The Daily Standard
Story Archive
A variety of craft, art and fitness classes are offered to seniors at the Mercer County Council on Aging in Celina.
On any given day, the Mercer County Council on Aging Center in Celina may have a group of ladies working on a puzzle, or a team practicing for the upcoming Wii bowling league. A senior could be watching TV or selecting a book from the library, while the fitness center may have several people working out.
In the office, outreach workers might be helping clients navigate Medicare Part D options. Homemakers and the chore team would be gathering lists to go out to assist seniors, enabling them to stay in their homes.
This does not include the regularly scheduled activities, and any special programs offered for the day. If it's a Tuesday afternoon, there's line dancing. Bingo is played on Wednesdays. Thursday morning is donuts and coffee. Lunch is served on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.
"This is the best-kept secret in Mercer County," said Dawn Daughtery, executive director of the Mercer County Council on Aging.
There are a lot of people who are unaware of all the center has to offer, which ranges from meals to activities to in-home services. Daughtery said the center has a total of 29 employees, five of whom are full-time.
Three provide the organization's "chore service," taking care of minor household tasks to help older people continue living in their homes. Changing light bulbs, installation of grab bars, gutter cleaning, and adding salt to the water softener are tasks typically performed. The "homemaker service" helps with basic home cleaning such as mopping, vacuuming, dusting and washing dishes. (If a client needs help with medications they will be referred to another agency.)
Senior transportation is provided by six drivers. Priority is given to medical and dental services, grocery shopping and other necessary trips. Rides are also available to and from the Senior Citizen Center, located on Riley Street near the Mercer County Fairgrounds, for meals and other activities.
The council's outreach program has two full-time employees that will assess seniors' needs and do their best to connect people with a service that can assist them. They are knowledgeable about many resources and programs available to seniors.
"We are a resource of referrals," Daughtery said. "We try to find the best company, program or agency that can help you get what you need."
Daughtery said the staff worked with about 300 people during the six-week Medicare Part D enrollment period. They also work with the Ohio Senior Health Insurance Information Program to help seniors with Medicare supplement plans. She said the ultimate goal is to protect the seniors.
A relatively new service is provided by the Alzheimer's Association. Care consultations are available by appointment. A support group meets the second Wednesday of every month.
"If you can't come that day, we'll make it work," Daughtery said. "We want to be here to help people through the hard times." She added that counseling is also available.
Blood pressure checks and toe nail trimming are offered once a month. The center even has a large selection of durable medical equipment available for loan.
Seniors participate in a line-dancing class at the senior center at the Mercer County Council on Aging in Celina.
Recreation is an important part of what the Council on Aging has to offer. Activities Coordinator Tash Schulze said activities and programs are just a different form of services.
"The social interactions and the people having that sense of community, knowing that they can come in here and sit down with friends and have coffee and get to know people (makes a difference)," she said. "It's nice when they come in and are recognized."
Groups of seniors gather to play cards on Thursday and Sunday evenings. But not everyone at the center is playing cards those nights. Some are watching specific sports teams on TV. Others are gathered together socializing and getting to know each other. Bonds have been formed, and friends get together outside of the center.
"We want it to be a place where people know your name," Daughtery said.
In this photo from April 2022, a class learns how to paint with watercolors at the Mercer County Council on Aging in Celina.
The Council on Aging calendar is filled with monthly activities, from bingo and cards to line dancing, yoga and fitness classes. Pickleball is played once a week at the Spiritual Center in Montezuma. A crochet club meets once a month. Craft, floral and art classes are offered monthly when scheduling permits.
"We really try to have a wide variety of activities from learning to the crafts. Our goal is to have something that would interest everybody," Schulze said. "You might not like all of the things, but we want you to be able to find one thing that you would enjoy coming to do here."
Some programs are held in the Annex next to the main building. Parking is easier and the location allows privacy for certain services. Schulze also coordinates Lunch and Learn classes once a month. Topics covered can range from scams to health, fitness, or anything relating to senior lifestyles. If someone has something to share and present, they are more than welcome to contact her, Schulze added.
Annual events include a jigsaw puzzle contest, Wii bowling contests, and cornhole tournaments. Schulze said special classes like those offered by the Area Agency on Aging 3, are arranged when she can get the instructors.
Daughtery noted that Schulze is a juggler, getting everything to fit into the space they have. Schulze acknowledged logistics can be difficult at times.
Still, she is always open to suggestions for new activities to try - you have to "see what sticks." The crochet club was a big hit, the chess club was not. Texas Hold 'Em started once a week and now the group meets twice a week.
Shoppers browse at an Mercer County Council on Aging garage sale in Celina.
When Schulze started at the center there was not much going on, other than the garage sales. Attendance at one of the first Christmas carry-ins was about 100. She said there are almost 400 tickets sold for the Christmas party to be held this month.
"The senior population has exploded," Schulze said. "They are active, involved and don't want to sit at home. They want to do things and live life."
A Thanksgiving dinner and a Spring Fling are held every year. The Circle of Care girls partner with local nursing homes to sponsor a lot of programs. About 75 people attended the Thanksgiving dinner provided by Celina Manor and Briarwood Manor - tickets had to be limited due to space.
Travel was added to the docket last spring, with the first trip in May. "It has exploded," Daughtery said.
There have always been requests for travel, but the center was not in a position to offer it until recently.
"It's a wonderful part of our service," Schulze said. "It's not something that was here anymore." There is definitely an interest.
Daughtery has a database to keep track of services used. From January through July transportation services made 6,000 trips and accumulated 63,000 miles to and from appointments.
Schulze said bingo has 50-65 people playing each Wednesday, and 40-50 come for cards on Fridays. Coffee time on Thursdays averages about 20 people as they come and go. An average 16-24 play pickleball on Tuesdays. Lunch is served on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, midweek being the busiest with about 25 people.
Daughtery said there are 200-250 volunteers helping with a variety of tasks throughout the year, noting that the numbers can change frequently as chapters of people's lives move in different directions. An appreciation dinner held in October had 100 in attendance.
"If you're looking for a place to volunteer, there are so many different ways to volunteer here," she noted. Schulze is always looking for volunteers to share their talents and knowledge for activities.
The MCCOA services that are funded by a countywide tax levy (transportation, chore, homemaker, and outreach) are open to those aged 60 and over who live in Mercer County (as dictated by the levy language).
With additional funding from the Mercer County Civic Foundatiion, transportation can be provided to medical appointments in Mercer County for those under 60 with a disability.
All other services and activities are open to everyone. In addition to the countywide levy and the Civic Foundation, funding is provided by Mercer County Health Care Foundation, PASSPORT program, Turner Cisco Endowment Fund, quarterly garage sales, private donations, and the hard work of volunteers.
"There's so much need. Our senior population is just going sky high," Daughtery noted.
Almost 2,500 paper newsletters are mailed each month. Additional copies are delivered through email. Every newsletter reads, "Our mission is to help older people live dignified and reasonably independent lives in their own homes for as long as possible."
"Everything we do, we try to make it a win-win-win scenario," Schulze said. "People come in and know they are welcome."
Daughtery summed it up with, "We love this place. We love what we stand for and we love our seniors."
More information on services available can be obtained at www.mccoa.net or on the Mercer County Council on Aging Facebook page. Interested persons can also email mccoa@bright.net or call 419-586-1644.
Penny Lange spins some cotton candy at a past Party on the Patio festival at the Mercer County Council on Aging in Celina.
