Elmhurst Seniors Disappointed They Didn’t Meet President

The morning following president George W. Bush’s surprise visit to the Italian Charities of America Senior Center in Elmhurst, members expressed disappointment that they didn’t get a chance to see or schmooze with him. Still, they were happy and honored that he had been in the center, Assistant Director Debbie Woo told the Gazette.

Woo said that when center officials were asked by firefighters from a nearby firehouse to let them use the facility for a press conference with the president, where they would announce the firefighters’ union was endorsing him, a few classes had to be cancelled to set up the room, but other than that there was no inconvenience.

But when the seniors came in on Thursday morning after seeing the president at the club on television the night before, they felt good that he had been there but were unhappy that he hadn’t come by during the day when they are usually at the center. “That was the only topic of conversation all day,” Woo said.

The president’s visit also sparked some discussion about the Medicare reform law, passed last year, and about prescription drug coverage. Opinions were expressed reflecting both sides of the issue, members said.

SENIOR APPRECIATION WEEK: State Senator Malcolm Smith (D) of Southeast Queens says the Senior Appreciation Week he held last year was so successful that he’s staging another one beginning next Monday.

Co-sponsors for the event are state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer; Congressmember Gregory Meeks (D–Southeast Queens); Assemblymembers Michael Gianaris (Astoria), Brian McLaughlin (Flushing), Audrey Pheffer (Rockways), William Scarborough (Jamaica) and Michele Titus (Richmond Hill), and City Councilmembers Joseph Addabbo (Ozone Park), James Gennaro (Fresh Meadows) and Leroy Comrie (St. Albans). All are Democrats.

Corporate co-sponsors are Health First which is sponsoring all the event, the Mattone Group, GreenPoint Bank, GHI Health Plus and the Port Authority.

Among the events planned are a services fair, a street festival, bowling, senior fitness, a seminar on safety, awareness and emergency preparedness and an ecumenical service.

“The events scheduled,” Smith said, “are a reflection of the respect we have for seniors in our community and a chance to thank them for all they do on a daily basis. On an informational basis there will be talks on the latest developments on prescription drugs, tax relief, Medicare and housing. Representatives of AARP, the city Department for the Aging and pharmaceutical manufacturer Pfizer Inc. will also address the seniors.

Smith also stated that in conjunction with the special week, he would encourage anyone interested in helping seniors in their neighborhood to make a special effort to do so by visiting a homebound senior, helping with grocery shopping or perhaps organizing a school visit to a senior center. “The fact is, we should be thinking about seniors in our community all the time, not just for one week during the year,” he said.

MEETING: A white elephant sale will be held at the September 22 meeting of AARP Jackson Heights Chapter 991 beginning at noon at the Jewish Center of Jackson Heights, 37-06 77th St., Jackson Heights.