For some senior citizens, the manual labor required to properly take care of outdoor chores can be dangerous, leading them to hire companies for tasks like tree removal and lawn care.
But what happens when you can’t afford such services? Either you attempt the chore until you run into unfortunate consequences, or you leave the chores alone as they grow and fester.
But now, there’s another option for those living in Oakland County.
In July 2024, Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency launched the Oakland County Senior Chore Program to help local, in-need senior citizens. The Oakland County pilot program is funded through the county’s American Rescue Plan Act dollars.
The program covers services such as lawn mowing, leaf raking, tree removal, bush trimming, gutter cleaning and snow blowing.
Although each city runs the service independently, the main qualifications to apply are the same for all: must live in a participating community, be at least 62 years old, and earn less than 80% of the gross household income limit. (See the accompanying chart for dollar amounts based on the size of your household.)
To be eligible for the Oakland County Senior Chore Program, one must live in a participating community, be at least 62 years old, and fall into the low-income threshold by earning less than 80% of the gross household income limit. This chart shows those dollar amounts on the far right, dependent on the size of your household. (Chart courtesy of Oakland County)
As of the last statistics available, the program has served 759 households and 945 people as of August.
There are 19 communities currently participating in the program: Auburn Hills, Bingham Farms, Bloomfield Township, Clawson, Ferndale, Franklin, Hazel Park, Holly, Madison Heights, Oak Park, Orion Township, Pontiac, Rochester Hills, Rose Township, Royal Oak, Royal Oak Township, Southfield, Troy and Waterford.
As a pilot program, it’s funded through July 30, 2026. After that, each community must decide whether to continue offering the services. Some community leaders have already indicated that they’d like to keep the program around, according to Marie Verheyen, the program manager at OLHSA.
“I know Clawson especially is hoping to be able to continue the program,” she said. “They’re looking at what they can do to keep it going since they just had such a positive result. Hazel Park, as well, has had a very positive program.”
Although OLHSA offers a variety of tools and connections to run the program, such as reliable contractors the agency has used in the past, communities can hire other contractors to get the work done, offering local, small business owners the chance to make a name for themselves within their community.
“There was this young man who wanted to start a landscaping business in Royal Oak Township,” Verheyen said. “With this program, we were able to help him start his own company. The seniors all love him because they recognize him from around town. He did their lawn mowing last summer, and he did their snow blowing, so they’re very happy with him.”
One of the program’s many success stories took place in Franklin, where an elderly woman’s lawn was transformed from a junkyard to a regular front yard.
“We took 90 cubic yards of debris out of her yard,” said Don Volgrin, code enforcement officer. “She had accumulated lots of stuff in her yard. It wasn’t even really a maintenance program; as much as it was, the yard was full and needed to be attended to. She had no means to do that, so we stepped in and did it for her, with her permission.”
The front yard of an elderly woman in Franklin had become a collection pile for random stuff. The woman had no means to clean it up and was assisted through the Oakland County Senior Chore Program. (Photo courtesy of Don Volgrin)
After 90 cubic yards of debris were removed, the elderly woman who lives here was once again able to look out and see a front yard that resembled her neighbors. (Photo courtesy of Don Volgrin)
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The front yard of an elderly woman in Franklin had become a collection pile for random stuff. The woman had no means to clean it up and was assisted through the Oakland County Senior Chore Program. (Photo courtesy of Don Volgrin)
The program not only directly benefits senior citizens’ safety when going in and out of their houses, but it also increases the willingness of mail carriers and delivery services to stop by.
“With the bush trimming, (seniors) know that no one is going to try to mug them on the way in and out of their house, because with there being a lot of bushes, someone could be hiding there and ready to grab them,” Verheyen said. “It’s now safer if they have Meals on Wheels delivered, or if the mailman drops the mail off at their house, because sometimes if the bushes are too bad, the mailman won’t deliver their mail.”
For more information, including specific contacts for each of the participating communities, visit https://www.olhsa.org/en-us/chore.