LYNN — The city of Lynn has hired Christopher Gomez as its new director of elder services.
As a member of the Lynn Department of Public Health, Gomez will work to create and oversee the development of a new Senior Center for the city.
Gomez started his new position, which pays an annual salary of $78,000, this past Monday.
He is a graduate of Lynn English High School and received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in business administration from Salem State University.
Gomez began his career in elder services 15 years ago when he worked as a driver for Bridgewell. He said he made his way up to working in the organization’s day program, and participated in multiple aspects of elderly services.
Gomez left Bridgewell to work as a service coordinator at The Community Builders (TCB) last November.
When he saw the position for director of elder services in Lynn, he thought the job would be a perfect fit, he said.
“I get to work in my city,” he said. “I love being from Lynn, so I was like “oh, this is perfect.”
Gomez said he is excited to be able to build a vibrant and positive Senior Center that is informative and helpful to the elderly community, along with people throughout the city.
Mayor Thomas M. McGee said Gomez will be integral in developing safe ways for seniors to connect and access the services they desperately need and deserve.
“We are excited to welcome our new Director of Elder Services Chris Gomez to our team,” McGee said. “It was very important to create this new position as a city employee in our Public Health Department as we continue our search for a new location for the Lynn Senior Center.
“I look forward to working together with Chris, who brings immense talent and experience to meet the variety of needs of our diverse senior population, many of whom have faced isolation this past year during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The director of elder services position is new because this is the first time the job will be held by a city employee in a city department, according to McGee’s Chief of Staff Meaghen Hamill.
“Previously, the city contracted with Greater Lynn Senior Services (GLSS) for decades to operate the Lynn Senior Center and the comparable position was the “senior center director” (the last being Stacey Minchello), but that person was technically a GLSS employee that worked closely with the city and Lynn Council on Aging,” she said.
“Last year before the pandemic hit, the mayor and other relevant stakeholders decided it was in the best interest of all, to move towards bringing the operation of elder services under the direct supervision of the city, thus creating the position of elder services director within the Public Health Department.”
As director of elder services, Gomez said he wants to put forth his best effort for the city he loves, noting he knows a lot of senior citizens in the city and is very familiar with the programs.
“A lot of times, they (the elderly community) don’t know a lot of the programs that are available to them, so I think I can help a lot with that,” he said. “I hope to bring a lot of programs to this new elder center that I think they’ll like.”
Gomez listed some ideas, including a dominoes and chess club, Tai Chi and exercise groups. He said is fluent in Spanish, is involved with the Spanish community and is knowledgeable of the city’s diverse population.
Lynn’s Public Health Director Michele Desmarais said the pandemic has brought many issues within the elderly population including isolation, food insecurity, language barriers, and communication with doctors, nurses and neighbors.
“It has become quite clear with the pandemic that there are many areas of public health that need to be addressed and more attention given to them,” Desmarais said. “Chris will be an asset to the city of Lynn and especially to the senior population.”
Gomez said the isolation of the elderly community throughout the pandemic has contributed to mental health issues that he wants to acknowledge.
“I think it’s important that we get the elder center up and running because you know, you don’t want them to feel isolated or by themselves,” he said. “We’re all human beings. We’re social people and we need interaction done in a safe manner.”
Gomez referred to his grandmother as a best friend and said he thinks about how his grandparents would want to be treated whenever he works with elders and while he plans the center. He hopes to get the center up soon to provide some type of normalcy to the elderly community.
Gomez is excited to work for his city and make a change, noting that helping people is one of the things he is most passionate about.
“It feels good to help people, especially those in need.” he said.
