BETTER THAN HEARSAY - Meals, Money and Melee

By Michael Ryan

WINDHAM - There was no lack of compassion expressed, earlier this week, when Greene County officials visited a meeting of the WAJPL Golden Agers, discussing the county’s Home Meals program.

There was no gentle answer, however, for what to do about the controversy swirling around dispersal of the meals, recently resulting in hundreds of clients being removed from the eligibility list.

County officials have acknowledged the removals could have been handled better, happening in many instances without notification or warning.

Having said that, officials also say it boils down to money and changes in eligibility rules beyond their control at the federal and state levels.

Those changes, officials say, are rooted in the requirements being waived and more dollars being made available during the pandemic, wanting to keep citizens safely separated.

Two years ago, the requirements - and the federal funding - returned to pre-pandemic norms. County officials further acknowledge the local Department of Aging did not update its records. Until now.

A new director, Amanda Lyons, was appointed and reportedly given a directive to fine-tooth-comb the books, discovering the agency was overspending, including within the Home Meals program.

Lyons found, “a lot of things costing a ton of money that maybe we didn’t need to be doing,” county legislature chairman Patrick Linger said.

County administrator Shaun Groden says Lyons merely did her job and did it well, cutting back on meals to folks no longer legally eligible.

“We had roughly 150 people in the program before the pandemic, increased to around 400 during Covid and today its back to that 150,” Groden says.

“Essentially, anybody who asked was getting home meals. When covid ended, that plan ended. The county never adjusted,” Groden says.

Federal reimbursement is provided, as much as $600,000 in a $1.9 million budget, covering only folks who meet the strict guidelines, which officials again acknowledge can seem out of touch with basic human realities involving the elderly.

Which is where the controversy has erupted. County legislature member Daryl Legg (District 7, Hunter, Lexington, Halcott), raised the issue at a legislative session, last month.

“We have six or eight people up here who really need this and we’re cutting them off,” Legg said. “I have constituents telling me this is a life-saving thing for them so yes, I’m fired up.”

“I”m hearing different stories from people about what’s going on here, and what people are being told,” Legg said. “I don’t want to bash the county.

“But I have a question. What is everyone so afraid the State will do to us if we take care of these people and eat the cost? I don’t think it’s the big gloom and doom everyone claims it will be,” Legg said.

Lyons made it clear that the county could provide meals to people who did not technically match the requirements, but there would be no federal reimbursement, putting the extra expense on local taxpayers.

Conversations on the issue have subsequently taken place at a legislative workshop where a vote was taken on the county picking up the tab for some folks who had extenuating circumstances.

There were some “yes” votes but not enough, which is how the controversy spread to the WAJPL senior citizens gathering, this past Monday.

County officials, including Lyons and Groden, were present, along with Legg and fellow lawmaker Sherry True, the chairwoman of the County Services committee which oversees the Department of Aging.

Lyons broke down the fiscal facts, then opened the floor to questions that swiftly focused on a 102-year-old mountaintop resident no longer strictly eligible for the program, as well as others.

“They feel neglected, angry,” town of Hunter resident Diann Terns-Thorpe said. “They have paid their taxes their whole lives. It is incomprehensible that Greene County cannot afford to give them food.”

Terns-Thorpe spoke forcefully, yet peaceably. That mood abruptly shifted when the son of the 102-year-old resident, and Hunter resident Andrea Legg, offered their thoughts on the matter.

Emotions rose as the son directed his displeasure toward Groden and Lyons for what he said was the inexcusable treatment of his mother.

“There is a lot of misinformation out there. You can’t expect us to come to a meeting and get yelled at,” Lyons said, noting the centurion is again being provided with meals.

Andrea Legg, echoing the son’s intensity said, “we should be talking about what we are going to do, not what we should be taking away.”

She then sent a jolt through the room, saying she had heard the county was shutting down the Department of Aging, abandoning the needy.

Groden, vociferously responding, said, “no, that is wrong, wrong,” later saying he was strongly defending the county against baseless rumors.

The discussions pretty much ended on that note with one gentleman in the crowd drolly stating, “thank you for the entertainment.”

Exact numbers on how many citizens are impacted and how much added money would have to come out of county coffers are not yet clear.

More talks could occur and meanwhile, “that has been part of our concerns, trying to figure out who they are and where they are,” Lyons said.

“If the legislature wants to set new policy and get these meals out, we would be happy to do so,” Lyons said.

“There is a lot of confusion out there about these programs,” Linger said. “Unfortunately, this particular program was meant to fight isolation with homebound residents and senior citizens.

“The meals were just a way to get in the door. We could maybe expand the criteria and make exceptions, but where do we stop? That’s the process we’re in. The county is not ignoring this,” Linger said.