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1999 TOWN OF WAPPINGER SENIOR CITIZEN CENTER 1999 ANNUAL REPORT The Town of Wappinger Senior Center is open five days a week Monday through Friday from lO:OOa.m. to 3:00p.m. As of December 1999 there were 201 members registered at the Center with 272 on the waiting list. DAIL Y /wEEKLY ACTIVITIES: 1. Arts and crafts activities are held daily. 2. Oil painting classes are held Tuesday from 10a.m. to Noon under the direction of Kathi DeLisa 3. AerobicslExercise classes are held Wednesday from 10a.m. to 1 Ia.m. under the direction of Sue Borchardt. 4. AerobicslExercise classes are held on Thursday from IOa.m. to 1 Ia.m. under the direction of Sue Borchardt 5. Line Dancing classes are held on Friday from lOa.m. to Ila.m.under the direction of Sue Borchardt. 6. Cards and Pokeno are played from 12:30p.m.to 3p.m. 3-4 days a week. 7. Bingo is played weekly. When possible, bingo is played twice a week, as this is so popular. Bingo is offered on Mondays allowing many on the waiting list to attend An average of 78 seniors play bingo. 8. The photo club meets at Schlathaus on Monday and is under the direction of Bob English, a senior. Bob volunteers to head the Photo Club. There is a dark room set up for developing and printing photos. The majority of the equipment has been donated. 9. A Bridge Group meets at Schlathaus on Tuesday. 10. Spanish classes are taught by Elena Garrido, a senior originally from Panama. She speaks fluent Spanish and has taught for Adult Education. Elena volunteers her time and knowledge. 11. Spanish Dance lessons are taught by Marie Lustgarten, a senior. Marie was a professional Flamenco Dancer in her youth. 12. Jig Saw puzzles are set up to work on. Several seniors work on these periodically. 13. Videos are shown on request. 14. Basic Computer Classes are on going. John Macek a computer consultant teaches a three-part basic computer class. Six seniors are able to this course at one time. Over 60 seniors have taken this class. Another 52 are still on a waiting list for this course. MONTHL Y ACTIVITIES: 1. There is a monthly birthday party to celebrate birthdays of that month. A special party is given to any senior turning 80,85,90 or 100. (2 seniors turned 80, 7 turned 85, 1 turned 90 and 1 turned 95). 1 2. The Heart Association provides a monthly blood pressure screening on the second Thursday of each month from 10a.m. to Noon. GUEST SPEAKERS/PRESENT A TIONSIHEAL TH CLINICS: 1. In January, Kathy Benham from Rite Aid spoke on prescriptions and safety issues regarding prescriptions. 2. In April, Wayne Gersen, Superintendent of Schools explained the school budget to seniors, answered their question and addressed their concerns. 3. In June, Margaret Keefe from the Grinnell Library spoke to the seniors on what is available to them at the library and invited them to utilize the services available to them. 4. In September, Brad Willinger from U.S. Health Care spoke to the seniors about the HMO's and the changes taking place in the New Year (2000). 5. In October, the Dutchess Co. Dept. of Health provided a Flu Clinic. 6. In November, Nina Lynch spoke to the seniors on the changes in HMO's and gave them a selection of options available to them regarding this issue. 7. Also in November, John Gadonniex from Merrill Lynch spoke to the seniors about Y2K and their financial concerns and estate planning. SPECIAL EVENTS: Funded by the seniors from their dues fund and craft sales: January: Hat Day: Seniors wore a funny, pretty, silly or unusual hat for the day. There were prizes for the best hats and pizza for all. February: Valentine's Day: Children from James Evans School brought valentines to the Seniors. Regina and Maria made up craft kits with beads and other materials. The students and seniors worked together on this craft project Valentine Ball: The "Ball" was held at the Holiday Inn. Music was provided by DJ Rick Zolzer. All had a great time. Everyone received a valentine and candy. There were raffle prizes, good food, music and lots of fun. Wheel of Fortune: A great game of Wheel of Fortune. All contestants won prizes And of course a grand prize for the bonus rounds winners. Nana White and "Say Jack" were host and hostess ofthe game. March: St. Patrick's Day Party: Had green bagels and cream cheese and green cake and Cookies. Each senior received a green carnation. And to finish the day the Seniors enjoyed bingo. Easter Luncheon: The luncheon was held at Mamma Marissa. Music by Larry Hazzard on keyboard. The "Easter Bunnies" delivered eggs filled with candy and prizes for the seniors. "Easter Bunnies" were Regina, Maria and Kathi. Bowling party: at Holiday Hoe Bowl. Coffee and Danish served. Pizza served for Lunch. The Fishkill Senior Center and the Zion Church Center joined us for this combined Center activity. 