SAUGUS — A familiar face has filled the void left behind by the departure of Joanne Olsen, the longtime director of the town’s senior center, as Laurie Davis, who served as Olsen’s administrative assistant for more than a decade, shifted into the director’s chair on a permanent basis last month.
In her nearly three months at the helm, (Davis first served as interim director before Town Manager Scott Crabtree appointed her to the full-time position in September) Davis said she hasn’t faced a difficult transition, and she gave all the credit for that to her staff.
“We all work so close together and the only thing I really am a little bit worried about is when we do the budget. I worked with her on the budget … trying to navigate that might be a little bit hard for me … other than that, it’s been great,” Davis said in an interview Thursday morning. “It’s been an easy transition because of my staff. I have to throw it back to them because without them I wouldn’t probably be here.”
Davis began working at the senior center in 2001, spending her first eight years as a bookkeeper before becoming Olsen’s administrative assistant in 2009, when Olsen became director. The connections she has made with the seniors who come to the center on a regular basis were a primary motivator behind her desire to become director, Davis said. She added that she was thankful Crabtree gave her the opportunity to run the center.
The senior center is open each day beginning at 8:30 a.m., and offers a wide range of activities and programs for Saugus seniors. On Thursday morning, a group was taking part in a line dancing class, while another, smaller group, was playing cards.
The most popular activities at the senior center are chair yoga (“it’s huge,” Davis said) and line dancing. Davis said she has tried to work hard to get the word out about all the activities and programs the senior center offers since taking over as director.
“One of the biggest things is just bringing in more seniors. I want more seniors out there to know we’re here. What services we do have because there are a lot of services. We had an open house and a lot of people were like, ‘oh, we didn’t even know you had this,’” she said. “Socialization is so important for the seniors. Especially after COVID. They were isolated for two years. Bringing them back has been huge.”
Davis said she has grown to love the varied day-to-day of the senior center, where so much is dependent on who exactly walks into the Central Street facility on a given day. Approximately 200 people come in and out on a daily basis, she said.
“One of my biggest things is we come in, I blink [and] it’s 3:30. That’s how fast the day goes by. I would be bored if I had to come in and do the same thing day in and day out. Every day is something different,” she said. “It’s a very active center.”
“Somebody walks in and it changes the whole course of your day,” added Lynette Terrazzano, Davis’ administrative assistant. “People are always walking in here from somewhere.”
Terrazzano said she believes one of the most important programs offered by the center is transportation — Saugus seniors are offered rides to and from the center for just 50 cents each. The center also offers medical rides to seven different communities — Lynn, Lynnfield, Salem, Stoneham, Melrose, Wakefield, and Massachusetts General Hospital in Danvers for an $8 round trip.
Davis said so far in her tenure she’s been able to add to the programs, including implementing birthday celebrations, and a pen pal program that pairs a senior with a fourth-grade student.
With 21 years already in the rearview mirror, Davis isn’t slowing down any time soon. She said she wants to continue on as director until retirement.
“As long as I’m healthy I don’t see myself going anywhere else,” she said. “I love doing it now and I love [having] the opportunity to do it.”
Charlie McKenna can be reached at [email protected].
