SAUGUS — A local organization has been working on a way to allow senior citizens to stay healthy and have fun.
Now all they need is cash.
Greater Lynn Senior Services (GLSS) developed kiosks in senior citizen centers and assisted living homes throughout the North Shore. They offer healthy activities, such as games, a blood pressure monitor, trivia, and other ways to get health information.
The kiosks were launched in 2012 in one location and now there are eight in Lynn and Beverly, according to Andrew Wallace, from GLSS. “We have secured enough funding up to this point, but now we are looking for other funding sources.”
Robert Palleschi and Sharon Comstock, who serve on the GLSS advisory board, attended the kiosk presentation at Saugus Senior Citizen Center Friday. They said their goal was to learn about how it can benefit seniors and see if they can add more of them in more centers.
“We need more activities for the seniors and we are trying to promote community as well as do what we can to keep them busy,” said Comstock. “Everything about the kiosk is for the benefit of the senior with health activities, from exercise to games, with the trivia games being the crowd favorite.”
When the kiosk first came out, it placed second for a national award that recognizes programs for seniors. Palleschi is awaiting the proposal which will let the board know how much it would cost to get a permanent kiosk at the Saugus Center.
“From what I have been told, because of the strict government rules, we can’t do fundraisers, they need to be funded through grants and private donations from private organizations,” said Comstock.
Wallace visits senior centers and demonstrates the kiosks with presentations for different senior centers in multiple communities. The majority of the trivia questions, which include music, health, and historical questions, are geared to help seniors with their cognitive learning, he said.
“The hope is it gets people thinking about their health and leading them to better health choices,” Wallace said.
Saugus resident Millie Doucette, a member of the senior citizen center since it opened, said she came for lunch not knowing about the kiosk and ended up staying to engage in it for three hours.
“I like that they took my blood pressure,” she said. “I think they are fun and also very good for the mind. I believe everyone here would really enjoy it.”
