NORWICH – The Chenango County Area Agency on Aging is looking to start a new service that will keep the senior population up to speed on sudden events.

Agency leaders addressed the county’s Health and Human Service Committee last month about a proposed contract with Blooming Health, a digital company whose mission is to keep older adults connected to family and community through the use of technology.

According to Heather Felter, director of the Chenango County Area Agency on Aging, the service would bolster services already offered by the agency and allow staff to “check in” with seniors via text messaging, emails, as well as cell phone and landline phone calls.

Blooming Health services would be free to community members, Felter added, while the expense at the county level would be picked up by the New York State Office for the Aging.

“It would be a great resource for us. Instead of our office contacting clients individually, we can send information out in about five minutes,” she said. “We don’t really have a system to communicate with our aging community at a moment’s notice, and not a lot of them are on social media.”

The proposal to move ahead with Blooming Health was given the nod by the county’s Health and Human Service Committee. Approval is needed by the county board during its next monthly meeting before the Area Agency on Aging can sign a contract.