Absence of food program at Senior Center felt

In January 2024, the Concordia Senior Center ended its 49-year partnership with the North Central-Flint Hills Area Agency on Aging's (NC-FH AAA) Friendship Meals program. That action, and the NC-FH AAA's response, led to the suspension of meals offered at the senior center, and suspension of the Meals on Wheels program in Concordia.

The absence of the food program was felt immediately. In 2022, the senior center had served 12,547 meals.

On January 22, Althea Sicard, Richard Hubert, and Nancy Reynolds spoke to county commissioners about ongoing issues with the senior center and a problematic relationship with the NC-FH AAA, which serves an 18-county area.

Sicard is the president of the senior center board. Hubert is the county coordinator for the Commission on Aging and works with all five senior centers in Cloud County. Reynolds is a past president of the senior center board and the current secretary.

In the January 22 meeting, Sicard, Hubert, and Reynolds addressed the factors that went into the decision to remove the nutrition program from control by the NC-FH AAA, based out of Manhattan, to local control based out of the Concordia Senior Center:

1. Both the cook and manager at the senior center resigned at the end of December, and there was no urgency by the NC-FH AAA to advertise for either position. That lack of urgency had become a pattern every time a position opened at the Concordia Senior Center.

2. The pay scale for the cook and manager is comparatively low – approximately $8 an hour – and the senior center was subsidizing the wages for both positions.

3. The quality of the food they received from EVCO, a food distribution company used by the NC-FH AAA, had been declining for some time. With the program run from Manhattan, control of the menu, control of what recipes to follow, and requiring a $300 minimum order led to less desirable and less appetizing meals, which resulted in more discarded food.

4. The number of food items that NC-FH AAA would not pay for had increased. When the senior center purchased an item that was not approved by NC-FH AAA, there was no reimbursement or credit for those purchases.

5. NC-FH AAA was originally supposed to purchase and maintain the equipment used in the meal program. Over the years the senior center has had to purchase replacement equipment when the older equipment stopped working. When equipment had to be repaired, the senior center had to pay for the repairs themselves.

A registered letter was sent to the NC-FH AAA on January 8 notifying the agency that the Concordia Senior Center was going to discontinue the Friendship Meals program. Sicard and Hubert said the letter was signed by the NC-FH AAA on January 16. On January 17, representatives from NC-FH AAA arrived at the senior center and began removing the dishwasher, the sink, pots, pans, utensils, plates, and the vegetable steamer – equipment that belonged to the NC-FH AAA. The equipment removed included the freezer that was owned by NC-FH AAA but that the senior center had spent about $2,000 to repair in previous years.

Sicard and Hubert also said that the NC-FH AAA had taken the program's paperwork and deleted information from the senior center computer.

Without a cook, and without the means to prepare meals or wash utensils and plates after meals, the senior center had to suspend a half-century program of food service at the senior center, and the Meals on Wheels program.

A statement was sent to the Blade-Empire on January 24, 2024, by the NC-FH AAA. It stated:

“We are very grateful that the Concordia Senior Center has provided space and volunteer support for Friendship Meals for 49 years,” said Julie Govert-Walter, NC-FH AAA executive director. “Concordia Senior Center leaders notified us that they no longer wished for us to provide Friendship Meals at their center. We honored their request last week.”

“We are committed to continuing to provide important services to older Kansans and caregivers in Cloud County and are reviewing other options for making Friendship Meals available in Cloud County,” Walter said.

“Friendship Meals are available to anyone age 60 or over on a voluntary basis to those who register for this program. The suggested contribution for Friendship Meals in the region is $4.00 per meal – this is possible thanks to funding from the Older Americans Act and participant contributions."

“Other services that NC-FH AAA provides in Cloud County include trustworthy answers on aging and disability questions, in-home assessments of older Kansans' needs, and support services for older Kansans and caregivers, Medicare benefits counseling, and more."

“For fifty years, people in Cloud County and throughout the heartland of Kansas have benefitted from the Friendship Meals program,” Walter said.

“We are very grateful for the legacy of collaboration and cooperation among county councils on aging, senior center leaders, County Boards of Commissioners and the hundreds of volunteers that make great services possible for older Kansans and caregivers in this part of Kansas.”

On January 29 the Blade-Empire met with Sicard, Hubert, and Reynolds at the senior center to discuss the factors that led to the suspension of the meal programs in Concordia, and the NC-FH AAA's response.

Sicard stated that the NC-FH AAA was supposed to maintain their equipment, but failed to do so. “We spent about $2,000 on a freezer and they never reimbursed us,” Sicard said. “They told us they didn't have the money to repair anything.”

Regarding the NC-FH AAA's appearance at the senior center beginning January 17 and the removal of equipment and data, Sicard said: “I asked if they would negotiate a price for the items, and they said absolutely not. Their committee said to remove everything.”

