Message from JABA CEO, Marta Keane: Vulnerable Older Adults Need Your Help

JABA CEO Marta Keane

As I look around, we are all going a bit stir crazy right now. Weeks of lockdown have given hospitals, healthcare providers and public health officials the time to flatten the curve to be better able to cope with the pandemic. The Governor’s next phases will continue to reopen our local economy and allow for more freedom of movement. Who isn’t looking forward to safely spending more time out of the house and in the company of others?

It is important to recognize that many of our elders have good reasons to be fearful about leaving their homes. Older adults are at high risk of life-threatening complications due to COVID-19 and the threat is very real. As of my writing this letter to you today, 95% of all coronavirus-related deaths in Central Virginia were individuals age 60+. The most vulnerable group of all – those age 80 and older – currently account for 74% of all COVID-19 deaths in our region.

Many of our older neighbors are struggling to get through the day during this pandemic as they face issues with income, hunger, housing and isolation – a serious risk for older adults, with physical and mental health consequences. As much as they crave conversation and real connection, they know that venturing out into the community could be life-threatening.

JABA’s staff is working hard to mitigate the effects of loneliness and isolation, especially for those of advanced age who are often members of our Community Senior Centers. In the heartfelt words of Danny, one of our Center managers:

Every time I am on the conference calls with our members, it warms my heart hearing their voices and interactions with each other. They have really become a family and have let me in. The way they speak with each other is completely pure and free of any judgment and is an inspiration to me. We had a little heart-to-heart on our latest call and talked about the fears and uncertainty we are facing right now and the things that we are grateful for. I love these people!

JABA is working hard to reach out to vulnerable, isolated elders in our community in many different ways. Can you make a gift – right now – to join in this work?

During the COVID-19 crisis, JABA has increased outreach through social and traditional media to make it clear to the community that we are still providing vital services, such as home delivered meals, information/referrals, counseling services and check-in calls. We are also working hard to obtain sufficient personal protective equipment (PPE) to keep our members, volunteers and staff safe as we look toward re-opening our Community Senior Centers. Staff members are thinking creatively about how group activities can be arranged so that members feel connected while maintaining physical distancing.

Every JABA program is currently being redesigned to safely provide services that maintain the health, dignity and independence of the seniors we – and you – value so much. Won’t you help us assist vulnerable older adults during this difficult time?

I urge you to make a donation today. It has never been easier to do. Go to JABA's website to donate securely online. Your generous gift will help our elders maintain their very human need for deep connections during this time of being isolated.

Please accept our warmest thanks for whatever you can do. We wish you good health.

With gratitude,

Marta M. Keane
Chief Executive Officer

JABA VCU Grad Students Apply Knowledge During COVID-19

Kaleb Campbell and Emily Foreman

By Marta M. Keane, Chief Executive Officer JABA (Jefferson Area Board for Aging) 

JABA has two staff members who have been working on their masters in Gerontology at VCU. Emily Foreman is the Manager of the Senior Nutrition Program, which encompasses the Community Senior Centers for congregate meals and socialization, and the Home-Delivered Meals program. Kaleb Campbell is an Options Counselor for Charlottesville and Nelson County.  

When the first positive case of COVID-19 was identified in our region, the way in which JABA provides services and supports to seniors changed immediately.

Emily has been facilitating a task force on Community Centers of the Future, so that gave her a platform for applying agility and creativity to how to handle shutting down the physical locations and yet staying connected with the seniors during a time of increased isolation for them. It has been inspiring to see how the centers had a plan in place within the first week.  All members are called once to twice a week by a staff member, sometimes the center manager or the activities assistant or the nurse or the options counselor.  

The members were also offered home-delivered meals since they would not be getting a congregate meal, and more than half applied. And the fun part is that staff are conducting conference call bingo, trivia and health talks. They have also sent out activity kits and newsletters monthly. These are well-received and they like they are connecting with each other. Staff and volunteers are also putting programming on Facebook Live-Healthy Steps, cooking classes, musical numbers, jokes, poems. The list goes on!

