County supports ADRC funding
The Marathon County Board of Supervisors last week Tuesday approved a resolution calling on Gov. Evers and the legislature to dedicate $52 million to the state’s Aging and Disability Resource Centers (ADRC) after years of stagnant funding. The board approved the resolution after hearing a report from Jonette Arms, executive director of ADRC of Central Wisconsin. The organization serves Marathon, Wood, Lincoln and Langlade counties.
Arms said she runs a $6.5 million program that relies on $848,181 in tax levy, including $395,000 from Marathon County.
A major focus of her agency, she said, is nutrition. The four-county ADRC spends $2 million annually on meals for seniors and the disabled.
She said her agency in 2019 served 137,3431 meals to 1,141 individuals and 14,496 Cafe 60 meals in local restaurants, including at the R and J Cafe, Athens, and the Wild Steer, Stratford. Arms said the ADRC suspended congregate dining in March due to COVID-19.
She said the ADRC could use two more dining sites in Wausau and a Cafe 60 site in Hatley.
Arms said state funding for Wisconsin’s multi-county ADRC’s has been level for two
_ decades. County tax support for ADRCCentral Wisconsin has not been increased since 2009, she said.
The director said the requested extra funding would help state ADRCs catch up with inflation but also to increase funding to hire additional benefit specialists.
It is estimated the number of people over age 60 in Marathon County will increase from 26 percent this year to 30 percent in 2030.
