A Lewiston program is coming to an end after losing nearly 80 percent of its volunteers.
Lewiston’s Community Concepts is one of 10 community action agencies in Maine. One of its programs is the driver volunteer program.
“We’ve had a transportation program for well over 30 years providing non-emergency medical transportation in the community,” Community Concepts Chief Operating Officer Mary-Rita Reinhard said.
The program had 170 drivers in 2016. This year, it has 39. The COVID-19 pandemic played a big role in this decline, according to Community Concepts.
“Most of our drivers are volunteers who are 60 and over and the risk to driving was too great,” Reinhard said.
The program is funded by contracts with the Department of Health and Human Services, Modivcare and private funders.
With the rise in gas prices, Community Concepts has absorbed additional costs, ranging from $12,000 to $17,000 a month.
“We’ve struggled quite honestly with coming up with a sustainable model that we can use for the long term despite numerous process enhancements,” Reinhard said.
One client who depends on this program said she’s sad not only because she’s in need of its services, but because she’s built relationships with the local drivers.
“I’ve gotten to know Nelson, Ed, Nancy, Jerry, Rob and a bunch of other ones,” Community Concepts client Kathleen Holland said.
Holland said the drivers have not only gotten to know her, but her son Dana, who she visits once a week through the program.
“When they told me about it I was like, ‘No. How else am I supposed to go see my little boy?’” Holland said.
Reinhard said Community Concepts is working with providers like Modivcare and is in touch with the Department of Health and Human Services at least once a week to continue rides outside of Community Concepts.
“We have a commitment that we aren’t exiting, at least in the DHHS component, until we’ve mapped all of our riders to a new provider,” Reinhold said.