Council On Aging 12/02/2025

(Episode Description is AI generated and may be errors in accuracy)

A budget check turned into a blueprint for winter: we moved quickly from routine reports to the urgent questions seniors are asking right now—How do I get fuel help when funding is unclear? Where can I set up a will without paying thousands? Which programs can I count on through the holidays? We lay out what’s working, what’s delayed, and the practical steps you can take this month to stay safe, informed, and connected.

We share a major win: a new partnership with South Coast Legal Services bringing free estate planning and will preparation to income-qualified seniors. It starts with a December info session, then rolls into a January clinic with scheduled time slots. We also preview a full slate of seasonal programming—luncheons, a stroke-awareness talk with our public health nurse, and a festive holiday party—plus a push for Cultural Council grants to fund a 2024 music lineup that lifts spirits and fills the room.

Behind the scenes, we’re tightening the safety net. A one-page resource guide will point you to fuel assistance, vaccinations, Meals on Wheels, SNAP, elder watch protocols, transportation, and veterans’ services—designed to live on your fridge for fast decisions. Facility lighting upgrades are underway to brighten common areas during the shortest days of the year. We address scam calls targeting landlines, offer trip ideas that avoid long bus rides, and weigh how to keep the Friends group alive for fundraising and community momentum. The meeting closes with both continuity and change: an associate member steps into a voting role, and our chair retires after 15 years of service with gratitude and resolve.

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Transcript

Roll Call And Treasurer’s Report

SPEAKER_08 0:04

All right, good morning. Uh would you please uh madam temporary secretary please do the roll call I'll give you a minute and then we'll start looking at reports. So thank you for last month's report. I apologize by the way for not making last month's meeting.

SPEAKER_05 0:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 0:39

You tell me when you're ready.

SPEAKER_06 0:45

All right.

SPEAKER_08 0:47

Okay, let's take a look at the uh treasurer's report, folks.

SPEAKER_02 0:57

There's a couple more of the Amazon credits. Excuse me, Cheryl. Uh Cheryl said she totally forgot. Well, she said I can't be there before October.

SPEAKER_08 1:09

Okay. No, I can't.

unknown 1:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 1:11

All right. Yeah, then nothing, nothing unusual, just the ordinary smartphone.

SPEAKER_00 1:14

Just the ordinary smartphone on what it's like. Okay. A couple more Amazon credits that we're just trying to use up.

Director Updates: Enrollment And Assistance

SPEAKER_08 1:24

Everything's good. Yeah. All right. Um minutes to look it over. And then when you're ready, I'll accept the uh motion to accept the report. Okay. All right. I make a motion to accept the treasurer's report as written. Sorry. Any discussion? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. So be it. Director's report. You're on.

SPEAKER_00 2:15

So Lari's finishing up with open enrollment this week. Um she's actually had somebody, um, Kathy's been in there helping her, and um she was helping train her. So she's been taking some of our Rainham residents to fill in, um, especially with the we have Kathy, um, she's like a volunteer for Shine. Lari was been training her. So the last couple weeks, we've been able to give her a few actual appointments for her to do and practice. So we got a few more people in um because of the Medicare and Tation plans that were just dropping.

SPEAKER_08 2:49

It was the shutdown effect of the whole that whole process of no, not Medicare.

Fuel Assistance Delays And Workarounds

SPEAKER_00 2:56

Um so she's finishing up this week with the open enrollment. Um, fuel assistants um did get affected with the government shutdown, as well as they still don't have funding. Um, so they haven't been able to determine the amounts for people as they get it approved. Um they don't know what they're getting for funding yet, as of now, still. So they're still taking applications. Um, if there's emergency applications, which you have to be like an eighth of a tank low, um, they'll give you a hundred gallons of oil.

SPEAKER_08 3:29

Who knows when their tank is an eighth of a tap on it? Sounds like three quarters.

