Have you ever seen people line dancing while using a cane? Come to the senior centre at St. Andrew’s, Orillia, Ont., and that’s the kid of fun thing you’ll find. When you enter on a Thursday morning, you will be greeted by laughter and will feel the energy in the air. We are an extended family from various backgrounds, experiences, churches, and communities, sharing, learning and growing together.
“It is a weekly joy to co-ordinate the senior centre and to work with the team of volunteers who give of their time and expertise,” said Brenda Holnbeck, the centre’s director.
It was Rev. Karen Horst who saw the need for something for seniors both in the church and in the community. It didn’t take long to get others on board. Word spread quickly and two and a half years later, we have more than 150 names on our list with an average attendance of 60.
We meet every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., September to June. Ages range from late 50s to several in their 90s. For just seven dollars, we get a day filled with tea, coffee and treats, fun things like line dancing and choir, discussion groups (either current affairs or Bible study), lunch, entertainment or a guest speaker (who covers things like nutrition, Alzheimer’s and wills), activities such as crafts, woodworking, needlework or cards, and low-impact exercise. At 3:00 we have a cold drink before departing home—a little tired but with fond memories of a wonderful day.
When we began, Rev. Karen served as the director, but once we became established, we hired someone to take on this responsibility. She is given an honorarium to cover some of the time she spends on our behalf. The committee that handles the centre also began with St. Andrew’s people only, but that too has changed and we now have two members of the community sharing their expertise with us. Our music director leads the choir and our pastoral care minister leads the Bible study.
We have theme days (Christmas when Santa arrives, a Scottish day with some of our members resplendent in kilts and an Irish day with everyone wearing green). We also had a Special Olympics event and a fashion show.
We have travelled north by bus to see the fall colours, to St. Jacob’s to the market and to Toronto to the theatre.
Our centre has been very successful in bringing seniors together.
We encourage others to give thought to establishing a senior centre in your community.
About Helen Macdonald
Helen Macdonald is a longtime member of St. Andrew’s, Orillia, Ont. She was the first female clerk of session and is currently convener of the welcome and hospitality ministry and a member of the St. Andrew’s senior centre team.
