Services for Newtown seniors are sponsored by the Commission on Aging and are available at the Multi-Purpose Building on Riverside Road in Sandy Hook. For more information about programs offered at the Senior Center call 270-4310.

For information on federal, state and community resources available to seniors, call 270-4330 or 270-4315.

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 60¢ 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 May 26-30

*Please note that the SENIOR CENTER WILL BE CLOSED on Monday, 26, for MEMORIAL DAY. We’ll be open and back on our regular programs and events schedule on Tuesday, May 27.

*OUR ANNUAL PICNIC at Dickinson Park will be on WEDNESDAY, JUNE 18, from 11 am to 3 pm. Mark your calendar and save the date.

Cost is $4 per person, which will take care of your lunch – plenty of hamburgers, hot dogs, salads and soft drinks will be served. We are asking for help with snacks and desserts. Bring a lawn chair, your sunglasses, playing cards and a big smile, and be ready to a fun-filled day with friends.

*Marilyn’s at it again – Grab your walking shoes and catch up with her for WEEKLY WALKS AT FAIRFIELD HILLS each Monday at 10 am.

*If getting exercise indoors is more your thing, visit the senior center on Mondays at 10 am for CHAIR EXERCISE WITH DEBBIE. This new exercise class is a low impact class. We will target seniors who may not have exercised in a while as well as those who would like a new way to achieve upper body stretching.

*Attention gentlemen: For those who are interested in playing cards and/or catching up on current events, join our new GENTLEMEN’S CLUB each Monday at 3 pm.

*The revival of THE GOLDEN NOTES CHORUS: If you are interested in singing and/or if you play a musical instrument then join us on Thursdays from 3 to 4 pm for The Golden Notes Chorus. Call Marilyn with any questions.

*On Thursday, June 19, join us for Part Four of our health EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM “ELDER CARE OPTIONS.” Call the senior center to sign up for this informative event.

*Day trip announcement: We will be heading to WESTCHESTER DINNER THEATRE on Wednesday, July 23, for lunch and a performance of Smokey Joe’s Café. Cost is $63 per person and departure is scheduled for 9:30 am. There is limited seating, so call soon to reserve your spot.

This Week’s Programs

*BILL MICHAELS’S “SPRING FLING” at the senior center has been rescheduled for Wednesday, May 28, at 1 pm. Please join us. Call to reserve a seat.

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REMINDERS: NEW HORIZONS, a support group for widows and widowers, usually meets at the senior center on the first Tuesday of each month. The next meeting will be on June 3 at 3 pm.

*Has it been a while since you’ve played Bridge? Would you like to learn how? Stop by the senior center any Monday at 10 am for MARY MATERN’S BRIDGE GROUP.

*Booklets outlining DAY TRIPS FOR 2003 sponsored by the senior center, from week-long overseas excursions to day trips within the region, are now available. Stop by and pick one up. Please remember that all trips must be paid for with ten working days of when you sign up for a trip.

*Day trips coming up include a June 4 outing to NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND. Departure is 7 am, and cost is $77 per person. Upon arrival in Newport you will board the Newport Train for a 90-minute ride, during which a hot and cold buffet lunch will be served. The afternoon will include a tour of Newport Vineyard – which will include a complimentary bottle of wine – and browsing and shopping at The Brick Marketplace. Call the senior center for details and to sign up.

*A day trip to LONG ISLAND is planned for June 25. Departure for that trip is 6:45 am, and cost is $73. This adventure will include a ferry trip across Orient Point, Long Island, with the first stop at Pindar Vineyards for a tour. Next is a visit to Soundview Inn for lunch (roasted half chicken or seafood au gratin are the entrée choices), then a guided tour of East End Maritime Museum, and then free time to enjoy the village of Greenport. Call the senior center to sign up for this trip.

*Join us for a SIGHTSEEING CRUISE ABOARD THE SOUTHLAND on Wednesday, July 9. Departure is 7:45 am, and the cost is $58 per person. The bus will travel to Narragansett, R.I., and participants will then enjoy a narrated cruise while visiting Harbor of Refuge, seeing the historic Point Judith Lighthouse, the quaint villages of Jerusalem and Galiliee, and the many islands and inlets of Great Salt Pond. Lunch at The Coast Guard House (entrée choices are stuffed breast of chicken, London broil, or baked scrod) will be followed by last-minute shopping at Raspberry Junction in North Stonington. Contact the senior center to sign up for this trip.

Menu For Week of May 26-30

Reservations must be made three days in advance.

Meals are subject to change.

Monday: No lunch today – the senior center will be closed for Memorial Day.

Tuesday: Fish Florentine, rice pilaf, carrots, rye bread, pistachio pudding with topping;

Wednesday: Spaghetti and meatball with sauce, Caesar salad with dressing and croutons, crabapple juice, Italian bread, pineapple tidbits;

Thursday: Fresh ham with gravy, sweet potato pone, peas and onions, dinner roll, angel food cake with berries and topping;

Friday: Oven fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, broccoli florettes, corn bread, grape juice, fresh fruit.

Activities Schedule, May 26-30

Monday: AM Pinochle, Bridge, art class, walking group (at Fairfield Hills), chair exercise class; PM yoga, sewing (RSVP volunteers), HMO help (by appointment), Gentlemen’s Club;

Tuesday: AM Pinochle, exercise; PM bowling (at Brookfield Lanes);

Wednesday: AM line dancing, Pinochle, Social Services help with applications, “Bill Michael’s Spring Fling”;

Thursday: AM exercise, Pinochle, yoga; PM crafts, bowling (at Brookfield Lanes), The Golden Notes Chorus;

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

 Remember, you must call three days in advance to book a meal or a ride, 270-4310; the Senior Bus, 748-2511.