Eliot - a community for a lifetime
the grab bag makes all the difference
Suzanne  Lepage-Wade

Margaret had always been a planner. At 78, she kept her bills paid on time, her garden tended, and her weekly shopping list organized. But the one thing she'd never planned for was an emergency.

That changed on a crisp October afternoon at Eliot Town Hall, where the Aging in Place Committee was hosting an emergency preparedness event. Margaret almost didn't go—her arthritis was acting up—but her neighbor convinced her to come along.

"I always wondered how I would evacuate my home in an emergency with no car," Margaret confessed to the presenter afterward. The Fire Chief, who was there as a partner in the project, assured her she was already on their emergency alert list. "We'll come to your assistance," he promised.

Margaret left that day with more than just a bright red "Grab and Go" bag filled with emergency supplies. She left with peace of mind.

With funding from the Community Connections Grant, the Eliot AIP Committee distributed 43 bags during the last quarter of 2025, reaching residents at town events and the Baron Place senior living center. Each bag contained essentials for an emergency, but the real value lay in the conversations they sparked and the connections they forged.

When 90-year-old Mrs. Chen, who is legally blind, heard about the project, she requested a home visit to learn more. A woman who had fallen and missed the event called asking for a bag to be delivered. The committee said yes every time.

"Thank you," Margaret had said simply that October day. Two words that captured what happens when a community looks out for its older residents—not just with supplies and information, but with genuine care and partnership.

The bags now sit ready in homes across Eliot. But more importantly, residents like Margaret sleep a little easier, knowing their community has their back.