SVECares grants help local Senior Centers
| Over the past three or so years since SVEC began it’s very successful SVECares program the SVECares board has made allocations of from $500 to $750 to three of the local Senior Citizens Centers in our service area. The Sequatchie County Center, the Gruetli Laager Center and most recently the Bledsoe County Center. These centers and the other Senior Centers throughout the area serve a very valuable service for the growing senior population in our communities. Most of the centers are the site for the state and federally supported nutrition program which provides hot meals Monday through Friday for eligible individuals who call in a make reservations. Those eligible individuals who are homebound can have meals delivered through the nutrition program. But the meals are not the only reason seniors gather at the local centers — they are also a social gathering place for seniors to meet. Many of the individuals who frequent the centers have worked their entire adult lives and are not ready to “sit at home and watch T.V. by themselves.” They want to interact with friends, get some exercise on the center’s exercise equipment and keep mentally alert by playing cards, pool, ping-pong, quilting with friends, making crafts or working puzzles. As our area grows in popularity with retirees from other parts of the country, the senior centers are a great place to meet people and make new friends. For natives of the area it is a place to reconnect with old friends. To keep seniors active and on the go, the centers also plan day and overnight trips for those who like to travel. These trips are very popular with full buses for almost every trip. Although the centers do receive some funding from the state and some receive funding from the county and/or city, their budgets are tight. With the State budget woes they were cut 25% which makes it even harder to provide the services they would like to provide. The individual centers have come up with some innovative ways to raise funds, however, grants from organizations like SVECares and donations from private individuals are extremely important to keep the centers open. In addition to money, some of the centers are in need of volunteers to deliver the meals to the homebound or to lead group activities such as crafts or an exercise program. If you would like to volunteer, make a donation or to get the hours of operation or more information about the services offered at your local center check the following listing of the centers in our service area. |
SVEC Area |