##VIDEO ID:vOnqZzmHPFU## okay I called the COA meeting on January 13 to order at uh 12:35 we will do a roll call vote for attendance please PA here Carolin here elain here Carol Smith here back yes Harry yes Donna here public participation seeing none we'll move on to um November and December minutes uh everybody have a chance to look them over y are there any corrections to November minutes no any corrections or changes or adjustments to December minutes okay then could I have a motion to accept both November and December motion to accept I need a second I'll second okay any further discussion could we vote to up November and December minutes paa yes Carol Laughlin yes Carol Smith yes Jack yes Harvey yes Anna yes okay accepted unanimously okay new business Lisa um so I gave you a report so this this first one is where it says counseling on agent um that's the um Town report that'll go in the town report for 2024 um it's already typed up ready to go if you guys want to look at it see if I missed anything because I was only here half the year I tried to remember everything I got pulled a few things from Cara um but um that's pretty much it so when do you have to submit it so can we look it over tonight and then let you know by maybe tomorrow yep yep if that's what you want that that's fine too you know just give us a chance to read through y okay um I'd like to just get it submitted this week because once once this week goes yeah I just don't want to keep holding off on it um and I was I was gonna add a picture to it but I haven't found one of this board I go back and take time and look at all the old pictures and they're all the other old boards and I'm like never had a picture taken I don't think you've all been get it's hard to get a whole board together you know like Teresa and Harriet are missing so I would have loved to have gotten a pitcher I could still take one today and put that in there um and then we can just say who's missing the couple people because it's really hard to get a picture of a board like everybody to be there cemeter is easy we only have three so you know what I mean but um it's it's hard but it would it would be nice to put a picture of something in there and I thought appropriate would be the board um so maybe before we leave I'll do that the other thing was um started learning learning the um computer for um my senior center and it allows us to print out different reports telling us how we've been doing um so with the trips um and we I stayed with the same thing so from August 1st to um December 31st of 2023 versus this August 1st to December um it just tells you where our numbers are um reach a PowerPoint right like a PowerPoint they've increased about 100 yeah quite a bit yep and you know and that'll that'll I I assume that number for trips would keep going up um the more different kinds of trips and not doing the repetitive ones but it doesn't start at zero so it's not yeah this is it doesn't start at zero yeah this is misleading so this just tells you if you take the number at the top of the box yeah and compare it to the other one it's just that's that's the one that's a number of trips that is the number of um particip participants that yeah yep so that went up the same thing with the fitness and exercise um they were getting really laxed on um when they pay their $2 for their class we would find in the Box every day you know your $2 but your name wasn't signed in um and then a lot of the Quilters when they come and they use the facility and they're doing their thing here they're not signing in so we just tightened that up a little bit and said if you're here the building using our spot sign in you're signing in um the um exercise one was a tough one so we had to make I had to make sheets for the instructors so I had to make it difficult in order for them to do what they were supposed to do so I made it I put it all on the instructors and then made them have to count the people make sure they signed in and we did that for a couple weeks and that got old for them so then I said well as long as my money equals what who signed in then I'm good but if I have $6 in there that means three people didn't sign in then I'll come back to you and make you start doing it again um so that um increased so that's that's good that we have that increase and that's what the last one is to the senior check in everybody that comes and uses you know a lot of people would come for lunch and not sign in so they don't sign in yeah it's funny people just come but they which is great lot of the card players weren't signing in no I got them to sign in yep and that's even gotten better so that that's a good thing um our exercises are now upstairs the only one downstairs in the basement is Yoga because there's a nice soft um mat down there um and I told all the instructors give it a week or two and then I'll come see me and then we'll go over what isn't working what you need or anything so as of Friday we have three fans in there that work um in the auditorium to cool it down and I also put on the wall next to the um heater yeah air conditioning thing I can't think of the gadget put the gadget on the wall thermostat my God on the thermostat on the wall I put instructions on how to put it to heat mode or cool mode and then they'll be able to turn it down so that some people are hot some people are cold some people just can't yeah so that's changed um today one of is it Shai Chong today shei Chong yeah she was thinking because their group is um specialty elderly but specialty elderly like meaning some of them are in wheelchairs some of them AR so for the moving them to the auditorium I asked her if she would rather them park over there and go into