Blount County Community Action Agency, Inc.

BCCAA Board Selects New Executive Director

admin — Wed, 02 May 2012 02:11:44 +0000

David Buchanan was selected as the new Executive Director by the Board of Directors on April 30, 2012. His full-time responsibilities as Executive Director will begin on May 1, 2012. David comes to BCCAA from Carson Newman College. He succeeds part-time Executive Director, Nancy Sentell, who was hired on August 1, 2008. Nancy will be providing orientation and training to David through the month of May. She is resigning to spend time with grandchildren and pursue other part-time interests. Join us in welcoming David Buchanan to BCCAA and the non-profit community!

Adult Day Care Services

admin — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 20:27:57 +0000

Adult Day Services have been identified by the Blount County Senior Action Council as one of the area’s critical and growing needs. You are invited to come learn about options to provide this service locally. Blount County Office on Aging has partnered with U. T. Business School’s MBA program. Students have researched and benchmarked sustainable adult day programs across the nation and will present their findings and recommendations. This will occur on Tuesday, April 24, 2:00-3:00pm at Blount County Public Library Dorothy Herron Room. For more information, call 983-8411 ext. 25.

BCCAA Board Approved New Board Member

admin — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 20:17:39 +0000

The Blount County Community Action Agency Board of Directors voted to approve Margaret “Peggy” Campbell to serve on the Board in the Low Income Sector. This took place at the Board meeting on Friday, April 20, 2012. Peggy was recommended by the Good Neighbors of Blount County Board where she served as a volunteer. She will represent the low income people served by Good Neighbors of Blount County. Ms. Campbell brings experience in the areas of elder services, housing, fundraising, and public speaking to the BCCAA. She is filling the vacancy left by Terry Elmore with Maryville Housing Authority and will be serving the remainder of his term from April 20, 2012 until October 1, 2012. She will then be eligible to serve two consecutive three year terms. Welcome Peggy Campbell to the BCCAA Board!

Comprehensive Medication Review Available

admin — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 17:53:21 +0000

The East Tennessee Area Agency on Aging and Disability and Walgreens are teaming up to provide medication reviews to adults age 60 and over in Blount County. This is an especially valuable resource for older adults, who often use many medications. The Pharmacists at Walgreens will review the list to identify any potential complications that might exist. The Blount County Office on Aging will provide a form on which to list medications and over-the-counter items, and will forward it to Walgreens. Once the review is completed, if any issues are identified that need attention, Walgreens will contact the consumer. Only Walgreens will have access to medication lists, which will be shredded on completion of the review. Please visit the Blount County Office on Aging at 3509 Tuckaleechee Pike, Maryville or contact Joani Shaver at 983-8411 ext. 25 to take advantage of this service.

Scams That Target Seniors

admin — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 17:57:04 +0000

Senior citizens are at a greater risk of being involved in a scam than the rest of the population. Even though scammers target everyone, 85% of scams target seniors. Whether it be a home repair scam, an email from a “friend” in trouble asking for help, work at home scheme, or the businessman from Nigeria asking you to transfer money into your account, they are familiar scams. Kim Spencer, Certified Financial Planner, for Patriot Investment Management & Volunteer with BCSO Neighbors Helping Neighbors Program, will provide two presentations at the Blount County Public Library, one on Wednesday, March 21st at 11 a.m. and one on Thursday evening, March 22nd at 7 p.m. She will discuss the various types of fraud for which seniors need to be alert and give tips on being prepared to deal with these people. There will be several handouts from the Federal Trade Commission that attendees will be able to take home with them to give more information. The presentations are free and open to the public at Blount County Public Library (Sharon Lawson Room), located at 508 N. Cusick Street, Maryville. This is co-sponsored by the Blount County Public Library and the Blount County Office on Aging.

Commodity Food Distribution

admin — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 17:52:52 +0000

On March 22nd from 9am-12noon, BCCAA will be distributing free commodity food to low-income residents of Blount County. The items to be distributed will include: green beans, northern beans, beef stew, orange juice, peaches, tomato sauce, pinto beans, and spaghetti pasta. Bring a picture ID (to prove Blount County residency), EBT card or proof of income for all adult household members. Food is given out on a first come first served basis.

PUBLIC HEARING SET FOR BCCAA BOARD VACANCY

admin — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 21:38:23 +0000

Blount County Community Action Agency has scheduled a public hearing on Tuesday, April 3^rd, at 7:00pm at the Blount County Public Library in Dorothy Herron Room A to fill a Board vacancy for a low-income representative. The BCCAA Board includes representatives of three groups: elected public officials or their representatives, private community organizations, and low-income individuals or their representatives. According to the By-Laws at least 1/3 of their 15 member Board will be from each group. There is currently a vacancy in the Low Income Group and these must be democratically elected by Blount County to represent the low income population. The person elected need not necessarily be low-income, but must be chosen in a manner to insure that they truly represent the low-income.

The BCCAA Board functions to administer the anti-poverty and human development programs of federal and state governments; seek to identify and eliminate causes of poverty within Blount County; and encourage the community to be more responsive to the needs and interests of the low-income. Meetings are held bi-monthly at 8:30am on the third Friday of the month and are announced in The Daily Times.

Everyone is invited to the public hearing to hear information about BCCAA from the Executive Director, Program Coordinators, and Board members followed by the election to the BCCAA Board. For more information, contact Nancy Sentell at 983-8411 or by email at nsentell@blountcaa.org.

Senior Service Directory on Website

admin — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 14:18:29 +0000

The new edition of the Blount County Senior Service Directory is available on the Blount County Community Action Agency website along with the links to organizations found in the directory. These links are listed on the Home Page and also on the Office on Aging page (under the Programs/Services tab). The directory is as close as your computer!

Click here for the Senior Service Directory 2012

Click here to view the Senior Service Directory 2012 Websites

New Senior Service Directory

admin — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 14:47:14 +0000

On Thursday, March 8, at 11:00a.m. the seventh edition of the Blount County Senior Service Directory, a reference book of services and programs targeting the 60+ age group, will be released by the Office on Aging. There will be an event at the Everett Senior Center, 702 Burchfield Street in Maryville for the release and the public is invited. The directory is aponsored by local businesses and organizations and made available free of charge.

Office on Aging Coordinator, Joani Shaver, recommends that seniors and their caregivers pick up a copy and use it as a resource to identify local programs. Free copies are available at the Blount County Public Library, Everett Senior Center, Blount Memorial Hospital, Blount County Chamber of Commerce, Blount County Community Action Agency, and all directory sponsors.

The Blount County Senior Service Directory is published every three years with the support of the East Tennessee Area Agency on Aging and Disability and Blount County Community Action Agency. The previous edition was released in 2008. For more information call Joani Shaver at (865) 983-8411 extension 25.

Harlem Ambassadors Appreciate Support

admin — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 17:32:58 +0000

The Daily Times posted a letter to the Editor in the February 17, 2012 edition from Dale Moss, Harlem Ambassadors President. It expressed a special thank you to event organizers from Blount County Community Action Agency and to the Mobile Meals Dribblers who were an energetic and enthusiastic challenging team. To read the letter, click here.