“We sent the registered letter on the 8th,” Hubert said. “They signed for the letter on the 16th, and the next day they were in Concordia removing equipment from the senior center.”

Regarding the quality of food provided by EVCO, Hubert said, “We spent about $2,000 in 2023 to provide food that wasn't approved by the agency (NC-FH AAA).” That food included condiments, salads, and items like cookie dough to bake cookies.

Reynolds also stated that when they ordered milk, they would often receive milk on which the 'Best Used By' date was only a few days away.

“Sometimes we'd have to go to F&A and buy milk,” Sicard said. “Sometimes the agency reimbursed us, sometimes they didn't.”

Sicard also stated that the breaded chicken supplied by EVCO was “more bread than chicken.”

“You couldn't cut it with a table knife,” Reynolds said. “Some ladies had to have other ladies cut their meal because they didn't have the strength in their hands.”

Additionally, Sicard, Hubert, and Reynolds stated that not only was the cook and manager being paid far less than the starting pay at any number of local fast food locations, but the NC-FH AAA limited the cook's hours to five hours a day. “You can't make a meal for 77 people in five hours,” Sicard said.

When the decision was made to separate from the Friendship Meals program with NC-FH AAA, the senior center requested a signed copy of their meals program contract with the agency. None was ever provided.

“I've been on the board for nine years, I never signed a contract with them,” Reynolds said.

“The contract they did give us was a 'Faculty Access Lease,'” Hubert said. “Nobody signed it.”

Sicard, Hubert, and Reynolds were especially surprised by the removal of paperwork and the deletion of computer files.

“It was names and addresses,” Hubert said.

“We weren't able to notify anyone about the Meals on Wheels program stopping because they took all the paperwork,” Sicard said.

On January 30, the Blade-Empire spoke with Julie Govert-Walter, the executive director of the NC-FH AAA, and Rose Landis, supervisor of the Friendship Meals program.

In response to a perceived lack of urgency in trying to hire a cook and manager, Govert-Walter said: “Our agency is committed to filling vacancies. Concordia was no exception. But the reality is, it's challenging to find food service workers everywhere. We have 37 locations... folks decide they want to change jobs or work elsewhere. It's a constant struggle.”

In response to the low pay scale set by the NC-FH AAA for the cook position, Govert-Walter said: “Our wages are not competitive. The Older Americans Act has not kept up with inflation. It's been a struggle for years. Our federal money is not there for everything we want to do. We were grateful for the effort and the collaboration we received from the Cloud County commissioners and the senior center board. But the funds just have not increased from the Older Americans Act. We don't have the funds to take care of this ourselves.”

In response to the quality of food that the senior center received from EVCO, Govert-Walter said: “People in food service have the hardest jobs in the world. What one person likes, another one doesn't. We are cost-conscious. Every four years we go out for a bid for a food service vendor. We take it very seriously to be good stewards of the public dollar.”

In response to the increased number of food items that the NC-FH AAA would not pay for, Govert-Walter said: “We have had a 'Do Not Buy List' for quite a while. It's very clear what items we will not pay for.”

Govert-Walter said that her agency did receive a registered letter on the 16th. “I opened it around 3:30 that afternoon. In the letter they (the Concordia Senior Center) said they no longer wanted to be a part of the Friendship Meals program. They gave us a deadline of January 22. Our equipment had to be removed by January 22 or it would become the property of the senior center. We only had a few days to act. I spoke with Rose (Landis) and she put together a team and removed the equipment.”

“On the last day, that's when we had the movers in there,” Landis said. “At no time ever did they give us an offer to purchase the equipment. That was their choice: remove the equipment or it would become their property.”

Govert-Walter said that the documents and data were removed because of government regulations. “All the documents, all the names and personal information, are under federal rules to protect that information.”

Hubert and Sicard said that by using NC-FH AAA and EVCO for the Friendship Meals program, county tax dollars used for the senior center had been flowing out of the county. By running the program locally, local businesses will benefit from food purchased locally. They have already had discussions with F&A. Local control will also allow for more flexibility with the meal program, rather than relying on a single menu that serves an 18-county area.

Hubert and Sicard said that an evaluation of the expenses of the Concordia Senior Center, as well as the projected costs of running the meal program, was performed. It was determined that it was feasible to manage the facility and program locally.

“My hope is that by the middle or the end of February we have the meals programs going again,” Sicard said.

Govert-Walter reiterated the NC-FH AAA's commitment to serve the Cloud County area with all the services it offers older Americans – not just the Friendship Meals program. “We care about the people in Cloud County. We want things to work out. We look forward to moving forward with Friendship Services in Cloud County.”