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AUBURN — SeniorsPlus, the designated Agency on Aging for Western Maine, will hold a breakfast to benefit its Meals on Wheels nutrition program. The Fill the Plate Breakfast will be held Fri., March 31 from 7 to 9 a.m. at Hilton Garden Inn Riverwatch. The breakfast will honor former Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives Mark W. Eves with the Ikaria Award and feature a talk by Maine Attorney General Janet T. Mills. Tickets are $20 per person ($25 at the door, if not sold out) and are available at www.seniorsplus.org or by calling 207 795-4010. Seats are limited and advance registration is recommended.
Mills will offer personal and professional recollections of her experiences engaging with older adults. The Attorney General is Maine’s chief law enforcement officer and represents the state in legal matters ranging from child support enforcement, civil rights and consumer protection to the prosecution of homicides, felony drug cases and major frauds.
Mills was an Assistant Attorney General from 1976 to 1980, prosecuting homicides and other major crimes. In December 2008 she was elected by the Joint Convention of the Legislature to be Maine’s 55th Attorney General, the first woman Attorney General in Maine. During a hiatus in office, from 2011 through 2012, Mills taught Criminal Law at the University of Maine Augusta and served as counsel in the Litigation Group of PretiFlaherty, LLP. In December 2012, Mills was again elected Attorney General, and in December 2014 she was re-elected to her second consecutive term.
The Ikaria Award honors an individual in the community for singular and outstanding contributions toward improving the lives of older adults. As Speaker of the House, Eves was responsible for presiding over all actions of the House of Representatives. Under Speaker Eves’ leadership, the Legislature passed a bipartisan middle class tax cut, boosted property tax relief for all Maine families, and strengthened investment in Maine children and workers. In the 127th Legislature, he served as co-chair of the first ever Caucus on Aging, pushing an agenda to support Maine seniors to live independently in their homes and communities.
“Mark Eves worked hard to put the welfare of Maine’s older adults in the forefront of the legislative agenda and brought on results we are still seeing,” said Betsy Sawyer-Manter, President and CEO of SeniorsPlus. “We are thrilled to honor his years of dedication and hard work with the Ikaria Award.”
The Fill the Plate Breakfast is presented in conjunction with March for Meals, a national campaign of the Meals on Wheels Association of America. “The breakfast will be nutritious and informative, as the programming is designed to bring to light the work being done in Maine to support our older adults,” said Sawyer-Manter. “We seek funding through this breakfast to avoid waiting lists and to help fund the program.” Currently, the wait list for the Meals on Wheels program at SeniorsPlus has 50 individuals on it.
The overall program goal of SeniorsPlus is to assist older adults and adults with disabilities in our tri-county area to remain at home safely for as long as possible. The overwhelming majority of older adults (greater than 95% in an AARP survey) wish to remain at home until they die. The Meals on Wheels program provides nourishment, socialization and regular safety checks.
“Meals on Wheels can often determine a person’s ability to remain at home,” added Ms. Sawyer-Manter.
SeniorsPlus acknowledges the support from sponsors of the Fill the Plate Breakfast — AARP Maine, Bangor Savings Bank, Bedard, Berman & Simmons, Cabot Cheese, Gleason Media Services, Hilton Garden Inn Auburn Riverwatch, Lee Auto, Maine Gourmet Chocolates, Mechanics Savings Bank, Northeast Bank, North Country Associates, Pine Tree Waste, St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center, SunMedia Group and Woodlands Senior Living of Lewiston.
The mission of SeniorsPlus is “to enrich the lives of seniors and adults with disabilities.” SeniorsPlus believes in supporting the independence, dignity, and quality of life of those it serves. Established in 1972, SeniorsPlus covers Androscoggin, Franklin, and Oxford counties and serves more than 12,000 individuals annually. The agency focuses on older adults, adults with disabilities, and families and offers a network of support, including information and assistance, short-term care management, Medicare counseling, caregiver support and respite, health and wellness education, Options Counseling, and Meals on Wheels and congregate dining.
PHOTO:
Former Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives Mark W. Eves will be presented with the Ikaria Award for outstanding contributions toward improving the lives of older adults on March 31 at the Fill the Plate Breakfast to benefit Meals on Wheels of SeniorsPlus.
