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Agency on Aging outlines services and volunteer program as council begins budget planning
Summary
Ray Parks of the New River Valley Agency on Aging told the Pulaski Town Council the agency provided more than 94,000 service units regionwide last fiscal year and asked for continued town support; Jennifer Byers Troy described Volunteer Pulaski’s local volunteer matching and said volunteers are in short supply.
Ray Parks, executive director of the New River Valley Agency on Aging, told the Pulaski Town Council on Oct. 21 that the agency remains a primary local source of services for older adults and asked the town to continue budget support for FY2025–26.
Parks said the agency provided 94,904 total units of service across the region in the most recent fiscal year, with roughly one-third of those services delivered in Pulaski town and county. "Our home delivered meals, 463 individuals were served," he said, and the agency’s information-and-assistance line reached 2,138 people. "We provide services and supports to try to make that happen," Parks said, describing nutrition, transportation, ombudsman services and caregiver support as core activities.
The council’s attention was not limited to the agency’s federal- and state-funded programs: Parks described Volunteer Pulaski — an administrative program the town and county fund and the agency houses — as critical for connecting residents and local businesses to volunteer opportunities. "Anyone who wants to volunteer can contact our office and be connected with a volunteer opportunity," said Jennifer Byers Troy, introduced by Parks as the staff member who coordinates the town-funded program.
Byers Troy listed recurring volunteer tasks: assembling supply bags for seniors, telephone reassurance checks, bagging weekly vegetables and operating a "Santa for a senior" gift program. She said the program is supported by town and county funds (not Older Americans Act dollars) and that "volunteers are short in number at this moment."
Why it matters: Council members framed the presentations as part of the town’s upcoming budget deliberations and pressed the agency on coordination with the senior center and logistical partnerships. Parks said meal delivery is subcontracted through New River Valley Senior Services and vendors prepare the meals; volunteers help with outreach and check-ins for homebound clients.
What’s next: Parks said the agency will make itself available to the town for follow-up questions and that the council can expect additional budget materials in advance of meetings. The council did not take formal action on funding during the Oct. 21 session.
