SERVICES

Serving Our Seniors is dedicated to helping Erie County Seniors maintain their independence. All Serving Our Seniors programs are designed as the services of last resort. We will not duplicate a program to help senior citizens if one already exists. Instead, we make every effort to assist eligible clients to enroll in the existing program. If no program exists to fulfill the older person’s needs, those who qualify, will be helped through Serving Our Seniors programs.

Serving Our Seniors provides numerous services and programs to help Erie County residents, aged 60 or older to maintain their health and functional independence. The listing below of Serving Our Seniors’ services includes some, but not all, of Serving Our Seniors’ services. For more information, please call 419-624-1856. Click on Upcoming Events for dates and locations for current programs.

Cost Sharing Partnership Program

Serving Our Seniors’ Cost Sharing Partnership Program provides financial assistance to Erie County residents aged 60+, who are facing financial barriers. Cost Sharing makes the following unmet needs affordable:

See Housekeeping below ( under Living in Your Own Home)
See Handyman / small home repairs below ( under Living in Your Own Home)
See Ramps below ( under Living in Your Own Home)
See Disposable underwear (call 419-624-1856)
See General Dental Care below (under Health)

For those who qualify, Serving Our Seniors pays a portion for that service or product to prevent a financial hardship. An application and proof of income are required for the Cost Sharing Partnership Program. For more information, call Serving Our Seniors at 419-624-1856.

Financial Assistance for Urgent Needs
Financial assistance is available through the Piggy Bank Fund and the Ray and Marian Koch Fund for those who qualify.

Problem Solving and Advocacy

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Getting Started—the Problem Solving Program

When Erie County residents, aged 60+, are not sure where to turn to for help… Call Serving Our Seniors. Through its Problem Solving & Advocacy Program, Serving Our Seniors helps older adults find answers to questions and solve problems they may face in later life. We connect people to the right programs, services and the right person who can help. If extra help is needed, a Senior Advocate can meet with older adults, in person, to help with more difficult problems. This service is free of charge. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Consumer Protection Advocate Program

Serving Our Seniors provides public record searches to help you identify if the person you are considering for hire has a history with law enforcement and or the court system. Serving Our Seniors will share with Erie County residents, aged 60+ the public record information about the person found in our public records search for the purposes of preventing a fraud attempt or a theft. This service is free of charge. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Grandparents Raising Grandchildren

Serving Our Seniors supports and empowers grandparents, who are Erie County residents, aged 60+, raising their grandchildren. Those who participate learn they are not alone and receive moral support from other grandparents and counseling professionals. Grandparents learn how to deal with difficult behaviors of children, how to communicate so kids will listen, and build friendships while taking part in a social and recreation atmosphere. This service is free of charge. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856. Ask for Dianna.

Health

Affordable Dental Care

Serving Our Seniors provides funding, up to $600, for general dental care to Erie County residents, aged 60+. Through Serving Our Seniors’ Cost Sharing Partnership Program, Serving Our Seniors pays a portion of the total cost of the general dental care, to prevent a financial hardship. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

.Hearing Aids
Let Serving Our Seniors help you apply for free hearing aids through the Miracle Ear Foundation. Call 419-624-1856 and ask for application assistance.

Medication Assistance
Call Serving Our Seniors (419-624-1856) for help affording your prescription medications. We can help you cut prescription drug costs by working with doctors, pharmaceutical companies, Social Security Extra Help, and finding lower-cost Medicare prescription drug plans.

Help With Medicare

Serving Our Seniors has part-time, certified Medicare counselors to help Erie County residents, aged 60+, make sense out of Medicare. By meeting with a Medicare counselor, older adults learn the different Medicare insurance plans work, compare their insurance options, discover which insurance plans offer extra “perks” / special benefits and the cost of coverage is also explained. Retirees can also learn if there is a Medicare Savings Program to reduce the cost for Medicare coverage.

Serving Our Seniors does not sell insurance. Our counselors provide free, unbiased, education to help you choose the Medicare coverage that is right for you. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Understanding Medicare Part D
Medicare Part D is prescription drug coverage. Don’t assume that that the Medicare Part D policy you have this year will work the same for you next year. It can be a daunting task to annually compare and contrast which Medicare Part D policy will cover you/your medications best — and at what cost. Please call for a Medicare Part D appointment discuss which Medicare Part D drug plan works best for you at 419-624-1856. Open Enrollment is Oct 15 through Dec 7 of each year.

