Senior services for Newtown seniors are available at the Multi-Purpose Building on Riverside Road in Sandy Hook. The Senior Center is under the auspices of The Commission on Aging. The center is run by the Senior Services Director, Marilyn Place. For more information about programs offered at the Senior Center call 270-4310.

You may drop in at the Senior Center on Riverside Road in Sandy Hook weekdays between 10 am and 4 pm. A hot meal is served at noon for which you must reserve three days in advance.

Newtown has daily door-to-door mini-bus service Monday through Friday. Buses also run all day from the senior center to Sand Hill Plaza. On Fridays, the bus alternates between rides to Danbury Fair Mall and Berkshire Plaza in Danbury (to the new Wal*Mart store on Route 6). Cost is 65¢ each way for the Sand Hill Plaza trip, 75¢ each way for out of town. Call 748-2511 TWO DAYS IN ADVANCE to book a ride and get the out-of-town Friday schedule.

News For Week of March 7-11

*Anyone interested in learning HOW TO PLAY MAH JONGG? Lessons will be given on Thursday mornings at 10 am.

*Enjoy a ST PATRICK’S CELEBRATION AT THE AQUA TURF. Newtown seniors will be joining the party in Southington on Tuesday, March 15, which will include performances by Irish dancers and the music of Mulligan & Co.

Cost is $51 per person. We will be departing at 9:45 am.

*We will be hosting a ST PATRICK’S SING-ALONG on Wednesday, March 16. Bill Michaels will be here to lead some light-hearted, old-time favorites.

*A few seats remain for the March 24 BYE BYE BIRDIE event at Westchester Theatre. Cost is $68 per person and payment is now due. Call for details and reservations.

*The annual RSVP RECOGNITION TEA is scheduled for Wednesday, March 23, at 1 pm.

Please join us, along with the RSVP representative, to extend a huge thank you to all of our wonderful volunteers. All of your volunteer support is greatly appreciated.

We will also have information about RSVP for anyone interested in joining this worthwhile group.

*Newtown Senior Center’s TRIAD group, Newtown Police Department and People’s Bank invite all Newtown seniors to a special SPRING SAFE-TEA.

Come learn how to not be a victim of crime! Our guest speaker will be Angela DeLeon from People’s Bank, who is the state coordinator of Connecticut TRIAD.

The program will be on Wednesday, March 30, at 1 pm. Come wearing your favorite spring hats and receive free gifts from People’s Bank and enjoy refreshments while learning about this very important subject.

This Week’s Programs

*The senior center will host FREE HEALTH SCREENINGS this spring. The screenings are offered to Connecticut residents ages 60 and above. Call the senior center to sign up for any of these exams.

The first screening will be a Podiatry Screening on Wednesday, March 9, from 9:30 am until 3 pm. Dr Richard Gosney and his new assistant, Cynthia Cornelius, will be checking feet and also clipping toenails, corns and calluses.

Future screenings will include oral screenings by audiologist Dr Howard Raff and vision screenings (by a different doctor, to be named later) on Wednesday, April 6; and vascular screenings – including checks for carotids and abdominal aneurysms, and a leg scan – and osteoporosis screenings on Friday, May 6.

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REMINDERS: The senior center will be CLOSED on FRIDAY, MARCH 25, in observance of Good Friday.

*We are also SEARCHING FOR AN ART TEACHER, to lead the seniors in instruction of painting with acrylics and oil-based paints. Contact senior center director Marilyn Place at 270-4310 for details.

*AARP INCOME TAX ASSISTANCE has returned. Representatives will be visiting the senior center Monday mornings from 9 am until noon until April 11.

Please call the senior center for an appointment, and plan to bring in last year’s income tax return and any other pertinent information.

*On the second, third and fourth Tuesdays of each month, FLORAL ARRANGING workshops will meet with Marianne Imhoff. These sessions will begin at 1 pm. Please call to sign up.

*MAH JONGG players have two opportunities on Fridays. The advanced group plays at 9 am, and a beginner’s group plays at 1.

*ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM: Applications for oil-heated households are now being taken. Income guidelines include $18,620 for singles, and $24,980 for couples. There are also asset limits.

Necessary documentation includes income from Social Security, pension, wages, interest, etc. This information must be current within 30 days.

Assistance continues through March 31. Applications for YankeeGas and CL&P are also being taken.

Contact Municipal Agent Ann Piccini at 270-4330 for more information.

*ANN PICCINI VISITS the senior center on Thursday mornings from 10 until noon to help with Conn Pace, medical information and Title 19 issues you may be having. Call ahead or just stop in to talk with someone who can help you figure you way through these sometimes confusing subjects.

If you can’t catch up with Ann during one of her visits at the senior center, try reaching her at her office at 3 Main Street (below the police department). Call her there at 270-4330.

*Also on Thursdays, Newtown’s seniors are invited to stop by between 2 and 3 pm to have their pictures taken and to fill out pertinent information that will be stored in the glovebox of your car, all of which is part of the new NEWTOWN YELLOW DOT PROGRAM.

This is a Triad Project that will help save lives, and it’s the first project of its kind in our state. The project consists of an information card and a yellow dot sticker that is affixed to your car window. In the event of an emergency, first responders can identify the vehicle as being part of the Yellow Dot Program and will look for the information in an envelope inside your car, saving time and supplying life saving information. The project is a partnership between the community’s senior citizens, People’s Bank and Newtown Police Department.

*OVERNIGHT TRIPS in 2005 include a May trip to GEORGIA AND SOUTH CAROLINA. Trip booklets for 2005 are ready. Stop by the senior center to pick one up.

Menu For Week of March 7-11

Reservations must be made one or two days in advance.

Meals are subject to change.

Monday: Stuffed shells with sauce, turkey sausage, broccoli, Italian bread, grape juice, chocolate chip cookie;

Tuesday: Beef stew, noodles, Brussels sprouts, dinner roll, diet fruited Jell-O with topping;

Wednesday: Italian wedding soup, unsalted crackers, lemon-pepper chicken quarter, rice pilaf, California blend vegetables, whole wheat bread, fresh fruit;

Thursday: Pot roast with gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, rye bread, strawberry-vanilla parfait with topping;

Friday: Fish and chips (baked breaded fish and French fries), cole slaw vinaigrette, tartar sauce, ketchup, multi-grain roll, apricots.

Also, for planning ahead—

Monday, March 14: BBQ chicken quarter, baked sweet potato, spinach, whole wheat bread, diced pineapple;

Tuesday, March 15: Veal parmesan, penne and sauce, Parmesan cheese, broccoli, Italian bread, mandarin oranges.

Activities Schedule, March 7-11

Monday: AM Bridge, yoga, exercise, AARP income tax assistance (by appointment); PM chorus group;

Tuesday: AM Pinochle, country-western line dancing; PM bowling (at Brookfield Lanes), floral arranging;

Wednesday: AM Podiatry Screenings (9:30 am-3 pm, call for appointment), Pinochle, senior fitness tests, exercise; PM Bingo;

Thursday: AM Pinochle, hatha yoga class, Municipal Agent visits, mah jongg lessons; PM bowling (at Brookfield Lanes), TRIAD/Yellow Dot photos taken;

Friday: AM advanced mah jongg, sewing, quilting; PM beginner’s mah jongg, knitting.

 Remember, you must call at least one day in advance to book a meal or a ride, 270-4310; the Senior Bus, 748-2511.