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Date: 11/3/2021
CHESTER — New Council on Aging Director Ann Daley is planning a Veterans Day Luncheon at the Chester Common Table on Nov. 11 at noon.
Chester veterans of all ages along with a guest are invited to the catered meal, which is being “proudly” sponsored and paid for by the Council on Aging, she said. The menu is salad, dinner rolls, beef roast served with stewed vegetables, lemon parmesan chicken breast served over rice with mixed vegetables, and a cookie and brownie dessert plate.
Daley is asking veterans to contact the COA by Nov. 6 to reserve a place at the luncheon for themselves and their guest by calling 354-7735 or emailing coa@townofchester.net.
She said she was not able to reach out directly to all of the veterans in Chester, because she was not able to get a contact list from Northampton Veterans Services, with which Chester contracts for veterans services. Daley also just started as COA director on Oct. 26.
“[It’s] a very new hat as director,” she said. Instead, she has been reaching out through people that she knows in town, and putting notices in the paper and on Facebook.
The Council on Aging director’s position became available when Angelique Toroni stepped down as both COA director and librarian soon after mold was discovered in the Hamilton Public Library in September, leaving two key positions open in town.
“The small towns are struggling in so many ways. It’s a challenge all the time,” said Town Administrator Katherine Warden.
A new director for the library hasn’t been hired. Warden said first the town has to resolve the mold issues, which the library’s trustees are working on.
“We’ve got to get this straightened before we can focus on something else,” she said.
“We are currently making repairs to the ceiling and removing the rug. Then mold remediation will take place,” said Terry Donovan, town clerk and president of the trustees. “After that, we are either replacing the rug or redoing the wood floor, and then we will be looking to hire another library director. We feel we need to take care of the issues with the mold before actively looking for a director.”
Daley said even though she just started in a leadership role, she has been a member of the Council on Aging for a long time, working with the COA and pinch-hitting on various issues. She said she has an array of people who have offered to help if needed.
Besides the luncheon, she will be coordinating the monthly brown bag meal program and grab-and-go meals on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays with the Highland Valley Elder Service, and a monthly foot clinic with nurses out of Greenfield.
“We have a very limited space,” Daley said, referring to the COA meeting in a room on the bottom floor of the Town Hall. She said the town has been looking for a new space for them for a while.
This will be the first year the COA will be hosting the Veterans Luncheon at the Chester Common Table.
“This will be the first activity for members since COVID [-19] shut us all down. We’re hopeful,” Daley said.
Blandford vets dinner
The Blandford COA is hosting its Veterans Appreciation dinner on Nov. 13, at 5 p.m. at Town Hall. The dinner is free for Blandford veterans, and the COA is accepting donations for others who may wish to attend. Those who wish to participate are asked to call the COA at 848-4279, ext. 400, and leave their name and how many will be attending by Nov. 6.
Huntington meal pickup
Kathleen Peterson, director of the Huntington COA, said they will host a drive-through prime rib dinner on Nov. 13 in the same way as they did last year during the COVID-19 pandemic. Invitations are sent out to veterans in the community via postcards. Veterans are asked to call 512-5205 and say how many meals are needed.
“We are able to serve more meals with this process,” Peterson said, adding they found that younger veterans are more likely to take advantage of the drive-through pickup. She called the meals “our appreciation for their service.”