Clay County Commission 

Dan Haglund

The Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging program director rolled through her budget presentation with numerous highlights – and no need for notes.
Heather Pender, Aging program director, laid out the numbers and program tentacles for the Clay County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday in Moorhead.
Included in the presentation was a request for matching funds for area seniors of just over $9,000, which Pender said equates to about 75 cents per adult over 60 years old.
The presentation comes along with a request for 25 percent matched funding out of her organization’s federal funding under the Older Americans Act of 1965 Title III programs.
These include senior nutrition, caregiver support and evidence-based classes. The organization redistributes those funds within the northwestern Minnesota geographic area.
Various local programs benefit from this funding as well, under the Title III(b) program, including Chore, Homemaker, Information and Assistance, Northwest Legal Services, Lakes & Prairies Community Action Partnership (CAPLP), the Rural Enrichment and Counseling Headquarters (REACH) program in Hawley and the Barnesville Helpers.
Pender said Dancing Sky also operates the Senior Linkage Line, which is available for caregivers or older adults who may have questions about Medicaid, Medicare or other support service.
“Primarily, our work is the Older Americans Act funding, regranting those dollars,” Pender said.
Pender also said there has been a push to designate Moorhead “age-friendly” as a community, and working with AARP and Mayor Shelly Carlson.
She explained that “age-friendly” means not only having programs and resources for the retired populations, but also for the young and those with special needs. An example would be curb cutouts for those with mobility issues.
Pender also touted a fellow who is under contract to help seniors one-on-one with Medicare questions, and has become a great asset to a couple dozen people so far.
“I think I can probably speak for everybody who’s turned 65 at some point,” said Commissioner Kevin Campbell, Dist. 4. “There’s always the uncertainty ‘Are you making the right choices when you’re enrolling in Medicare or what your supplemental policies might be. I think it’s a nervous time for every senior.”
Commissioner David Ebinger, Dist. 5, serves on the Dancing Sky board and is a tremendous supporter of the programs it runs.
“Clay County benefits greatly, particularly in light of what our contribution is,” Ebinger said. “They work very closely with the CAPLP seniors group. The need to have an organization like Dancing Sky in our rural areas with food distribution is essential, and for transportation, particularly for medical appointments.”
The Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging is one of seven programs of the Northwest Regional Development
Commission (NWRDC). It is the NWRDC’s goal to supplement efforts by local units of government to maintain our economic strength and improve the quality of life in northwest Minnesota.
Serving 21 counties in northwestern Minnesota including: Becker, Beltrami, Clay, Clearwater, Douglas, Grant, Hubbard, Kittson, Lake of the Woods, Mahnomen, Marshall, Norman, Otter Tail, Pennington, Polk, Pope, Red Lake, Roseau, Stevens, Traverse and Wilkin.
The northwestern headquarters is located in Warren, about 100 miles north of Moorhead on Highway 75.
In accordance with the Minnesota Regional Development Act of 1969, the NWRDC was established to provide technical assistance to the local units of government in their region by performing a variety of unique services based on the needs of the region. They partner with numerous state and federal agencies to obtain and administer grants for programs and projects at the local level.
The NWRDC is governed by a commission composed of elected officials and special interest groups serves as an advocate for local governments in Northwest Minnesota.
The Dancing Sky website links to key areas, like Aging, Arts, Emergency Operations, Enterprise Loan Fund, Transportation, Community Development and Economic Development.
These programs were set up to reflect priority work items of the time and relationships were established with the state and federal agencies that could provide assistance with local projects. Programs and work priorities have changed in response to economic and social trends; but the central mission of supporting efforts by cities, counties, townships, businesses and individuals to improve living, working and natural resource conditions in northwest Minnesota has remained the same.