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In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Piedmont Senior Resources Area Agency on Aging (PSR) has received more than $730,000 in federal aid to help keep older adults across the seven-county area safe and secure.

The money was approved by the U.S. Congress through the Families First Coronavirus Act (FFCRA) and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

“This money is coming to us from the federal government because we are the designated Area Agency on Aging for the counties of Amelia, Buckingham, Charlotte, Cumberland, Nottoway, Lunenburg and Prince Edward,” Interim CEO Thomas Jordan Miles III said. “There is no local match with this money, unlike with our standard Older Americans Act funds where there is a required local 10% match.”

The FFCRA funds are strictly for home meal delivery, per restrictions placed on the funds by the Congress, which means more frozen and hot meals for older adults ages 60 and over.

“Through the FFCRA, and part of the CARES Act, we are able to really ramp up our traditional frozen meal program, and begin the delivery of hot, nutritious meals from local restaurants in an effort to support these small businesses when they are suffering immensely,” Miles said.

Besides more home delivered meals, the CARES Act funding will result in a wide, temporary expansion of programs and services, including the homemaker/companion aid program, the purchasing of more personal protective equipment for clients, such as gloves and masks, the ability to complete more additional small, home projects, more services from the care coordination program, additional funds for check-in calls for isolated seniors, money providing for emergency services, such as temporary housing, purchase of groceries and medicine for older adults, and additional resources for PSR’s Long-Term Care Ombudsman to help those in nursing and rehabilitation facilities communicate with their loved ones during quarantine.

“These federal funds will not only help PSR meet its mission of advocating, advancing and achieving independence for the aging community, but help keep our older adults in this community well as we operate under the tight grip of COVID-19,” Miles said. “Our staff is willing and able to expand our services to more older adults. Though our offices are not open to the public, our staff members are working full time for the aging community using more innovation and novelty now more than ever.”

For more information on PSR’s programming and services, call 1-(434) 767-5588 or email psr@psraaa.org.