December Events And Health Programs

Free Estate And Will Planning Clinic

SPEAKER_00 3:37

Yeah. So the fuel assistance is not doing great as it right now. Um, some upcoming events. We have our luncheon today. We have chicken stir fry. Um December 9th. Next week, we have a stroke presentation with Lindsay, our public health nurse. Um, we're doing the two singles again, um, December 16th and 17th. Our holiday party is December 18th, and right after the holiday party, um, we have this new will presentation. So I don't know if you guys have heard of South Coast Legal Services. Um, they're free legal services. I believe they're income-based. Um, they're they're just starting this year, like estate planning and will planning. Um, they're gonna run like a clinic here coming up in January. So the presentation on the 18th is gonna talk about how you can qualify for the program. You just have to fill out like an intake, and then in January we're gonna have time slots where you can do estate planning, wills, and all that at no cost to the seniors so that you have the lawyers.

SPEAKER_08 4:42

How did you come across that?

SPEAKER_00 4:43

I've been asking them for a while if they do anything with estate planning and wills.

SPEAKER_08 4:48

Fantastic.

SPEAKER_00 4:49

Our number one questions.

SPEAKER_08 4:51

Excellent job.

SPEAKER_00 4:52

So they're coming to do that. Um, yeah, so we're hoping to do that at least once a year um with them, which would be free service for some yeah. So that's a big deal for me. That's our number one question is where do we go for the estate planning and the wills without spending thousands of dollars on the lawyers?

SPEAKER_08 5:09

Yeah, that's really especially the estate planning. You've got to do that soon because within that five-year window, doesn't mean anything. Yeah, so they'll help with all that.

SPEAKER_05 5:18

So I think I'm down to my wash year now. I gotta stay healthy for another year.

SPEAKER_00 5:23

If you're curious about that or more about the program, please come on the 18th at 2 30. Are you doing sign-ups? Yes, yes. Um, so we're trying to spread that word out as much as possible.

SPEAKER_08 5:37

So breakfast is on New Year's Eve, huh?

SPEAKER_00 5:40

Yep, we're gonna have a New Year's Eve breakfast.

SPEAKER_08 5:42

Noisemakers and stuff like that.

Holiday Hours And Scheduling Clarifications

SPEAKER_00 5:44

Maybe. Maybe we'll throw something different in. Why not? Uh so New Year's Eve breakfast, and then we close that day um as a half day. Um and then we close on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, half day at 12, and then Christmas Day in January 1st.

SPEAKER_08 6:04

Christmas is the Thursday, right?

SPEAKER_00 6:06

Yeah. We are open on the Friday.

SPEAKER_08 6:08

You are open on Friday?

SPEAKER_00 6:09

Yeah, both Fridays. I thought you were close to the Friday. No, we're open. I had to ask.

SPEAKER_08 6:15

We have the the town has in the past done that closing, but I guess we're not going to be able to do that.

SPEAKER_00 6:19

No, nothing yet. I asked um Kelly, nothing yet.

SPEAKER_01 6:21

So we are Friday. Everybody in Cat is still. Oh no, we're not Friday because it's close.

SPEAKER_00 6:27

No, we're open.

SPEAKER_01 6:29

All right.

SPEAKER_00 6:30

We're open. I'm taking the day off, but we're open. We're avoiding. We are open. There's still time to for them to change their minds. Yes, plenty of time.

SPEAKER_08 6:39

Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if they do.

Cultural Grants And 2024 Music Lineup

SPEAKER_00 6:41

But we're open. I'll let you know if anything changes, but as of now, we're open as usual. Um, a few other things. I have um I applied for a few of the cultural council grants. Um we should hear in January if we got them. Um it's a few of the music acts. Um March 10th, um, this Jackson Gilman. He does a get your hire Sean. So I was hoping to have him with like St. Paddy's Day luncheon on the 10th. So for that knock on would duo we've had the last couple years, and people have really liked them last year. We had hosted them at the Lions Club because we had a larger crowd. Um, so people so we're hoping to get that, and then jump in jubers, I heard, was good. So we're tried to do like one of those.