Living in Your Own Home

Rural Home Delivered Meals

This program provides nutritional support for Erie County residents, aged 60 +, who live outside the Sandusky city limits. To qualify, an older adult must be at nutritional risk due to insufficient funds for food, physical decline, or cognitive impairment. Participants receive either four hot meals delivered weekly plus one frozen meal; or five frozen meals delivered once per week. Rural Home Delivered Meals are available at the cost of an anonymous donation. Those who are unable to donate will still receive the meal. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Ramps

Home Ramps

Serving Our Seniors provides temporary, ADA-compliant, metal ramps to qualifying Erie County residents aged 60 +, who are unable to enter or exit their homes safely, due to a functional limitation. The purpose of the Ramp Program is to assist older adults who are living independently, in their own home or apartment, to maintain their independence. Temporary ramps are installed at the permanent address of older adults who need a ramp.

Older caregivers, who may be caring for their spouse or an adult child, in the home where the older adult lives, is also eligible for a ramp.

The temporary ramp remains the property of Serving Our Seniors, Inc. The resident is responsible for the cost of installation. Through Serving Our Seniors’ Cost Sharing Partnership Program, a reduction on the cost of installation is available to those who qualify. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Housekeeping Program

Serving Our Seniors provides basic housekeeping services to Erie County residents aged 60+. This service supports older adults with housekeeping tasks, so s/he can maintain their ability to continue living independently. Designed to assist older adults who are limited in their ability to keep their home clean and safe, the Housekeeping Program does not move furniture, vacuum upholstery, dust trinkets & knick-knacks. Through Serving Our Seniors’ Cost Sharing Partnership Program, a reduction on the cost of housekeeping services is available to those who qualify. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Those who would like to use the Housekeeping Program, as a convenience, may do so at the older adult’s own expense.

Handyman Program

Serving Our Seniors provides handyman repairs, minor home modifications and maintenance services to homes owned by Erie County residents aged 60+. Fall prevention modification may be made to rental property, with the landlord’s permission. The purpose of the Handyman Program is to keep the home safe and sanitary. It also serves to keep a small repair small, so the repair problem does not becomes a large, expensive repair. Home repairs are limited to $400 in a calendar month. Plumbing repairs are limited to $650 in a calendar month. Through Serving Our Seniors’ Cost Sharing Partnership Program, a reduction on the cost of small home repairs is available to those who qualify.

NOTE: Electrical repairs, cosmetic improvements, appliance repairs and structural repairs are not available through the Handyman Program. On a case-by-case basis, unique circumstances may be considered. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Transportation

Weekday Transportation

Serving Our Seniors helps Erie County residents, aged 60+ ride the Sandusky Transit System for $1.50 per 1-way trip, when traveling within Sandusky Transit System’s (STS) transportation service zones. There is no application fee for the reduce bus fare. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Through Serving Our Seniors’ Cost Sharing Partnership Program, a further reduction in bus fare is available to those who qualify. Eligible older adults may use Sandusky Transit System for .50¢ per one-way trip. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

If you have never used public transportation before and would like assistance becoming accustomed to how the Sandusky Transit System works, let us help you. It is easier than you think. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Out of Town Transportation for Health Care Appointments

Serving Our Seniors provides transportation to out-of-town health care appointments for qualifying, independently functioning, Erie County residents, aged 60+. There is an enrollment process to determine eligibility. To schedule your ride requires at least 1 week of advanced planning. Out of Town Transportation to Health Care Appointments travels as far as Toledo or Cleveland and anywhere in between. Under unique circumstances, some volunteers will drive farther distances within the State of Ohio. We do not travel outside of Ohio. Transportation is available at the cost of a donation. A donation is not required, but appreciated. For more information call Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.

Reporting Financial Elder Abuse

Take action to protect older adults from suspected financial elder abuse. If you suspect it, report it to: Adult Protective Services of Erie County 419-626-5437; Erie County Prosecutor’s Office 419-627-7697; or Serving Our Seniors 419-624-1856.