MATTAPOISETT — As the Mattapoisett Council on Aging looks to fill the director position, two candidates are now in the running. At their Tuesday, May 27 meeting, the Select Board interviewed the prospective directors.

Joann Avila has been in long term care for most of her career, starting out as a kitchen helper until she was asked if she was interested in being an activity director. From 2002 to 2015 she worked as an activities director at various facilities until becoming the director of recreational services at St. Joseph Manor in Brockton.

Avila has worked with Councils on Aging, encouraging long term care residents to stay active, and said she would like to strengthen community outreach efforts, provide services and information on programs available to seniors.

She noted that she has experience working with a small budget, citing her work as treasurer on Dartmouth’s veterans advisory board and organizing events at nursing homes.

“Budgeting in general for a small department with no money is not something that I’m not familiar with,” she said.

Avila said she would go into the community and help people understand what the Council on Aging does and attend events that are important to Mattapoisett’s elderly population.

“I don’t want to sit behind a desk and you only see me when you come in,” she said. “I want to be out there.”

Sarah Lake Landry is currently the administrative coordinator at the Mattapoisett Council on Aging, starting out in the organization as a clerk and receptionist in 2023.

Landry worked in hospice care before applying for the clerk position in the Mattapoisett Council on Aging so she could help the community.

“My original goal was to eventually get training and outreach and … over the years be a clerk and move into the outreach position,” she said.

Landry said she would like to encourage more people to participate in the Council on Aging and become more present in the community.

“When you recognize someone’s face and you associate them with an organization or a department, you might be more willing to introduce me to someone that you think … needs what our department does,” she said.

She would also like to develop relationships with other town departments, including the police and fire departments, and encourage community involvement.

While Landry hasn’t worked directly with budgets, she has put together vouchers and submits payments to the accounting and treasurer’s offices.