Better Together Transportation founder outlines paratransit experience to Buncombe County advisory committee

On July 22, 2026, the Buncombe County Home Community Care Block Grant Advisory Committee approved its agenda and meeting minutes and heard an introductory presentation from Better Together Transportation.

The meeting opened with routine housekeeping: the committee moved to approve the agenda and then accepted the prior meeting’s minutes by voice votes. The motions were made, seconded and approved without recorded roll-call tallies.

The committee then turned to a scheduled presentation. The chair introduced the organization by name and said the presenter was "Eugenio Perez, the executive director of Better Together Transportation," but the person who spoke identified herself as Gina and described her role with the organization. "My name is Gina," she said, and went on to describe her background. "Before I founded Better Together Transportation, I worked for 4 years in paratransit, ferrying clients to and from doctor's appointments and dialysis," she said.

Gina said two men, James Henrich and Billy, had been important in her work and life. She thanked Billy, who the chair had asked to introduce the presenter. The record shows the chair introduced a different name for the organization’s leadership; the presenter who spoke identified herself as Gina and spoke about her experience and the organization’s origins.

The committee did not take any formal funding actions during the recorded exchange. After the introduction and the presenter’s opening remarks, the meeting proceeded to the presentation portion of the agenda.