Hub of activity: Self-reliant senior center is humming

By TOM LAVIS
The Tribune-Democrat

January 23, 2006 10:19 am

— Mary Govekar enjoys working out on treadmills and exercise bikes, but since she turned 80, she has to curtail other workouts.
“I used to love to line dance until my knees gave out on me,” said Govekar, a Jackson Township resident.
Govekar is one of more than 350 members of the Jackson Township Senior Center, Vinco. The center boasts it is the only self-reliant senior center in Cambria County.
Housed in the former Vinco Elementary School at 200 Adams St., the center has been a hub of midweek activities in the sprawling township.
“I just had a nice lunch with good friends, so coming here is as much about being social as it is having a good meal,” Govekar said.
The center serves senior citizens from Jackson and East Taylor townships, but has seen an influx of members from other communities.
“We may be open only three days a week, but we have seniors from many other communities such as Ebensburg and Windber who come here because of what we have to offer,” said Frank F. Singel, center president.
“Being an independent facility gives us the freedom to offer programs and activities that best suit our members without getting approval from anyone else.”
Single said the center is not part of Cambria County’s Senior Activity Center network.
“This center is run solely by volunteers,” Singel said. “We are self-reliant in every aspect of our operation.”
Open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, the center offers many of the things that seniors enjoy.
Lunches are served in a spacious, first-floor dining area that doubles as an activity room. A large, fully-equipped kitchen is adjacent to the dining area.
The center is impressive and took more than five years to complete.
It opened in early 1998 after nearly $300,000 in federal Community Development Block Grants were used to finance renovations. The structure was given a facelift that included improvements to electrical, plumbing and heating systems, installations of new windows and ceilings and an elevator.
While township resident Mary Ellen Price, 83, appreciates the pleasant surroundings, her real passion is playing bingo.
“I look forward to coming, and it’s only a nickel a card,” said Price, who has been a regular since the center opened. “Any winnings I get usually go back into bingo.”
Township Manager Dave Hirko said past and present township supervisors have supported the center and realize its importance to the community.
“The work that has been done here will benefit generations to come,” Hirko said. “Jackson Township has no downtown, so the senior center has become the focal point for the community.”
From the construction of the Jackson Township Veterans Memorial Park, which honors nearly 900 residents who have served in every conflict dating back to the Civil War, to the installation of a walking track, the senior center has become a gathering place for the community.
Alice Gary, 74, of Mundys Corner worked quietly in the center’s craft room putting some last-minute touch-ups on ceramic creations.
“We have our own kiln, and I offer a helping hand to people who have questions about ceramics or other crafts,” said Gary, who has been involved in crafting most of her life.
Gary said members create an average of
90 pieces a month of bisque porcelain, which is unglazed, white ceramic ware, for use by the residents at Laurel Crest.
“They are cleaned and fired here and we take them to Ebensburg so the residents can paint them,” Gary said. “We also make lap covers and an occasional quilt.”
Seniors can take advantage of a wide range of activities.
“Three times a week, we offer the Silver Sneakers exercise classes,” Singel said. “Members work out using chairs, free weights, balls and bungee cords.”
For a different approach, a third-floor gym is filled with $12,000 worth of exercise equipment, including a multistation exercise machine, a treadmill, a recumbent bike and two stationary bikes.
Down the hall, there is an area to exercise the mind in the form of a computer room.
Computers donated to the facility by Memorial Medical Center several years ago are scheduled to be replaced within the next two months.
Hirko said an $8,500 state grant will be used to buy 10 new computers.
“We have access to high-speed Internet and the seniors are taking advantage of modern technology,” he said.
Special programs are offered throughout the year, including tax assistance, quality-of-life workshops, advice on the Medicare Part D prescription drug program and home-energy issues.
Funds to keep the senior center operating are generated from yearly membership dues of $10 a person. Membership is open to anyone ages
50 and older.
A portion of the building is leased to District Judge Mary Ann Zanghi. While the center is debt-free, the bulk of the monthly $2,375 rent goes toward paying utility and cleaning services.

Tom Lavis can be reached at 532-5054 or tlavis@tribdem.com.

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