Senior Citizens Advisory Committee

Hampton Senior Citizens Advisory Committee Hampton Senior Center, 3501 Kecoughtan Road November 1, 2021 ~ 10:00am Present: Linda H. Kindred-Chair; Doris Farmer-Vice Chair; Jeanette Augustine, Martha Clark; George Gwynn, C’Faison Harris, Martha Johnson, Angela Leary, Sandra Waldo Excused : Cassandra Alston Townsley, Yvonne Gaynor City/Lead Agency Reps : Mayor Donnie Tuck; Angela King, Asst. City Attorney; Dave McCauley, Director, HPRLS; Yolanda Clark, Social Services; Susan Elswick, HPRLS: Shaeron King, HPRLS Guests : Mary Mills-Collins, HNNCSB; Dawn Anderson; Heather Laver; Audrey Johnson, Georgia Scott I. Welcome Ms. Kindred called the meeting to order by thanking everyone for attending and 1 reminding all to sign-in. She then invited everyone to introduce themselves so all could be acknowledged as being a part of this session. She noted that the reason she was wearing a pink hardhat was to commemorate her sister and all others who are fighting or who have died from breast cancer. She urged everyone, men and women, to get a mammogram. Opening prayer was offered. II. Roll Call & Approval of September Minutes Ms. Harris conducted the roll call; a quorum was present. Ms. Kindred asked if all had read the minutes and if there were any questions or corrections. Ms. Leary noted that she had contacted the Chair prior to the September meeting explaining the reasons for her and Ms. Waldo’s absences and that their absences should be noted as excused rather than absent. Ms. Kindred asked that the minutes be corrected. Ms. Farmer made a motion to approve the minutes as corrected, and the motion was seconded by Mr. Gwynn. The motion carried. III. Opening Remarks Mr. McCauley stated he understood the reason for Ms. Leary’s absence after the labor of love she dedicated to the 9/11 event at Gosnold’s Hope Park. He said she, HSCAC November 1, 2021 Minutes (approved with correction 12/6/2021)  former HPR Director Jim Wilson, and John Gately did an excellent job and he appreciated it. He announced that the new Mary Jackson Neighborhood Center, located at 201 Lincoln Street, should be opening in the early spring of 2022 after Council’s approval of the building’s exterior. The Buckroe Beach boardwalk’s Phase I is almost complete with Phases II & III now underway. He added that beach-goers will see more thriving planters, swings and seating. The old Dominion Virginia lighting will be replaced by more efficient lighting. The James T. Wilson Fishing Pier is open 24/7; but will close January- March of next year. Air Power Park is working on having a pier and kayak launch added, in addition to a retaining wall to reduce flooding of Newmarket Creek. The building and aircraft displays have been renovated and painted. The Community Plan will begin in January with community meetings and will address both the strategic and comprehensive phases. Mr. McCauley encouraged board member involvement and to get their friends and neighbors involved. The Parks Master Plan is also underway and will align with the goals of the Community Plan to create more parks and leisure services that are refreshed and renewed. 2 There will be no holiday parade due to COVID concerns; however, PRLS will be sponsoring the Wonder Walk Christmas Tree Decorating Contest again this year, December 4-12 from Coliseum Drive to Freeman Drive. Groups will be able to adopt a tree to decorate, and HSCAC was encouraged to participate. There also will be vendors, children’s activities, and two performance areas, so there’ll be many activities for the public to enjoy. Mr. McCauley then recognized Ms. Harris as Clean City’s permanent coordinator after serving in the interim position since last December. Ms. Harris thanked him for the kudos. Ms. Leary asked if the electrical lights installed along the Trees of Hope during the holidays at Gosnold’s Hope Park back in the early 2000s could be reinstalled, stating that they gave the park and surrounding community a true holiday feel. Mr. McCauley stated he would check into that. IV. Old Business Senior Center Renaming Contest Final HSCAC November 1, 2021 Minutes (approved with correction 12/6/2021)  Ms. Kindred said that everyone was given the opportunity to submit name changes and vote on a new name or to keep it the same. Suggested names and vote tallies were: 1. 