For 50 years the Simcoe Seniors’ Center has been providing programs, activities and most of all camaraderie for people in the community.
The idea for such a facility began in 1972 when town residents Audrey and Vic Pond championed the idea for a drop-in center for seniors.
“After gathering support and forming an executive committee, the original board spent several months working to secure a grant allowing them to rent two small rooms in the old factory building at 89 Pond Street in Simcoe,” said a media release.
An opening ceremony was held on September 15, 1973. About 150 were at the ceremony where then-Simcoe mayor Alfred Judd and Audry Pond cut the ribbon.
Fifty years to the day later, Norfolk’s mayor, Amy Martin, was on hand Friday to cut the ribbon marking the center’s anniversary.
“It’s inspiring to see the Simcoe Seniors’ Center celebrate such a tremendous milestone,” Martin said in the release. “The center keeps our seniors active and engaged and provides opportunities to build friendships and be a part of a community. We want our local seniors to know that the center provides amazing opportunities to stay fit and have fun.”
Over the years, the seniors center outgrew its original space and was expanded to include another room.
In 2020, the building on Pond St. was declared unfit for use and the seniors’ center relocated to the Simcoe Recreation Center on South Drive.
Anne Smith of Simcoe has been coming to the center for 21 years and serves as the head of the special events committee.
“I’m always pleased when something like this comes together,” she said of the center’s 50th anniversary celebration. “It’s been absolutely packed in here today.”
Smith described the center’s former location on Pond Street as “a bit scruffy, but it was like home.”
“We have pickle ball now, which we never had before, and it’s very busy. People love it,” she observed. “Line dancing is my favorite, and I also have a singing group.”
Peter Kaniuk is the convener for cornhole, another new activity at the center.
He noted that when the activity started last year, the game — in which bean bags are tossed toward a board with a hole in it — had some people saying they didn’t think they could do it.
“Now, they have become better players,” he said, adding he tries to pair inexperienced players with someone of stronger ability that results in player improvement.
Cornhole involves less physical exertion than pickleball, and last year had 48 players plus more on a waiting list.
“It gets people out, socializing and getting out of the house,” Kaniuk explained. “You meet people this age who are suffering from all kinds of ailments, and it’s mostly isolation, loneliness, and then dementia sets in.”
Another big change over the years is the membership due.
“When it started (in 1973) we paid $1 each for membership, and now it’s $45 that includes everything,” Smith said. “You don’t pay for activities except for bingo. We have almost 1,000 members so people like coming here.”
The seniors’ center is open Monday through Friday, 9 am to 4 pm Activities include card games, strength training, aerobics, yoga, line dancing, darts, pickleball, shuffleboard, crafts and billiards.
With files from Brian Thompson