SPEAKER_08 7:28

What a jump in jubers part of my email.

SPEAKER_00 7:31

Yeah, they're a band. Yeah, but I heard they're good, and then there's another band, um, the Bailey Street Brass Band. Um, we're hoping to do them in May. So I should know next month. Um, I'll report to you if I hear in January which ones we got and which ones. So we get some music culture. Yeah, some music.

SPEAKER_08 7:51

We found in some of the senior centers that uh I think it was Dyton when that volunteer band came in. Yeah. Once a week or once a month placeless mob of people dancing.

SPEAKER_00 8:02

Yeah, yeah. And then a couple of weeks.

SPEAKER_08 8:04

Well, you've been very good. You've been very busy rather. We're very good. You always very good.

SPEAKER_00 8:08

The save program will be starting again.

SPEAKER_08 8:10

What is it?

SPEAKER_00 8:11

Uh the save program.

SPEAKER_08 8:12

Okay.

Tax Work-Off Program And Resource Guide

SPEAKER_00 8:12

Uh the tax work off. We'll be starting up again. It's just ending this week, and then people can start applying again. Second week of January. January 15th. We'll start taking up. Okay. Um I'm making a brochure. Talking to the town and stuff. Um trying to make one spot for all resources. Where to go? You come here for fuel, you go to Board of Health for you know flu or questions about flu shots and stuff like that. Where you go? Um, I put the tact on here, the Rainham food basket on here, where that is, the numbers, the hours, meals on wheels, snap. Um, like we have an elder watch list here. If there's a bad snowstorm, power outage, we call everyone that's on that list with the fire department, and then we can always send out the fire department to know if they have a generator or they can help. Especially if people are on oxygen and we're out of power for a while. Dial, ride, shine, taxes, fuel, housing, veterans, police fire. So I'm trying to, it's a work in progress, but I'm hoping by like the new year or so I have it like done and it looks a little better than this. And then I'll I'm gonna ask BP about printing for it.

SPEAKER_01 9:28

Very good. So that's not ready.

SPEAKER_00 9:32

Not ready yet. Yeah, so I'm gonna hand them all over town with one little one little thing where people can go for a bunch of resources for the yeah.

SPEAKER_08 9:43

This is a side note on Tat. I I don't volunteer there anymore, but uh they just acquired the building that they that they were using and they're going through some major renovations, putting in a they've never had a ramp there, so it's you've been carrying people up here, but there's uh somebody's I'm trying to think who it is, some uh scout troop is doing the ramp for them. They got all brand new lighting and redoing the dining room, so they're they're gearing up because they've been mobbed with people.

SPEAKER_00 10:13

So let me know when that's ready and I can get it to yeah, and I'll have everyone, I'm gonna have like Greg and um other town people look it over for spelling. Uh anything I'm possibly missing that should add on. Yeah. So I'll get it all approved and everything.

SPEAKER_08 10:31

Once you get 9,000 of them and you find out you can't say that. It's not a good thing.

SPEAKER_00 10:35

Yeah, so we'll get all the wording and everything all set, and then I'll send it to printing. So I'm gonna printed for us.

SPEAKER_01 10:43

People will be able to put that someplace where they'll remember it too.

SPEAKER_00 10:47

Yeah, yeah, where they can use it, rather than the newsletter that probably's gonna set on that one afterwards.

SPEAKER_08 10:52

That's a really good idea. Along the lines of things like that. It was a long time ago, but uh I don't even remember who the director was at the time. They came across this little plastic envelope like the type that uh we all got when we were getting COVID shots, you know, where you kept that card in there. And this was you put information for EMTs like you know, DNR, who doxes were and so forth.

Facility Upgrades: Lighting And Maintenance

SPEAKER_01 11:18

We have we have them here. I have them on America. Yeah, we have the ones that go in the fridge.

