Council On Aging Senior Dining Sites To Reopen After More Than A Year

May 11, 2021

The Council on Aging of West Florida will soon reopen senior dining sites will reopen next week for the first time since the start of the pandemic.

The Council on Aging congregate meal program sites will reopen May 17 to elders 60 and over on Monday, May 17. The sites closed March 16, 2020. due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, meals have been available at these sites via a Monday through Friday grab-and-go platform, but now the locations will reopen to 100 percent occupancy so older adults can resume daytime activities.

For those who can and enjoy getting out for lunch, the Senior Dining Program is a neighborhood-based program which offers older citizens the opportunity to share their lunch with others their age. Hot nutritious balanced meals are served to active senior adults at several locations throughout Escambia and Santa Rosa counties. Meals are prepared fresh daily and contain one-third of the required daily allowance (RDA) for adults and comply with the Florida Department of Elder Affairs Guidelines. In addition, participants have an opportunity to join in arts and crafts projects, play games  and socialize. Serving times and location hours vary by site.

The sites will open as of May 17 will be:

Century Senior Center

6025 Industrial Boulevard
Century, FL 32535
(850) 256-1012
Hours: 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM
Serving Time: 11:00 AM
Monday through Friday

Chumuckla Community Center

2355 Highway 182 West, Chumuckla, FL 32566
(850) 994-8811
Hours: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Serving Time: 11:00 AM
Monday through Friday

Jay Community Center

5259 Booker Lane, Jay, FL 32565
(850) 675-0810
Hours: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Serving Time: 11:00 AM
Tuesday through Thursday

Bayview Senior Center

2000 E Lloyd St.
Pensacola, FL 32503
(850) 432-1475
Hours: 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Serving Time: 11:30 AM
Monday through Friday

Cobb Center

601 E. Mallory
Pensacola, FL 32503
(850) 436-5192
Hours: 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM
Serving Time: 11:00 AM
Monday through Friday

Westwood Homes

4400 Westover Ave.
Pensacola, FL 32506
(850) 292-9868
Hours: 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM
Serving Time: 11:15 AM
Monday through Friday

Bagdad Community Center

6860 Pooley St., Bagdad, FL 32530
(850) 983-4500
Hours: 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Serving Time: 11:00 AM
Monday through Friday

Christ United Methodist Church

5983 Dogwood Street, Milton, FL 32570
(850) 983-4590
Hours: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Serving Time: 11:00 AM
Monday through Friday

E.H. Pullum Senior Center

8476 Gordon Goodin Lane. Navarre, FL 32566
(850) 936-1644
Hours: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Serving Time: 11:15 AM
Monday through Thursday Only

Missing from the list are the sites in Cantonment and Beulah.

Josh Newby, marketing director for the Council on Aging, said the Cantonment site needs building repairs, and the Beulah site is too small to allow for property social  distancing.

he decision to reopen comes after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis lifted all coronavirus limitations based on emergency executive order, and local municipalities have followed suit. As vaccination rates continue to increase, COVID hospitalizations remain trending downward, and average infection age drops steadily, Council on Aging’s management and board have made the decision to allow seniors to recongregate.

“For decades, we have been preaching the importance of socialization and companionship for our community’s elderly,” said John B. Clark, Council on Aging president and CEO. “It’s good for your mind, your soul and your body. Of course, we had to reverse course during COVID as that physical safety became most pressing, but now we feel that our area is in a safe place to return these elders to a communal setting where they can support and enrich each other and grow together.”

Comments

One Response to “Council On Aging Senior Dining Sites To Reopen After More Than A Year”

  1. Betty Grady on May 11th, 2021 8:24 am

    What about the senior lunch site in Pace at the Christ United Methodist Church? I sure don’t want to drive so far!

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News