On a clear autumn day with the brilliance of color as our backdrop and a hint of crispness in wind, the cars started lining up in St. Sophia’s Parking Lot for our first-ever Car Fit Program. This program hosted by the JFS NNORC and sponsored by the Colonie Senior Services Center, offered clinics, in which trained CarFit technicians assessed a driver in their car to ensure that the mirrors, steering wheel, seat, etc. were at the safest and most appropriate position. Twenty-two senior drivers came through the program.
A team of twelve volunteers assessed our drivers by ensuring that the mirrors were at optimum use, the steering wheel the appropriate height and angel, the seat the proper distance from the wheel and the all-important safety belt adjusted to fit snugly and securely.
Here’s what we discovered:
- 16 folks were over age 80
- 18 needed mirror adjustments
- 16 needed seat belt correction
- 7 were given information on replacing existing cushions to ensure better vision
We are grateful to Roger Dames and his team of volunteers to help our senior drivers navigate the NNORC and beyond safely. If you missed this opportunity to be part of a CarFit day, we will schedule another assessment date in June.
For additional program offerings of the NNORC, please call 518-514-2023.