Dodge/Flower Neighborhood Association

Spring 2003

Apr 28, 2003

Election of Officers
Annual Meeting
Saturday, May 31
10:00 a.m.
Catalina Heights Church
2741 N. Dodge Blvd.

It?’s that time of year again! Where did the time go? Current nominations for the Board are:

President - Barbara Lehmann
Vice-President - John Cise
Secretary - (open)
Treasurer - (open)

Any member in good standing may volunteer to be nominated for any one-year term of office. ?“Members in good standing?” are members who are current in their dues, or who have attended four meetings in the past 12 months.

It is our fervent hope that our past year of positive experiences and efforts have made our association something you are glad to be part of. We feel that we do make a difference for our neighborhood and hope that you will consider volunteering for office.

Your participation is needed to help us fulfill our goals. For information about the duties of the officers, please feel free to contact any current officer or the Dept of Neighborhood Resources at 791-4605.

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**Status of the Grant/Dodge Traffic Signal**

The Transcore report is completed but has not been presented to Mayor and Council at this time. However, the recommendation from the study is not to remove the signal at Dodge and Grant Road. Thank you to everyone who signed and who collected signatures for the petition to keep the traffic signal in place. You can all pat yourselves on the back for your efforts.

** Back to Basics Update - Installation of Streetlights **

?“The Consultants have finished the plans and we expect the original drawings to be submitted very soon. Then we proceed to procurement for bid call. This takes about six weeks. We should start construction by June and be done by
December or this year, if all goes well.?”
Robin West, Project Manager (City of Tucson Dept of Transportation, Engineering Division)

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NEIGHBORHOOD SUPPORT PROGRAMS FOR YOUNG AND OLD

**KidsCare (VISTA)**
(The following is the text of an email sent to me by Americorpsvolunteers. Please contact me if you would like to volunteer to help bring this program to our neighborhood families - Barbara 237-2140).

Greetings Neighborhood Association Members! As part of our Americorps VISTA community service we are involved in a Children's Healthy Start Initiative geared to enroll families in KidsCare (Arizona's health insurance program for children of working families). We would like to engage the community in an outreach process, and hope that you help us get started.

Arizona is 49th in the country when it comes to the number of uninsured children. Having health insurance allows for preventative care, gives children regular access to the doctor at a lower cost to both the patient and the health care provider, and acts as a financial safety net in the case of accidents or unexpected illness. The cost of private insurance is increasing, and more and more working families are unable to afford this heavy burden. KidsCare is a state program that was created to help working families get insurance at low or no cost.

Help us help your neighborhood children!!! Here are the ways that you can help insure your neighbors:
1) Contact us and we will do a walk-through in your neighborhood to distribute health-related information and assist families in filing out a KidsCare application.
2) Find a volunteer in your neighborhood who wants to be a "KidsCare Outreach Volunteer" and who will distribute information and sign families up. We will provide a SHORT training for this volunteer on KidsCare and the application process.
3) Distribute information about KidsCare and how to sign up. We will send you all the materials and information . . . you just have to hand them out!

If you are interested in the health of your neighbors and want to act on their behalf, please contact us to plan how we can best help you!!

Taylor Johnson & Rebecca Karb
rkarb@volunteertucson.org
Children's Healthy Start (881-3300 x137 or x138)
Americorps VISTAs at the Volunteer Center of Tucson

** SAFE HOUSE **
This is a program to help promote a safer environment for our neighborhood children. Neighbors who want to have their households labeled as a ?“Safe House?” must qualify and go through a brief training. Please contact Barbara at 237-2140 if you would like to help implement this program.

**HELP FOR SENIORS AND DISABLED
- PCOA Ambassador Program
This is a program created by Pima Council on Aging designed to train neighborhood volunteers to provide information to elderly and disabled neighbors, and those who assist them. An employee of Information & Referral (a non-profit partially-funded by PCOA) since 1984, Beverly is extremely knowledgeable about the services available. Barbara just completed her Ambassador training. (See the following for details about the Ambassador program and the services available.)

PCOA AMBASSADOR PROGRAM - A grassroots, residential, EDUCATION, INFORMATION & REFERRAL and ADVOCACY program for seniors and those who assist them.