60+ Center, 5 votes 2. Active for Life, 13 votes 3. Kecoughtan Center, 11 votes 4. The People’s Center, 1 vote 5. Mature Elites, 6 votes 6. Hampton Mature Adult Center, 1 vote 7. Senior Center, 102 votes Other names added were: 1. Senior Citizen Center, 1 vote 2. Adult Center, 1 vote 3. Golden Year Activity Center, 1 vote Five votes were voided. With 102 votes, the name of the Center will remain as Hampton Senior Center. Ms. Kindred thanked Ms. Audrey Johnson for assistance 3 in recording and verifying the votes. V. HSCAC By-Laws Discussion Ms. Angela King asked if everyone had a copy of the suggested by-law revisions, noted in red. She advised members that there are three things to keep in mind regarding the process for amending the by-laws. First, only City Council may amend the by-laws. Second, members need to have a copy of recommended amendments five days prior to a scheduled meeting in order to be able to vote on whether or not to recommend the amendments to City Council. And third, when voting on whether or not to recommend the amendments to City Council, a two- thirds majority vote is required. Since members did not receive the suggested amendments five days prior to the meeting, today will be a discussion about potential amendments but no vote will be taken. Ms. King stated that she would use any feedback received today to update the suggested amendments and work with staff to send a redlined copy of the by- laws to members as least five days prior to the next scheduled meeting so that a vote can be held at that meeting. HSCAC November 1, 2021 Minutes (approved with correction 12/6/2021)  The first suggested amendment relates to the matter of excused and/or unexcused absences. The suggestion is to delete the word “unexcused” before “‘absence”. This will simplify the language and remove the need for the Chair to make judgement calls as to what constitutes an excused versus an unexcused absence. The second suggested amendment relates to the matter of subcommittees. Ms. King stated that the proposed language is similar to that already approved and in place for the Clean City Commission. There was discussion about the number of members allowed on a subcommittee, with the current recommendation being three with a quorum required of two. Ms. Leary suggested 4-5 members; however, Mayor Tuck noted that with four, there will almost always be a split decision and very little will be accomplished. If the purpose is to move the business of the subcommittees forward, it is better to have an odd number of members. Ms. Harris explained that Clean City has had some challenges with having enough members attend to constitute a quorum when the group is five members. After discussion, it was agreed that there should be five members on each subcommittee. Ms. Mills- Collins asked if non-committee members could be subcommittee members. Ms. King stated that yes, non-committee members may serve as members of the subcommittee but only members of the committee may serve as subcommittee 4 chairs. Ms. King stated that the current suggested amendments states that subcommittee meetings would occur immediately after scheduled board meetings, but this may be an issue if board members are on more than one subcommittee. She asked if alternating meetings could be considered; for example, some committees meeting in the even-numbered months, the remainder in the odd-numbered months. Ms. Martha Clark noted that might cause a problem for the Mayor’s Town Hall subcommittee, stating that they would need several meetings prior to the event. Ms. King said she would pose some scheduling alternatives and provide those when the revised recommendations are sent to board members. The third suggested amendment is to change the article regarding amendments from “Article Five” to “Article Six”. This is a housekeeping edit that needs to be done since the subcommittee language would be included as “Article Five”. Ms. Kindred thanked Ms. King for the information and encouraged members to contact Ms. King if they had any further questions or concerns. HSCAC November 1, 2021 Minutes (approved with correction 12/6/2021) VI. New Business Ms. Kindred noted that December meetings are not usually held due to the annual senior awards event being held at that time. Since the event was cancelled by board approval, she asked if members would still like to hold a meeting to continue discussion of proposed by-laws amendments and subcommittees. A motion was made to hold a December meeting, was seconded, and unanimously approved. It was noted that the last meeting of this year will be Monday, December 6, 2021, 10am at the Hampton Senior Center. VII. Presentation: Bay Aging ’s VICAP Medicare Counseling Program Mr. McCauley then introduced guest speaker, Ms. Lisa Walker, the Vice President of Aging and Disability Resources for Bay Aging, a non-profit, area agency on aging. Ms. Walker serves as Bay Aging’s Long Term Care Ombudsman and VICAP Coordinator. The VICAP program (Virginia Insurance Counseling and Assistance Program) assists persons by helping them resolve issues and to answer questions about Medicare, Medicaid and other related health insurance programs. She works with residents of the Northern Neck, Middle Peninsula and the Peninsula area of Tidewater Virginia. She has been with Bay Aging for 21 years and is certified by the State of Virginia as a VICAP counselor. Ms. Walker is a graduate of 5 Radford University with a BA in History and Political Science. Ms. Walker first announced that the enrollment period for Medicare benefits began October 15 and will end on December 7. She encouraged everyone