2 April: Spring Fashion Fling: The seniors dressed in "fashion" for the first Fashion Show at the Center. The seniors "walked" the fashion way to show their silliest, prettiest, etc. fashion. Prizes awarded to the best, food for all. A fun day. Wheel of Fortune: Another visit from Nana White and "Say Jack" and a great game of Wheel. Prizes were awarded to all contestants. May: Bingo!Bango!Bongo! Three Centers, Wappingers, Zion Church and the Fishkill Center combined to enjoy a day of Bingo at the Fishkill Senior Center. Over 130 seniors attended this event. They had pizza, McDonald's orange drink and a good time. Mother's Day Luncheon: Seniors celebrated Mother's Day at Hudson's Ribs and Fish Restaurant. Senior Appreciation Day Celebration: This year Anneliese Kolhosser and Herman London were awarded the 5th Annual Wappinger Senior Center Senior Award of the Year! The seniors previously voted and selected these seniors to receive the awards for their outstanding service to the Center. The Town Supervisor, Connie Smith presented the awards. Each senior received a carnation. Food was served to all. June: 11 th Anniversary of Senior Center: The seniors celebrated with the annual anniversary barbeque. Our Center Line Dancers danced. Our recreation maintenance dept. cooked burgers and hot dogs for the seniors. Seniors brought salads and desserts. A great day to enjoy the outdoors and celebrate. Father's Day Luncheon: Seniors celebrated Father's Day at the Dutchess Diner. July: T -Shirt Day/Game Day: Seniors wore their "Senior" T-shirts today. Game Day: A day to play Pictionary and have some fun. Lunchtime there was pizza and soda for all Mental Exercise and Trivia: A Day to do some Mental Exercises with word puzzles and group trivia. Bowling party: at Holiday Hoe Bowl. Coffee and Danish served. Pizza served for Lunch. The Fishkill Senior Center and the Zion Church Center joined us for this combined Center activity. This was the second bowling party of the year. August: Garden Party: A party reminiscent of the early 1900's. Seniors brought in their old photos of their wedding or themselves when they were younger. Photos were displayed. Sandwiches and a light snack were provided. It was a wonderful day. Septem ber: Office of the Aging Picnic: Provided by the OF A at Robinson Lane Recreation Park. Food included chicken, potato salad, baked beans and fruit. The Town provides the location, the tables and the chairs for this event. October: Walking Club Luncheon: Lunch at Bocci's Restaurant for those who participated in the Walking Club. Awards presented to those who walked the most 3 miles. All receive a certificate of achievement. The purpose of the Walking Club is to promote health and exercise. Craft Fair: Sale of crafts, books, baked goods, Granny's attic, coffee and donuts, raffle prizes and much more. (open to public.) Halloween Party: Seniors came in costume. Donuts and cider were served, pizza for lunch. Prizes given for best costumes. Treats for all in costume. November: Bingo!Bango!Bongo! Three Centers, Wappingers, Zion Church and the Fishkill Center combined to enjoy a day of Bingo at the Fishkill Senior Center. Over 130 seniors attended this event. Seniors had pizza, McDonald's orange drink and a good time. This was the 2nd combined Bingo for the year. Thanksgiving Luncheon: This luncheon was held at the 84 Diner to celebrate Thanksgiving. December: Christmas luncheon at Villa Borghese: Johnny Dell provided Music. Santa arrived with gifts for all the seniors. "Little" Christmas BreakfastlBrunch: Served bagels, cream cheese, fruit, muffins, cheese and crackers and cake. Instead of a Christmas grab bag, the seniors donated gift items to be given to our Homebound/Nursing home seniors. Played a