BILLERICA COUNCIL ON AGING (BCOA) BOARD MEETING WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20, 2012 MINUTES

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1 BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT/EXCUSED Helen Gentile, Chairwoman Dorothy Grossman, 1 st Vice-Chair Grace Gullotti, 2 nd Vice-Chair Lucille MacKinnon, Secretary Robert Hurley, Excused Daniel Hurley Jeanne Hogman, Excused ALTERNATE MEMBERS PRESENT/EXCUSED Kathryn Matos Barbara Flaherty Priscilla Vaughn, Excused SELECTMEN PRESENT/EXCUSED Michael Rosa David Gagliardi Called to order: The meeting was called to order at 9:33 a.m. in the BCOA Conference room. A moment of silence was observed and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited. Review of the Minutes of the last meeting: The minutes were previously mailed to all Board Members for their review. Motion pertaining to the minutes: Selectman Mike Rosa made a motion to accept the minutes, seconded by Selectman David Gagliardi, and the minutes were unanimously voted. 1

2 Correspondence and Reports: Donna Popkin discussed the Neighborhood Meeting conducted by Town Manager John Curran the previous evening, June 19 th at the Senior Center. There were approximately 50 residents in attendance and the discussion centered on public safety, sewers and DPW topics. Donna recognized several groups efforts that have contributed to the center s landscaping. Volunteers from the Billerica Garden Club and Pepsi have worked on the property during the past month with good results. The Friends of the Billerica COA will hold their annual Golf Tournament on Monday, June 25 th at the Billerica Country Club. The response to this year s event has been very positive. Corner roof repair work begins, again, today and is being done by L.E. Morgan Construction. In addition, L.E. Morgan is preparing a roof and gutter prevention proposal for the senior center. HVAC upgrade work by LeMar HVAC is still in progress. Mark LaLumiere, building inspector is working with Johnson Controls and Town Counsel to resolve the issue of labor costs related to the senior center s boiler repair. The Town is advocating that boiler repair work should be paid for by Johnson Control, the Town s HVAC vendor. Stockade fence replacement project will be worked on in FY 2013 when funds become available. The proposal will need to be reviewed by the Historical District Commission. Several new members have been appointed to the Commission within the last month. To date there have been approximately sixty (60) applicants for the Senior Property Tax program. As there are an additional thirty (30) slots available, applications will remain open for now. Donna Popkin along with Mrs. Gentile, Mrs. Gullotti, and Ms. Grossman attended the MCOA s Spring Annual Meeting on June 7 th. Motion Pertaining to Director s Report: Motion to accept Director s Report made by Ms. Kathryn Matos, seconded by Selectman Mike Rosa, approved unanimously. 2

3 New Business: Board Reorganization Board Chair Nominations were opened by current Chairwoman Helen Gentile for Board Chair. Selectman Mike Rosa nominated Mrs. Grace Gullotti for the position. This nomination was seconded by Selectman Dave Gagliardi. No other nominations were offered and Chairwoman Helen Gentile closed nominations. The board unanimously approved Mrs. Grace Gullotti as the new Board Chairwoman. After this vote, Mrs. Grace Gullotti assumed the Chair from Mrs. Helen Gentile. Ms. Matos thanked Mrs. Gentile for her service and the rest of the board concurred. 1 St Vice Chair Nominations for 1 st Vice Chair were opened by Chairwoman Gullotti. Ms. Matos nominated Ms. Dorothy Grossman for the position. The nomination was seconded by Selectman Mike Rosa. No other nominations were offered and Chairwoman Gullotti closed nominations. The Board unanimously approved Ms. Dorothy Grossman as 1 st Vice Chair. 2 nd Vice Chair Nominations for 2 nd Vice Chair were opened by Chairwoman Gullotti. Ms. Grossman nominated Mrs. Helen Gentile for the position. The nomination was seconded by Selectman Mike Rosa. No other nominations were offered and Chairwoman Grace Gullotti closed nominations. The Board unanimously approved Mrs. Helen Gentile as 2 nd Vice Chair. Secretary Nominations for Secretary were opened by Chairwoman Grace Gullotti. Selectman Mike Rosa nominated Ms. Lucille MacKinnon for the position. This was seconded by Ms. Matos. No other nominations were offered and Chairwoman Grace Gullotti closed nominations. The Board unanimously approved Ms. MacKinnon as Secretary. 3

