Club wants seniors to have fun
Organization applying for $200,000 federal grant
Anna Bramwell was one of 30 seniors taking part in a free bingo game at the Glace Bay Y’s Men’s and Women’s Club at Town Bowling Lanes on Monday.
“I love it,” she said, adding she attends every week with Margie Butler and Thelma Dixon. All three live at the Minto Street seniors complex in Glace Bay.
Although there are three bingo games at the complex every week, the women look forward to the outing at the club.
“It gets us out of the building,” she said. “It’s good to get out and we enjoy that.”
Treasurer Bobby Donovan said the club received an $18,000 New Horizons for Seniors federal government grant last year to run a seniors program.
Donovan said the club has now applied for a $200,000 grant in hopes of running a fulltime seniors program.
“A lot of seniors want to get out but just don’t have the money,” he said. “Our program would be five days a week, all day long. We’d hire a full-time co-ordinator.”
Donovan said the initial program began with free weekly bowling and then weekly bingo was added.
“We asked the seniors what they’d like for (bingo) prizes and we bought a lot of gift cards from all different merchants in town.”
The club also organized a free computer class for seniors and set up a social area in the former Knox hall where seniors can play pool, shuffleboard and darts.
Most recently a walking track was set up in the club’s recently purchased building, the former Morrison school.
Donovan said the club is committed to the seniors program and has used some of its own money as well as the grant for the program.
“We want to expand the program with activities such as crafts and woodworking,” he said. “We’d use the grant for material or whatever was needed.”
Senior Margie Butler said she enjoys the club’s programs.
“It’s a great way to meet other people and make new friends,” she said. “We all enjoy playing bingo but we also enjoy getting out and getting to meet other seniors.”
If the club gets another grant, Dixon said it would be nice to see an exercise program organized.
Monday was the second time Lorraine Burrows of Birch Grove attended the bingo.
“I love it,” she said. “I would come for sure if they organized another one.”
Burrows said she recently heard about the club’s walking track and hopes to use it.
Paula McInnis of Reserve Mines has attended three bingo games and she bowls in a women’s league on Tuesday afternoons.
“I enjoyed it, everyone is so nice,” adding she would like to see an arts and crafts program organized. “Something along that line would be nice. It would be another excuse to get out.”