A familiar face is the new full-time executive director of the North Oakland Transportation Authority (NOTA).
Pat Fitchena, who’s served as an Oxford Township trustee for 16 years, was appointed to the position July 29 by a unanimous vote of the NOTA Board of Directors, which consists of appointed representatives from Oxford, Addison and Orion.
She will receive an annual salary of $40,000. The position does not include benefits.
‘I love this job,? said Fitchena, who’s served as the interim director since Jan. 15. ‘Things are on track and going well.?
NOTA chairman John Sutphin, of Addison, said Fitchena has done an ‘phenomenal job? as the interim director and NOTA will ‘profit? in terms of increased efficiency by her being there full-time.
‘Pat’s got that place in order from one end to the other,? Sutphin said. ‘She’s a dedicated person. She’s there for the community, not herself.?
Sutphin said only one other person applied for the position and that applicant ‘didn’t seem qualified.?
As director, Fitchena will oversee the transportation of senior citizens, mentally and physically disabled individuals, and welfare-to-work program participants living in Oxford, Addison and Orion townships.
Her experience in this area dates back to 1997 when she helped establish and oversee the Oxford-Addison Transportation Authority (OATA). When OATA expanded to include Orion and became NOTA in 2001, Fitchena continued to serve on the new authority’s governing board. She resigned from the board when she became interim director.
With its seven vans and one minibus, NOTA ‘is a life-line to people? that provides freedom and independence to its users and piece of mind to their families, all at no charge to the users, Fitchena explained.
‘I hear it every day? what a ‘valuable service? NOTA is, she said.
From doctor and hair appointments to jobs and trips to restaurants, Fitchena ‘they know that NOTA will pick their family members up at the door, deliver them to where they have to be, pick them up at the right time and get them home safely. It’s a big relief to a lot of people.?
‘Everyday we take seniors to the senior centers in Oxford, Addison and Orion, and the Older Persons Commission in Rochester,? Fitchena said.
Free and easily accessible transportation is especially important for the mentally and physcially disabled who Fitchena said ‘deserve the right to be able to enjoy everything that everybody else enjoys.?
Since taking over the director’s day-to-day duties in January, Fitchena has worked to improve communication between her position and NOTA’s drivers and dispatchers, who are based at the Vet’s Hall downtown.
When she first started, the director’s office was located in the Oxford Mills shopping center.
‘There wasn’t a lot of communication between the two offices on a daily basis,? Fitchena said.
To improve that, she moved her office to inside the Vet’s Hall, right next door to the dispatch center.
‘I can’t see and know what’s going on here unless I’m here,? Fitchena said. ‘It’s working much better now.?
As for future goals, Fitchena said she would like to expand NOTA’s service area.
Currently, NOTA can only drive riders 15 miles beyond the borders of Oxford, Addison and Orion townships.
‘I would love to be able to take our seniors to Freedom Hill for concerts, the Detroit Insitute of Arts, Greenfield Village, or take them on color tours up north,? she said.
Fitchena is also going to do what she can to keep NOTA’s coffers full.
‘We’re going after that grant money as much as we can,? she said. ‘Hopefully, some of these big corporations in the area will step up to the plate and give us a hand. We transport people to their stores and their doctors? facilities.?
When asked why she wanted the director’s job on a full-time basis, Fitchena said it was because she missed working with people.
‘I’ve always worked with people my whole life,? she said.
After selling her downtown Oxford restaurant Pat’s Place in 2003, Fitchena began craving contact with the public she loves.
‘Many of my previous customers are my friends,? she said. ‘I got involved with their kids and families. My work world became my world period. I missed that.?
Fitchena said the NOTA job gives her the opportunity to interact with the public again and help people, two of her favorite things.