Submitted by Maria Reed, Administrator

The holiday season is upon us!

Our fish fry was a huge hit! We appreciate all of our wonderful and dedicated volunteers who made it possible and all of our generous donors who came out to support the center! Look for our second annual fish fry next fall!

November will be a busy month. We will host Coffee with a Cop with Sheriff Andy Riley on Wednesday, November 5, at 10:30 a.m. Pastor Dave Shadinger will host his monthly Alzheimer’s Support group with guest speaker Sarah Watkins at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, November 6. Blue Skies will have staff here for a blood pressure clinic at 10:30 a.m. Monday, November 10. Volunteers will be here Tuesday, November 11, to help prep for our annual Thanksgiving dinner which is Wednesday, November 12. We will serve from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. We invite all to bring a guest and come enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving meal with friends and family. I will not be attending this year, but will be there in heart and want you all to know that I am so very thankful for all of you, clients, staff, volunteers, donors, and everyone. I cannot wait to hear all about it!

We found a box of old Christmas coasters in a closet and believe they were made by Liz Wintjen. Our kitchen manager took them home and assembled them into a festive, colorful, decorative throw blanket. It will be on display through the month of November. Each day you come in to eat in November, you may place your name in the jar for a chance to win the throw. Drawing will be held on Tuesday, November 25, after Bingo.

Bingo will only be held once in the month of November. This month, it will be Tuesday, November 25, at 9:45 a.m. Through the winter months we will only hold Bingo once a month and that will depend on the weather. We will not reschedule Bingo missed due to snow or freezing conditions.

Don’t forget to check with local news stations, Facebook, and KMA for closures due to weather. I am trying to secure a text alert for closures as well. If you would like to receive text alerts, please call the center to supply us with your name and cell phone number. If you do not have a cell phone, this will not be an option for you.

Please consider donations and suggested contributions for meals. As with everyone, the government shutdown is affecting even nutrition centers. It costs Rock Port Senior Center approximately $10.79 to make each meal. For ages 60 and over, we do this at no cost to you but offer you the opportunity to contribute. Suggested contribution for 60 and over in house meals and home delivered meals is $5.00. This excludes Medicaid meals. For those 59 and under, the cost of the meal is $10.79. If you know someone who would like to sponsor a meal or make a donation, each day’s meal costs the center approximately $500.00 on average.

We are in need of volunteer delivery drivers! We have a wonderful set of volunteers here at the center but we are in need of members of the community from the next generation to start stepping up to help out. As we lose volunteers, we need to be able to replace them. All of the volunteer hours are considered a match for the grants we get from the state and federal level and are required for us to remain in compliance with our contracts. Delivery drivers may also eat free for the day they deliver, so not only are you helping a homebound senior get a meal they may otherwise go without, you are also helping us keep the funds we get to supply those meals. An added bonus is you get a free home-cooked meal. If you know someone who may be interested, or are interested yourself, please reach out. Anyone who can spare 20 to 40 minutes, such as home-school parents, stay-at-home moms, church groups, or office clerks is a good fit. Once again, we appreciate all you do!