FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 5, 2023
Commissioners Honor Michael & Helen LeRitz as Senior Volunteers of the Month
(Douglas County, Ore.) Douglas County Commissioners Tom Kress, Chris Boice, and Tim Freeman, along with our Douglas County Senior Services Department are pleased to announce that Michael and Helen LeRitz were awarded the Douglas County Senior Services Volunteer of the Month award for May 2023. The LeRitzes were presented with the award at the Bistro Sixty Senior Dining Site in Sutherlin on Thursday, May 30, 2023. Bistro Sixty Sutherlin is located at 202 E Central Avenue in Sutherlin, inside the Sutherlin Senior Center.
“Michael and Helen are great assets to our volunteer team in Sutherlin,” remarked Commissioner Tom Kress, liaison Commissioner to the Douglas County Senior Services Department. “We really appreciate that they make time as a couple to serve others, their enthusiasm is contagious!”
Douglas County Senior Services Food Coordinator Darla Hilburn nominated Michael and Helen for the Douglas County Senior Services Volunteer of the Month award. She said, “Michael is our ‘Hero of the Kitchen’ and Helen does everything and anything to assist our team.”
The LeRitzes moved to Douglas County about 18 months ago and began volunteering at the Sutherlin Bistro Sixty Senior Dining Site right after they got settled. Both Michael and Helen are retired U.S. Air Force veterans, and Michael previously worked for the State of Texas before retiring full-time. In their free time, the couple enjoys walking and playing golf. Helen also enjoys crocheting. “We volunteer because we really enjoy the interaction with other people.”
Our Bistro Sixty Senior Dining Sites prepare meals on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at our seven rural dining site locations in Glide, Glendale, Reedsport, Riddle, Sutherlin, Winston, and Yoncalla. Senior Services staff know there are others in our communities who could benefit from their Meals on Wheels delivery program and/or meals at their Bistro Sixty Senior Dining Sites. If residents know of friends or family who are unable to drive, need assistance with daily living activities, would benefit from hot meal delivery, or need other assistance, they are encouraged to call the Aging & Disabilities Resource Connection in the Douglas County Senior Services Department at (541) 440-3677 or by sending an email to adrc@co.douglas.or.us.
Douglas County’s seven rural Senior Dining Sites and Meals on Wheels programs are managed by Douglas County Senior Services Department staff but are successful because of the dedication of volunteers like Michael & Helen. To get involved with Douglas County Bistro Sixty Senior Dining Sites and Meals on Wheels programs or to learn more about volunteer opportunities, contact Darla Hilburn in our Douglas County Senior Services Department via email at dahilbur@co.douglas.or.us or by calling (541) 440-3677. Thank you, Michael & Helen!
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Media Contact: Tamara Howell, Douglas County Emergency Communications & Community Engagement Specialist, Douglas County Public
Affairs Office | Office: (541) 957-4896 | Cell: (541) 670-2804 | Email: tjhowell@co.douglas.or.us
Kellie Trenkle, Public Affairs Specialist, Douglas County Public Affairs Office | Office: (541) 440-4493
Email: kellie@co.douglas.or.us
Photos © D.Hilburn/Douglas County. Individual photos available upon request.