available.

The drive will take place January 23 – 28 between the hours of9 a.m.and6 p.m.  The main collection site is New Covenant Christian Church, 4807 Cove Road., NW, Roanoke.  Other collection sites include:

• All Bank of America Roanoke locations and locations in Daleville and atWestlake.
• Vinton –201 S. Pollard Street, Vinton
• Downtown –302 S. Jefferson Street,Roanoke
• Starkey Road– 3656 Electric Road.,Roanoke
• Brambleton –2820 Brambleton Ave., SW.,Roanoke
• Melrose Ave–2206 Melrose Ave., NW,Roanoke
• Daleville –1571 Roanoke Road, Daleville
• Westlake–12970 Booker T. Washington Hwy, Hardy
• The LOA Central Office,706 Campbell Ave., SW,Roanoke
• MAIN COVINGTON site – Wells Fargo,  246 W. Main Street,  Covington
• Intrepid Home Health,362 W.Main Street,Covington
• GranberryUnitedMethodistChurch,425 W.Main St.,Covington(Will accept soup on January 24 – 25 – 26 –10:00 a.m.- 2:00 p.m.)
• Good News Christian Fellowship,214 S. Lexington Ave,Covington
• MAIN CLIFTON FORGE site – Clifton Forge Fire Department,701 Church Street,CliftonForge
• Scott Hill Retirement Community, 800 W. Ridgeway St.,CliftonForge

This year’s goal is 30,000 cans of soup to be delivered to more than 3,000 local residents.  A hot bowl of soup on a cold day can go a long way in making sure no senior goes hungry.

There are many ways you can help us in our endeavors.  The easiest way is to donate a can or cans of soup and bring it to one of our many collection sites.  All the items collected will be put into reusable cloth bags provided by AARP and distributed into the homes of our elderly neighbors.  If you are a part of a civic group, church group or if you want to collect as a service project with your business, we will welcome any and all donations.  The more we collect, the more we can serve.

We are also in need of volunteers.  Volunteers play a vital role in this project and it cannot be done without their help.  Volunteers are needed in varying capacities.  They include:

• People at New Covenant Christian Church to work in an assembly line format putting the donated soup and crackers into the bags, getting them ready for assembly.
• People to deliver those bags to the Meals on Wheels sites, Diners Club sites, senior independent living centers, etc.  In some cases, we will need volunteers to deliver to the home.
• Volunteers to pick up soup at the drop off locations and bring to our main collection site.
• Volunteers available at the church to assist in unloading the items.

All this cannot be done without the support of a generous community.  We feel so fortunate to provide service in such an area and look forward to continuing Soup for Seniors for many years to come.  More information about the project can be found at www.createthegood.org or by calling Aimee Lawson at the LOA at 540-345-0451 or Patrice Coles at 540-962-0465 in the Alleghany Highlands.  If you would like to make a monetary contribution, you may use the link below or send it to Soup for Seniors, LOA Area Agency on Aging,PO Box 14205,Roanoke,VA 24038.  Funds collected will be used to meet the goal of serving 3,000 seniors or used to further end senior hunger by providing Meals on Wheels to homebound seniors.

Christie Marra, an attorney with the Virginia Poverty Law Center, worked with utility companies, the State Corporation Commission (SCC) and others to get the law passed. She describes the guidelines about who qualifies for a reprieve from utility cut-offs with what is known as a “documented serious medical condition.”

“A physical or psychiatric condition that requires medical intervention to prevent further disability, loss of function or death. So, you need to be under a doctor’s care for a condition that is ongoing.”

She says the new law covers a variety of cases, and offers a couple of examples.

“Someone who is required to take medication regularly to control his or her condition and needs that medication to be refrigerated. Someone who has a serious medical condition that is exacerbated by extremely high or extremely low temperatures.”

A “Serious Medical Condition Certification Form” also must be completed by a physician and filed with the customer’s utility company. The company may then give up to a 60-day grace period, although the customer is still not off the hook for the bill, and can make payment arrangements with the utility company. Marra suggests it’s best to get the form filed before any problems arise with payments to ensure a smooth process.

The “Serious Medical Condition Certification Form” is available on the SCC website at <www.scc.virginia.gov>

More information is at <tinyurl.com/893jqfg>

Monique Coppola, Public News Service – VA

<http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/23126-1>