You might be able to still sign up for the annual Willie Ray Cookout with a luau and each party theme that will happen Thursday, July 13, from 10 a.m. to noon at the Renaissance Centre on Brooks Street. There will be fun, food, great entertainment in an event that also honors our veterans and first responders. Space is limited to 200 people.
Our volunteers were honored, and Dorothy Maynard was named the Unsung Hero of the Year. Four people – Arra Johnson, Mary Evelyn Jones, Bertha and Wilson Salgado – were named as Lifetime Award winners for contributing over 4,000 hours to the center. Aileen Izawa, Joyce Massey and Dorothy Maynard were named to the Gold 500+.
Soon it will be the Senior Center Without Walls when the center closes for a major expansion, almost doubling the current space. While it is underway, Miranda Strider-Allen and the staff are planning how to keep operating as many programs and services as possible.
“We are planning on moving programs and services throughout Wake Forest,” Strider-Allen said recently. We are partnering with the Town of Wake Forest to use its Renaissance Center, Community House, Flaherty Community Center as well as space at the county’s Northern Regional Center. Three assisted living centers, Brookdale, Carillon and The Lodge, as well as the American Legion building, are housing programs, just to name a few sites.
“Our goal is to start programs outside the center by September or sooner. We will also be moving the staff and office by then.”
Whether you are new or an old hand at the senior center, you should check the calendar regularly because of all the offerings which change with each season.
The free health screenings and blood pressure checks are provided at 9:30 a.m. each Monday by a variety of local businesses, which are the Franklin Manor, Stay at Home Senior Care and Dr. Casey Baldwin, a pharmacist.
Please see the front office and materials there for all the counseling and assistance programs offered through the senior center. There is one-on-one counseling about eligibility and services for older adults and people with disabilities; there is similar counseling for financial care assistance; and a veterans representative is at the center on the second Wednesday. Medicaid counseling is also available; check with the front desk for days and times.
The Northern Wake Senior Center at 235 East Holding Avenue is owned by the Town of Wake Forest with programming and staffing provide by Resources for Seniors. Most programs are free for all. The center is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the phone is 919-554-4111; the website with full information, including the full calendar, about the senior center and Resources for Seniors is available on computers, smart phones and tablets at www.Resourcesforseniors.com and http://www.wakeforestnc.gov/northern-wake-senior-center.aspx.