SPEAKER_00 11:25

You know they make wallet ones too, but we have the fridge ones. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 11:29

But it's just so easy for an EMT to go in and whip that off the fridge. Yeah, and then you know all your medicines and the husband going, uh, I don't know what you take.

SPEAKER_08 11:37

So this way it's all I tell her, you know, my I told my wife that when I pass, I I want to be cremated. I didn't realize she was going to make an appointment for next week, though. It's an old joke, but I couldn't resist because the subject was there.

SPEAKER_00 11:58

What else do I have?

SPEAKER_08 12:00

What can I say and me?

SPEAKER_00 12:03

I want to get a card for Brian for this month's breakfast. So if you guys want to sign it, sure.

SPEAKER_03 12:09

So we'll do it.

SPEAKER_00 12:10

I I've got to write something in it, but if you want to sign the bottom or something.

SPEAKER_03 12:13

Sure, I think it's a good one.

SPEAKER_00 12:16

Is it a money or gift card?

unknown 12:20

Yeah. No.

SPEAKER_00 12:23

I can take it out of the way.

SPEAKER_08 12:24

I would just have a lot, maybe a gift card for some restaurant, a nice restaurant. Yeah. A local one, a Stoneforge or something like that. Yeah, he's been doing this for a while.

SPEAKER_00 12:39

Oh thank you.

SPEAKER_08 12:48

Well, you know, I came last time and there was nothing for me to do. You didn't have to do anything.

SPEAKER_00 12:54

He does it a lot, yeah.

SPEAKER_08 12:55

Well he didn't you guys didn't either. You were doing all the cooking and serving, so I went home.

SPEAKER_01 13:00

But seriously, are you paying for the gift though? Uh I'll take it out of the petty cash. If you want, we can't get it.

SPEAKER_00 13:09

If you want to, if you want to donate to it, I can.

SPEAKER_08 13:12

Yeah, I I I I I I'll give somebody before the meeting's over for toys.

SPEAKER_00 13:16

So I'm gonna give that to him um on our breakfast this morning.

SPEAKER_08 13:19

Okay, very good. Yeah, he deserves it.

SPEAKER_00 13:22

And uh what else do I got? I feel like more stuff. Oh, that's um lights. So all these lights are being replaced. Uh you can see the boxes there. Okay. Is there a few in the big room replaced behind Paula? Those are replaced. I mean they're changing away from the flat fluoride. L G super.

SPEAKER_08 13:42

You won't you won't believe how much brighter things are. Yes. It's unbelievable.

SPEAKER_00 13:46

So they're all be replaced. Um the town, part of the sewer department, they have electricians, so he's doing it um later in his day or when he has time.

SPEAKER_08 13:56

Really?

SPEAKER_00 13:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 13:58

So he's doing that.

SPEAKER_00 14:00

Uh-huh. So he'll be here randomly filling in lights.

SPEAKER_04 14:04

Who's the brand?

SPEAKER_00 14:06

No, um, part of our sewer department. Oh, we have an electrician there. So he's doing it. Do we have a So we didn't have to do any bids or anything?

SPEAKER_08 14:16

We don't the town still doesn't have a like a maintenance person, do they?

SPEAKER_00 14:20

Really? No maintenance.

SPEAKER_08 14:21

There's there should be one.

SPEAKER_06 14:24

Uh yeah, no mates.

Minutes Approved And Phone Scam Talk

SPEAKER_08 14:33

All right. Um I'll make a motion to accept the director's report.

SPEAKER_05 14:39

Motion to accept. Second.

SPEAKER_08 14:42

Any discussion? Hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Aye. Okay. Correspondence.

SPEAKER_00 14:49

Um, Sue Burns and Rednation letter. Um, you all have that, do you? Sue Burns is no longer.

SPEAKER_06 14:59

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 15:01

Um, so that's just her letter.

SPEAKER_08 15:08

Is she okay? Has anyone spoken to her?

SPEAKER_02 15:10

Yeah, all the time. Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_08 15:16

Uh okay. Minutes. Let's go through the minutes.