through the park and wreck and it's all one level Believe it or not the ones that were there today five or six of them barked at that so they want to be in the auditorium they like it in there but they don't like walking all that way without a break so um I think I'm going to put a couple armchairs if you walk off the elevator in that hallway there's like a little Al Cove not really a it's not going to be the chair wouldn't be in the in the thing it would be on the side I just got to mention it to Nicole and Nicole will probably say yes no problem and then that way if they need a break so they can sit down so they can sit down we have two benches coming for our hallway also because I watch people walk from the kitchen area to Cara's office and they're wobbling and there's nowhere so I want to see if I can get some grab bars on the wall I mean we are the senior center so we should have grab bars here and there so a couple grab bar bars on the um wall and then the two benches one in between the the bathrooms and then one at the other end um across you know from the big wall where the bookcases used to be and I think that would help people give them a place to sit they don't want to they're not some of them are asking and then others don't want to ask like I don't want to I don't want to admit I'm old and I I need a break halfway down all so I I'd like to be able to accommodate them just without them having to ask um the reading Nook was up and running the carpet's in there um which came Saturday um I couldn't wait for the carpet to come because as much as people hate change it's so funny they're like the kid in the car are we there yet and they'd be like are the chairs coming in when you putting the chairs in there and then I'd be like next week next week and then they'd be like and so this past week all I heard was when carpet coming when yeah it's like they got all excited so yeah it does and it's funny it's been used every single day last week since we had it and even this week um like we have a husband and wife that come in she used to volunteer time with the library and she literally just said do you mind if I put all the books in order you go for that I don't have time to do that but you can go for that so she did and then we have the music in there so we have headsets so to where you can have a CD player sit in the chair and play um music and not even be bothered by the people eating in the kitchen and then um yeah so it's kind of nice and then if maybe we'll get a monitor in there at sometime because they have CD player either that or they need something like this like a a smaller it's good laptop to to be able to play a movie but again you can put the the headset in there and watch a movie without disrupting someone in the other room so I think they're they're gonna yeah if someone's reading you don't want to movie plan no but you could if you had like a little um iPad or something so that's down the road um I think that's all the I do have a call into the pool table because I've had six people call last week believe it or not out of the blue I'm like where are these people just thinking of pool tables in the middle of their day but they've been asking for the pool table so I said give me a month to get it upstairs it might not take that long but I just give me a month so that's going to get brought upstairs you your petitions haven't come in yet the petitions for that room no I have I have to I have to look and see where I want what kind I want for the gym because I I did the Sarah Gillette Grant and I um sent that in already and that was for the gym so if they give us all of the gym that's great I got to be ready to put it in when it comes because there's no like once that gets delivered it's it's there um kind of hard to hide a treadmill and I don't know I guess I could throw it Che over it for a week but um once they see this stuff they want it now um so that's what's just cracking me up cuz as much as people don't like change the people that come here on a regular basis like it they they are on me like yeah you wouldn't believe and I just kind of laugh at that so I'm glad it that to me that's saying we're moving in the right direction and it's positive and change is never easy for anybody so you tell me more about the gym what area is the gym if you go into the big room um they have the card tables right here yep downstairs and the in the senior center the main floor okay yep and then the um what's his name the card player I forget the guy but butch um he walked me through because they have Westfield has it yeah a card games and then they have that so I I was doing the pool table this way and he I I once you get someone else's idea or you start thinking about it yeah it makes more sense to put it this way it's more room so then the two table card tables are here that would be well they won't be hitting the walls they won't be bothering us yeah and they won't bother the pool yeah once that's open somebody can come play pool at the same time they're playing cards so um so and then same thing with the gym but the gym people don't like the only thing different in Westfield is they have three pool tables and they have one big round card table right okay that's the only differ and we have sets of people that like to play cards so yeah so that'll work out um so that's good so decided that the other day that it'll go this way um and then there'll be a divider wall um like a petition you know hopefully 8 10 feet high whatever um and then the gym will be on the other side of that um toward the end of the where the exit door is and stuff at the end you decided what kind of yep so exercise bike um treadmill um freehand weights the lighter ones obviously