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PKS Council on Aging Meeting Minutes – June 2025

PKS Council on aging meeting June 2025

Written by

Cindy Schersching, PhD

in

June 10, 2025
10:30 a.m.
PKS Town Hall

Call to Order: Cindy Schersching

Agenda

Old Business

Continue to focus on updating/adding to service and medical professional lists for currency and accuracy in order to be on and promoted on our website. This is important as these lists are unique to us, PKS has established a link to us, and Shoreline pages are being reduced. Who will help?

Continue the discussion of Time Banking. Kathy Driver to present information on software requirements.

New Business

We hosted two forums since our last meeting. Confirm they were videotaped and refreshments served.

Event notices appeared on our FB page and in the Be in the Know Town newsletter. We had a great turnout for both. What worked? What didn’t work?

  • May 15 – Caregiving
  • June 9 – Dementia
  • Zoom forums?
  • Expanding our exercise options is still a possibility. What classes should we focus on?
  • Senior companions – looking for volunteers.
  • Website being revised.
  • Nacho’s restaurant – our new gathering place (John Macheca).
  • Our survey…call for ideas/questions.
  • What else should we be doing?

Minutes

Old Business

We had a great turnout for both forum events: May 15 – Caregiving and June 9 – Dementia. While a limited number of Council members attended our regular meeting, we had a good discussion of what worked, what didn’t work as well as we thought, and what’s next.

Two strong follow-up ideas emerged:

  • Host a round table with local experts and invite the community to discuss available resources, strengthen ties, and expand knowledge for caregivers.
  • Host a round table with community members who are living with caregiving challenges. Explore ways to pool resources across households to fill gaps in care.

The discussion also touched on healthcare resources in general and the lack of specialists at our local hospital, even with the Mayo Clinic connection. This remains an obstacle to aging in place in Pine Knoll Shores. One possible step is to invite hospital personnel to join future discussion groups.

New Business

  • Communications: John Clarke suggested using USPS postcards for community outreach. He and Cindy will review this option.
  • Discussion of whether to invite back Angela Pridgen, Lead Ombudsman with the Area Agency on Aging, for a forum on patient rights in long-term care facilities and guidance for families making placement decisions.
  • Zoom forums: The Town does not have resources to provide Zoom access for forums.
  • Expanding exercise options is still being considered. What classes should we focus on, and do we have input from participants?
  • John Macheca identified Nacho’s in Atlantic Station as a new social gathering place, replacing Hotel Alice.
  • Explore adopting “age friendly” standards into COSA activities. Volunteers are needed to help initiate this.

Our next meeting is August 12, 2025 at 10:30 a.m. in the Betty Carr Room of the A.C. Hall Municipal Building.

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