Senior Leadership Inititiative
Class of 2003 Participants
(L to R: Ruth Klemmer, Rachel Reddick, Edward Harrell, Sallie Williamson)
J. Edward Harrill retired from Appalachian State University in 1992. He came to Boone in 1961 to reactivate and develop a master level degree program in counseling. By the time Ed retired this program had 12 faculty members. At ASU Ed received an Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award and was granted the Ella Stevens Barrett award by the NC State Counseling Association. Ed is active in NC Citizens for International Understanding , his church and community and now serves Watauga County as their representative to the Senior Tar Heel Legislature.
Ruth R. Klemmer is a retired occupational therapist. She became
most interested in quality issues in long term care and the needs of responsible
caregivers when her father and mother resided in a facility in Wake County.
Ruth and her husband were the founders of the Stewart Health Center Friends,
a support group of the relatives and friends of nursing home residents
of the Springmoor Retirement Community in Raleigh. She became an active
and valuable member of the Long Term Care Coalition sponsored by Friends
of Residents in Long Term Care. Ruth has also been active and loyal supporter
of the League of Women Voters and has served as an election judge in Wake
County.
Rachel Reddick retired from a professional career that included the Internal Revenue Service, a Montessori childcare center, a managed healthcare network and the State of California. She returned to North Carolina where she still operates a small business from her home. She is presently a Community Coordinator for AARP in Pasquotank County and very involved in developing and promoting AARP functions and opportunities for volunteering in that community. She is very concerned about long term care issues and the need for pharmacy assistance in the elderly. While numerous projects and programs are available, it is still difficult to locate services when they are most needed. Rachel is also a volunteer on the Election Board for Elizabeth City and is very active in all areas of church work.
Sallie Williamson recently retired from the Pitt County Department
of Social Services where she served as supervisor of Pitt County's adult
services programs. She was the first social worker in Pitt County's Community
Alternatives Program (CAP-DA) and was promoted from that position to eventually
oversee guardianship and adult protective services as well as CAP-DA.
Sallie is currently the president of the Pitt Aging Coalition and works
diligently to develop systems to better coordinate services and improve
agency interaction to improve outcomes for aging clients. Sallie is working
part-time for the Mid-East Area Aging on Aging as a caregiver advocate.