to check their current plans to insure that everything they need and/or require is covered under the current plan. Ms. Augustine noted that she found that information she received did not include all of her coverage, so she had to ask. Both Ms. Walker and Ms. Augustine said it’s important to contact Medicare and ask specific questions about coverage. She cautioned members who are currently covered under the federal government’s Triad insurance program not to sign up for Medicare because Medicare would cancel any coverage provided by Triad. Ms. Walker then explained the 2021 Medicare cost summary, illustrating what each part of the program entails. Part A covers inpatient hospital and skilled nursing facility care; Part B covers outpatient care (office visits, lab tests, physical therapy, etc.), Part C covers Medicare health and Advantage plans, Part D is for Medicare prescription drug insurance, and lastly, Medigap Insurance that is also called Medicare Supplemental Insurance. Contact can be made via 1-800-MEDICARE or at www.medicare.gov. HSCAC November 1, 2021 Minutes (approved with correction 12/6/2021)  Ms. Mills-Collins asked if a template for ‘extra help’ applications could be presented and reviewed, and if Medicare has an income level guideline for eligibility. Ms. Walker explained that Medicare does not provide a chart for eligibility levels based on income limits. She did, however, provide assistance to individuals in need of help completing the “extra help’ applications. She invited Ms. Mills-Collins to email her with other questions she may have. Medicare also has a Senior Medicare Patrol that investigates healthcare fraud. She asked that members carefully review their Medicare summaries and immediately report suspected fraud, errors, and or abuse. She noted that scams might come in the form of persons trying to sell genetic data and/or direct medical equipment or devices, telling people of changes in their Medicare coverage, etc. She welcomed members to contact her directly for more information or if they had any questions at lwalker@bayaging.org or call 1-866-758-2386. Ms. Kindred thanked Ms. Walker for the very informative power point presentation and for the many handouts she provided. VIII. Lead Agency Updates 6 Ms. Leary also noted that it would have been helpful to have had the by-laws revisions prior to the meeting. Ms. King stated that once the by-laws have been edited with updates from today’s discussion, they would be forwarded to members for review no later than five days before the December 6 meeting. Some members said that although they receive copies of the agenda and minutes via email, they are unable to access the attachments. Mr. McCauley announced that copies of the agenda and minutes would also be available at each meeting. Ms. Leary said that on September 20, she invited and met with the Bailey Park Homeowners Association. She is also researching information about another 30-40 senior facilities and provided a listing that she asked Mr. McCauley to verify. She noted she would like the Committee to work the City Manager’s Office and related departments to ensure that all senior living issues and concerns are properly addressed. She also invited Mr. McCauley to visit Sinclair Commons. Ms. Mills-Collins also thanked Ms. Walker for the presentation and stated that she has a point of contact for those needing more personalized information for specialized insurance. She will also forward that information to Ms. Harris for distribution to members. HSCAC November 1, 2021 Minutes (approved with correction 12/6/2021)  Ms. Dawn Anderson and Ms. Heather Laver of Commonwealth Senior Living invited members to visit their facility Mr. Gwynn made a proposal to recognize older residents for their community service, especially noting his own aunt who recently passed at the age of 101. Ms. Kindred added that the Committee had taken note of his proposal when first made in 2020 and that it will be reviewed when the Annual Senior Awards Committee schedules a meeting. IX. Closing Remarks Ms. Leary gave kudos to Ms. Kindred for her pink cancer awareness hardhat, stating that her own daughter is recovering from breast cancer surgery, but was given only a 50% survival rate. Her daughter is participating in research studies that will help so many others. Mr. McCauley noted that the correct address of the new Mary T. Jackson is 201 Lincoln Street, as suggested earlier by Ms. Elswick. 7 Ms. Kindred thanked Ms. Walker again and thanked everyone for participating in today’s meeting. Before the closing prayer she added, “Be a ray of sunshine in someone’s cloud. Don’t look down on anyone unless you’re helping them up. Share a meal, a phone call, a visit, a note. But always leave them in a good frame of mind and keep one another in prayer.” The meeting was adjourned with closing prayer by Ms. Kindred. X. Adjournment Meeting adjourned 11:36 a.m. HSCAC November 1, 2021 Minutes (approved with correction 12/6/2021)