SWAMPSCOTT — The Senior Center cautiously proceeds with its programming amid the COVID-19 resurgence, working on prevention and planning in the event of worst-case scenarios.
“We are very concerned about what is going on,” said Heidi Whear, director of Aging Services.
The center now follows the town’s indoor-masking mandate, and creates more space between its guests during activities — oftentimes limiting the number of attendees to 20 people in one room.
On Tuesday, the Senior Center held a vaccination clinic.
“It was very successful,” Whear said.
More than 140 people took advantage of the clinic — mostly getting boosters. When scheduling vaccinations, the center first reached out to its senior clients. Within minutes, the remaining time slots were taken by people from other communities.
Whear said they are currently preparing to make classes hybrid so that seniors can enjoy yoga and Zumba from their homes if they choose to do so.
Since the center reopened for in-person services in June, it has been serving almost 300 clients per month. Although this number was lower in December, at 225 clients, Whear said it might be due to holidays.
“Some people are fearless,” she said. “I think we will have to be more careful about it.”
The food-service program might be the next to go, as people keep taking off their masks to eat, said Whear. The center is communicating with Anchor Food Pantry about meal-delivery services if the Senior Center has to stop offering food on site.
“We are going to be looking at more isolation,” said Whear.
The center is planning to reach out to its volunteers once again to organize support phone calls. Last year, about 120 residents from all around the town volunteered to check on seniors at least once a week via phone call. Some people developed meaningful relationships through this initiative, Whear said, and communicated with each other almost every day.
The Senior Center also has extra Chromebooks that seniors can use for calling relatives out of state, for example.
Although everything seems tentative amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the center is continuing with its programming, Whear said.
On Wednesday, the center will hold two rounds of its “Nearly New Years” party for two 20-person groups of seniors, with Chinese food and a musical trivia, “Music of our Times” from Chris Culkeen. Other events are announced in a monthly newsletter and via weekly email updates, or are posted in the Senior Center’s Facebook page. Any interested senior can call the center and sign up to receive the newsletter.
Recently, the center started a collaboration with Swampscott High School students to share a lecture series called “Talk About Town.” The lectures are given in person for seniors at the center but the attendance is limited to 20 viewers and high-school students, who videotape the lectures and broadcast them on the town’s cable station.
The latest episode that has not come out yet on television, said Whear, was on the use of cannabis, with a local doctor Ryan Zaklin. He specializes in internal medicine with mind-body medicine and cannabis therapeutics, among other areas. The next two lectures will be on decluttering and ways to reduce real-estate taxes.
Other intergenerational programs include knitting lessons from seniors to youth, and Tech Ninjas, a bi-weekly class where high-school seniors teach the eldery about technology. This class was very helpful to seniors at the beginning of the pandemic, Whear said. If anyone needs help using their devices, the center can arrange for a session with a knowledgeable high-school student.
In 2022, seniors can expect a new dance class and a technology camp over the summer.
