Written by Marcia Horn, Community Editor
After one year of operation, two new Jewish Family Services programs are helping dozens of Kansas City seniors maintain their independence.
JET Express, which provides door-to-door transportation, and Help@Home, which provides home-repair and other services, allow seniors to avoid having to move out of their private homes and into assisted-living type facillities. Both are available to anyone in the metro area who meets certain criteria.
JET Express (JET is an acronym for Jewish Elder Transit) has provided more than 1,000 rides since September 2008, and the demand is increasing. For a flat fee of $2.50 each way, people 65 and older who have no other means of transportation and who are not wheelchair bound can call and get rides around town — to doctors appointments, hairdressers, shopping, volunteer commitments, lunch with friends, cultural activities. “Any activity that keeps older adults active and independent (is eligible),” said Dawn Herbet, director of Older Adult Initiatives.
JET Express riders must call five working days ahead of the time they need a ride. The hours of operation are 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Trips are limited to 30 miles round trip beginning at the driver’s home, unless it’s for medical purposes, in which case the 30-mile limit is waived.
“We can only give one ride a week at this time, until we get a larger cadre of volunteers,” Herbet said. “We’re hoping to go to two rides soon.”
Ruth Forman and her mother, Phyllis Forman, use JET Express on Friday nights to attend Congregation Beth Torah’s Shabbat service.
0 Responses
Stay in touch with the conversation, subscribe to the RSS feed for comments on this post.
You must be logged in to post a comment.