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 Wal*Mart 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.

This Week’s Programs

*Our next POT LUCK DINNER will be on December 6.

These dinners are held on the first Tuesday of each month; call for the start time.

We’ve been having themes for these monthly dinners lately. On December 6, join us for Holidays.

*The senior center’s ANNUAL CHRISTMAS PARTY will be held at The Fireside Inn this year on Thursday, December 8, from 11 am until 3 pm.

Please note, original fliers had the start time posted as 10 am, but the party will indeed begin at 11.

There will be a gourmet buffet, a Christmas raffle, music by The Country Gentlemen, and visits from Santa and Mrs Claus.

Cost is $25 per person, and reservations are needed. Stop by the senior center to sign up.

 

News For Week of December 5-9

*The senior center is in NEED OF AN ART TEACHER AND/OR CRAFT TEACHER, who can volunteer their time twice a month. Teaching times and schedule are flexible. Please call the senior center for details, 270-4310.

*We are looking to RESUME THE QUILTING CLASS. Anyone interested in re-starting this activity is asked to call the senior center. You will need to bring your own sewing machine, and the class will meet on Fridays from 3 to 4 pm.

*CHRISTMAS PARTY BINGO: Join us for a jolly good time on Thursday, December 15, starting at 1 pm.

Call the senior center to sign up.

*HOLIDAY SCHEDULE: The senior center will be closing at noon on Fridays, December 23 and 30. We will be closed all day on Mondays, December 26 and January 2.

*Newtown’s seniors are invited to spend a day at MOHEGAN SUN CASINO on Wednesday, January 11.

Departure from Sandy Hook will be at 8 am, and cost is $26 which include transportation, a $10 food credit, two $5 pull tabs and the bus driver’s tip.

*Next month, the first overnight trip of the new year will take seniors to SANDS HOTEL AND CASINO. Departure will be Wednesday, January 18, at 8 am, and we will return later on Thursday, January 19. Cost is $124 for a single room, $94 for double occupancy, or $92 for a triple, and this fee includes motorcoach transportation, hotel accommodations at Sands, a $10 coin bonus, dinner buffet, baggage handling and taxes.

*We have CHRISTMAS TRIAD ORNAMENTS. The are $8, cash or check (make out to Elite Marketing & Promotions, LLC), and are available at the senior center any time we are open.

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REMINDERS: Ace in the Hole invites Newtown seniors to participate in NEW YEAR’S AT NOON, one of the hottest New Year’s parties around.

This pre-New Year’s Eve day trip will take place on Friday, December 30, with departure at 9 am. Enjoy great food, drinks (including a champagne toast to celebrate the new year and one hour open bar), entertainment and party favors. New Year’s at Noon stars the comic and ventriloquist John Pizzi.

*IDENTITY THEFT AND THE DECEASED: The CT Cooperative Extension System and The Identity Resource Center, Inc., have produced a fact sheet about preventing the theft of a deceased one’s identity. Identity Theft and the Deceased: Prevention and Victim Tips, Fact Sheet #117, contains credit report request forms and identity theft affidavit forms.

To receive a copy visit www.IdtheftCenter.org or call 858-693-7935.

This is also a good way to check your own credit report and to see whether any new accounts have been activated in your name. To order a free report call 877-322-8228.

*Please have your FILE OF LIFE CARDS filled out with all pertinent and updated information. New cards can be picked up at the senior center.

The File of Life Card contains important information about yourself and/or your spouse. The cards are kept in a plastic case that should be stored in your refrigerator. In instances where there is an emergency, these cards can be instrumental to Emergency Medical Technicians and police officers in helping to expedite matters.

*ConnPace/MEDICARE PART D: If you do not understand the letters from Social Security pertaining to changes in Medicare Part D, call 270-4330 for help.

If you need help with your prescriptions and your income is less than $21,400 (single person) or $28,900 (couple), you should apply for ConnPace. You will still sign up for Medicare Part D and if you qualify for ConnPace, you will not pay the $37 monthly premium.

*Municipal Agent ANN PICCINI VISITS the senior center on Thursday mornings from 10 until noon to help with ConnPace, 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 your 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), Monday through Friday. 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. 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.

Menu For Week of December 5-9

Reservations must be made one or two days in advance.

Meals are subject to change.

Monday, December 5: Stuffed cabbage, mashed potatoes, peas and carrots, dinner roll, pears;

Tuesday, December 6: Sliced turkey with gravy, stuffing, green beans, cranberry sauce, whole wheat bread, oatmeal-raisin cookie;

Wednesday: Veal parmesan, penne with sauce, Parmesan cheese, broccoli, Italian bread, tropical fruit salad;

Thursday: Split pea soup, unsalted crackers, cold cut grinder (turkey, ham, cheese and mayonnaise), coleslaw, pickle chips, lemon pudding with topping;

Friday: Garlic baked chicken quarter, noodles, California blend vegetables, oatmeal bread, orange juice, fresh fruit.

Also, for planning ahead—

Monday, December 12: Chicken a la king, rice, fresh zucchini, biscuit, apple juice, sugar cookie;

Tuesday, December 13: Crab cakes OR sliced turkey on club roll with lettuce and tomato, macaroni and cheese, peas and carrots, soft breadstick, tartar sauce, fruit cocktail.

Activities Schedule, December 5-9

Monday: AM Bridge, hatha yoga, exercise; PM chorus group, computer class;

Tuesday: AM country-western line dancing; PM computer class, bowling (at Brookfield Lanes), computer class, potluck dinner;

Wednesday: AM exercise; PM Bingo;

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

Friday: AM advanced mah jongg, quilting; PM.

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