Senior centers
Hot Springs Senior Center,
210 Woodbine, and McAuley Center, 5010 Highway 7 north, are operated by CHI St. Vincent Hot Springs and primarily funded through the Area Agency on Aging of West Central Arkansas and are certified Arkansas senior wellness and activity centers.
The centers are open from
8 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays and serve area seniors aged 60 and older. No membership due or fees are required for services, but donations are accepted. Visitors and guests younger than 60 are welcome.
Lunch is served from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. No reservation is required. A suggested donation of $3.50 is requested to help cover a member’s share of the meal cost. Visitors younger than
60 must pay $6 for each meal. All carryout meals, regardless of age, are $6.
Each center offers a lending library, pool tables, Ping-Pong, games area, weekly exercise and wellness programs, socialization, recreation, health screenings and educational presentations.
Intergenerational activities with children from area schools, local Head Start programs and the Cedar Mountain Boys & Girls Club are popular with members.
Oaklawn Center on Aging, a program of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Arkansas Aging Initiative, is in partnership with both centers and located within the Hot Springs building. It provides center members and the community with health information resources and educational programs, including weekly tai chi, Zumba Gold and evidenced-based Healthy Aging education programs. Oaklawn Center on Aging is funded by the Oaklawn Foundation. For information, call Kathy Packard, director of education, at 623-0020 or email kapackard@uams.edu.
Each center schedules special activities. The Hot Springs center includes yoga, strong men and strong women strength training classes, line dance, art classes, Wii games, special holiday events and entertainment, Finders Keepers Thrift Shop, bean bag baseball, grief support group, healthy eating and nutrition, AARP Chapter 3 meetings, leadership/volunteer opportunities, monthly blood pressure and blood sugar checks, and monthly birthday celebrations sponsored by Walgreens on Albert Pike, Canyon Springs Health and Rehabilitation and West Shores.
The McAuley center activities include line dancing, yoga, intergenerational O.W.L. program, strong men and strong women strength training classes, tai chi, Zumba Gold, everyday exercise, rubber stamping, rug hooking and crochet, thrift shop, various painting and craft classes, lunch entertainment, AARP Driver Safety classes, AARP tax aid during tax season, and continuing education classes through National Park College.
This week’s special events at CHI St. Vincent Hot Springs Senior Center include:
• Monday: 12:30 p.m., Solar Eclipse Party. Eclipse glasses will be provided.
For information on times, activities and events at each center, call Hot Springs Senior Center,
624-0838, or email Judy Rowe at Jrowe@stvincenthealth.com; or call McAuley Center, 984-5594, or email Kelli Chacon at Kchacon@ stvincenthealth.com.