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OKLAHOMA CAPITOL -- A series of public hearings will be held across the state in May to allow older Oklahomans and other interested citizens to have input into the state’s plan for development and delivery of aging services funded through the federal Older Americans Act.
Sponsored by the Oklahoma Department of Human Services Aging Services Division and local area agencies on aging, information and comments submitted during the hearings will be used to develop the state’s plan of service delivery for the next four years, said Carey Garland, OKDHS Interim Director of Aging Services.
“Our federal funding partner requires that we go to the people who will be receiving services to include them in the process of developing our goals and plans for service delivery,” Garland said. “We believe this grassroots approach is essential to ensuring that Oklahoma’s plan meets the needs of older Oklahomans and their families.”
Participants in the 2006 Oklahoma Conference on Aging will have the first opportunity to attend a hearing. A public hearing is being held in conjunction with Senior Day activities as a part of the 31st annual conference that will be held at the Reed Conference Center, Midwest City, located just off I-40 and Sooner Road. The hearing is set for 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 3rd, following the meeting of the State Council on Aging.
A hearing will be held in Tulsa beginning at 11 a.m. Wednesday, May 17th, at 111 S. Greenwood, Suite 200. It is sponsored by the Tulsa Area Agency on Aging and is a box lunch event. The hearing will be held in the 2nd floor conference rooms A, B, and C and last about two hours. Contact the area agency at 918-596-7688 for more information.
A public hearing is set for 10 a.m., May 19, at the Rolling Hills Nutrition Site located at 20 South 200th Street, Tulsa, a section of the city that is actually in Waggoner County which is a part of the Eastern Oklahoma Development District Area Agency on Aging located in Muskogee. EODD is the sponsoring agency and can be reach for more information at 1-918-682-7891.
The public is invited to attend a hearing on May 23rd, from 10 a.m. until noon at the Red River Technological Center Economic Development Building located at 3300 West Bois D'arc in Duncan Oklahoma. Their number is 580-255-2903. The hearing is hosted by the Association of South Central Oklahoma Governments (ASCOG) Area Agency on Aging in Duncan and can be reached at 1-800-658-1466.
All the hearing locations are accessible to persons with handicapping conditions and interpreters can be available if required. Those needing this type of accommodation are encouraged to contact the numbers listed above to make planners aware of the need, said Beth Batman, OKDHS Aging Services Division supervisor, who is leading the development of the statewide plan.
Batman said written comments will be accepted for one week following each of the public hearings.
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