Kaleb has been fielding new requests from seniors in the community to help them identify the resources they need to stay in isolation and stay safe. He has worked with the community center manager in Nelson on the Senior Food Bag program, through the local food bank. And his creativity was on display as he was the first Options Counselor to create a video to post on Facebook to introduce himself to the new (to him) community of Nelson and explain what an Options Counselor does.  

Earlier this year, Kaleb was trained to present the evidence-informed workbook, "Dealing with Dementia: Caregiver's Guide," to groups. He has adapted this review of the workbook to be presented virtually so that as more caregivers need more support this is a wonderful way to provide it.

These two students are a great example of the VCU Gerontology program and the services that JABA can provide in our region.

Charlottesville Area Community Partnerships Expand Reach to Seniors During COVID-19 Response

(CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.—April 15, 2020)—The Blue Ridge Area Food Bank and the Jefferson Area Board for the Aging (JABA) have enhanced their longtime partnership to continue nourishing the lives of JABA’s seniors, despite the temporary closure of JABA.

JABA began partnering with the Food Bank nearly three years ago to distribute Senior Food Boxes or Reach food bags to eligible seniors in need. JABA senior centers in Greene, Esmont, Charlottesville, Nelson, and Scottsville serve as distribution sites.

“When JABA closed its centers in response to Virginia’s COVID-19 stay-at-home order, Emily Foreman and I started brainstorming alternatives,” says Melissa Wender, partner services coordinator at the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank.

Emily Foreman manages senior nutrition programs at JABA. Other JABA managers also weighed in on possible ways to creatively meet food assistance needs while following protocols to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

“We are grateful for the partnership with the Food Bank. During this unprecedented event, so many of those we serve are now more isolated and without access to proper nutritional supports and resources,” says Emily. “Once we got an idea of how these programs would move forward in this crisis, the Food Bank was right there ready to move forward alongside us.”

“We came up with different plans for each site,” Melissa adds.

In Nelson County: Transportation assistance donated by JAUNT helps the senior center with deliveries. They meet at the Food Bank’s Mobile Food Pantry distribution in Arrington and load food boxes and food bags assembled for homebound seniors. A Jaunt driver then makes deliveries to identified areas of the county.

In Esmont: A similar plan involving JAUNT is under way to get food boxes to the homes of seniors in need.

In Scottsville: Seniors are picking up their boxes from, or sending a proxy to, the Food Bank’s Mobile Food Pantry in Scottsville. They drive through, pop their trunk, and leave with a food box.

In Charlottesville and Greene County: JABA managers are delivering food boxes themselves.

“These food delivery alternatives and enhancements represent a coming together of dedicated community partners and friends to solve problems and exercise flexibility,” Melissa adds.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Abena Foreman-Trice
Media & Community Relations Manager

Blue Ridge Area Food Bank

540.213.8405

aforemantrice@brafb.org

About the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank:

Founded in 1981, the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank is the largest organization alleviating hunger in western and central Virginia. Headquartered in Verona, VA, the Food Bank serves 25 counties and eight cities through distribution centers in Charlottesville, Lynchburg, Winchester, and Verona. The Blue Ridge Area Food Bank distributes nearly 26.4 million pounds of food annually to 103,500 people each month through a network of 205 community partners – food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, schools, churches, and other non-profit groups – and 175 program sites serving children, seniors, and families. The Food Bank is a member of Feeding America, a national food bank association that supports 200 food banks across the United States. For more information, visit www.brafb.org.                                                                           

Charlottesville Area Gets Creative in Trying to Stay Connected to Seniors

Daily Progress - Marta Keane, CEO of the Jefferson Area Board for Aging, said about 20% of the region’s population is over the age of 60 and more than 25% of those residents live alone.

“Although we’ve now learned every group is vulnerable, they’re the group that’s more vulnerable in terms of a more severe case [of COVID-19],” she said.

On March 16, JABA closed its office to in-person visitors and temporarily suspended operations at its Community Senior Centers. On March 19, it closed its Charlottesville adult care center.

“One of the risky factors for seniors is isolation,” Keane said. “It can cause physical as well as emotional issues with depression. So we were trying to balance keeping the centers open as long as it was safe, because we don’t want to be a nexus of transmission, but recognizing that isolating them too soon was not safe either.”

