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[PCM+) Active Seniors Unite!
The following article appeared in the print issue of Ponca City Monthly magazine, which includes hyperlocal stories about Ponca City. Get full access to all online articles, videos, and content by becoming a paid subscriber. We offer free and paid subscription plans. Find rack locations to pick up your free print copy here, or subscribe here to get online access plus exclusive content.
What do Natalie Richardson and Peggy Wilson have in common? They each run facilities that are likely not utilized by all who could benefit. The two senior centers in this area have much to offer those who are active and would like a place to socialize more fully. Many people assume these are places for individuals who cannot get around much anymore, but nothing could be further from the truth.
Both Ponca City Senior Center and McCord Senior Citizens Center are havens for active seniors who want to have nutritious meals, socialize and continue to be active. Each serves lunches, which is a huge benefit for those who need a good lunch but don’t want to cook. PC Senior Center serves theirs at 11:30 a.m. Monday through Friday for those who are 50+ for only $4. Reservations should be made the day before by noon, and individuals can eat in or reserve to pick up at a drive-thru overhead door. Similarly, McCord’s serves lunch in the Osage on weekdays from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m., with a suggested donation of $5 for 55+ (12-54 can join for a suggested donation of $6.50 and under 12 for $3.50). Here, patrons can also get a meal to go and, if homebound and living within a five-mile radius of the Center, meals can be delivered to their home as long as they call prior to 10:30 a.m. Menus for each Center are planned ahead of time, and many seniors check out what is scheduled at each to decide where they are having lunch.
McCord’s Center was founded in 1985 and located in a small building behind McCord School, and after a few moves, a groundbreaking was held in 1999 at the present location at 115 Mary Road on land donated by the Lessert family and with funding granted for completion and purchasing equipment for the facility by the Tulsa Area Agency on Aging. The late Senator J. Barry Harrison was instrumental in securing funding for the building, and it was dedicated in his honor in a ceremony when the building was paid in full in 2004.
Peggy Wilson, director since 2003, says, “The biggest challenges we have are the need for volunteers and funding. If anyone would like to help, just come out to see what we have you can do. There is a great group of volunteers to work with. As far as finances, we are a 501(c)(3) organization, so any donations are tax deductible and appreciated.”
Reliant now on donations and grants, the McCord Center has only three paid employees and otherwise operates with numerous volunteers and a governing Board of Directors. Besides working lunchtimes, they also plan an annual ice cream social, covered dish dinners and hold an annual “Christmas Corner” fundraiser in December where they generally raffle off a quilt. After lunch, card games such as Pitch are played on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12:30-3 p.m. In addition, Osage County elections, county assessors and the Osage Nation Farmers Market are held at the Center. Groups, families and individuals can rent the facility for birthday parties, weddings, receptions, car club events, reunions and other gatherings. To reserve dates, come by or call 580-762-9350 during the hours of operation.
Ponca City’s Senior Center is at 319 W. Grand Avenue and is operated by the city. Open weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., activities begin with 8 a.m. exercise classes and continue with a variety of activities. As mentioned before, these Centers are for active seniors; however, there are a variety of degrees of activity. Senior Center Coordinator Natalie Richardson, who has been with the Center since 2021, says, “Some of our patrons come for exercise or lunch only, having other activities outside of the Center to fill the rest of their days, and others spend most of their day with us. We can meet many needs.”
There are a variety of exercise and dance activities, such as stretching and balance classes, line dance and tap dance, and there are numerous games like bridge or mah-jongg. The Center is available for people bringing their own group to play games they are interested in, and others may learn and join in or add additional groups. In addition, if a person has an idea for a type of class, whether that be exercise, a game or a craft, it can be brought to Richardson’s attention to see if it might fit into their schedule. She is open to new activities and ideas. As a matter of fact, she is on the lookout for someone to teach two-step dancing; so, let her know if you’re interested in that or another activity.
Primarily, they want to provide interesting and needed offerings to the 50+ population of the community. Richardson explains, “We have broad and varied partnerships with several organizations in Ponca City to ensure the needs of our seniors are met, from assisting with the scheduling of Medicare Part D enrollment to facilitating flu shot vaccination, hearing tests and blood pressure checks to collaborating with Oklahoma Healthy Aging Initiative to provide vibrant exercise classes.” All of this and more to enhance the overall quality of their lives.
Richardson and Wilson agree that socialization is the greatest need in their communities, and the programs allow individuals to have that at a variety of levels to beat isolation, which is something we as a community discovered is detrimental to our mental and physical health during the pandemic. Many patrons come to the Centers for nourishment and some need information or items, while others come for several activities. Interestingly, some have even become volunteers at the very Centers at which they initially came to receive services or partake in activities. Take Lucy, who is 98 years old and serving desserts and meals every day at Ponca City Senior Center, or Wilson herself who serves as director at McCord at a spry 93 years of age.
It seems that we can all take notice from the lives of Lucy and Wilson and reach out to others, helping in the different places we go even if we went there to receive—doing so may just transform us as well as others in the community in which we live.
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