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A FAITH IN ACTION NEWSLETTER

FALL 2014

NORTH CENTRAL AUSTIN

2014 up to date:

Enrolled 56 new clients

Recruited 15 volunteers

Gave over 2,073 point-to-point rides to

seniors

Drove seniors over 28,920 miles

Donated over 2,414 volunteer hours to

our community

The Neighborly Way

PAGE 2 STORIES FALL 2014

TINA PRIKRYL

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

LIANNA BOWERS

SERVICES COORDINATOR

The annual Volunteer Recognition luncheon is right

around the corner! On Tuesday, September 30, Drive A

Senior-North Central's board of directors and staff will

gather to honor our wonderful volunteers with a special

luncheon. The luncheon, to be held at the parish hall of

Episcopal Church of the Resurrection, will be a smaller

affair this year, as we've decided to focus the luncheon

celebration solely on our volunteers, the wonderful folks

who enable Drive a Senior to do what we do! We'll have

a delightful lunch, music, and fellowship as together we

celebrate 25 years of serving the transportation needs of

seniors in North Central Austin.

Tickets (both admission and raffle) will be available for

sale at the luncheon for our Fall fundraiser, Lift Your

Spirits, which will be October 15 at Water2Wine on An-

derson Lane. We have fabulous raffle prizes this year,

including a Carnival Cruise for two to the Western

Caribbean out of Galveston, Jan 12-17, 2015!

VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION LUNCHEON

SEPTEMBER 30TH

11 AM –1 PM

EPISCOPAL CHURCH

OF THE RESURRECTION

PARISH HALL

2008 JUSTIN LANE AUSTIN 78757

PAGE 3 STORIES FALL 2014

EyeCare America

EyeCare America, a public service program of the Foundation

of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, continues to

match eligible seniors in need with volunteer ophthalmologists

who provide a medical eye exam -- and up to one year of care --

at no out-of-pocket cost to the patient. To find out if someone

qualifies for this program, visit EyeCare America - The

Foundation of the American Academy of Opthalmology.

2014 CLIENT SURVEY

Drive a Senior will be conducting a short client survey this fall as

part of a requirement for our grantors. The Drive a Senior North

Central office staff and volunteers will be telephoning our clients and

asking a few questions regarding Drive a Senior client services. Your

answers help us know our services add value to your life and how we

can improve. Your participation in this study is completely voluntary

and you can skip questions. It is however, very important for us to

hear your opinions. Your survey responses are confidential and never

identified with your name. Thank you very much in advance for your

time and support.

Page 4 STORIES FALL 2014

FROM MY HEART TO YOURS

Peter Piper picked a pumpkin; the dew is on the pumpkin; and so many more phrases remind us that even at this

moment, pumpkins are ripening in fields across this nation. Some will be but to see, others to carve into scary jack-o-

lanterns and others destined for the kitchen and pie. Oh how pungent they smell while baking mixed with nutmeg,

pumpkin pie spice. Of course to have all this wonderment, fall must fall upon us.

I look at the calendar and am amazed at how this year is rushing away, out of control and it seems just out of

my grasp to slow it down. Alas, I must deal with it. I must do all that I feel called to do in God’s pumpkin

patch. The Bible talks of other vineyards but each fall I think of the pumpkin “vineyard” with its dark orange

globes just holding out for that magical moment when it “becomes” something else.

Some of our local food pantries such as at St Louis Catholic Church and St Mark United Methodist Church

begin to rustle-up some of those goodies. Eight to 10 days a month I do volunteer work at the food pantry at St

Mark UMC. I see this lovely fruit bringing joy and nourishment to families struggling to get by in these tough

economic times.

Some of the clients of North Central Drive a Senior receive rides to these food pantries and I get the double joy

of making sure food is made available as well as the ride. Soon we hope to have a van ministry to help individuals

get to food pantries when needed and to markets. By combining rides we hope to build a social community where

you can make new friends.

In October we are having a major fund raising event, the Lift Your Spirits event at the Water to Wine store on

West Anderson. I am sponsoring a really nice prize of a cruise for 2 for 5 nights out of Galveston, TX leaving

on January 12, 2015. Here is the opportunity to be treated like royalty if only for the better part of a week. Trips

to Mayan ruins, swimming with rays and dolphins, 4-wheeling through the jungle, scuba diving, para-sailing, glass

bottom boats and min-submarines as well as shopping trips can be added for a nominal fee. Tickets are only $20

for an opportunity to win this magnificent trip.

Help us celebrate our Silver Anniversary of service to the community, 25 years of helping seniors when it ap-

pears no one can. Check out our pumpkin vineyard of opportunity as we move toward our Golden Anniversary like

a golden pumpkin.

May God bless you and yours and all our volunteers. May all your pumpkins be delicious?

