- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Lucerne Alpine Senior Center names new executive director; appeal of nutrition contract termination planned
LUCERNE, Calif. – The Lucerne Alpine Senior Center has hired a new executive director who plans to appeal a decision handed down late last month that ended the center’s nutritional services contract.
Rae Eby-Carl accepted the executive director position from the center’s board of directors on Monday, March 4, succeeding Robert Clifton.
Eby-Carl has many years of experience managing programs, meeting guidelines and monitoring service quality.
She served for 13 years as the senior deputy director of Lake Family Resource Center, a position she left earlier this year, and also was with Lake County Juvenile Hall for 12 years.
“Eby-Carl’s experience in administering programs was a prime factor in placing her at this critical time for the center,” said Lucerne Alpine Senior Center Board Chair Ted Shimizu.
The board for the Area Agency on Aging of Lake and Mendocino Counties terminated the Lucerne senior center’s $66,000 annual contract for nutritional and outreach services at its meeting on Thursday, Feb. 28, after a state auditor determined that the center was a “high risk” food provider, as Lake County News has reported.
After the decision, Clifton told Lake County News that the center didn’t plan to appeal the decision, which goes into effect at the end of March.
It was anticipated at that point that the center would no longer provide Meals on Wheels services, with the Lakeport and Clearlake Oaks senior centers pledging to step up and cover the more than 100 people for whom the program had provided nearly 16,000 meals since last July.
However, on Monday, Eby-Carl said that upon taking the executive director’s position she immediately began exploring an appeal of the Area Agency on Aging board’s decision.
“I worked with the board and listened to what mattered to them, and this is just much too important of an issue not to go through the appeal process,” Eby-Carl told Lake County News.
The appeal is expected to be heard this month, Eby-Carl said.
At last month’s Area Agency on Aging Board meeting, it was noted that the appeal process – which has been rarely used – would be handled by an independent hearing board.
Eby-Carl said the center is correcting all reported deficiencies in the nutritional program.
Going forward the center’s nutritional program will follow dietary guidelines and meet expectations of government agencies, including the Lake County Health Department, California Department of Aging, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture, she said.
The center expects a fair hearing with the Area Agency on Aging and will present all corrections and plans for monitoring services closely, Eby-Carl said.
More than a third of seniors have incomes below the federal poverty level and count on quality nutrition through programs like Lucerne Alpine Senior Center, she said.
While Eby-Carl said meals to Northshore seniors could be provided from other areas, she emphasized the importance of the center itself, which she said is at the heart of the nutritional program. It’s also a place where seniors can socialize.
“People come in there to eat and the contacts are important, and knowing the contacts are nearby, I think, is very important,” she said.
According to Area Agency on Aging figures, since last July the center has served 2,658 congregate meals to 156 individuals.
As such, Eby-Carl said reducing hunger and food insecurity will continue to be goals of the center, which wants to continue to offer Meals on Wheels services to the Northshore.
She said the center’s dedicated staff and volunteers are committed to healthy and nutritious meals as well as outreach services.
Lunches are served on site Monday through Friday, as well as breakfasts on Saturday. A food pantry is available for emergency nutrition needs.
As part of National Nutrition Month, Eby-Carl said the center is taking part in local efforts to fund Meals on Wheels.
She said donation cans in Northshore communities will be available for collecting funds, with all donations going to Meals on Wheels.
For more information about the center, call Eby-Carl at 707-274-8779.
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