we're not lifting 100 pounds or even 50 go up to 30 yep but they'll have that and then there's this thing that has a seat on one side um it's like a unit and you go on this side you're using for pull Downs you go on this side your legs you're doing the legs and you control putting the little pin in to whatever weight you want so yeah you control the weight yep and we have um access to um I also ask them in the grant to um allow um room for me to get like if you want to start using weights and you haven't gone to a gym in like a year I don't want you going on that gym without someone teaching you so a physical um person will come and and walk you through could be a problem you know yeah it's not some people try to live more than they can right yeah well I don't yeah they'll only do it one time then they'll and all you got to do is take a pin and put it in right and that picks up the weight yeah so I think before anyone get don't realize it it's that heavy have benches my it's kind of like the same thing there'll be one bench where you can kneel on it and you can St sit there and do your arm weights and stuff like that yeah there's enough room for all of it um and then the floor will be a thick mat so nothing will destroy the floor and that's going to protect the wood on the floor the wooden floor yeah nice too gotta protect that because that's beautiful in yeah are they gonna sign any form to something before they get they don't have to why we have a monthly meeting with um Maya and um when I went this last time I mentioned that we were thinking of doing the gym down there for the seniors and what kind of forms do I have to have them sign off and he says we don't do that any so what it's no different than you walking out the door and tripping on your shoelace and then saying you fell off the curve because it wasn't marked right or something you know yeah so so we should be you know you should be offet yeah of someone like heing a rotator cuff or something like that because happen anywhere yeah it really could at any age really um but but if you're not going to go over there and we're not going to open up the gym until you see that trainer personal trainer for so that I can at least have you sign off a paper that we went and brought you through all that you know what I mean so if you decide to be the Arrogant person that wants to put 80 pounds down on your first time well then that should save us you know what I mean yeah as long as you think of those things yeah no because it could be yeah I'm going by what Maya said so should be good that's all I got I think I actually have something for new business I received an email from the chairperson of the Southwick 2040 the plan for the future of Southwick and he is reaching out to all of the different boards concerning their part of what that should look like in the future so he's reaching out to the Council on Aging because there are some things in there dealing with the seniors and what they're looking to do so from what I understand they are going to appoint a liazon to each of the Committees that have a say in part of it and he was reaching out to me just to let me know that this is coming down the road we will be contacted I asked him to forward you I did I saw that okay y the email so that you would be aware and down the road on our agenda you will see some things about the future of Southwick and what is going to be determined what's to help seniors and who we contact and what they need us to do so I thought I would just let you know that we're part of that and will'll be being contacted and it'll be part of an uh agenda in future meetings yeah and then my other new business I was contacted um many of you might know Nancy zun she's on the um Library Council in town but she also makes cards and she's presenting um a workshop on making cards and she would like to do a workshop here for the seniors and Mak just sent her an email oh you know why because I saw it in the library letter so I cont so anyways you probably will see down the road a card making workshop and she yeah and she's definitely you know her cards are beautiful beautiful so that might be something um again down the road but at least you've heard of it does anybody else have new business I do for for the summer around Springtime summer is a grandparent day oh because my other Senior Center well I'm the one who designed it and everything else first year we had probably about seven seniors come in with some grandkids second or third year I had to sit up when I have police of Fire and Fire and everybody down there and people were coming off the street just to look around and everything but they always gave the grandkids like ice cream or something and good okay look into that okay I can help set that up okay we will put you down for that anybody else new business okay moving on then update on classes I think we've just heard about classes have increased we're up in the auditorium um we see how that goes yeah um brown bag brown bag hasn't really changed a lot it's still small right on yes yeah I don't know how we get a word out but the problem is that people don't want to take advantage of it could it be what's in is could pean butal or anything but you know yeah we don't have like meat or anything you know tun tuna usually tun peanut butter and if you're one person bag of rice can last a long long or the beans the dried beans it's like that almost seems ridiculous to give them a bag of dried beans all the time well yeah it could be a lot of what's in it it's repetitive that's what it is everything is repetitive yeah once in a while we used to get like wash or apples where's that coming from from um the I thought the food bank itself bank