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Over the course of December, the Office for the Aging is distributing free care packages and donated gifts to a record number of seniors across the county through its Santa for Seniors program.
The longstanding program is designed to provide support and personal interactions for seniors with limited financial resources and who may lack family support. Community members then sponsor seniors, donating items from each senior’s wish list to the OFA for wrapping and delivering.
According to Elizabeth Weimer, Senior Aging Services Specialist at the OFA and the primary coordinator for the drive, the agency received 245 nominations for their Santa for Seniors program this year during the application window of October 1 through November 13. “The need is greater than ever,” Weimer told iHeart Oswego. She related how the applications focused primarily on food—not the gifts that are the traditional focus of the program. “When the SNAP benefits went away, these seniors were panicking.”
Weimer also held a food drive on her personal time, putting together 300 meal kits and then delivering them door-to-door to families in need.
Normally, the OFA caps the Santa for Seniors at 150 recipients, with their previously largest year seeing approximately 140 seniors in the program. However, Weimer said the scale of the need and the nature of the asks this year encouraged her to continue accepting seniors well beyond their traditional limit. Many focused on asks for blankets, including electric blankets, because of concerns about affording heat due to delays in the HEAP program’s funding.
Luckily, the community was ready to meet the record-setting need.
“This year, we’ve seen a lot more generosity than ever,” Weimer said. “I put just one ask on my social media for sponsors and had a huge response from it.”
In addition to the donated gifts from community members, the OFA also has hygiene kits and two shelf-stable meals to give to each senior on their list.
Deliveries began on Monday, December 15 in Oswego. On Wednesday, Weimer and several other staff members from the OFA delivered gifts to nominated seniors living in Fulton Mills Apartments. On hand to assist with the delivery was newly elected Oswego County Legislator Joe Arduini, whose district includes the apartment building. Arduini will be sworn in on January 1st.
“This is our Christmas,” Weimer told iHeart Oswego, indicating herself and fellow OFA staff member Kim Briest. “Neither of us have family around, so this is what we do.”
We love to see the incredible support for our county’s seniors! If you would like to support the OFA on their next community initiative, reach out to the agency by calling 315-349-3484 or email ofa@oswegocounty.com.