special Christmas Bingo. Extra Events: The Town of Wappinger Recreation Commission in cooperation with the Wappinger Elks Lodge held two Christmas dinner parties for 280 seniors. (140 at each party.) The dinner was open to ALL town seniors. Donations from local community businesses and professionals helped to make this possible. Each senior receive a gift ofa small box of candy, an ornament and small bottle of wine handed out by Santa. The dinner consisted of salad, turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans and pumpkin pie and coffee. There were several raffle prizes awarded. Johnny Dell provided music. The parties are a great success. This holiday event is very popular and the seniors look forward to a positive start to the holiday season. We hope to continue to provide two such parties in 2000. Intergenerational Activities: 1. Students from Evans School visited the Center in February. Each student sat with a senior and worked on a Valentine Craft. The senior helped the student. In some cases the student helped the senior. We then had cake and juice for the children. Each student went home with his or her craft. 2. A Computer Lab was held at R.C. Ketcham High School. Severalofthe seniors who had taken the Computer Class joined the students to learn more about the Internet and how to access different web sites. 4 Senior Citizen Bus Trips: Mohegan Sun Spirit Cruise/Intrepid Lake George Glen Falls House Medieval Times Aqua Turf Hunterdon Hills Playhouse Woodloch Pines Miscellaneous Information: 1. Once again seniors in the oil painting class and photo club won prizes at the Dutchess Fair. 2. Basic Computer classes continue. Over 50 seniors have taken these basic 3-2hour classes. The response has been overwhelming. There are still over 50 seniors on a waiting list to take these classes. There are six computers and one Internet connection for use with these classes. 3. There are over 270 Town seniors on a waiting list to join the Senior Center. To accommodate as many seniors as possible, our outside activities such as our luncheons and bowling are open to any senior on the waiting list. Also the exercise and line-dancing program held in the large meeting room is also open to some on the waiting list. 4. Several seniors are participating in an osteoporosis study funded by a grant and sponsored by the Office of the Aging. This is a progressive weight-training program. The OF A supplied the weights to be used in this study. It is our hope that once the study is complete that we will be able to keep the weights so as to continue this program. There are 16 sets of weights. Our staffhas all been trained to lead this weight training class. There are many more seniors wishing to participate in this program. Once again we are limited because of space constraints. Future Needs. 1. Once again, I remind you that the senior population continues to grow and is projected to continue to grow. Our population is living longer and healthier lives. They also want the activities and services that a Senior Center provides. We have an excellent program and need to make this available to ALL Town seniors. I continue to recommend space large enough to accommodate ALL seniors wanting to be a part of our activities. 2. We have outgrown the designated space for a Senior Center. Many special events Must be limited to 80 seniors leaving many on "another waiting list." Many events must be held at restaurants allowing more seniors to attend. We continue to "burst at the seams.')l All efforts are made to accommodate as many town seniors as is possible in this limited space. An activity such as exercise held in 5 different space allows those on the waiting list to participate. Our "satellite" at Schlathaus is used almost to it's maximum. It is used for our Photo Club, Bridge Club and Computer Classes as well as other recreational uses. The lack of space and the growing number of seniors is a problem that needs to be addressed as soon as possible. 3. Transportation: Many seniors using Dial-A-Ride would like to come to the Center on Monday and Tuesday. The service now drops them at the Center en Wed., Thurs, and Fri. I recommend the service to include a "drop off" at the Town Hall on Monday and Tuesday as well. Kathi DeLisa Director Senior Citizen Center 6