The Upper Delaware Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (UDUUF) responded to the health crises of two of its older members by providing such basic support as transportation, home-cooked meals, and social visits. As the months passed, this couple’s situation heightened their friends’ awareness of the vulnerabilities we face as we age.
Subsequently, the UDUUF hosted a series of readings and discussions about the realities and shortcomings of federal, state and local governmental programs to help us as we age. The Fellowship’s programs also explored some of the supplementary and alternative models devised by concerned citizens across the country. As the wider community expressed interest in this issue and a desire to create needed services for our own rural area, public meetings were held. These discussions led to brainstorming the services needed, compiling lists of services each individual could provide, investigation of a wide variety of existing services, and an exploration of the possibilities of implementing our own network of support.
Our Executive Director, Thomas Cambridge and current Board Members Heidi Finkelberg, Maryann Haberthur, Greta Knutzen, Amy Becker, Dr. James Lomax, Colette Ballew and President Diane Yaddow, among others, are actively working to initiate a community effort to find solutions to the problems facing our aging population. As of March 2015, GOT was formed and officially began operating January 2017. GOT has adopted the innovative Village model to help older people remain in their homes and stay connected with their communities.
Click on each underlined name to read each board members' biography and learn more about them.