I'll ask we have Highland Valley coming and doing a bingo day because um they said our all the senior cators numbers are down with the congregate coming in and eating lunch um and they didn't know how since Co and they didn't know how that how to get that number up and when he just asked me that like he was like here physically here and we were standing there I said well honestly like I don't know if I want to eat out of that plastic thing I can go to Big Y and get one of those do you know what I mean like if it was if you're going to have someone come in and do do lunch here then why is it not a spaghetti I never see the food be it's always rice the seniors I watch them they they they don't do well with rice I ate lunch here today mhm and I would have to say it wasn't great but you know what it was a meal it was a meal right um I thought the vegetables were good y the oranges sections they were good um a chicken you know was that for yeah and then they gave you the tortilla yeah yeah the rice but it's not always that my my taste I didn't like the rice though I didn't eat the rice you know I would say if I lived alone I would eat it because I wouldn't make it and it a balanced meal you know yeah you'd be you'd be surprised if I people would say if they have fish or soup it competitive like they could have it like two three times a week right exact same thing B well different kind of fish but you have a choice one or the other yeah they got EI choice or El I think they're just their point is they're just the numbers are down the people that were coming in here before Co hit was higher and then and that's just not our senior center he said it's all over people just get out of the hab they did so we have a bunch of people that now will just drive and they won't they refuse to come in and he's like well what if we get rid of that drive-thru um and just tell them they have no choice but to come in and then I talked to Denise about it and like but then you take the chance that they don't come at all and now they're not getting their meal yeah that's good yeah that's people don't come in for different reason right exactly because it's too hard for them to walk in or so maybe it's just out of habit because you made them do it for two two years two plus years you know up and take it home if I have to when I want to eat or go to the doctor appointment after you pick it up and then on the way when you get home you warm it up yeah so I think there's different reasons but there's Brian so now he's coming in he's gonna play a bingo um game that has to do about nutrition and we're doing it on a Wednesday so we're hoping that the people that come in early for Bingo will walk over and just see us playing Bingo and start playing yeah I want to do it you have to say hey come on over look at yeah so I think that we're not the only ones trying to get our numbers up I think a lot of people are still really sensitive to communicable diseases yeah you know in general our awareness has really been heightened right andn people don't want winter colds and they don't want anything right you know there's a lot of that going around now too so I don't blame them at allr and it's easy yeah you know you can take it home and heat it up and know if you don't want the socialization some people really don't no some people don't even care they just rather they sit there and they eat and they don't talk right yeah no I get it yeah I don't know the answer to that no yeah there is I don't know if you know but years ago they had it was served in the in the eating area yeah they had the big serving thing and I know some centers still do that really because I used to sit on the food nutrition board I don't know part of it anymore but um but they were talking about some C going back to that I don't know if it's yeah that would be that would be palatable according to what you said about eating out of the train Valley makes that decision yeah yeah they do then you have to figure who's going to do all those dishes it's why you have a dishwasher yeah yeah why you have staff I don't know did they usually have plates I was never really I heard about it but I was never they used to have ples that's so it was you I fig it's going to stay even the way it is now for a little while and then when they get to the point where they want to see those or need those numbers to go up then maybe they'll make that decision I don't know where it's not going to be our decision if it's from the center because then you have to have one of those kind of is was it a Hot Table did they have a hot table and we do we still do some of incentive a gift or something for people that come in yeah seniors like little things I know they do yes they do and they like their candy so you put that little incentive out there in maybe in the newsletter more people if you do it once they're gonna want it done every time or else they're gonna say well you ain't giving this out have no more nothing we a gonna I can probably find something cheap enough small maybe even you know every other week or something you know yeah until they get used to coming lot of people somebody you know volunteering to make batch of cookies or something like freshly made homemade cookies which people really you get to take with you yeah yeah they have some really nice homemade baked stuff there almost every I think every day yeah it's it's a blueberry bread or it's cookies or brownies really nice and I think people really like that yeah that's you do that right Lisa yeah oh yeah cuz everybody loves that yeah I didn't one day right around Christmas time because everyone was bringing stuff in and you know and then I didn't like the week after I got I I must have slacked