Lincoln County Council on Aging

The Lincoln County Council on Aging is the only "meals on wheels" for all 642 square miles of Lincoln County, Missouri, and has been since 1978. Our mission is to enrich the quality of life, and support independence & vitality for those over 50 and the community around them. Our organization accomplishes this by encouraging wellness, focusing on preventing diseases before they occur, and putting an end to food-insecurity. Nutritious meals allow constituents to live happier, healthier lives and often allows seniors, disabled and/or Veterans to retain their independence and age in their own homes.

LCCOA is committed to providing our meal program and other free services to support independence and promote health and wellness to the citizens of Lincoln County. Keeping seniors, disabled, and/or Veterans in their homes significantly reduces costs to society; as support for independence or community based care is estimated to be one quarter of the cost of institutional care.

Our nutrition program follows the SMART criteria based on best practices as outlined in the Older Americans Act and National Council on Aging. Other programs and services are based on healthy aging agendas recommended by the Center for Medicare Services, and the National Council on Aging and selected specifically based on local and state data gathered by the Missouri Senior Report. Community data is collected and shared by several organizations, including the County Health Department and the County Health Foundation. Results are shared and discussed in monthly meetings called "Healthy Communities". LCCOA participants are assessed and surveyed annually. Results are stored in various databases provided by the state of Missouri and In-house results are taken from surveys, sign in sheets and log books. One of the helpful aspects of participating in state and federal programs are the specific instructions on record keeping, data and results are then made available for review to the partners. Results are evaluated by staff and program committee with an end to review and revision of current programs.