NAHANT — After serving for 12 years as the town’s Council on Aging executive director, Linda Peterson is ready to try something new.
“I’ve been here for 12 years,” she said. “I think it’s time for someone else to step up.”
Friday is Peterson’s last day as executive director. Her successor will be Mary Miner, who has worked as a social worker and case manager for 34 years. Peterson thinks Miner will be a perfect fit for the role, and said she isn’t done working in the field of senior-citizen aid.
“I’m not walking away in full,” Peterson said. “I have plans at some point to build a grant for a dementia-friendly neighborhood with the Greater Lynn Senior Services.”
After retiring from Verizon in 2009, Peterson decided to work in senior services. She hosted exercise classes at the Marblehead YMCA, the Marblehead Council on Aging and the Swampscott Council on Aging. She went on to become executive director of the Nahant Council on Aging that year.
As executive director, Peterson was responsible for creating activities, events and programs at the senior center located at Nahant Town Hall. Some events included field trips around the North Shore and Boston.
Peterson said one of the funniest moments of her career was when she and a group of seniors got lost in Roxbury during a field trip.
“We were supposed to go to Sullivan’s in Boston but we ended up in Roxbury somehow,” she said. “I went up to the bus driver and told him to take a left, but we were blocked by a funeral procession. We tried to get the GPS up and running right away.”
Peterson said her two best years at the senior center were in 2014 and in 2016.
In 2014, a student from North Shore Community College, who had been helping the center, created a newsletter about events and news-related items. One of Peterson’s assistants then took over writing the newsletter, which has now become a helpful tool for those involved with the senior center or the Council on Aging.
“It sort of blew up,” said Peterson.
In 2016, Peterson was able to update the senior center’s food program by hiring volunteers to cook freshly-made meals for seniors instead of using their previous vendor.
“They are still cooking for us today,” Peterson said. “It’s one of my proudest moments.”
Town Administrator Antonio Barletta said he and the rest of the Town Hall staff will miss Peterson.
Barletta highlighted her work throughout the pandemic — delivering tests, meals and producing virtual programming for seniors to help them stay engaged.
“Linda has done an amazing job,” said Barletta. “She’s provided so much to the community and we will miss her so much.”
