Alexander Cain
The Baldwin County AARP Chapter No. 5387 met at Crockett’s Cafeteria for lunch as part of its regular monthly meeting Thursday afternoon.
While AARP may sometimes seem to older citizens as something that marks a transition period that could limit the possibilities of daily life, AARP actually does much for senior citizens, which includes those in the Milledgeville/Baldwin County area, according to Baldwin County AARP president Dennette Odum Jackson.
“We’re very active. The Baldwin County AARP chapter helps to inform citizens of the benefits available to them,” Jackson said.
As part of that information, each time the Baldwin County AARP meets there is a speaker to provide information and insight on topics AARP members may be forced to deal with in their daily lives.
Thursday’s meeting featured Pamela Roshell, president/CEO of the Macon office of Family Care Solutions, a company that provides homecare services such as nursing, personal care and companion services.
Roshell spoke on the lobbying being undertaken by organizations such as hers and how the rights and needs of seniors were being looked out for on a state and federal level.
“We do state level advocacy, but we also do work on a federal level. One of our major issues this year is health care reform,” Roshell said. “We want to see improvements in America’s health care system.”
The speaker for May’s Baldwin AARP meeting spoke on home safety tips, according to Jackson.
“AARP shows how old you are and that you’ve lived this long,” AARP Baldwin member Katherine Bray joked. “We do a lot for the community. We give food every Monday for the food pantry and we do volunteer work within the community.
Roshell provided documentation from AARP that estimated AARP Georgia has more than 1,051,000 members.
Each of those members tries to keep a strong tie to the community and help out those in need, according to Bray.
“We do a lot of volunteer work. You really enjoy meeting people from other parts of the community,” Bray said.
In the Milledgeville/Baldwin County area, the Baldwin AARP chapter has met a lot of friendly faces, Jackson said.
“We bring canned goods for the food pantry; we help the Georgia War Veterans Home and give donations to them. We also visit the local nursing homes,” Jackson said. “We have a day of service each year where we provide cookies and pizza for the local fire department and sheriff’s department. We also take items to the children’s ward of the hospital.”
The whole idea is to help others and “stay informed,” Jackson said.
Originally founded in 1958, AARP describes itself as a “nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization that helps people 50 and over improve the quality of their lives.”
AARP has more than 40 million members and has offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The group is the nation’s largest membership organization for people 50 and over. The Baldwin County Chapter was founded more than five years ago and received its charter around three years ago.