SPEAKER_00 15:33

I have the breakfast sign-up sheet if anybody. We're we're pretty good for the next few, anyway. Sure. Me and Peggy. Peggy was the sign up.

SPEAKER_02 15:41

Peggy? Peggy and me.

SPEAKER_08 15:43

Peggy and I. No. No. I don't know. Grammar was not my strong choice.

SPEAKER_02 15:51

No, I'm I was just Oh, oh, oh, okay.

SPEAKER_01 15:54

I don't know what the right word is. It depends on who's saying it. If you're saying it, if you're saying it.

SPEAKER_08 16:06

I can't tell you if there's anything wrong with the minutes because I wasn't here. But I will.

SPEAKER_02 16:12

My name's well right.

SPEAKER_00 16:16

I've been focusing on it.

SPEAKER_02 16:19

Perfectly fine after like sixty years, I think. I'm used to it. Yeah, you can't get a person. Actually, you did help me set the table, set up the tables.

SPEAKER_08 16:55

I did. And I put I put the the plastic layer on the wrong side of the plate, if you recall.

SPEAKER_02 17:13

Twenty of eight, quarter of eight, arrow.

SPEAKER_01 17:16

I'm here at eight.

SPEAKER_02 17:19

Don't tell me that somebody early. You don't have to because you can sit down today.

SPEAKER_08 17:27

Could you rephrase that?

SPEAKER_02 17:28

I know.

Friends Group At Risk Of Dissolving

SPEAKER_03 17:29

She thought she was telling us that she had just scanned somebody in. She said they caught it just in time. Yeah, the person that was on the phone in the back of the bag. They kept telling me.

SPEAKER_02 17:58

The scam. The scanners.

SPEAKER_05 18:02

It's still happening. And they said it.

SPEAKER_00 18:08

New scanners. Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 18:11

The phone phone is what drives me crazy. My house phone gets no phone calls other than telemarketers. And it starts exactly and it's it starts exactly at 801.

unknown 18:24

Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 18:25

And it stops at 858.

SPEAKER_02 18:28

Why do you have your house phone?

SPEAKER_08 18:30

Well I went to Comcast and I said, take this off my bill. Make a part of it. He said, Well, you've got a very old package. It's a very good package. If we take that off, you're out of the package and you will lose HBO and you will lose certain stuff. And then for a new package for the same thing, it'll cost you twice as much. Can't you just turn the ringer off? Yeah. Can't you just turn the ranger off? Well, I'm going, I did I took all the phones out except the one in the kitchen, because it's a caption phone.

SPEAKER_06 18:59

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_08 19:00

The federal government supplies them, we don't pay anything for it. Right. Just in case, because occasionally if I have to call my wife and I'm not there, she doesn't she can't hear me.

SPEAKER_06 19:10

Right.

SPEAKER_08 19:10

She can read it on there. Yeah. Always good to hear how much. But that's it. It's just unbelievable.

SPEAKER_05 19:16

Yeah, I don't get many at all. Probably because my phone number's on listed and unpublished.

SPEAKER_08 19:21

Whatever. Are we all set with the uh minutes? Yeah. Then I make a motion. We accept the minutes from the November meeting. Any discussion? Hearing none. All in favor? Aye. It is unanimous. Old business.

SPEAKER_00 19:38

Um, the friend group, they are dissolving.

SPEAKER_08 19:42

Okay. I got a phone call, a desperate phone call. Um Pat Riley.

SPEAKER_00 19:48

Yeah, she wants to do that.

SPEAKER_08 19:50

Please don't let them dissolve that committee. She said those things take a long time to set up. If the people who are doing it, and I'm just advanced, I wasn't I wasn't in the But I was a member and I just can't get there. If the people who are the officers don't want to do it anymore, elect somebody different, but please, please, please, she said, don't do it. And she reminded me of something, and you may remember this. I think it was West Bridgewater. And a beautiful modern facility. I mean, I don't know if it was you know two years old or ten years old, but a very modern facility. It was completely built by donations of a fundraiser that the friends of uh the COA put together. The town didn't pay a penny to build the building. She said there's so many things that you can do. So I put it out there. I mean, I I I it's not something I can say you've got to do this and so forth. She completely discourages eliminating that.

