Stockbridge — For more than two years, the town’s Senior Center, located on the first floor of Town Hall at 50 Main St., has been closed due to the COVID pandemic. After two years of waiting and planning, the Senior Center reopened once again to residents on Wednesday, September 21 with a celebration.
The theme of the celebration was “new beginnings,” and included a pasta lunch via Mazzeo’s Ristorante which was enjoyed by more than 95 residents.
The event also included a sing along led by Council on Aging Board member Jack Gremli, who led the audience in a performance of songs that represents new beginnings, including “This Could Be the Start of Something Big,” along with “Here Comes The Sun” and “Oh, What a Beautiful Morning.”
Town Administrator Michael Canales and Council on Aging Board Chairman Chris McCarthy, along with other members of the Council, co-organized the event. Both Canales and McCarthy said they were more than happy to see residents come out again to the Senior Center. “For the last couple of years, we have used the center very minimally because of the pandemic,” Canales said. “Now we are reopening the center to make it fully functional. We plan on getting the senior center back up on its feet and getting all of our programs back in order.”
Some of the programs the senior center provides are community meals, yoga, and chair yoga classes, along with bingo games, and community health clinics including blood pressure and Covid testing.
McCarthy said that the council will be sponsoring new programs at the center, including guest speakers who will discuss topics affecting seniors, along with chess, cribbage, and possibly dance programs. “We want to get more people in here to feel comfortable as their place to be at,” McCarthy said. “We just have really high hopes for the center in making it into an active place again. What we are looking for is to get our elderly population out of their houses for socialization, especially those who are housebound.”
McCarthy said that the town works with Great Barrington in helping to provide transportation for seniors who need it. “We want to tune into every person’s interest and get them down here,” McCarthy said.
“We’re going to have a wide variety of programs,” Canales added. “We’re interested in expanding our programs and we are looking to hear from our senior residents about what we should offer. The message behind this event is that we are back open. I know a lot of people have told me that since we shut down, they have stopped going out and doing things. Now we think it’s a safe time to say, let’s get back together.”
“A large percentage of the population of Stockbridge are senior citizens, which is why the Senior Center is so important to the town,” Gremli said. “It’s important for seniors to have social, intellectual, and artistic stimulation.”
For more information about the Stockbridge Senior Center, along with the town’s Council on Aging and its programs, call 413-298-4170 ext. 250 or email tzanetti@stockbridge-ma.gov.