Bob Wilson, President, NC Drive a Senior

VETERANS

PAGE 5 STORIES FALL 2014

Greetings Drive a Senior North Central Clients,

If you are a veteran we are providing the following information to help you with alter-

nate means of transportation to get to the VA. Although Drive a Senior is more than happy

to help with transportation to the VA, there are times we cannot find drivers for those ap-

pointments. We want you to have the information for a back-up ride. United for the People is

a non-profit which also helps veterans with transportation. If we cannot fill your ride 48

hours prior to your appointment, you can call their service. To become a member, there is a 1

time $10, annual fee. This covers all of your rides with them. To become a member, please

call 512-298-2532. Other important things to note:

Who’s eligible?

All Veterans are eligible to receive transportation from their home address, to the VA clinic

and back to their home address.

How do I schedule a ride?

Veterans can schedule transportation by calling the call center at 512-298-2532. Please

schedule services at least 48 to 72 hours in advance of your medical appointments. Have

your VA card or proof of Veteran status available at pickup.

Rates and Fares

Members

2 trips per calendar month and a rate of $10 for each additional trip regardless of distance.

Non Members

a. cost of $10 from 1-20 miles from the VA clinic.

b. cost of $20 from 21-40 miles from the VA clinic.

c. cost of $30 from 41-60 miles from the VA clinic.

All mileage is calculated one way only. The return trip is always free.

A Big Thank You to our Donors and Funders: May 16 thru August 3, 2014

Individual Donors

Charles Burghardt

Delores Capps

Hoveih Hezari

Vong S. Ho

Nina Mosier

A. F. Roddy

Virginia Scott

Kathleen M. Sullivan

Hu Thi Tran

Janet Turner

Crestview Baptist Church

Crestview UMC

Episcopal Church of the Resurrection

Faith Lutheran Church

First Cumberland Presbyterian

First English Lutheran

First Unitarian Universalist Church

Gethsemane Lutheran

Martha Vorheier

Margie Wendland

W. M. Wheatley

Norma J. Whittenberg

Foundations & Grants

Special Donations

Hyde Park Christian -

Christian Woman’s Fellowship

H.A.N.D.

Memorials &Honorarium

Bowling Byers Memory Bo & Mary Catherine Byers

Gary S. Childress Honorarium Lynette Pittsford &

Roland Childress

Nelda Ayres Memory Mike Coyne

Anne Kuempel Memory Mike Coyne

Cindy Meek Memory Mike Coyne

Linda St. Clair Memory Mike Coyne

Anne Kuempel Memory Jerry Perkins

PAGE 6 STORIES FALL 2014

St. David’s Foundation

New Freedom, Capital Metro

Federal Transportation Admin.

Hyde Park Christian Church

Northwest Baptist Church

Redeemer Lutheran Church

St. Albert the Great Catholic Church

St. John’s Episcopal Church

St. Louis Catholic Church

St. Mark’s United Methodist Church

Supporting Congregations

FALL 2014 STORIES PAGE 7

Don’t Forget We need at least three working days be-

fore your appointment to find a volunteer

to provide your ride.

All service requests must go through our

office

Not to call our volunteers directly

To notify us immediately if you need to

cancel your appointment—don’t wait until

the volunteer arrives at your home to can-

cel. This wastes volunteer resources.

For Volunteers: Please call your

passenger when you accept the assign-

ment to let them know you are driving

them. And follow up the day before the

drive, to remind them who you are and

what time you plan to arrive to pick them

up.

Gratitude and Attitude Go a Long Way

Making Yours and Everybody’s Day

Use This Chart To Schedule

Your Drive

If Your Appointment is On:

Monday: Call BEFORE Wed. of the

Previous Week

Tuesday: Call BEFORE Thurs. of the

Previous Week

Wednesday: Call BEFORE Fri. of the

Previous Week

Thursday: Call BEFORE Mon. the week

of your Appointment

Friday: Call BEFORE Tues. the Week of

Your Appointment

Saturday: Call BEFORE Wed. the Week

of Your Appointment

To Schedule Your Request

Please Call The Office At:

512-453-2273

Page 8 STORIES FALL 2014

PLEASE WELCOME DRIVE A SENIOR NORTH CENTRAL NEW BOARD MEMBER

BILLIE ENGELBRECHT, Redeemer Lutheran Church

AND SUPPORTING CONGREGATIONS NEW PASTORS:

REV. RONALD E. STEVENSON, D.MIN., First Cumberland Presbyterian

FATHER MATHEW SEDDEN, St. John’s Episcopal Church

FATHER JAMES MISKO, St. Louis Catholic Church

PASTOR KIM ETHRIDGE, St. Mark’s United Methodist Church

For announcements and notifications of happening events, please visit our website at

www.driveasenior.org

And please friend us and like us on Facebook-Drive a Senior North Central