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Dispatchers, drivers volunteer for program
By LINDA M. LINONIS
hubbard
Seniors who don’t have cars or who don’t drive anymore still aren’t without wheels.
That’s thanks to the senior-citizen van transportation program. It provides rides around town and the township for doctor, dentist and therapy appointments and stops for groceries, at the pharmacy, beauty shop and various stores. The program operates with all-volunteer dispatchers and drivers.
Lorrie Brown, secretary to the mayor, said paperwork is scarce on the program, but it’s believed it dates to the late 1970s.
Viola Telega, a dispatcher for about a dozen years and coordinator of the service, is one of the voices answering the phone at the senior center in the back of Hubbard Administration Building, 220 W. Liberty St.
The service officially runs from 9 a.m. to noon Tuesdays and Thursdays and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Fridays, but seniors often start calling in for rides as early as 8 a.m.
Telega carefully writes their name, address and their destination for a log. If it’s the first run of the day, she gives the information to the driver in person; if he’s out on the road, she uses a citizens band radio to relay the details of his next pickup. All dispatchers follow the same procedure. The dispatchers and drivers usually work the same time period each week.
Telega said many of the callers know the dispatchers’ voices. One of the riders greets Telega with “Good morning, sunshine,” and she is just tickled by that. The van serves about 30 riders weekly, with about 15 riding Friday.
For those who volunteer, it’s a gratifying experience. And it gets them out with people. “I know some of the people and their voices,” said Telega, a lifelong Hubbard resident who now lives at Hubbard Manor.
She worked as a cake decorator for some 40 years at the former Metz Bakery in Sharon, Pa. “I like to keep active,” she said. “When I haven’t heard from someone in a while, I call to check on them.”
Christiana Askerneese, also a dispatcher, learned about the service when she used it herself to go to therapy. “I wanted to repay what they did for me,” she said.
She’s been volunteering about 11/2 years and has lived in the city for six years.
Askerneese, who is still involved with her accounting business, said she just likes being around people and “knowing I’m helping.”
Lyle Edwards, a driver who has volunteered about 14 years, said it helps him stay active and “do something useful with my free time.”
He estimated the van travels about 40 miles on service days in the city and township.
Joe Vukovich, another volunteer driver, was on duty Friday morning. He will mark his fifth year in March. A GM retiree, Vukovich said he saw an advertisement for the program and volunteered. “I like to help out older people,” he said. “They really appreciate it.”
He and the other drivers provide specialized service by escorting the riders to the van and helping them in and out.
“A sense of humor helps,” Vukovich said. He said everyone is understanding if the van is running a bit late.
The 1998 van was donated by the Hubbard Rotary Club; the city takes care of gas, maintenance and insurance.
Michael Holford, the Rotary vice president, said the club is working on projects and diverts a certain amount of money toward a new van.
Rotary will sponsor a live auction at 6 p.m. Thursday in the Brentford House, and among the items are two trips to Disney World. In February, Rotary will conduct its orange and grapefruit sale.
Holford said the club would like to buy a handicapped-accessible van that’s in the $40,000 range; a regular van may be from $25,000 to $30,000.
Holford said Rotary’s international projects focus on clean water and literacy, and locally, it’s about a project to help the community.