Senior Citizens Council looks for alternative funding

NORWICH – A volunteer senior citizens’ group charged, in part, with funding bus trips and other social activities for the elderly in Chenango County has found itself short on cash.

The Senior Citizen’s Council traditionally received between $12,000 to $15,000 per year from the Chenango County United Way and proceeded to pass it along to groups for the elderly, specifically for fostering socialization. It has not received support from the charity for two years, however.

The Council, formed in 1974, was officially incorporated in 1994 with representatives from the Chenango County Area Agency on Aging and Chenango County Board of Supervisors, among others. It later became the conduit by which the United Way dispersed its dollars to a number of senior citizen’s groups throughout the county.

Ross Iannello, a member and Town of New Berlin Supervisor, said recent methodology changes to the way the United Way currently awards its funds made the application process “more like writing for a grant.”

“We are a bunch of volunteer seniors who come together from throughout the county. The application didn’t work for us,” he said.

Iannello and Area Agency on Aging Director Debra Sanderson were on hand at a meeting of the Health and Human Services Committee Tuesday to explore new funding avenues. Committee Chairperson Jeffrey B. Blanchard asked Sanderson if funds were available within the agency’s budget. Area Agency on Aging’s 2007 budget specifies only $1,500 for recreation, she said.