Marblehead appoints two new members to Council on Aging

MARBLEHEAD – There are two new members of the Council on Aging – selectmen have appointed Dana Denault and Lisa Hooper to the nine-member council, which oversaw services to nearly 3,200 seniors (residents 60 and older) and more than 2,200 family members and caregivers last year.Their terms will expire in May, 2013.Denault, a Marblehead resident for 46 years, retired after a 30-year career as a college administrator in 1999 and serves as a director of the Marblehead Museum and Historical Society. She currently oversees the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) Museum.She has volunteered for the Committee for the Hospice Regatta, an annual fund-raising event for the Hospice of the North Shore, and the Marblehead Scholarship Foundation.Hooper has 14 years experience working with the elderly, 10 of them as operations manager at Coastal Care in Marblehead. She currently serves as director at Geriatric Care Management in Beverly, where she oversees all clients and services.As a volunteer she is associated with the Marblehead Rotary Club, Marblehead Chamber of Commerce and Marblehead Festival of Arts.Also applying for a council seat was Patricia Richwagen, a Marblehead High graduate who has lived in town for more than 50 years. She is a former president of the Marblehead Arts Association, who increased membership from 500-800 in three years, increasing programs, revenues and use of the MAA facilities. She has been a member and volunteer at the Marblehead Chamber of Commerce and volunteers at Old North Church, her church, as well and supports the council through the Friends of the COA.When the board was polled Selectmen James Nye, Jackie Belf-Becker and Judy Jacobi supported Denaut and Hooper, while Selectman Mike Rockett supported Richwagen.Board members asked Richwagen to remain involved with the council, as other openings may be available in the future.The selectmen are accepting letters of interest for seats on the Board of Appeals until Friday at 12:30 p.m. Robert Schaeffner has applied. Interviews will be conducted next Wednesday.