On Thursday, Sept. 24, the Region 9 Economic Development District voted to accept the designation from the Colorado Department of Human Services’ (CDHS’) State Unit on Aging (SUA) as the Area Agency on Aging (AAA) for Southwest Colorado.
Serving Archuleta, La Plata, San Juan, Montezuma and Dolores counties, the district will use this designation to provide essential resources like home-delivered meals, transportation and local caregiver support programs.
The SUA officially offered the AAA designation to Region 9 to ensure the uninterrupted delivery of Older Americans Act services and support to older adults and caregivers throughout the area.
“This means the district will directly coordinate essential community services, while our teams work closely together on a detailed transition plan to ensure current services to older adults are not disrupted,” stated Laura Strother, director of the SUA. “The SUA and the Region 9 Economic Development District are partnering to complete the transition by early 2027. Afterward, the SUA will continue providing ongoing support and technical assistance.”
The AAA designation establishes Region 9 as the organization responsible for coordinating all AAA essential functions and working with local partners to support the independence and well-being of the region’s older adults.
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