SPEAKER_00 20:49

So I sent an email to the friends group.

SPEAKER_08 20:52

I saw it, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 20:53

And um there's a couple people that will be with that, and maybe we can see what we can do.

SPEAKER_08 20:59

Revive it.

SPEAKER_02 21:01

But there was one person, I don't know who she is, that commented about yeah. Is this thing on yes? No names, please commented about um that person not wanting to help us when we were trying to renovate and add on here. Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 21:25

Oh, I'm gonna email.

Program Ideas: Trips, Shows, And Casino

SPEAKER_02 21:27

And with that, she didn't want to discuss anything else with her. Yeah. So you know what? I I kind of feel the same way. Yeah. Because she wasn't there at all for us when we were there trying to do something.

SPEAKER_08 21:44

I find that that that that board very rarely offers an opinion on articles. Unless it's something very and and and Dick Chavez was the only one that offered an opinion.

SPEAKER_02 21:57

That's correct. He was the only one that was when we did a celebration.

SPEAKER_08 22:02

He came in, he said hi to me, and I went looking for him when I couldn't stay long.

SPEAKER_02 22:06

I don't know. Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 22:07

But yeah, he was the only one that spoke in our favor.

SPEAKER_02 22:10

Yeah, so that's I mean I I I know, it's it's difficult.

SPEAKER_08 22:13

You know, at one time, and and and people have been here in the town for a long time, at one time the seniors were the group in this town. You you you didn't get elected to anything unless you had the seniors behind you. You didn't get anything done in this, you didn't get a new fire truck, a new police car unless you had the seniors behind you. Well, even though we still, at least the last number that I saw was close to 20% of the population, we don't have the pull that we do anymore. With all this new construction going on, we just don't have the the pull anymore. And it's and it's a shame. And and if you recall at the town meeting when we were voting on it, and I wasn't trying to be funny, I meant it. I told uh I said to everybody, if you're not a senior now, you will be. This is your future. You can be a s. If you're lucky, you will be. Okay, or if people aren't, but if you're anyone now, you're gonna be. So but they didn't choose to put it in, put it in. Plus, they didn't choose to do this the school override either. It's just the way it is.

SPEAKER_01 23:18

You had a meeting, yeah. It's something with the school. The rave meeting? Was it a rave meeting?

SPEAKER_08 23:28

Yeah, the rave meeting is held here every every whenever they have it.

SPEAKER_01 23:31

Yeah, the rave meeting and yet they don't want to do anything for the cities, and yet they can use the building that ordered.

SPEAKER_08 23:37

Oh, but rave rave is not the school system, but it's a volunteer program. It's for the school, but but it's not, you know, it's not for us, it's for the school.

SPEAKER_01 23:49

Yeah, it's for the school.

SPEAKER_08 23:50

They use the building. But but so does uh the does the uh finance committee still use the building as well? And uh historical society still use the building.

SPEAKER_00 23:58

Historical does. Yeah, so parking rack.

SPEAKER_08 24:01

It's it's a uh you know, it's a public building. They're all they're all entitled to use it. But it's it's unfortunate. And and you know, I'd hop like to hope that the future changes, but I don't know, we'll see what happens. Okay. Uh so that's CO. I have to hope that's shut now. Yeah, I I may uh I may uh push my signature. Are they gonna be gonna be seven? Yes. When is that? I'll see if I can't.

SPEAKER_03 24:28

How many people were in that? I don't know about seven.

SPEAKER_08 24:34

You know, the group went formalized. They went through the state to get, you know, you have to get certified or whatever, and numbers and one state. It's a process, it's a process.

SPEAKER_00 24:47

It's a shame that gets dissolved, but they made like what you need a big group.

