SAGE Eldercare Initiates Annual “Supper at SAGE” Event Inaugurating The New Care Grant Scholarship Fund and Honoring Judy Shipley

SAGE Eldercare hosted a premier fund-raising dinner on Saturday evening, Sept.30 at 290 Broad Street, Summit.  The event, entitled “Supper at SAGE” honored Summit resident, Judy Shipley, former board of trustees member and past president from 1984-1987.  Proceeds from the event benefited SAGE Eldercare’s Care Grant Scholarship Fund.

The event included dinner, a silent auction of unique and unusual items, and entertainment provided by Cabaret Central, a vocal ensemble featuring the music of Richard Rodgers.  




SAGE Eldercare Holds 52nd Annual Meeting

The 52nd annual board meeting for SAGE Eldercare was held on Sept. 14, at its headquarters at 290 Broad Street Summit.  The meeting celebrated 52 years of service to older adults and their families in Essex, Somerset, Morris and Union counties.  Julie Smith, president of the Board of Trustees welcomed four new board members;  Lauren Irvin, Carol King Barrow, Robert C. Barber, and John B. Crosby.   Summit Mayor Jordan Glatt honored SAGE with a proclamation from the City of Summit for all of the good that it provides the community.  Others honored at the meeting were SAGE Community Partner, Schering Plough; Good Neighbor Award Winner, Summit Garden Club: and Teen Volunteer Award winner, Jesse Dashefsky of Short Hills.

The Agnes Badgley Award for volunteerism winner was Natalie Calhoun of Berkeley Heights.  The Home Health Aide Caregiver of the Year award was presented to Beatrice Oduro-Acquah of Irvington.

Julie Smith was re-elected president of the Board.



HomeCare Receives Accreditation with Distinction for the 7^th Year in a Row

The Board of Directors of the Commission on Accreditation for HomeCare in New Jersey has reaccredited SAGE Eldercare with distinction for its home health aide and homemaker services. This is the seventh year in a row in which the eldercare agency has passed its home care inspection with distinction – without deficiencies and with no recommendations for improvement.  SAGE Eldercare’s HomeCare program is the only such agency in Union County with such a record.  The commission currently accredits 170 sites in New Jersey and only six other organizations in the state have received distinction for seven or more years in a row.


Meals on Wheels Celebrates 40 Years!

Forty years ago, on October 10, 1966, the Summit College Club, American Red Cross, and SAGE joined by representatives from the Junior League of Summit and the Council of Church Women launched the Meals on Wheels program in the Summit area.

At that time 148 volunteers served an average of 10 meals each day.  In the first 8 months of its existence, SAGE Eldercare’s Meals on Wheels program was serving 126 clients with over 4,000 meals. Presently SAGE Eldercare is serving over 48,000 meals a year to upwards of 277 clients.

This program, in addition to providing nutritional home-delivered meals to its recipients, also provides social contact which contributes to their physical and mental well being allowing them to remain independent and in their own homes for longer than might otherwise be possible. 

The cost for this service has grown from $1.75 in 1966 to $4.50 today, however, no one is ever turned away due to their inability to pay.  The scope of Meals on Wheels has expanded to include people in Union, Essex and Morris counties where there is no waiting list.

Mrs. Betsy Robson of Summit was the original chair of the Meals on Wheels Steering Committee and still has contact with SAGE. Joan Hoffman, also of Summit, began delivering meals in 1967 and has been a faithful volunteer ever since. It is people like these two women that make the Meals on Wheels program the success that it is. SAGE Eldercare is continuing to grow and expand its Meals on Wheels services.

A special 40^th Anniversary Meals on Wheels pin has been hand-crafted by Liz Tech Studio to support SAGE Eldercare’s Meals on Wheels program.  This beautiful piece of jewelry is priced at $40.  Fifty-percent of the proceeds will benefit the 2006 Meals on Wheels outreach. If you would like to purchase the limited edition pin, please send a check payable to SAGE Eldercare, 290 Broad Street, Summit, NJ 07901 along with your name, address and phone number.  To purchase with a credit card, please contact Suzanne Lyon at 598-5514.