or forgot and then they were like where C people were you out sick and I was like no I was here and they're like oh the breads weren't there and then I went y note to self yeah you know but they you're right they do get used to it and and then you don't want it to stop yeah that's true you know that's true so I have fun doing it anyway there ideas you can come up with I think yeah definitely so I'm not sure who initiates if you wanted to have you know the try serving you know so that people can say no I don't Valley would have to tell us when they're ready to go back to that right well they they do it for some people right so I don't know if if you wanted to do that if you thought it would be more enticing for people I don't know what if it if the initiation comes from you you know I think you'd have to show an interest right well right right want to do that I don't think they're going to come to you and say we want you to take the trays again right right I think you'd have to say this this is going to benefit us in some way I think you have less waste too hary has know trays and everything you don't plastic trays and all that stuff there you know they they used to do it all the time but the idea us the co and everything else well that's what stopped everything yeah prepackaged a lot of people are still hesitant about that they are did you if you do one Senior Center they all GNA have to do it not really not really because they all do their own thing now there's a lot of they all do their own some of are kitchens and doing their own cooking right but Highland Valley though whenever they um the contracts they have if one one place gets it they all going to start getting it they can have it if they want it I think it's an option I'm not sure I just no I think you're right I think you have to initiate it if you really want yeah they would accommodate you would just change I don't know if it make a difference I don't yeah I don't could ask people right they do put on surveys for things yeah okay Lisa finances we're good the sillette um Grant was done um what else the town reports getting done finances what else oh the um the um oh my gosh the budget yeah the yearly budget um so that I have worked on too so do you want me to send that to you um you guys don't usually no not usually um it's basically the same thing every year unless we're like asking for money for um the only thing I'm asking for is um Denise Sebert got a raise and at the time when I first came everyone said the only money you have is the Grant and so her her raise just the portion of her raise is a couple dollars is coming out of the grant which I would like I'm going to ask them to take it out of increase our line item for her job and put it in there where it really should be coming out of that's all I'm asking to to you know just like I mean do we have the money to keep it in there if we had to yes but the right thing to do if you're when you're looking at budgets and stuff and where things should be coming out of that really should be coming out of a town line item because she's Town employee of course um so we're going to try and get them to um change that um and increase our um classroom it take it literally cost us $188,000 a year to have all those teachers teach their those classes around the clock so you want the budget increased on the classroom classroom so right now the people that pay their two $2 um is probably around between five and $6,000 a year so that's part of it so deduct that from your 18,000 and then there's a line item that the town gave us that's $7,500 that also pays for the classes so that's what 13 almost 14 thousand yeah so really I'm only short like another four or five so if I can ask them to give us that that'll eliminates that coming out of the formula grant and then that formula grant that money I can turn around and do other things like have more classes get someone like Nancy on pay her $60 to come in and do a class have more speakers have more mus music we had music here when we did Christy's um meet and greet and um asked me the following week you they're killing me here the following week they were like well where's the music and I was like oh that was a one time meet and greet but so it just tells you what they really appreciate and enjoy um and so you you kind I would rather see money get spent to do and those things are actually going to get them here to come in for these activities so um I think we could increase some stuff if we had that little bit of change so that's all it's not major it's just a few things here and there did Denise's job change that she got a it didn't but she was here 25 years and she was making less than somebody that comes in off the street and that that tells me that it's never been balanced so at some point you got to balance it out um doesn't mean if she retired tomorrow that the next person coming in I would not start them off at that but the Town might so then that's not fair yeah um experience has to come for something right 25 years yeah so that's why we did that and um the select board approved it and everything they said they had no problem with it but where it comes out of was an issue yeah um and that just came with knowledge as I started to look at the numbers and I was like okay you can keep it out of there I was told we could keep it out of there but it really should be moved so make the town pay for it if we can right right Sal shouldn't come out of a gr no that should be for the seniors yeah the only salary that comes out of a grant um is Highland Valley and that's Denise Hill because she's hired with that Grant if Highland Valley sto producing those meals then Denise Hill wouldn't have a job so that would