Businesses and individuals can help provide safe and affordable transportation for seniors through Dial-a-Ride’s new sponsorship program.
Sponsored by the Beaches Council on Aging, Dial-a-Ride provides personalized, door-to-door transportation for homebound seniors and disabled individuals from Mayport to Jacksonville Beach to medical appointments, grocery shopping and other errands. While a $5 donation per trip is suggested, Dial-a-Ride doesn’t turn any riders away for inability to pay.
To help support the program, businesses and community members can become “rider heroes,” sponsoring riders for the average annual cost of $200.
“Without the support of the beach community, the Dial-a-Ride program would cease to operate, leaving many of our riders without a means of getting to their doctors’ appointments or grocery store,” said Kathryn Latham, chairman of the board of directors for the Beaches Council on Aging. “To our riders, this service is the only way that keeps them connected to the community and allows them to maintain their independence.”
For more than 40 years, Dial-a-Ride has provided transportation to 350 seniors and people with disabilities annually. To become a Dial-a-Ride sponsor or for more information, call (904) 246-1477.
