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Council on Aging teaching seniors new 'tricks'

Albany Herald - 9/12/2021

Sep. 12—ALBANY — It's been said, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks." However, the SOWEGA Council on Aging is changing that for more than 60,000 seniors and people with disabilities in a 14-county area in southwest Georgia.

Izzie Sadler, executive director of the council, said, "Our agency was founded in 1966, so we have been in the community and region for a long time. Our mission is to coordinate services for seniors over the age of 60, their caregivers and individuals with disabilities. That mission has never changed. That was the mission we had from Day 1. But the company has evolved. What we do hasn't changed. But how we do it is constantly evolving. I think that's more true now than ever."

Over the past four years, SCOA has worked to create partnerships, ramp up volunteer programs and get greater community involvement. They have added a representative from each county to their advisory council. As the designated Area Agency on Aging, they are also responsible for not only identifying gaps in service but duplication of service as well.

"This allows us to better utilize our resources and meet the needs of the people in the communities where they live," Sadler said. "When it comes to the delivery of services, in the past our agency was very hands-on. We started as a small agency with an $8,000 budget in 1966 delivering meals to seniors. So we were very hands-on. It has evolved obviously since then.

"In the beginning we would hire people to cook and deliver the meals. To go in and clean their homes. We are no longer doing the services directly ourselves. We found it is more effective to work with partners in our region that are already doing those services and contract with them to provide the services for our clients. Since switching to that indirect service model, we have been able to increase the number of people we are serving because it is more efficient and cost effective."

However, COVID would cause SCOA to think even farther outside the box.

"Post-COVID, most companies and nonprofits alike are having to change the way they operate to be relevant in this world we now have." Sadler explained. "One of the biggest changes is in our senior center programs."

Prior to the pandemic, SCOA rented a building in each county except Dougherty, where they own a facility. Staff were hired to cook and deliver meals with the help of volunteers.

"The nature of the virus does not allow seniors to congregate in a close setting," Sadler said. "Not only in our region but across the state and nation, people who were attending senior centers were now having to stay at home and have meals delivered to their home to keep them safe.

"However, as time goes by while we are keeping them physically safe, it's not always the safest thing for them mentally and emotionally. A lot of issues with social isolation, depression, and that sort of thing set in quickly with the senior population when they are isolated. That was the purpose of the senior center or the congregate meal program. It's to get meals to seniors that are nutritious and engage them in social activity. So, we got creative and contracted with area restaurants throughout the region. We're talking about April 2020 when our economy was not looking so good. Restaurants were trying to be creative as well."

SCOA partnered with a restaurant in each county to prepare meals for the seniors in the program. There are now 20 restaurants in the program and, interestingly, the number of participants in the program has more than tripled from 500 served in the senior centers to more than 1,500 now receiving meals and 550 more on a waiting list.

Sadler explained that for a brick-and-mortar senior center to be justifiable, at least 20 people needed to participate in the program. In more than five counties, this was a struggle. As an example, the Cairo center had less than 20 participants, and now 294 are enrolled in the program there.

"That's when we noticed we hit on something really needed and something people really liked," Sadler said. "So the Senior Center Without Walls model that we are using is providing the same service. But it's out in the community. We serve meals in the community; we do activities in the community, both virtual and distanced activities for that group. It is an evolving story getting a lot of attention in the state and nation. We were awarded, the AAA Excellence in Innovation Award. This is something we see as our future moving forward."

At the same time SCOA was facing these new challenges, officials there were also working to rebrand the agency. The new brand icon comprises three separate elements coming together to create two hearts symbolizing the partnership between SCOA and service providers that offer resources to meet the physical, mental, and spiritual needs of aging seniors. In addition, the image evokes a sense of community, caring, professionalism, and knowledge for which the agency has become known.

"What we do hasn't changed, but how we do it is constantly evolving," Sadler said. "That's our responsibility to constantly evolve to not only meet the needs today but thinking forward to the needs 10 years from today."

Another area of change is in the field of technology. SCOA is now utilizing virtual and distanced learning to continue the classes that previously were conducted in person at each center.

"A lot of seniors are having to learn new skills to use technology to stay connected because of COVID," Sadler said. "We have been coming up with innovative ways to connect them through technology and guide them on how to do that. Most of them are taking to it well and loving it, once they learn. We want them to be independent and empowered, and that sometimes means growing, learning and doing things that might be uncomfortable at first. But it has a reward at the end."

SCOA has implemented a pilot program providing 25 seniors with tablets.

"Since some people don't have devices or internet, we are doing a pilot with tablets," Sadler said. "These 'Clara's Companion' tablets are designed with seniors in mind. We can program them on the backside for a variety of uses. These range from facetime calls, Zoom meetings, games, connecting with SCOA wellness managers and potentially even link into tele-medicine providers."

The tablets are not cheap, and when the data program is included the run about $1,000 per tablet. SCOA is collecting data on the project hoping to seek grants to expand the program. Sadler also pointed out that today's 50-year-olds will be eligible for SCOA services in a decade and the issue of technological skills will not be a hurdle.

When it comes to financing programs and services, SCOA, like most nonprofits, is dependent on fundraising efforts and donations. Another impact of COVID on the agency was the forced cancellation of this years Comedy Night, the agency's annual fundraiser. Anyone interested in making a donation can contact the SCOA office at 1-800-282-6612 or visit https://sowegacoa.org/donate/

Anyone interested in the information and services provided by SCOA can contact the ADRC at 1-800-282-6612 — the starting place for clients and caregivers to call. The agency's website is www.sowegacoa.org. However, you might want to be prepared to learn a new trick or two.

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