Heather Pender, director of the Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging, asked the Clay County Board of Commissioners on June 24 to approve $9,490 in match funding so the agency can draw down federal Older Americans Act allocations.

Pender told commissioners Dancing Sky covers 21 counties through the Northwest Regional Development Commission and redistributes Title III Older Americans Act funds for senior nutrition, caregiver supports and programs such as chore and homemaker assistance. “Our match fund request is a little over $9,000 which equates to about 75¢ per older adult,” she said, and added the agency has “spent over $10,000 here in Clay County” from a new American Rescue Plan-funded wraparound grant to support adult protection work.

The request is intended to satisfy the 25% match requirement tied to federal Older Americans Act funds so Dancing Sky can continue to regrant dollars to local partners, Pender said. She described local partners and programs the agency supports, including CAP LP, Reach Out of Holly, a contractor offering one-on-one Medicare help in the Barnesville/Rolod area and a Senior Linkage Line phone staff member based in Clay County. Pender said the one-on-one contractor has assisted 24 older adults and delivered two presentations in the county since beginning a supplemental contract a few months ago.

Commissioners asked how residents learn about services; Pender said the Senior Linkage Line and Dancing Sky social and email channels, local provider networks and physical outreach through partners are the main routes. She said some funds are time-limited, and that legal services are required to be funded at 10% of the agency’s Title III-B allocation.

No formal vote or appropriation was recorded in the meeting minutes on the county contribution; the presentation concluded with offers from Dancing Sky to provide county-specific data and to distribute outreach materials through its channels.

Pender also described a project called RAPS (wraparound services for adult protection) that was funded with American Rescue Plan dollars and is scheduled to end in September. She said the program supplies direct service dollars to reduce risk of maltreatment and that Clay County’s adult protection team had been a strong partner.

Commissioners voiced support for the agency’s work and for improved outreach to rural areas. Pender said Dancing Sky’s overall federal allocations for its administrative and program development work are roughly $300,000 and $130,000, respectively, and that county shares are determined through the agency’s advisory and grant subcommittees and by the Northwest Regional Development Commission as the governing body.

If commissioners wish to consider the match request formally, the board would need to place the item on a future agenda for a motion and vote.