New Business: Member Nomination Passed

SPEAKER_08 24:52

You need a big group, and you just don't have it in this town. Yeah. You know, and an example of people not getting involved in this town is local elections. I share one. You get 922 people who come out to vote. Yeah, people don't want to get involved. Whatever. All right, I don't want to preach here. Uh program ideas and trips.

SPEAKER_00 25:24

All right, I don't know if anybody has anyone. Um I have the best of time catalog here. Um this is a a show at Lake Pearl. They went to our show today at Lake Pearl. Those seem to be the best ones. The most interested is those shows. Um, so this one's for next June. I didn't see many. What is it? Um Country Jamboree.

SPEAKER_08 25:48

Okay. Is it the beers from Disney? I have that one and then uh it's called, I remember that, because it might be a three times.

SPEAKER_00 25:59

Yeah. Uh the call chips. Oh, that's what we have doing this one. That's the one in July. Yeah. Um, so those are the two I have in my mind. I don't know if anybody wants to look at this if you see anything that would interest anyone. Yeah. Um this is what best of times does. Or if there's any other trips I can look into Bloom, and we just went to a vegan. That was Bloom. Fisher. I don't know. Where do people want to go? I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 26:30

Wait, way back when um around COVID time there was gonna be um something in Rhode Island, I believe, a circuit sole. Okay. And then it got cancelled because of COVID.

SPEAKER_06 26:43

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_02 26:45

Something like that would be a good one.

SPEAKER_08 26:46

I think it might be rescheduled.

SPEAKER_01 26:48

I can tell you that people don't want to stay on a bus for three to four hours. That's what happens when you go like to Maine or to New Hampshire.

SPEAKER_00 26:56

Yeah, especially to that, because it's not like Bloom, you stop and pick up other people. Right.

SPEAKER_01 27:00

Oh. So that's a good thing. And they picked up another senior center.

SPEAKER_00 27:06

Yeah, so we're trying to avoid that.

SPEAKER_08 27:11

You need to fill the bus in order to not have it stop.

SPEAKER_00 27:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 27:15

Excuse me.

Toy Drives And Community Giving

SPEAKER_00 27:16

But they did get a lot of complaints about that from other centers too last year. Right. So they were gonna try to work on it. But yeah, so I'm kind of limiting the long trips. You know, the uh or drive yourself, like the dinners and shows you drive yourself.

SPEAKER_08 27:33

The uh trips to the casino always go pretty well. I I don't know if anyone's been to the local one. We have one right in town now that has over 200 slot machines. Has anybody been there?

SPEAKER_05 27:44

I'm talking about time last year. Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 27:48

No, no one's been there.

SPEAKER_05 27:49

We stopped over there last month when we were coming back from the retirees.

SPEAKER_08 27:57

First light is the translation of Wampanoag.

SPEAKER_05 28:00

Oh, okay.

Chair Announces Retirement From Board

SPEAKER_08 28:01

That's where the name comes from. But it but it's nice. I mean, they come around with with uh drinks. Yeah, they're they're real good. They uh my wife and I were there a couple of weeks ago on a Friday night. They brought out a buffet. Win any money? Huh?

SPEAKER_02 28:17

Win any money?

SPEAKER_08 28:18

Well, not not that particular trip, but three trips before that I was very, very lucky. But uh, they're very cordial, very, very nice, very informal.

SPEAKER_05 28:27

Trying to get every it's mob. The a woman that plays cards with us lives right up the street. She can even hear the music when they were playing the music.

SPEAKER_08 28:35

Yeah, and in the summertime, up up till October, they have a tent area outside people in traffic waiting to get in there. They they they don't serve any booze inside the casino there, but in in the summertime they have that tent and they have music and they have a bar and so forth there. I I I've never frequented it, but I've you know you see it when you go there. As far as inside the casino itself, it's it's small, but you know, they got 200 machines, so not too bad. But again, a trip there, you know, that people might be able to to drive themselves or maybe the bus take you there, but that might be something to look into.

