitchell, George Baker A quorum was not met. Note: The meeting was held at t he Bayou Manor Assisted Living facility 4141 South Braeswood. Activities (Toby Brooks): There was a trip to Navasota where an old home was toured with 24 in attendance. Christmas lunch had 70 attend this year and was very well received. Will begin work ing on an Advertising exchange with Bayou Manor on senior activities to possible offer more trips. Brightstar has sponsored a presentation on January 27 on Dementia Caregiving. Volunteer appreciation luncheon on November 28 was well attended with 66 part icipants. The "Hi Neighbor" newsletter for the first quarter has been mailed. West U Elementary mothers initiated a community service project and coordinated with West U Senior Services to provide gifts and visits from st udents with family members for 40 o f our seniors. The project was well received and might be something we will do in the future. There was some concern about providing senior personal information and liability issues that need to be discussed further. APAC (Virginia Lootens) The Decembe r 6, 2012, meeting of APAC was opened by Chair, Mari Okabayashi. Guests were introduced. As it was a Holiday meeting, the speaker was presented and following, the minutes of the November meeting were approved. Agenda for the December meeting was approv ed as well as the nominees for officers. A presentation "Transportation for Seniors" was done by Robert Anders, Harris County RIDES supervisor, Kari Hackett, representative of H -GAC and Sherry Wright, representative of Neighborhood Centers and Project Mana ger for TRIP. Mr. Anders reported that RIDES provides approximately 6 to 7,000 rides a month to citizens of greater Harris County. Persons served are those over age 60, who are disable or low income. Individuals may apply for service by telephone or w ritten application. Either a shared ride or a ride by taxi is provided at a discounted rate. Persons needing the service must be without a vehicle. Cost for the service varies: $6 for from 0 to 6 miles. Taxi service contract provides same day service w ith pickup within 90 minutes of the call. Mr. Hackett provided a CD outlining all of the benefits of Regional Transit Service, which encompasses 13 counties. This Gulf Coast Regional Transportation program provides information packets for each of the co unties served. The information packets contain hours of operation, various costs, types of passengers accepted, etc. This transportation program includes future planning for evacuations from storms and flood. Ms Wright, from Sheltering Arms, explained t he new TRIP program as one dedicated to connecting seniors with transportation services. It is for 60 p lus persons in Greater Houston, that are disabled and need assistance with transportation. Each applicant is referred to a counselor, who does a trans portation plan for the client in whatever scenario they present. TRIP volunteers are needed. There is a voucher program available, which requires the approval of the TRIP committee. The maximum mileage allowance for any participant is 200 miles per mo nth. Applicants should call 713 -685 -6577. There is no means testing for this program. Announcements : Chris Kerr announced that The Montrose Center is opening a GLBT congregate meal center, MWF 9 -1; On 1/31/13 there will be an information collecting m e eting for the February HIV and t he Miss Pasadena Senior Beauty Pageant will be held Jan. 30, 2013 in Pasadena. There will be 61 tax help centers open in Harris County for seniors needing assistance with their tax returns. Must show SS card and a 2011 t ax return to qualify. Call 281 -487 -2158. AARP will have some centers open as well. Council (Joan Johnson and Dick Yehle): At our December 3, 2012, City Council performed a performance appraisal for both the City Manager and City Secretary. Also, appr oved a 2% merit increase on their anniversary date, plus the 1% automatic increase for all employees on January 1, 2012. Also approved that the City Manager could receive payment for three weeks of vacation per his contract with the City. Also voted on th e approval of the updated WUP Employee Manual. At our December 10, 2012 Meeting, City Council took action to approve one polling place (City Hall) instead of four for City Elections. City Secretary will now submit this request to the Department of Justice for approval. In 2011, there were only 1,874 (4.69%) voters of the 10,279 WUP Registered Voters. Approved Christina Milligan to a position on the Friends of West University Parks Fund.
Good Neighbor Team (Michelle Moore): The GNT delivered 151 poinsetti as. Stan proposed that the Rotary Club provide seniors a presentation about estate planning. There was a discussion about whether there was interest , and it was decided to enclose a card requesting feedback in the Spring gift bag. Previous Business: Becky Arnold will be sworn in at the January 10 meeting. New Business: Announcements: Toby Brooks was one of the West U employees to receive distinguished award. The meeting was adjourned and the members received a tour of the Bayou Manor facility as w ell as a presentation of the new tower they are building next door. The meeting was adjourned at 2:50PM and was followed by a presentation on improvements to the West University Senior Services Web Page www.wes tutx.gov/seniors