Keep Senior Centers
To The Editor:

How dismayed and disappointed I felt after reading the February 27 edition of the Gazette with its article concerning the $3.5 million cuts in senior center funding. To me, this is a grave injustice and shows a lack of concern, and caring for senior citizens. Senior citizens will be growing by leaps and bounds as the baby boomers retire, and as people live longer, the already aged population will continue to grow older and thus require more services.

Senior centers are absolutely crucial in the lives of senior citizens, since they serve as safe havens, places for socialization, meals with others, fun, festivity, the learning of new skills and the development and enhancement of old hobbies and interests, and where social services help seniors deal with the ravages of older years, depression, illness and the application for governmental services. These centers save the city money, for without them many seniors will need psychological help in coping with loneliness, depression, anxiety and sorrow. The Meals On Wheels program with a hot meal served daily and delivered to each home was a Godsend. To eliminate this valuable program and to serve frozen meals and eliminate the social services aspect, to me, will be a sad time in the lives of these seniors and as a professional volunteer at DellaMonica Senior Center for 17 years and working with the Meals On Wheels program giving telephone support to these homebound seniors, I have found that they thrive when they are given the personal attention of a social worker, and a delivery person who is their link to the outside world. We as a city, state and nation have funding for priorities such as lawmakers, perks, and for a war and give aid to other nations, but where are the fundings to keep the Greatest Generation, the ones who helped us in our time of need healthy and happy.

I urge all lawmakers and our mayor to reconsider these cuts. They must be restored and senior centers and freshly delivered Meals On Wheels with a social worker case manager must be retained.

For when we help others, we help ourselves, our parents, our older family members and that is the way the Ten Commandments state, to honor the elderly. Cynthia Groopman Long Island City