JUSTIN COOK The Roanoke Times

Margaret DeHart (left) and Susan Kraft help Ruby Epperly put rubber gloves on to help clean up after a Friendship Cafe meeting for seniors at the Christiansburg Recreation Center. The cafes are set up throughout the area to provide hot meals to seniors in a social environment two to three days a week.

| Mary Hardbarger

PULASKI -- The New River Valley Agency on Aging advisory council hosted a public hearing Tuesday, yet the public was nowhere to be seen.

Council members, along with the agency's executive director, Tina King, gathered for the quarterly meeting to discuss the area plan for the upcoming fiscal year.

Awareness of the agency in the area has become a major concern for King and the council.

"In the spring, I posted information on the agency on the town of Blacksburg Web site and asked for feedback," King said. "I heard from one person."

In the plan outlined Tuesday, four new initiatives were addressed.

One initiative introduced satellite offices throughout the New River Valley, specifically in Floyd and Giles counties.

"We don't have an established presence in these areas," King said. "We need to increase our visibility and accessibility to the public."

The agency has been serving Montgomery, Giles, Pulaski and Floyd counties and the city of Radford since 1975 and provides numerous services and programs for the elderly. The greatest needs involve homemaker services, which provide some respite care and light housekeeping for elders.

Lewis Barnett, a Blacksburg representative and chairman of the agency's advisory council, recognizes the need for more funding to shrink the waiting list for this service -- which has grown to 94.

"Our PR is a weak point," Barnett said. "It's a tragedy, this underservice of people."

One solution the agency has implemented to increase funding and raise the senior voice is a "branding" project.

They have hired Carol Huntley-Weber, a professional consultant, to work with staff members and board member Susan Anderson, who is also a Blacksburg town council member, to research information and work with a graphic artist to create an official agency logo.

Richard Harshberger, who represents Radford and sits on its city council, expressed interest in sponsoring more discussions and informational sessions on the needs of the elderly.

"I've entertained the thought of holding a public hearing in each county," King said. "There's no way we could get the council and the board to each site, but we could at least have an area representative there to hear thoughts and concerns."

Other projects under way include the opening of a new Friendship Cafe in Shawsville.

These cafes are set up throughout the area to provide hot meals to seniors in a social environment two to three days a week.

Joyce Light, coordinator of the Christiansburg Friendship Cafe, oversees the weekly gatherings and recognizes their importance.

"Most of the seniors who attend live by themselves and don't get out a lot," Light said. "They really enjoy it here and I've seen a lot of good come out of it."

With more advertising and proactivity by the agency, Light hopes attendance at the cafes will rise.

Fundraising and diversity are also on the top of the agency's agenda. King plans to reach out further to local health care providers and law enforcement to continue offering quality services.

"My hope is to find the right sponsors and get in line," King said. "You're not going to get anything if you don't ask."