Government Action » Montezuma County Democrats

We can’t overstate the importance of ensuring Colorado’s seniors have the services and support they need to continue leading healthy and productive lives. As a member of the U.S. Senate’s Special Committee on Aging, I take this responsibility to heart, especially when the largest generation our country has ever seen – the baby boomers – is about to enter retirement.

That’s why I took the U.S. Senate on the road last week, and held a special field hearing at Colorado State University-Pueblo to discuss ways we can encourage wellness and healthy living among the next generation of seniors. Kathy Greenlee, the U.S. Assistant Secretary for Aging, and other experts and service providers from around Colorado and across the country joined us for a great discussion about how we can improve services like exercise, nursing care and nutrition as Congress begins to revise and renew the Older Americans Act in 2012.

Among their suggestions were improving the coordination between programs like Meals on Wheels, family caregiver support, and disease prevention and health promotion activities, which help seniors stay active, independent and in the comfort of their own homes. I appreciate their participation, and I’ll take their recommendations with me back to Washington, D.C.

Traveling the State to Talk to Coloradans
Throughout the next couple of weeks, I’ll continue traveling around the state, talking to Coloradans about how I can be a good partner for them in the U.S. Senate. On Labor Day, I look forward to visiting the Colorado National Monument, one of our state’s most beautiful national parks. As the chairman of the Senate’s National Parks Subcommittee, I want to talk to the park’s superintendent, employees and visitors about how a grant from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has helped improve the trail system and – importantly – created and saved jobs in the community.

Later in the week, I’ll visit the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel in Lake County. Last year, I introduced legislation to resolve the longstanding question of who has the responsibility for maintenance and water treatment in the old mine drainage tunnel. My bill assigns responsibility for fixing and maintaining the tunnel to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and I’m working to get it passed this year as a part of a package of public lands bills.

Those are just a couple of my upcoming events. I look forward to visiting all corners of our great state to hear how I can continue to serve you.

Warm regards,
Mark Udall