The Richlands Ruritan club met on Mar. 11, at the Calvary Methodist Church. The dinner was served, after which the members conducted a short business meeting. Gloria Martin, Zack Collins and Neal Holliday, Ruritan Zone Governor, were guests at the meeting.
The speaker, Gloria Martin, is a member of the Greenbrier County Committee on Aging. Martin spoke on the timely topic of elder abuse. There are more than 9,400 citizens in Greenbrier County over the age of 60. They are all in the group that is vulnerable to elder abuse.
Abuse of the elderly can take many forms, such as physical abuse, mental abuse, neglect of care or denial of medication. Martin noted that financial exploitation of the elderly is often inflicted by family members, care givers, or from scams that target the elderly. Only one case in 14 is ever reported to the police or social workers. The committee’s goal is to raise public awareness of the dangers of elder abuse. The Committee on Aging received a grant to train police and social workers in the identification of abuse.
The Richlands Ruritan club meets on the second Wednesday of each month for a dinner meeting at the Calvary Methodist Church on Route 60W.
The Ruritan Civic organization is a national network of clubs working together for a stronger America. The Ruritan focus is to support community services in small towns and rural communities across America. The Ruritans were founded in 1928 in Holland, VA, and celebrate their 87th year this May.