Mt. Olive Seniors By Dixie Kuykendall

The North Jefferson News



Editor’s note: The following column is written by Dixie Kuykendall, a member of the Mt. Olive Senior Center. Mrs. Kuy-kendall will write about senior issues, events and members of the senior center in future columns.

Just a little introduction: My name is Dixie Kuykendall. My husband and I moved to Mt. Olive in July of last year. We are both retired; Robert worked for many years as a Federal Mine Inspector and I served as President of the Alabama Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation.

We joined the Mt. Olive Senior Center and have been blessed by meeting so many wonderful seniors from the area — folks who have already become great friends and folks that you need to know more about.

So, future columns will introduce a shining senior from Mt. Olive — I can’t wait!

One of our sweet senior ladies went over to the new Target hoping to get a job. “How old are you?” asked the interviewer. “Approaching thirty,” she responded.

“From which end?” he asked.



On a more serious note

This week our State Legislature will go into session in Montgomery. As seniors, we need to keep apprised of what’s going on, and we need to be informed and vocal about issues that affect Alabama seniors.

I would like to use this column as an avenue to keep you updated on senior issues and ways to voice our opinion. Don’t ever think that your opinion doesn’t matter. Seniors compose 60 percent of the votes in Alabama and, yes, together and informed, we can make a difference.

I am honored to be your representative in the Alabama Silver Haired Legislature.

The ASHL is a nonpartisan, nonprofit model legislature of citizen volunteers aged 60 and older elected to represent the interest of older Alabamians. It is patterned after the Alabama State Legislature, with members representing each of the 105 state legislative districts. We work in cooperation with the Alabama Aging Network, including the Alabama Department of Senior Services and the Area on Aging.

At our last annual session in Montgomery, the top senior issues were put in resolution form and presented to our state delegation. They included:

• A program favoring home or community based care over institutional care

• Increase funding to the Alabama Department of Rehabilitation Services Oasis Program in order to adequately meet the needs of Alabama’s older citizens experiencing age-related vision loss

• Increase funding for the Alabama Department of Senior Services to provide nutritional meals to senior citizens

• Increase the monthly personal needs allowance of nursing home residents

• Limit ad valorem tax increases on senior citizens 60 years and older

Remember, “I must do something” will always solve more problems than “something must be done.”

Please feel free to contact me with senior issues, questions or concerns by e-mail at

dixiek@bellsouth.net or by phone at 631-0049.