Dunbar, Olivia, RN

GREATER ADIRONDACK HOME AIDES is a non-profit agency that was organized in 1965 by people in Glens Falls who saw a need for trained women to help families in times of illness and stress. A group of volunteers formed a Board of Directors who incorporated the Warren County Homemaker Service. These pioneers selected, trained and hired a group of 12 Homemakers who filled their first assignments in 1966. As the service grew, the Board hired an Executive Secretary who ran the agency from her home while raising a family. Further growth saw the move to a one-room office and the gradual addition of support staff which included a supervising nurse in 1974. This first decade was marked by the commitment of dedicated Board and staff who worked to develop a service of excellence in Warren County: our training program was one of the first in the state to be approved for Medicare services; the agency achieved approval by the National Home Caring Council; 18 Home Health Aides provided over 19,000 hours of service in 1975. In its second decade, the agency's reputation for high standards continued as we grew to meet the demand for health care services at home. We changed our name as we expanded our service area to include Washington and Saratoga Counties. We moved our offices to give space to the staff needed to support the services of what has now become more than 80 trained men and women caring for their neighbors in need.