ETCOG Welcomes Colleen Halliburton to Oversee Area Agency on Aging Senior Programs and Services

The East Texas Council of Governments (ETCOG) is pleased to announce the appointment of Colleen Halliburton to its management team as the Director of the Area Agency on Aging of East Texas (AAA). In this position, Halliburton will oversee developing and maintaining a comprehensive, coordinated human service delivery system for nutrition and support services for seniors in ETCOG's fourteen-county region.

Halliburton brings over 20 years of experience serving seniors in various positions. Prior to accepting this position, Halliburton was Director of the Community Services Division at the South East Texas Regional Planning Commission, which included the Area Agency on Aging, 2-1-1 Area Information Center, the Community Services Block Grant, Lighthouse Weatherization Program, and the Coalition for the Homeless of Southeast Texas. She also currently serves as the President of the Texas Association of Area Agencies on Aging.

"I am excited and pleased to welcome Ms. Halliburton to the ETCOG Team. She brings a wealth of knowledge and real-life experience to the Director position that will allow her to build on the East Texas AAA's current successes! Her passion for serving seniors is both evident and contagious! I look forward to serving alongside her and the entire ETCOG AAA Team!" said ETCOG Executive Director David Cleveland.
 
"It is an honor to join the ETCOG team and the outstanding professionals at the East Texas Area Agency on Aging," said Colleen Halliburton. "Caring for our elders can be a challenge, especially when we don't know what to do. At the AAA, we want to help all generations of caregivers through their challenges so they may also experience the sweet gifts of serving their loved ones." 

The AAA of East Texas is part of a nationwide network coordinating supportive services for seniors as mandated by the Older Americans Act of 1965 and its subsequent amendments. Its programs are tailored to meet the social, nutritional, educational, and logistical needs of residents aged 60 years and older, caregivers, or individuals receiving Medicare, regardless of age. The AAA serves as the region's leader in advocating and providing a variety of services, such as information and referral, benefits counseling, case management, health education classes, senior nutrition, housing repair, and advocating through the Ombudsman program for people in nursing and assisted living facilities. These services help older individuals live independent, meaningful, and dignified lives in their own homes and communities for as long as possible.