Davidson County Senior Services employee receives State Aging Service Award
Charlotte, NC – Friday, March 15, 2023– After the 2023 North Carolina Association on Aging Annual Conference held at Pritchard Memorial Baptist Church in Charlotte, five awards were presented to deserving professionals across North Carolina for their commitment, innovation, and proven impact in the aging field.
The five award categories were Rising Star, Guiding Star, Shining Star, Rock Star, and Reaching for the Stars Innovative Program. Davidson County Senior Services Volunteer Coordinator Chris Bitterman received the Shining Star Award.
Juan Jefferson, NCAOA President, presented the awards at the Excellence in the Field of Aging Awards Luncheon, where he stated, “The Shining Star Award honors an employee for the quality of direct service they provide to older adults in their community, and candidates must be front line service delivery workers.”
In recognizing Bitterman, Jefferson summarized, “Chris has worked diligently over the past two years to secure the volunteers needed to deliver Meals on Wheels each weekday, serving 300+ clients on the county’s twenty-three routes.
Pre-COVID, the department’s over the age of age 60 volunteer rate was at 68%. Post pandemic, most of those volunteers did not return to delivering meals. Chris had to start from scratch to rebuild the volunteer program. Soaring fuel prices and inflation only added to the difficulties in recruiting volunteers.
Determined to restore the program and eliminate department staff having to take time away from their job tasks to deliver meals, Chris developed a plan that included speaking engagements, print media, and local television interviews, bringing much success. Chris petitioned co-workers to share the need for volunteers on their social media pages, which resulted in an outpouring of citizens wanting to help. Through his perseverance, Chris recruited and trained enough volunteers to deliver on all routes and had a waiting list of volunteers ready to be called to action.
In response to the award, Senior Services Director Thessia Everhart-Roberts states, “Chris has excelled in his role as Volunteer Coordinator, exhibiting one of the highest levels of productivity
I have seen in someone in this position during my tenure. A humble and compassionate public servant, Chris has the intelligence, work ethic, and communications skills that add tremendous value to the Senior Services department.” Everhart-Roberts added, “Although we have an on going need for volunteers to deliver Meals on Wheels, Chris has done an excellent job in recruiting, training and retaining the volunteers we do have.”
The NCAOA represents agencies and other professionals in the field of aging who provide home and community-based services and advocate for quality programs that enable older adults and their families to live as independently as possible.
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If you would like more information about this press release or to schedule an interview with anyone mentioned, contact Thessia Everhart-Roberts at 336.242.2290 or email thessia.everhart@davidsoncountync.gov.
