Active living for seniors

Wellington walking program one of many options

Eighty-nine-year-old Ron Fox is determined to remain active. Three times a week, he heads over to the walking track at the Wellington arena and spends an hour there, adding another four kilometres to his walking tally. He is one of about 20 seniors who use the track in the 9 a.m. time slot from Monday to Friday. He doubles as the program monitor when he’s there, making sure everyone signs in as well as keeping an eye on things in the event of an emergency. “It’s great for me because I’m able to walk for an hour three times a week, which certainly helps my physical fitness,” he says. “This is a great walking track. It gets me out and about to mix with other people and staying as fit as I can. It’s a very social event. People go around every day and you get to know them.” The walking track is used by local seniors, as well as those from outside the immediate Wellington area—there are regulars who come from Picton, and a spry 93-year-old who lives in Hillier. “They have a [walking] program in Picton, but it’s at the high school and it’s not as nice there as it is here. This is an excellent facility.”

(L-R): Ron Fox waits with Laura McGugan, coordinator for Community Care for Seniors, before the start of his regular morning walk at the Wellington arena.

The walking program is part of the County Seniors Centre initiative, which launched in August. It is a means of engaging seniors in more recreational activities in the areas where they live, as well as an attempt to reduce senior isolation. “We started to hear about how people didn’t always want to go to Picton for activities or events, they wanted to still be within their communities,” says Laura McGugan, coordinator for Community Care for Seniors (CCS). “The goal of the County Seniors Centre is to utilize all the municipal halls within Prince Edward County. We’re trying to expand in all areas, whether it be recreation, leisure, wellness, the arts. We have other programs besides walking. We have the meditation program, fitness for seniors, tai chi. We have Wii bowling that we run out of our office. We want to see seniors be active, whether it be physically or mentally, and being able to do what they want to do.”

The County Seniors Centre is a provincial program, which is supported by the County. It aims to bring programs and activities to seniors in the community where they live. There is an annual user fee of $25, but many of the activities are offered at no cost or very low cost. It also allows local municipal halls a new lease on life, with increased usage justifying the County’s operating cost to keep them open. The County Seniors Centre steer away from offering programs that are duplicates of those currently being run by other local groups. “If there’s yoga at one town hall—because some recreation committees offer it—we may look at another town hall to give seniors that opportunity. Possibly the timing is better and the programming is [just] for seniors. We do find that seniors like to be with other seniors for the most part,” says McGugan. “We encourage seniors to be independent and as active as possible. That’s the mandate and vision for Community Care for Seniors—for seniors to live at home as independently as possible”

All of the events are scheduled during the weekdays. There is an escorted driving program and a partnership with Quinte Access to provide transportation to seniors who may need it. One popular program is the seniors luncheon social, a monthly meal offered at five locations in the County. “They put on an excellent three-course dinner for 10 bucks, and a lot of people partake in that,” says Fox. “If you are living alone, it’s nice to come out and have a meal. A lot of people come out to every one.” A full Christmas dinner will be offered during the month of December, with an additional location in Hillier.

In addition to being a monitor for the walking program in Wellington, Fox is also a server at the luncheons. “I enjoy that,” he says. “You meet the same people each month, and we work with other volunteers. I think these programs, from a senior’s point of view, gets you out of the house so you don’t get in a rut. It stimulates you mentally to get out and talk to other seniors and just to have a good time.”

For more information, please call 613.476.7493, or visit communitycareforseniors. org.