There are rumblings in the Pine River Valley. Rural community members – often seniors, caregivers, veterans or people with disabilities, aren’t getting the resources they need.
On Friday, two nonprofits, Southwest Center for Independence and Pine River Shares, launched a new community initiative to address these needs and to tackle rural access issues head-on.
The Stay at Home initiative identifies and addresses barriers to daily independence and safety, like difficulty accessing transportation, food or health care, in the Pine River Valley. The organizations held the first of six community meetings at the Pine River Senior Center in Bayfield.
Although they launched the initiative, the nonprofits do not want to lead the discussion – that’s up to community members themselves.
“We’re here to get behind them, to connect resources and to facilitate this leadership process collaboratively,” said Gordon South, Southwest Center for Independence co-facilitator.
He said the initiative is designed to be a grassroots effort. The nonprofits will facilitate, engage and encourage community members to become their own leaders and advocate for solutions that work for them.
At the first initiative meeting, about 20 people discussed transportation and social determinants of health, like cost of living and social inclusion, and other barriers, South said.
“I think it went well. I think there’s a large outcry from the aging population and also an outcry from the caregiver population,” said Sarah Murphy, a special needs mom in Forest Lakes. Her main concerns were caregiver burnout and transportation.
“People need help in this area, and we don’t always know what services are available,” she said.
Rural areas have limited broadband, greater geographic barriers and fewer employment options than urban areas. They also have fewer hospitals, transportation and housing options, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Rural Health.
“It keeps coming up that really a lot of folks are isolated, whether geographic isolation or social isolation,” South said.
For caretakers or community members with health conditions and/or disabilities, these factors can become barriers to living independently and safely in their own homes.
“We see too many people that are falling through the cracks of aging systems, whether it be health care or long-term care,” South said.
Future meetings will take place in Vallecito, Forest Lakes, Ignacio, Allison and Arboles, although dates are still being set, he said. In the second stage of the initiative, the nonprofits will return to community members with a strategic plan for addressing rural access barriers in the valley.
“It’s a total leadership development process,” South said. “At first, it’s really getting people to show up and to speak up.”
smullane@durangoherald.com
