An expanded transportation service for seniors has been a big success here.
The not-for-profit cooperative between the Fergus Legion, Fergus-Elora Rotary Club, the Lions Club of Fergus and St. John’s Ambulance – expanded its services Elora and Salem this summer. For the better part of two decades, Fergus-Elora Senior Trans has provided wheelchair accessible transportation but only to those living in Fergus.
“We use it a lot here,” said Shannon Brinkman, general manager of Heritage River retirement home in Elora. “What a great service it is for the seniors.”
She said residents have a list of drivers with their phone numbers. The service is provided Tuesdays in Elora, so seniors call on Mondays to arrange for trips. On Wednesdays, the service operates for Fergus seniors.
Those trips can be for anywhere in the general area, including Fergus, Elora, Belwood and Alma.
It is $3 for a round trip, and many of the seniors at Heritage River use the service to visit stores in the area. One senior used the service to travel to her daughter’s home in Fergus.
Brinkman said some days up to six people will use the service, and on others it can be as high as a dozen – and that is just at Heritage River. She said she is sure there are many others living in Elora and Salem also using it.
“It’s such a great, great service,” she said.
The move is facilitated by a new $80,000 vehicle secured by the organization, thanks in large part to an anonymous benefactor who donated $65,000 towards its purchase.
Anyone interested in the service can pick up a schedule and driver contact list at the Victoria Park Seniors Centre or the Community Resource Centre, both in Fergus, or call Bielby at 519-843-5662.