SPEAKER_05 29:10

Yeah, you know, it's people like to gamble when we came walking in, we walked in to see what it was like and everything. People came up to us and were very cordial and wanted to show us around and everything.

SPEAKER_08 29:22

It started out with one trailer that had like ten machines in it.

SPEAKER_05 29:24

Yeah, that's what I had heard.

SPEAKER_08 29:27

I assume they're gonna go forward with the original plan to build build one. Yeah, they are I I can't think of any group who deserves the cooperation of the US government more than any Indian tribe.

SPEAKER_04 29:43

I know we did it too and I think if you want to go go on a Monday or a Tuesday when it's probably less crowded.

SPEAKER_08 29:51

Well, again, if you're retired like me, you go anytime during the day. There's nobody there at 10 in the morning. All right, any well, that was my any other matters. Anyone else got anything else they want to talk about or any other programs or whatever? No, we're probably there for a few hours. No? Okay, moving on. New business. Nominate an associate member to member. Okay, who's who's this who's not the last associate member? Okay. Somebody make a nomination.

SPEAKER_02 30:25

I nominate Peggy Porn.

SPEAKER_08 30:31

Any discussion? Any questions we want to ask her? Do you want to do a background check? I've done that already.

SPEAKER_02 30:38

I know way too much.

SPEAKER_08 30:39

Fingerprints or anything like that. Okay. Okay, then hearing none, all in favor? Aye. Very good.

SPEAKER_02 30:48

Oh now you can vote.

SPEAKER_07 30:50

So you're a voting member. Any other matters?

SPEAKER_05 30:56

I have a question, because I remember a few years ago um we had choice for tarts or whatever for Christmas over here. And I I of course I haven't been well enough to be here to know what was going on, but are they doing it this year? Do they do it, still do it over here?

SPEAKER_08 31:14

We brought some stuff yesterday, the day before.

SPEAKER_02 31:16

At Walmart, weren't they? I think.

SPEAKER_08 31:18

To stuff the truck.

SPEAKER_00 31:20

Yeah, we were over the weekend that Walmart.

SPEAKER_02 31:22

It was over the weekend.

Next Meeting And Executive Session

SPEAKER_08 31:23

Yeah, but uh, you can go to the fire station and bring stuff in there and you take care and so forth. Anyone have anything else? No, okay, then I do. This is going to be my last meeting. I you know, I thought about and I'm going to do that. I've got to obviously send a letter to the board and I'll send it to the the uh select board as well, saying that I was resigning, but I'm not resigning. I'm retiring from the board. Uh the best I can estimate the number of years that I've been on this board is 15. It's probably more than that, but I just if I really wanted to know the date, I could go to uh this the town reports because it always lists who the members are and so forth. But you know how many books there are that to go through. The planning, uh the planning office in town, by the way, if you ever need to look something up, has a complete set back as far as whenever they did the book. But uh yeah, it's time for me to step down. Uh it's more and more difficult to get here. I have a friend who's staying with Linda now. She needs 24-hour care, so I can't get away this often. So uh it's been an honor working with all of you. I wish you the best. I'd be more than happy to support you if you need anything from me in the future. Don't hesitate to ask. But as I said, this will be my last meeting. Uh I'll send the letter into the select board and I can copy you as well before the end of the week. I just haven't had a chance. I was gonna do it this weekend, but they don't have pen and pencils in the hospital right here. They wouldn't give it to me. They had too many, I had too many wires connected to me. But anyway, so uh again, thank you for your support and your help. I appreciate it. Okay, that's the only other thing that I had. The next regularly scheduled meeting is January 6th at 9 30. I make a motion, or you meeting be adjourned, can we go into you didn't put it on here. Like you said, you would. Oh, there we go.

SPEAKER_00 33:34

Executive session and then the topic.

SPEAKER_08 33:37

Okay. We're gonna throw this young lady out and we're gonna go into executive session.