Senior center's '$100 Challenge' expanding

SANDPOINT — The Sandpoint Senior Center $100 Challenge is gaining momentum as more doctors lend support and other professionals challenge their peers.

In an effort to raise money for much-needed community services, Sandpoint Area Seniors co-director Barbara Gooby has asked key area professionals to challenge their associates with a $100 pledge of support.

Dr. Brent Leedles kicked off the challenge last month by encouraging the region’s medical professionals to place a $100 donation to the Senior Center. Since Leedles got the ball rolling, several people have answered the challenge, including Robert Rust, Jerald Baker, Steve Puffer, Pam Bird, Forrest Bird and Kathy Robertson.

The challenge has now expanded to other professions, too. Attorney Tevis Hull has followed Leedles’ example in challenging his vocational peers to support the senior center along with the doctors.

Similarly, Mt. Baldy Dental Center dentist Todd House is leading the initiative for the Sandpoint oral health community. With other professionals taking an interest in the initiative, the $100 Challenge may well expand into other offices.

For those that might not be a doctor, lawyer or dentist, there are plenty of other ways to support the senior center. One low-cost option is to join the $5-A-Month Club. A simple donation of $60 over the course of the year helps the senior center maintain services like the Sandpoint Senior Center, the Daybreak Center, Meals on Wheels program for shut-ins, regular dinners for seniors and many other activities and events.

In addition, several major donors have helped the senior center keep their programs in operation. They include the Walmart Foundation, which provided one of Sandpoint Area Seniors’ largest grants, and the Ambrosiani-Pastore Foundation, one of the center’s most consistent supporters. Sandpoint Area Seniors officials also wish to thank Northern Region Greatest Need Fund from the Idaho Community Foundation, the Community Assistance League, the Denver Foundation, the Wild Rose Foundation, Michael and Rosalind Holland, Avista and the Sandpoint Eagles Lodge for their support.