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I am asking the community’s support for upcoming fundraisers our center is sponsoring. We are having a Chili Cook Off and Dessert Auction on April 26 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the center.
We are also having a Mower Raffle that ends May 12. For the Chili Cook Off, you can enter your prize winning recipe or come taste everyone else’s entry. Donations of dessert items are needed for the Dessert Silent Auction. Gallatin Truck & Tractor supplied a riding mower and Terry Implement provided a walk-behind mower and trimmer for our Spring Lawn Care Raffle. The tickets are available at the center for $5 each or six for $25. All the proceeds from the fundraisers will go toward expenses for our nutrition program (home delivered meals and congregate meals).
This is a good time to clear up some confusion on how our center is funded. We basically have two programs that run out of one business – our nutrition program and the Aging Resource Center (ARC). The ARC is funded from a grant. Anyone that works with grants knows that every penny of grant money you spend has to be accounted for to the grant provider. The ARC grant money is used to provide information and referral services to seniors and their families. It CANNOT be used to pay expenses for our nutrition program.
Our nutrition program has a budget of $143,000. We receive about 44% or $63,000 from federal and state funding. We receive about 25% or $35,500 from contributions clients make toward their meals. We receive 6% or $9,200 from other sources such as interest, meals charged to guests under 60, and volunteer time. We have to make the remaining 25% or $35,300 from donations, memorials, and fundraisers. So far this fiscal year (which began July 1, 2007), we have received $1,590 in memorial donations, $1,400 in Sponsor A Senior donations, $3,080 in other donations, and $18,073 from the Daviess County Senior Services Fund Board (Senior Tax). That leaves about $11,000 that we must come up with to pay bills.
The costs of food, gas, utilities, insurance, basically the cost of everything just keeps going up and up. Unfortunately, our funding from federal and state sources has not proportionately kept up with rising costs.
I really encourage everyone to support our center. As Baby Boomers age, there will be more and more people that will require our service. Who knows, someday it may be you or your family that needs us.
Thank you.
Deanna Lewis
Administrator
Active Aging Resource Center