Berkshire Senior Online

The Board of Directors of Elder Services approved eight grants to Berkshire agencies to provide a wide range of services that enhance life for older Americans. These grants provide services throughout the county in the areas of disease prevention and health promotion, legal assistance, chore services, and support for family caregivers. These grants are funded by the Federal Older Americans Act and administered through the State Administration on Aging - the Executive Office of Elder Affairs, which contracts with Elder Services of Berkshire County.

Providing assistance to elders with difficult but necessary household chores, such as cleaning ovens or washing windows, is again available through a grant of $5,000 to Mental Health and Substance Abuse of the Berkshires for Chore Services. This program is available to Berkshire elders who contact Elder Services’ Information and Referral Department, on a need basis.

The Berkshire Visiting Nurse Association received a grant of $ 7,000 for Fasting Diabetes Screenings, which will provide a fasting blood glucose measure, diabetes and nutritional counseling and referral and primary care follow-up to be held at 30 locations in Central and Southern Berkshire County. Following the test a light breakfast will be served. These early morning clinics will be held at senior housing sites and Councils on Aging and are part of an outreach effort to decrease the spread of diabetes and improve the health of older adults.

Elder Services will continue to provide funding to Western Mass Legal Services for the Elder Law program. This service provides advice, representation and other direct legal service to elders on matters involving government benefits, housing, healthcare, institutionalized persons, protective services, long term care, age discrimination, income and utilities. A grant to Gabriel Elston-Ferry for $1,200 for in-home health risk assessments and consultation about Alzheimer’s disease will be continued this year. This grant will serve residents in Central and Southern Berkshire County.

Providing support for caregivers, Elder Services is pleased that four projects have been funded. A grant of $6,800 was awarded to the Lenox Council on Aging for a new In-Home Respite Program for caregivers in Lenox, Lee, Stockbridge and Richmond. The project will provide a weekly visit to a homebound elder by a trained volunteer so that the family caregiver can have a few hours away from the pressures of caregiving.

Another grant that provides respite for family caregivers was awarded to Mental Health and Substance Abuse of the Berkshires for their Adult Day Health programs in Pittsfield and North Adams. A grant of $2,500 will be used to offer 65 people a free day of Adult Day Health Care to try the program, which provides a full day of service including lunch for the elder and a day off for the family caregiver. An additional free day will be matched by the agency if people request a second visit.

The REACH Community Health Foundation of Northern Berkshire Health System received a grant of $8,000 to provide partial funding for a patient and caregiver lending library, which will be located at the North Adams Regional Hospital. The lending library will include an annotated reading list, audio and video materials and offer information to visitors and telephone inquiries.

A renewal grant of $16,500 was awarded to Parker O’Brien and Associates of Williamstown to provide In-Home Memory Assessment and Education and In-Home Caregiver Training and Support. This in-home service is available to residents of Adams, Clarksburg, Florida, Hancock, Pittsfield, New Ashford, North Adams, and Williamstown. For more information about these grants, contact Jeanne Siegel, Planner at Elder Services at 413- 499-0524 or 1-800- 544-5242.