The Commission on Aging (COA) began discussions on whether or not they should purchase a new terminal out of concerns for proper attendance and safety for the senior center at their Monday, April 15 hybrid meeting.

Director of Human Services Natalie Griffith opened new business discussions by addressing the challenges of only having one My Senior Center terminal at the senior center. Members use the terminal’s card reader to sign into the senior center when attending a class or event, while staff use it to keep track of who is coming in and out of the building.

The terminal also records additional information members provided on their application form, such as emergency contacts and allergies.

Griffith detailed how the senior center has been experiencing difficulties with too many members coming in at once for the same activity or event and crowding around the terminal.

“Then folks don’t want to stand there to wait and sign in, so they just kind of bypass it,” Griffith said. “We can get 25 people coming in for a class and then a whole other handful coming in for a speaker. It’s challenging to stand there and try to stop everybody and get them to line up.”

The idea of adding another terminal initially came up in March, when Griffith talked to the commission on ways to make her reporting more effective, since they know the numbers in the programs are not always accurate because of “that challenge of getting people to sign in.”

She went on to say that, much like the community center, attendance for classes and events at the senior center is not taken by the instructors. Griffith explained that instructors say taking attendance takes too much time out of their programs. As such, attendance for classes and events are exclusively taken by the terminal.

Commissioner Barbara Bloom brought up that members bypassing the terminal altogether creates potential safety issues.

“If somebody doesn’t sign in, you don’t know if they’re in the building,” Bloom said. “And if there’s an emergency, then you at least have their emergency information, like their contact info, allergy info, and medical info.”

Griffith also agreed with Commissioner Claire Theune on the importance of knowing who is in the senior center at all times and having accurate information.

A second terminal would cost $4,800 according to My Senior Center. Griffith said that this would be “pricey” and that it was not something that was included in her budget for the coming year. There would also be an annual $300 fee for maintenance of the additional kiosk.

“So I thought I would put it out there to see if a second kiosk is something that the COA could assist with or felt was necessary,” Griffith said.

Commissioner Pat Bailey said that she believed “we really don’t need a second way to sign in, we just need a better way of signing in.”

“I think we have to be firm with the community though in some respects,” Bailey added. “We want them to sign in for their own protection.”

Agreeing with Bailey, Commissioner Michael Stern added that it was important to ask people to arrive to classes and events earlier.

Frampton felt before anything else that the COA should consider how the terminal would be utilized and whether they could get seniors to actually check in and not just skip it.

After further discussion, Griffith offered to circle back with senior center staff and “see what other kinds of options might be available, either through the app or something less expensive.”

Rothstein then suggested tabling the topic for today and putting it under old business to return during the next meeting. Griffith added that, as they are researching additional options, senior center staff could put some verbiage out there that encourages people to wait and sign in.

Commissioner Jack Kitterman also suggested they could also have instructors encourage people to arrive and check in earlier.

Director’s Report

Griffith opened her report by saying that she primarily focused on the grant submission to Western Connecticut Area Agency on Aging. She gave a “huge thank you” to Rothstein and also FONS President John Boccuzzi Sr who helped proof and add content to pieces of the grant.

“I think we ended with a very strong application to Western Connecticut,” Griffith said.

Griffith continued, saying a couple hundred thousand dollars is available in the region for transportation services through ARPA dollars directed to the Area Agency on Aging. She and the others looked at how they might use some funds to address the transportation challenges for seniors and disabled residents, and enhance what they already have by making things more effective and efficient.

According to Griffith, they went in with an ask of $85,000. With that, they look to add some additional rides to Newtown. The majority of rides they help people access are through the SweetHART Dial-a-Ride service. However, she said that there are some limitations around time and destination with the service.

“We’ve also been in communication with HART and have heard more about the strain on their system right now,” Griffith said. “So we need to kind of alleviate some of that so it’s still an effective resource for folks.”

She added that they would like to bring in a part-time transportation coordinator that would help figure out what the best options are to get people where they need to go, help residents know what is available to them, and dispatch rides through the town if they were to get those funds.

Griffith said that they are in their “fingers crossed period” and will keep everyone posted about those plans. She then transitioned into talking about how the Newtown-based group Friends In Service Here (FISH), a volunteer-to-ride service for medical appointments, went on hiatus after COVID hit and decided to not come back to resume service. With the loss of FISH, Griffith said that they “also lost a piece of our transportation puzzle.”

This made Griffith very excited to announce that FONS had formally launched its Newtown Rides Program. She said that FONS Chore Service Coordinator Beverly Bennett-Schaedler put out the word for drivers and that several volunteer drivers have already stepped forward wanting to provide rides.

These rides would happen on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 am to noon and/or from noon to 2 pm as they pilot the program, with the hope to extend into more days over time.

Griffith finished her report by showing some pictures from the Newtown Senior Spring Fling on Friday, April 5. Over 60 residents attended the event at the high school. She also thanked Parks and Recreation for partnering with them for the event, and the high school culinary program for catering the meals.

“It was so much fun,” Griffith beamed. “I think it was a huge success. We eventually had to get people to leave as their time was up, so they really enjoyed it. They wanted to stay dancing and were having such a good time.”

New Alternate Member Introduction, Long-Term Planning

Rothstein let the new COA alternate member Jack Kitterman introduce himself to everyone. Kitterman said that he has lived in Newtown since 1977 and has been retired for a little while now. He was happy to introduce himself and hopes to help with and add value to the group.

“I’ve been enjoying my time here so far,” Kitterman said.

Bloom spoke next, bringing up how she mentioned creating short and long-term goals for the senior center at the last meeting.

Rothstein finished the meeting by putting strategic planning on the agenda for the next time.

Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.