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Seventy-four-year-old Barbara Taylor began raising money for the Emergency Fuel Fund for the Elderly about 20 years ago. Back then, she was a personal care aide for Mountain Empire Older Citizens, the area agency on aging that has operated the fuel fund since 1975. Relying entirely on donations, with no money ever used for administrative costs, the fuel fund helps older adults in Lee, Scott and Wise counties and the City of Norton with emergency heating expenses.

Living on a fixed income, 96-year-old Magdalene Stipe says increased heating costs in the winter months means she may have to do without something else she needs. So she was appreciative when her MEOC personal care aide told her about the Emergency Fuel Fund for the Elderly. “I was so thankful she told me about it,” said Stipe.

The Southwest Virginia Children’s Advocacy Center marks its 20th anniversary this month of helping child abuse victims in the region. The CAC opened on April 29, 2002, allowing a multidisciplinary team to work together to handle child abuse cases in the region. The center is located at Mountain Empire Older Citizens in Big Stone Gap and serves Lee, Scott, Wise and Dickenson counties and the City of Norton. Since opening its doors, the CAC has assisted child abuse victims and their families in more than 2,300 cases.

Mountain Empire Transit veteran driver Jon Lovell brought home the top award from the 2022 Community Transportation Association of Virginia’s Paratransit Roadeo, and MET’s four-member team earned the overall highest score in the competition. MET driver Jeff Whisman placed third in the best driver competition, giving MEOC two of the three top awards, and all MET team members earned the highest score in at least one category. The event was held on Saturday, April 2, at Salem Civic Center and tested competitors on various skills, focusing on safety and passenger sensitivity.

Make plans to put on your walking shoes on Sunday, May 1, to help raise money for MEOC’s Emergency Fuel Fund for the Elderly. The 46th Annual Walkathon will begin at 2 p.m. at Big Stone Gap’s Bullitt Park and proceed along the Greenbelt Trail. Registration will start at 1 p.m. The rain date is May 15. The Walkathon is returning to its traditional spring date after the 2021 event was held in late August. The fundraising goal is $165,000, and the community’s support is needed to reach it.

Mountain Empire Older Citizens is asking area churches and individuals to participate in Hearthwarming Sunday, a midwinter fundraiser for the Emergency Fuel Fund for the Elderly. The annual event is held on the Sunday closest to Valentine’s Day. This year’s Hearthwarming Sunday is Feb. 13. It falls at a critical time for the fuel fund, which assists older adults in Wise, Lee and Scott counties and the City of Norton with emergency heating expenses.

Mountain Empire Older Citizens has added two new freezer trucks to its vehicle fleet that will allow the agency to be more efficient in meal delivery to the region’s elderly. Purchase of the trucks follows a year during which the agency served a record number of people through its home-delivered meals program due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Virginia Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services (VDARS) provided funding for the specialized vehicles.

(PHOTO: Kathy and Gary Kennedy, parents of Leigh Ann Bolinskey, were among supporters at the Dec. 11 event named in honor of their daughter.) The 2021 Leigh Ann Bolinskey Memorial 5K Run/Walk is expected to raise more than $18,400 for the Mountain Laurel Cancer Support & Resource Center. Sixty-four people participated in the event, held in Big Stone Gap on the evening of Dec. 11.

PHOTO: Dianne Morris (center) is the 2021 Mae French Outstanding Older Worker Award recipient. The annual award recognizes a Mountain Empire Older Citizens employee at least age 55 who demonstrates exemplary service, kindness and commitment in the workplace and community. With her are MEOC Executive Director Michael Wampler and Older Worker Program Director Carrie Stallard.

Participants are needed for the 2021 Leigh Ann Bolinskey Memorial 5K Run/Walk on Dec. 11 in Big Stone Gap to benefit the Mountain Laurel Cancer Support & Resource Center. This year’s 5K will be a night race, starting and finishing at Big Stone Gap Visitor Center and taking participants through three miles of holiday lights and decorations on the town’s Greenbelt Trail. Registration will open at 5 p.m. The race will begin at 6 p.m.