Ocean County Leader

The Ocean County Board of Commissioners has allocated an additional $432,500 to support programs for the county's senior population. This funding aims to assist over 220,000 seniors living in the area.

Barbara Jo Crea, Director of the Ocean County Board of Commissioners and Chairwoman of the Ocean County Office of Senior Services, emphasized the importance of these programs. "It's a wonderful distinction that Ocean County is home to one of the largest senior populations in the United States with more than 220,000 seniors living here," she stated. She highlighted that many seniors rely solely on Social Security and need support to maintain independence and access essential services.

The funds are sourced from unutilized American Rescue Plan allocations from other counties. "The funding that allowed us to increase these contracts and in turn help more of our seniors comes from other counties that did not use all of the American Rescue Plan funds that were distributed by the federal government," Crea explained.

A review by the Office of Senior Services determined priority areas for allocation: transportation, home repair and modification, legal services, medical alert systems, caregiver services, socialization, and recreational activities. "We directed a large portion of the additional funds to the priorities identified and also provided more funds for socialization and recreational programs to get seniors out and about again," Crea noted.

Community organizations such as Community Services Inc. of Ocean County, Brick Township, Lakewood Community Services Corp., Community Medical Center, and Point Pleasant will utilize part of these funds for socialization initiatives aimed at combating depression and isolation among seniors post-Covid.

Crea also mentioned an increasing demand for medical alert buttons funded through Caregiver Support dollars. She reported significant outreach efforts by their office this year: "Our office of Senior Services so far in 2024 has assisted nearly 10,000 clients and the total number of units of services provided is 14,413 so far this year."

Ocean County remains committed to enhancing life quality for its senior residents through continued support.