by Marcia Parnell
Becket’s Council on Aging (COA) hosts refreshments, meals and bingo each Tuesday and Thursday from 10am to 2pm in the community room at Becket Town Hall. Paula Bergeron and Linda Shaw, COA co-chairs, host the get-togethers that routinely attract about a dozen people. Meals on Wheels delivers a hot meal for $3 to those that call in their request a day in advance and Bergeron (known for her home baking) and Shaw provide and set up all of the snacks, hot and cold drinks and desserts. Bingo follows lunch, which is usually served at 11. One recent participant rated her meal as “delicious.” (Meals on Wheels also home-delivers meals Monday through Friday to seniors that make arrangements through COA and Elder Services.) All seniors are welcome and if transportation is an issue, the team will arrange a ride. Shaw said “We want to make sure everyone has a connection, it’s like a family here.” They try to ensure that no senior in need is without resources. “We keep our ears to the ground,” she added and communicate frequently with the Yoked Parish Church and Town Hall. In addition to the twice weekly socials, Bergeron and Shaw coordinate with other organizations like the Becket Ambulance, which conducts a blood pressure clinic on the last Tuesday of every month and the mobile flu clinic. For more information regarding these services, contact Paula Bergeron at Town Hall 623-8934, ext. 127; for more details specifically on Meals on Wheels go to www.esbci.org/services/nutrition-programs/.
