SPRINGFIELD, Vt. — Those who work in nonprofits often have a defining moment that drew them to the field.
For Carol Stamatakis, that moment came in the late 1980s when she was approached by John Tweedy, who was concerned his brother’s legal guardian, Newport, N.H.-based Judge John Fairbanks, was mishandling funds that put the care of Tweedy’s brother in jeopardy. Stamatakis was a lawyer in private practice at the time and also a Democratic representative in the New Hampshire House.
“There’s not a time I drive by (Tweedy’s home) that I don’t think of him. It had such an impact on me,” Stamatakis, a longtime Lempster, N.H., resident, recalled. “It influenced the direction of my career, having the privilege to know him and what he went through.”
It was later found that Fairbanks, who in addition to being a judge ran a law firm, stole $1.8 million from clients — some of whom were senior citizens or vulnerable adults. (Fairbanks later went on the run and was found dead in Las Vegas in March 1994. The money he stole from clients was never found.)
The 60-year-old Stamatakis, who has for five years led Senior Solutions, the Council on Aging for Southeastern Vermont, will be retiring from the nonprofit organization this year after a new executive director is hired. But Stamatakis will continue to advocate for senior citizens in the Twin States. She was recently named vice chair of the New Hampshire State Commission on Aging.
“I don’t say I’m retiring; I say I’m reinventing. That’s my term,” she said. “I’m definitely planning to stay very involved in aging and disability issues as I have in the past.”
Roberta Berner, who also serves on the Commission on Aging, was executive director of the Grafton County Senior Citizens Council when she met Stamatakis, who worked for the state at the time. One of the reasons Berner suggested Stamatakis for the commission was her institutional knowledge and her eagerness to share it.
“I’ve always had a lot of respect for Carol,” Berner said. “She has such a strong awareness of the issues as they developed over the years and she’s just really easy to talk to and learn from.”
In the wake of the Fairbanks scandal, Stamatakis worked with lawmakers from both parties to strengthen financial exploitation laws and reform the probate court system, which she described as an old boys club where procedures were often seen as sloppy. At the time, there also wasn’t much of a system for victims to be compensated, she said.
She left the Legislature in 1994 after serving three terms to work for the state in a variety of roles, including working at the Health and Human Services Department on programs that serve older adults and people with physical disabilities. As a lawyer, she also has a background in working on child abuse cases.
“I understood the dynamic of when someone preys against someone more vulnerable,” Stamatakis said. “Children are to be protected by the state, and when you’re dealing with vulnerable adults the protection piece is there but you have to balance it against the person’s right to personal autonomy and self-determination.”
Stamatakis continued to work with the Legislature to strengthen protections for vulnerable adults, including punishments for legal guardians who exploit them. Her experience helped her prepare people to testify in front of the Legislature — one of her favorite things to do — and she is amazed by the progress that has happened in New Hampshire in the last 30 years.
“It came about because of these tragedies and because people spoke out about these tragedies,” Stamatakis said. “When I look at where we are now, I just wish there was some way to tell all the victims that it helped. That because of (them) we have much stronger protections. Which is not to say we don’t have areas for growth. We absolutely do.”
She came to Senior Solutions after working for New Hampshire Council of Developmental Disabilities for 10 years, leading the organization for five.
“A big part of it is I felt a calling to work with older adults,” she said. “I was excited by the idea of working in Vermont because I knew that social services were very different than in New Hampshire.”
Among the accomplishments she counts are working with communities to strengthen volunteerism including the Friendly Visitor and Vet to Vet programs. Both of these programs connect volunteers with older adults who are facing isolation.
“It’s probably been one of the most important things I’ve been able to do at Senior Solutions,” Stamatakis said of the latter program, which pairs veteran volunteers with veterans in the community. During her tenure, the organization also worked with town aging groups to conduct background checks for their volunteers to help them with their own programs.
“It’s strengthening the communities rather than saying ‘we’re here and we’ll take care of it for you,’ ” Stamatakis said.
She also continued to address elder abuse and helped win a three-year, $395,000 federal grant to address elder abuse in Windsor County by forming a coalition of organizations including the Hartford Police Department, WISE of the Upper Valley, the Windsor County State’s Attorneys and Windsor County Special Investigation Unit. Together, they have been studying the gaps that exist in services, laws and reporting mechanisms — and the way they can work together to improve them.
Stamatakis is also passionate about making sure seniors aren’t isolated during the COVID-19 pandemic — that includes expanding broadband access to keep them better connected, and helping communities prepare as the state’s population ages.
“Everyone is aging and it’s something I feel everyone — everyone — should take ownership of that issue,” Stamatakis said. “We need a new generation of leaders, people of all ages.”
Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.
