WALLOWA COUNTY — Older adults in Wallowa County are supported by a strong web of services to help them remain in their homes for as long as they want — from congregate meal sites, to in-home care services, to family caregiver services to home-delivered meals.

All are offered through, or can be coordinated through, Community Connection of Northeast Oregon, and are as close as a phone call away.

“It is a misconception that the meal program is for low-income people,” said Connie Guentert, manager of Community Connection. “It’s about socializing and congregating,” and all are welcome, she said.

“We are super lucky to have two meal sites in the county,” Guentert said.

One is in the senior center in the Community Connection building, and the second is in Wallowa at the senior center. She said the meals are prepared to be “as flavorful as possible.” The focus is on taste and visual appeal.

The meals are based on the U.S. Department of Agriculture 2020-25 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. They are portion-controlled and meet the dietary guidelines for older adults drawing on foods from the five food groups necessary for health. The five food groups that comprise the senior meals at the sites include lean proteins, low-fat dairy products, fruits and vegetables (fresh, canned, dried, frozen and 100% juice) and whole grains. The menus are available in the Chieftain and are broadcast on KWVR radio.

For those attending the meal site who are over 60, the suggested donation, which is voluntary, is $4. If one is under 60, the cost is $6. The Meals on Wheels Program is for homebound seniors. Both Meals on Wheels and the Congregate Meal Program are funded through the Older Americans’ Act.

In addition to the meal programs, Community Connection offers other senior support programs designed to help seniors stay in their own homes for as long as possible. For example, Oregon Project Independence is “designed to support seniors in their own home and remain independent as long as possible with assistance of in-home care assistants,” explained Guentert.

It all comes down to dignity.

“(We want to) support a senior who’s lived in their home remain in their home with respect and dignity with minimal funding, which is what we should aspire to. The alternative is a facility,” Guentert said.

To qualify for nursing-home care, a person must spend down, or spend their resources to qualify for Medicaid, a federal program in which the government pays for a person’s care. The program is income-based. Guentert said that is not what families want to do. They want to leave their homes and their resources to their families.

Another senior program that partners with OPI is the Family Caregiver Program which “supports the caregiver, not the care receiver,” Guentert said.

She refers to this web of support services for seniors as “wrap-around supportive services” to allow older adults to remain healthy and independent.

“Our community is so remote. Our parents and grandparents grew up in this community, and they want to stay here,” she said.

She goes on to explain that the support services offered are to help seniors, “age in their communities and thrive. There is a difference between thriving and existing.” She noted that aging in place involves a healthy, livable community and that a livable community includes mental, physical and emotional health.

“Senior programs have grown in this community. It’s a blessing to our citizens,” she said.

Guentert stressed the importance of older adults in the Wallowa County community cannot be underestimated.

“Our community is made up of many components,” she said.

Those components are a diversity of ethnicities, races and ages.

“The seniors are a major part of that,” she said. “They have worked all their lives to live here. They’re an important aspect that should never be forgotten. We can’t have a community without them.”