Would you like information about:

-Arizona Long Term Care System (ALTCS)
-Council of Senior Citizens
-Family Caregiving Issues
-Grandparenting
-Home Repair Information*
-Housing Options
-Lifeline Emergency System
-Living Wills and Healthcare Advance Directives
-Long Term care Insurance
-Low Cost Prescription Programs
-Medicare / HMOs
-Mentoring Opportunities
-Nursing Homes / Assisted Living Homes
-PCOA Membership
-Pension Issues
-Donations and Planned Giving Options
-Senior centers & Recreation
-Social Security
-Transportation Information*
-Volunteer Opportunities

Speakers are available for the topics listed above as well as the following:

-Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation
-Advocacy Opportunities
-Dealing with Loss and Change
-End of Life Issues
-Estate Planning
-Fall Prevention
-Frauds and Scams
-Successful Aging
-Telemarketing Fraud
-What is PCOA?

Do you need referral for:
Assistance with:
Caregiving Issues
Personal Care* Personal
Frauds and Scams
Home Delivered Meals*
Senior Center Meals
Legal Assistance*
Budgeting Assistance
Assistive Devices*
Subsidized Home Repair Program*
Health Care Services*
Ideas to get out and meet people
Help with Housekeeping*
Transportation*
Home Adaptations*

If you would like more information or could use some assistance, or if you know someone who might need assistance, contact PIMA COUNCIL ON AGING?’S VOLUNTEER AMBASSADORS listed below

Beverly Van Den Borre at 881-6533
Barbara Lehmann at 795-5494

*some services have eligibility requirements

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< < < Community Corner > > >
New Neighbor: SAMHC Behavioral Health Services, after 40 years in Tucson on Campbell and 6th St., has recently relocated to our beautiful new facilities at 2502 N. Dodge, Suite 190 (entrance on Flower). I thought some of you might be curious about what SAMHC is all about and the services we offer. We have an experienced professional staff available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to help anyone in a mental health crisis. We work closely with law enforcement, the courts, and hospitals.

SAMHC services include: telephone screening, referral and intervention; a walk in crisis center which provides immediate assessment, intervention and evaluation; crisis stabilization for those whose problems require more than a single contact and mobile acute crisis teams which travel to the person in crisis and provide all the services vailable at the walk in center. Our 24 hour telephone number is 622-6000. Additionally, the new facility has provided SAMHC with the space to add 4 crisis-stabilization beds. These beds, for stays from 1-23 hours up to several days, help to provide diversion from acute levels of service such as hospitals.

As the Director SAMHC, I welcome your questions or comments. As a previous active member of the Sam Hughes Neighborhood Association, we plan to be an active participant in our new neighborhood. Please feel free to call me, Carol Little, at 618-8607.

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**STREET REPS/NEIGHBORHOOD ADVOCATES**
Baxter (2700-2799) & Bermuda (3600-3699) - Pat Hamilton: 325-4382
Dodge (2600-2799) - Jo Zane: 327-8270
Dodge (2400-2599) - John Cise: 327-3135
Haskell (2400-2599) - Linda Bansback: 795-6674
Winstel (2600-2799) - Eve LeVine: 326-8914

Advocates will meet between regular neighborhood meetings beginning in June. We need you to volunteer to become the Advocate for your street or apartment complex. Call Barbara at 237-2140 to sign up.

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** HOW TO REPORT DRUG ACTIVITY **
Do you ever see suspicious activity on your street and wonder if it is drug related?
The Drug Enforcement Agency encourages residents to report drug-related activity in their neighborhood.
Call 573-5500 and ask for the duty agent. You may remain anonymous. You may also call the Pima County Attorney's Office anonymous tipster line, 88-CRIME, or 911.

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** March 1st Meeting Notes **
Thank You to Herb Watson and Donna Kingsley at Oasis Apartments for inviting us to have the meeting in their large dining room. Chef David prepared a generous assortment of pastries and ample coffee. They were great hosts.
Steve Farley from the Citizens for A Sensible Transportation Solution (CFASTS) gave a very informative presentation on this grassroots organization?’s transportation plan. The plan includes an expanded bus system throughout the city in addition to a light rail line on Broadway and 6th Avenue. As our neighborhood has a high population of residents who rely on public transportation, most in the audience were very receptive to the plan.

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MAY 31 ANNUAL MEETING AGENDA
- Reading and Approval of March 1 Minutes
- Treasurer's Report
- Nominations and Vote for Officers
- Future Projects
- Call to the Audience