A directory aimed at assisting the community’s seniors has recently been put out by Hospice of Wrangell.
Finished last month, the 2018 Wrangell Senior Resource Directory identifies various support services that could be of use to members of that demographic, running a full gamut of state, tribal, federal, municipal and private programming.
The 32-page guide is exhaustive, covering subjects from emergency and safety to adult education, financial services, housing assistance, medical cost resources, nutritional aid, ecumenical counseling and legal help. Each entry comes with an explanation of the services being offered and who might qualify, has contact information best suited to residents of Wrangell and offers some helpful advice on how to seek out particular means of assistance.
Alice Rooney put the latest edition together, an update from 2016. The latest guide is the fourth edition since it was first compiled in 1997.
“At that point I was actively a social worker,” Rooney explained. During her work she noticed many residents were not fully aware of the various services available to them. Rooney began arranging a compilation of resources, and soon found a number she had not been aware of herself.
While Hospice of Wrangell curates the guide, Wrangell Medical Center has contributed funds for printing out physical copies. A reference copy is available for use at the hospital lobby, and take-home manuals are by the hospice display near the laboratory
entrance. Copies are also
available at Wrangell Senior Center, and Rooney has distributed the booklet at the hospital’s annual health fair. An online copy of the manual is available at the Wrangell municipal website, http://www.wrangell.com/community/senior-resource-directory.
“Hospice also puts out a second booklet,” Rooney added, dealing with final arrangements and end-of-life information. Similar to the larger resource directory, this booklet more specifically lays out options available to those nearing life’s end or their loved ones.
When the unthinkable does occur unexpectedly, Rooney explained, it can be a trying time for family members to figure out burial services and estate disposal. The booklet provides options for these, but also offers resources for coping with personal loss and other mental health considerations.
This second booklet is also available at the hospital’s hospice display.
Hospice of Wrangell is a volunteer nonprofit dedicated to assisting the community’s elders and their families, particularly at their end of life. Its services include its Loan Closet program, which loans out home medical equipment at no cost, as well as putting on informational presentations and distributing guides such as those mentioned. For more information, see its site at http://www.chamberorganizer.com/wrangellchamber/mem_HospiceofWRG
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