Tina White, Yates Dial-A-Ride human resources and volunteer services coordinator, and Susan Sayer, volunteer driver.
Courtesy photo/Tina WhiteYATES TWP. — The main priority of Yates Dial-A-Ride is to remove transportation barriers for Lake County residents. The organization realizes sometimes people need to travel outside of the county, or outside hours of regular bus operation. The Volunteer Services program works to meet these needs.
Since Howard Perry became director of Yates Dial-A-Ride, Tina White has added volunteer services to her responsibilities as HR coordinator. Perry previously managed the program with his past supervisor duties.
The program gives options for those who need transportation if they need to go outside of Lake County or travel outside Yates Dial-A-Ride regular business hours.
“Volunteer Services is a long-standing program at Yates Dial-A-Ride. Our drivers are volunteers in the community who use their own vehicles to transport people to where they need to go. For example, riders could be visiting a hospital for medical testing in Muskegon, going to the airport in Grand Rapids, or being dropped off for an appointment in Detroit,” White said.
Volunteer drivers are paid mileage reimbursement based on the number of miles driven.
“When Howard Perry took on the role of executive director for Yates Dial-A-Ride, he saw to it that the rates were cut almost in half from what they previously were. This makes our program so much more affordable for Lake County residents. Cost is based on mileage driven so it can vary based on the starting point and ending point of the ride,” White said.
For anyone interested in utilizing this program for a ride, call Tina White at (231)745-7311 and select option 4. Ideally, they would like two week’s notice so they can contact the drivers and get an appointment set up in their schedule.
For anyone interested in becoming a volunteer driver, come to the Yates-Dial-A-Ride office (1987 E. U.S. 10) and pick up a volunteer services application, fill it out completely and return it to the office.
“Being a volunteer driver is a wonderful way to help our Lake County community by meeting residents’ transportation needs,” White added.
