Dublin Town Council Hears of Center’s Service to the Community
By DAVID QUESENBERRY
Patriot Publishing
At its Thursday night meeting, the Dublin Town Council heard an update about the work and mission of the Pulaski County Adult Day Service and Fall Prevention Center. Executive Director Linda Davis and staff volunteer Lynn Loftus, presented an overview of the Center’s services to the community.
Loftus said the center served clients from Giles, Christiansburg, Radford, Wytheville and other localities. Eleven of the attendees to the center are U.S. veterans. For participants not able to afford the cost of tuition, the center offers scholarships provided by the New River Valley Health Foundation and private donations totaling $25,000. Loftus said that the center had been informed that funding from the NRV Health Foundation would not be available for 2025. Residents are provided two hot meals and a snack each day and are involved in various activities during the day including games, physical and cognitive exercise sessions, gardening, guitar lessons, crafts, and concerts. She added that the center is available to persons with both physical and cognitive conditions.
Executive Director Linda Davis said that Rebecca Underwood, a Board member of the Center and Instructor of Nursing at Radford University brought students to the Center. One of the Center’s missions she said, was to give students in nursing, physical therapy, and social work experience in working with older adults through a variety of activities with the center’s participants. This enabled students to learn to connect with them while realizing how important it is to have a therapeutic relationship with a potential patient. This relationship allows a bigger impact on the patient’s life by relating to them as a person and not just as a patient.
Radford University, Davis continued, has been using the Center as a clinical site for its nursing students who had “tremendously positive experiences”. Davis said the students were exposed to a medical model used by the Center which was client oriented, comprehensive, and focused on quality and safety. It allows clients to stay at home by providing continual medical assessment and socialization. Students helping provide these services came from RU nursing, social work, and occupational therapy programs and NRCC registered nurse and licensed practical nurse programs.
It appears the demand for services will grow. Davis noted that 57.8 million persons were over age 65, while persons age 85 and over was the fastest growing part of the population. Surveys indicated that 90% of aging adults wanted to “age in place” at their home while 286,000 retired adults attended an adult day center. She said that the Center will have an open house on April 15, 2025. Following the presentation, Mr. Chris Phillips and Mrs. Amy Overholt spoke to Council on how the Center had assisted them with the care of family members.
Council next heard a report on the Claytor Lake Festival from Robbie Morris. Morris said the festival, scheduled for June 14, 2025, was the largest one-day festival in the Virginia Park System. Now in its 26th year, the Festival remained an all-volunteer effort with no paid staff.
Morris said that the three local governments had participated as sponsors in the past and that the festival committee had requested a $500 donation. The budget for this year’s festival was $42,000 with expenses offset by donations and vendor fees. Activities for the festival included crafts, live entertainment, children’s activities, a car show, a fishing tournament and fireworks by Grucci. He added that access to the beach was free during the festival. The admission fee of $20 per vehicle was the same and would be subject to a five dollar discount upon donation of canned goods for the can drive. Morris thanked Council for their previous support. After the presentation, on a motion from Councilwoman Edith Hampton, Council unanimously voted to appropriate $600 for the festival.
In other action, Town Manager Darrin Cullip told Council that the budget appeared to be on track. The Street Department budget was stressed by the purchase and installation of a traffic signal control cabinet ($30,000) at Broad St. and Giles Ave., and additional paving after water line installation. He said that costs for electricity had also risen more than expected and would have to be looked at in the upcoming budget.
Council then named members to the Town’s Personnel Committee. The Committee’s general purpose would be to make recommendations to the larger Council on personnel issues and policy. Town Attorney Sam Campbell said there was a great need for the committee to address some current personnel issues. Following unanimous approval of a resolution, Councilmembers Doug Poe, Juliana Cox and Jared Smith were appointed as members to the committee.
Reporting on the sewer main to Pepper’s Ferry, Cullip said he had met with Pulaski Town Manager Todd Day and Pulaski County Engineer Jared Linkous and got some information on what the status of the main was. Some of the pipe he said would have to be lined. A request for bids was issued for a firm to identify what section of the main would have to be repaired. He asked Council to remain aware that there were some issues that would be coming up about the main line as things progressed.
Cullip also reported to Council that there had been no response as yet concerning agreements with the County on use of the Fire Department by the County’s Unit 10 and use of the County Building Inspector to do inspections in Dublin.
Council next considered the Town’s Animal Control Ordinance. Cullip said the issue had come up due to complaints of dogs running at-large and questions on keeping chickens. After reading the current ordinance, Town Attorney Campbell suggested several revisions that might be included in a new ordinance. After discussion, Council authorized Cullip to research other communities’ animal control ordinances.
Council then honored retiring Town Attorney Sam Campbell for nearly eleven years of service to the Town. Campbell was presented with a plaque by Mayor Debbie Lyons and Town Manager Darrin Cullip. Campbell will be succeeded as town attorney by Trenton G. Crewe.
The next scheduled meeting of the Dublin Town Council will be at 7:00 pm, Thursday, April 17, 2025 in the Council Chambers of the Dublin Town Center.