4 There remains one alternate board member position to be filled. This will be done in the Fall. With Board re-organization completed, the agenda resumed. Dan Martin, MEC Students Project At this point in the meeting Chairwoman Gullotti welcomed our guest speaker Dan Martin from Merrimack Special Education Collaborative (MSEC). Dan, a familiar figure to many in Billerica due to his long tenure at Lantheus Medical Imaging and its corporate predecessors, is now working at MSEC. Dan s role at MSEC is community outreach and includes placing MSEC students in appropriate work environments. These students range in age from 22 to 46 and these jobs allow the students to develop skills that would to be successful in the work place. MSEC has recently placed students at Billerica Town Hall to do internal mail sorting and delivery. MSEC would like to place a team of students and a job coach at the senior center to maintain the plantings and flowers on the property. This project will start once all of the students and job coach have completed the necessary Criminal Offender Information (CORI) process. There were no questions from the Board regarding the proposal. July & August Meetings Motion made by Ms. Matos that the Board not meet during the summer months of July and August as has been the custom. Motion was seconded by Ms. MacKinnon and approved unanimously. September 19 th Meeting Motion made by Ms. Matos that the next meeting of the Board be scheduled for Wednesday, September 19 th at 9:30 am. Motion was seconded by Selectman Mike Rosa and approved unanimously. 4

5 Neighborhood Meetings As discussed in the Director s Report, Town Manager is conducting three neighborhood meetings the week of June 18 th including the one held on Tuesday June 19 th at the senior center. The third meeting will be held on June 21st at Town Hall. Fire Fighters Barbeque June 29 th The annual Fire Fighters Barbeque will be held on Friday, June 29 th. If any of the board members are interested in helping out, the assistance would be appreciated. Two hundred and twenty-five (225) tickets have been sold to date for the event. Intergenerational Program, July 18, 25 The intergenerational program, which is sponsored by Lahey Clinic, is still seeking senior volunteers to participate. There are three sessions involved during July and August and seniors are paired with middle school age students from Billerica Recreation. Friends of the COA Funds Projections: July Dec, 2012 Donna reviewed the requests made to the Friends of the COA for July through December These include several routine requests, such as funds for Bandstand, and also one new request to fund a bus rental for a trip to the Quilting Museum in Lowell. Motion made by Ms. Barbara Flaherty that the Friends of the COA funds projections be approved. Motion was seconded by Ms. Grossman; approved unanimously. Lions Club Appreciation Night The Council on Aging was recognized at a Billerica Lions event for their contributions to the community. Summer Get Together The Board discussed having a summer social/get together and Ms. Dorothy Grossman offered to host on one of the following dates: Saturday July 14 th or 28 th 5

6 August 4 th or 18th The board agreed to coordinate on a date via among the members. Habitat for Humanity ReStore Selectman Mike Rosa attended the grand opening of the new Habitat for Humanity ReStore on Boston Road over the past weekend as did Selectman Dave Gagliardi. Both were impressed by the merchandise at the store which includes home improvement items, many from Lowe s or Home Depot. Old Business Online Ethics Test Pat Zapert reported that all but one member of the Board has completed the mandatory Online Ethics test. The remaining member will take the test next week. Formula Grant FY 2013 Donna reported that it is likely that FY 2013 funding will be restored to $7.00 per elder. As discussed at the May Board meeting, a letter has been sent to Representative Marc Lombardo thanking him for his support in the Mass. House of Representatives. Senator Ken Donnelly has been equally supportive in the Mass. State Senate. Motion made by Ms. Matos and seconded by Selectman Mike Rosa to send a letter to Senator Donnelly thanking him for his support; approved unanimously. Green Up / Clean Up Day, May 5th and 19th As discussed in the Director s Report, all efforts regarding Clean Up and Green Up as well as the efforts by the Billerica Garden Club and PepsiCo were a success. Garden Club Project See comments directly above related to Green Up / Clean Up. 6

7 Other Business/Announcements: As discussed in the Director s Report, the Friends of the COA Golf Tournament will be held on Monday June 25 th at Billerica Country Club. The Friends are continuing to work on the new Elder Care Fund proposal. The objective is to have the fund up and running by October so that it is available during the holiday season. Ms. Popkin noted that the senior center will be open this evening June 20 th as well as tomorrow evening until around 8:30 pm as a local cooling center for residents seeking to escape the heat. As part of keeping the center comfortable during this period the air conditioning will be running 24 x 7. Farmers Market Coupons Merrimack Valley Elder Services will be providing sixty five (65) $25 coupons to the Senior Center to be used by residents of Billerica, Chelmsford and Westford. The coupons are valid from August 1 st through September 30 th, as this period has the highest production of local produce. This is the first time that this service has been provided to this region of the Elder Services service area. Similar programs have existed in other communities served by Elder Services for several years. Next Meeting Date: Wednesday, September 19th Adjournment/Closing: Motion made by Selectman Michael Rosa to adjourn the meeting. Motion was seconded by Ms. Grossman, and approved unanimously at 10:30 a.m. Respectfully Submitted, Lucille MacKinnon 7