The Council on Aging Board of Directors is in the final steps of creating a non-profit group that can help financially support the Council on Aging.

Council on Aging Board of Directors President Peter Dunlop delivered a report at Tuesday night's Selectmen meeting detailing the board's progress. He also gave an update on the cooperation efforts between the board and the Friends of Wareham Elderly group.

He said the new 501c3 non-profit group will be called Support Our Seniors (SOS).

"We need that 501c3 status because it's going to support the COA," Dunlop said.

The Council on Aging lost all of its town funding after the Proposition 2 1/2 override vote failed last June. The Council only has one staff member, an office manager who is paid via a $43,000 grant. Because it is a town department, the Council on Aging can't raise money on its own.

The Friends of the Wareham Elderly is a non-profit group that holds fundraisers and currently has about $2,500 in funds. However, Friends President Paula Hatch doesn't see a way for the group to help the Council on Aging financially.

Hatch previously told Wareham Week that she sees the groups as having two different missions and that the Friends should only focus on seniors in desperate need, providing money for medicine, heating and other necessities.

"We understand that the Friends of the Elderly cannot help the Council on Aging at this time," Dunlop said. "We're OK with that. That's the reason we're forming our own SOS."

Selectman Judith Whiteside said that members of the SOS group would have to be different from Council on Aging Board members.

Dunlop said he and Hatch both hope the three groups -- the Friends, the COA and the soon-to-be-formed SOS -- can work together to help Wareham seniors.

Dunlop brought other news to the meeting that will delight most seniors in town.

"The Beacon will be out by St. Patrick's Day," he said.

Restoring publication of the Senior Beacon has been one of the top priorities of the new board since the board reorganized last October.

"I want to congratulate you and your board," said Whiteside. "You've shown an enormous amount of energy in a very short amount of time."