HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 02-16-2010 - 3aORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: February 16, 2010
Action Agenda
Item No. 3 - a
SUBJECT: Presentation of the North Carolina 2009 Ernest B. Messer Award
to Orange County
DEPARTMENT: Aging PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No
ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT:
Award Notification Letter-January 13, 2010
Jerry Passmore- 245-2020
PURPOSE: To receive the North Carolina 2009 Ernest B. Messer Award from Dennis W.
Streets, Director of the North Carolina Division of Aging and Adult Services.
BACKGROUND: The Messer Award recognizes a community that has excelled in addressing the
needs of its older residents. Orange County through its Department on Aging is a recipient
organization for the 2009 Messer Award. This award is named for Ernest B. Messer, a champion
for aging in the North Carolina General Assembly and former assistant secretary for aging for the
NC Department of Health and Human Services between 1981 and 1985.
Orange County, the first North Carolina County with a public department on aging, has the
unique honor of receiving the Messer Award for the second time. The County received the 2004
Messer Award for establishing the County Master Aging Plan: APublic-Private Partnership for
2001-2005. Barry Jacobs, then Chair of the Board of County Commissioners, accepted the
award for the County's leadership in passage of a bond for and planned construction of two
state-of-the-art multipurpose senior centers, and for the startup of the County's first adult day
health program.
The 2009 Messer Award recognizes Orange County and the Department on Aging for fostering
community partnerships and creative programming through an inter-disciplinary team of
professionals who champion person-centered, holistic care of older residents. Programs
highlighted by the award are:
(1) A dedicated County Aging Information Hotline staffed by professionals who, if needed,
can follow up with a home visit or office appointment at a senior center;
(2) A strong commitment to public awareness of aging services by the publication of an
annual Community Resource Guide, a quarterly Senior Times newspaper, and
producing an award-winning weekly community access television show, "In Praise of
Age";
(3) A large, dedicated, volunteer program providing critical services like tax assistance;
(4) Strong public-private partnerships to expand senior programming and provide financial
support; and
(5) An efficient transportation division transporting older adults to necessary services and
enriching opportunities.
In addition, the Messer Award recognizes Orange County's two senior centers operated by the
Department on Aging for the strong emphasis on wellness for seniors across the age continuum.
This includes the adult day health program located in the Central Orange Senior Center.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: None
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board accept the North Carolina
2009 Ernest B. Messer Award for Orange County and the Department on Aging.
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North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
.Division of Aging and Adult Services
2101 Mail Service Center • Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-2101
Te1919 733-3983 • Fax No. 919 733-0443
Beverly Eaves Perdue, Governor Dennis W. Streets
Lanier M. Cansler, Secretary Director
January 13, 2010
Jerry Passmore
Department Director
Orange County Department on Aging
P.O. Box 8181
Hillsborough, NC 27278
Dear Mr. Passmore:
I am writing to inform you that Orange County Department on Aging is the 2009 recipient of the
Messer Award, along with the Shepherd's Center of Greater Winston-Salem. As you know, the
Messer Award recognizes a community that has excelled in addressing the needs of its older
citizens. It is named in honor of Ernest B. Messer, a champion for aging in the General Assembly
and former assistant secretary for aging for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human
Services. Your Department on Aging and the Shepherd's Center of Greater Winston-Salem share
the distinction of being organizations that excel in serving our older population.
On behalf of the Division of Aging and Adult Services, I congratulate you and the Orange
County Department on Aging on this honor and look forward to presenting the award to you and
your Department in the near future. Please contact Mary Edwards of the Division at your
convenience, and we will arrange an appropriate time and place to present the award to your
organization.
Again, it is a privilege to present this award to your exemplary organization and to formally
recognize your many contributions to Orange County and the aging community in North
Carolina.
Sincerely,
Dennis W. Streets
Attachment
Location: 693 Palmer Drive, Raleigh, NC 27603 • State Courier No. 56-20-02
An Equal Opportunity /Affirmative Action Employer