JABA is still offering its services, such as its Medicare and Affordable Care Act insurance counseling, over the phone to community members and has assisted community center members with getting shelf-stable meals.

“We’re doing keeping-in-touch calls with them, and we’ve put together packets of things that they can do at home that we’ve mailed out,” Keane said.

Thursday afternoon, Carleigh Showalter, manager of JABA’s Mary Williams Community Senior Center, led a game of bingo over a conference call line for center members.

“We’re trying to find creative ways to keep connecting with folks and have them feel connected, because I think connectedness is going to be the piece that even introverts are going to miss,” Showalter said.

Read more…

JABA Adapting to Coronavirus

The Central Virginian - Among the many places that have closed their doors as the coronavirus spreads is the Betty J. Queen Intergenerational Center on Industrial Drive. That means organizations that normally offer services there cannot do so for the foreseeable future. 

One such organization is the Jefferson Area Board for Aging (JABA), which operates an adult care center and other programs for senior citizens at the Betty Queen Center and has an office in the building. 

“Some of our clients are at the same risk as those living in nursing homes,” said Ginger Dillard, the agency’s director of community services. “We’re trying to monitor the situation as best we can. I’m not sure we’ll get ahead of it, but we’re trying to keep up with the changes.”

Even though their doors are closed, the organization is still providing services for the county’s elderly citizens. 

Home meals are being delivered to citizens who already receive them, and people who normally come to the Betty Queen Center for meals will have them delivered to their homes as soon as it can be safely arranged.

Counseling services will be available over the phone to those who need them. Everything from general information to Medicare and insurance counseling and long-term care ombudsman services will still be available.

In order to keep people entertained while they’re at home, JABA has put together activity kits, which include coloring pages, word search and Sudoku puzzles and other activities to fill the day. Members are also being encouraged to stay in touch with their friends from the Betty Queen Center over the phone or by writing them letters.

Members of the community who would like to write letters to seniors are encouraged to reach out to JABA about how they can do so.

“This is becoming a situation where it takes a village,” Dillard said. “We’re looking for ways to keep the community engaged if this continues long term.”

Message from JABA CEO, Marta Keane: Help Us Help the Most Vulnerable

JABA CEO, Marta Keane

I know you care about seniors and adults with disabilities and JABA’s mission to support their safety and independence. The pandemic that is gaining traction in our community offers a particular threat to elders, who are more vulnerable than any other age group to complications associated with COVID-19. JABA remains actively engaged in protecting our area’s most vulnerable population, but we need your help. I am asking you – or your company or organization – to make a donation today.

To prevent the transmission of COVID-19, JABA’s community centers for independent seniors, adult care centers for those with dementia and other disabilities, and child care center have been closed. While our physical facilities are closed, JABA’s work continues remotely:

• Staff are providing activity kits and keep-in-touch calls, as well as some creative ways to do projects together for our center members.

• Our resource counseling team is fielding calls and helping families with questions about food for elderly loved ones, home care, transportation — the list is endless.

• Insurance counselors continue to provide expert advice to callers enrolling in Medicare and furloughed workers needing insurance through the Affordable Care Act.

• The Ombudsman staff is working to address concerns for elders living in long term care facilities.

JABA is working hard to protect older adults and help our community navigate through this crisis at a time when revenues are unstable and our fee-for-service income has diminished due to closings. And we have made the commitment to care for the staff who care for our seniors — by keeping them on payroll with benefits. We want to be ready to welcome our members and clients back when it is safe, and the familiar caring faces will make each one feel so happy to be back. Your support will help us weather the challenges associated with this pandemic and manage additional, unknown needs.

Please consider making an online donation – it’s secure and you don’t have to go to the post office. Think also about making small recurring gifts that don’t break your budget. These gifts help us plan how much money comes in every month. You can change or discontinue your monthly donation at any time. Any gift will make a difference. 

If you have already donated to JABA in the midst of this crisis — I am truly grateful. Thank you for your support, whenever you can give it. Please stay safe and continue to look out for your loved ones. And, remember that our staff is here, ready to assist if needed.

Marta M. Keane
Chief Executive Officer