By Liz McMahan
State budget cuts have trickled down to close the doors on Fort Gibson’s senior nutrition center each Friday, program officials said.
The center will not be open either Thursday or Friday this week because of the Thanksgiving holiday.
Both Fort Gibson and Webbers Falls narrowly missed having their programs cut altogether, said James Ezell, accountant for Muskogee County Community Action Foundation, which oversees the program.
MCCAF was prepared to close the two centers for lack of community support, he said. About 25 seniors were using the Fort Gibson center every day, but the town government wanted to charge rent for the use of the facility. The same was true in Webbers Falls.
“We were going to close the site,” Ezell said.
There was a large turnout of seniors at a recent board meeting, and town fathers agreed to rent the building for the seniors’ use at a fee of $1 per year.
Webbers Falls officials agreed to continue allowing the center to operate in its old town hall building.
Cutting out the Friday meals was prompted by a $7.4 million cut in senior nutrition programs nationwide, Ezell said.
MCCAF saw the cuts coming and started trimming staff last February, Ezell said. By the time the budget was cut this fall, there was no choice but to cut services.
He expects more cuts in funding during the first part of 2011, Ezell said.
Reach Liz McMahan at 684-2926 or lmcmahan @muskogeephoenix.com.