eliminate that um so and her raise comes out of that Highland Valley so and that ALS also pays for Meals on Wheels and some other um things but yeah so just balancing where it all should be to get it to be where it should be you know what I would like to say with the high bar meal program is even nothing real fancy but I noticed that they never have like salads like a garden salad I know you should see when I do my spaghetti dinners or I did the the meet and greet how much they would eat the yeah which cracked me up because they that's they're supposed to eat that you know it's fiber it's yeah so it is one of those things that I don't think the they can put it in that container and keep the lettuce it would I think it would turn fast yeah yeah away that even you know we could do it so I'm I'm in a class I'm signed up for a class for um surf safe in March um and then once I get that I asked Tom the Board of Health guy if um I could do a meal once a month and for whatever reason or no reason at all just decide to do spaghetti and meatballs one day and we do that um and then that's where they would get their salad because in my head it's just I know they're getting really one good warm fresh meal and then I would just change it up every month and you know kind of like that idea do stuff like um NE shepher pie I know beef is very expensive right yeah but there are other things right um come February in the newsletter meet and greet for the um police chief and the lieutenant that's um baked zii so um and that's February yep that was in the newsletter yeah oh okay see I was going to say I was going to ask that bus us the date what's that was it the last of it's the one that just went out they just got mailed um when I came back upstairs he was just delivering the news you want if you want to come down and get one before you leave you can all get S yeah usually we did the call for uh yeah they just literally came in when I went to make my coffee oh they they hav't been folded yet nope they're not folding they're going to fold Wednesday but that'll go out today oh that'll go out today yep okay all right so moving on to Old business that was my question we are going to have a meet and greet for the um new police chief and new lieutenant and do you happen to remember the date or we'll check it when we pick up the newsletter that's okay we can check it check the newsletter I it changed a couple times okay yeah it's in the February yep okay old business we had a very very very very successful Christmas gathering it was it was I mean about 125 and there were I mean just wonderful reviews about everything even without I mean we played Christmas carols in the background it was like we didn't even have time to have a band yeah the band or a that would have been really hard to squeeze it in and just very very positive feedback from that so thank you the only the only drawback I found was the station for the appetizers so that was one of the first things we all said afterwards um talking about it with the staff that's exactly what we said need a couple of them I think those would be so you know out in the lobby where the um the baskets were we would push that toward the windows more and then have another long table just for appetizers and drinks and then that way everybody could walk around it like this um being in a corner it was really hard wait want to wait in that line and they did a lot of them did so I felt bad and I was like okay that's got to change in the room towards the end there the people that were last to get up there there was nothing left yeah yeah yeah yep but it was a wonderful it was no it was it was all POS yeah know I the first time you do something in a new place um you're always looking to critique it to make it better and fix what was a little so that was the first thing that everyone said yep just make it more to where people can just get up walk around a table and get the same thing on each side and I think that that that would I like way the tables were they were pretty yep very nice Don did a really good job any other old business what's happening with the pickle ball courts well they they did I hear a lot of stuff they broke ground for our pickleball so you know and we have the new lights so come the spring we are ready to go with ours now the ones at Wall-E Park have again been postponed they were supposed to go on this special town meeting which by the way is tomorrow special meeting but um now they're pushed off again for W Park till the May regular town meeting but ours are underway so we're very happy done it oh no well it's not done I mean they did they had to put where it's going so that put a lot of f in there right but the new Surface the surface will be put in in the spring the pickle ball surface and we don't we're not just getting two pickle ball courts we're getting shuffle board well so that might bring in some people I'm I'm trying to try it myself me too me too not saying I might fall but I I've always wanted to try that when it looks unb yeah meeting going to be so maybe Bachi balls will come in would be nice I'm still for you know there's still room in that area behind where the pickle ball courts are going there's a field and on the side so it wouldn't I mean even I'm think into horseshoes because a lot of people really like that so for the summer to put that out I don't think it would really be a big deal butes are easy we'll wait till we get our pickup on sounds good y any other old business okay seeing none do I have a motion to adjourn motion to adjourn second motion any discussion okay roll call vote to adjourn Paula yes Carol offlin yes Carol Smith yes Harvey yes Jack yes Don yes okay so we'll join our meeting at6