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Lively seniors want to add to their club's rolls Date published: 11/5/2003
THE CLOWN was there. So were the witches. Even Mr. Peanut stopped by. The vibrant colors of fall filled the room as well. While it could have been any child's Halloween party, this soiree was for older adults at the Dorothy Hart Community Center in Fredericksburg. The Fredericksburg Senior Citizens Organization, which was established in 1954, numbers 900 on its rolls. It's not unusual for 125 to show up at its monthly luncheons. During Wednesday's special event, 75 people participated, including Evadine Cooper of Fredericksburg. "I come to get away from home," said Cooper, who has been a member since 1990. She, along with Don Swadley, Edna Leake, and Frances Gaywood, is on the travel committee. The committee plans two to three trips a month, said Gaywood. Most are day trips, but some are longer. Club members just returned from a weeklong excursion to Maine to enjoy the fall foliage. "One thousand, one hundred eighty-eight miles," groaned Cooper, rubbing her backside. "They do have some nice trips," said Gaywood, who joined in 1988 and started coming to meetings regularly in 1994. "I enjoy seeing the people and doing the trips," said Leake, who has been a member since 1987. Mildred Burruss and her husband, Billy, live in Caroline County, as does Gaywood. The club draws from a 35-mile radius, said membership chairwoman Kitty Durity. Mildred Burruss joined the organization in 1989, when she retired. "I like to meet new people," she said. Six hundred of the 900 members are active, Durity said. Many of them have been members since the 1980s. That's as far back as the club records go because of a 1981 fire that destroyed many of its possessions, she explained. Ida Marks, 93, was the oldest member to attend the Halloween Party, although the club's oldest member is Naomi Bennett, who is 97 or 98 years old, Durity said. "We have a lot of people who just travel," said Executive Director Marion Saunders. "We have a lot of old members who just like to get the newsletter." In addition to the Halloween party, four or five special events are held each year, in addition to the monthly luncheons. The next special event will be Nov. 14, when the organization hosts a big-band concert from 8 to 11 p.m. at the Dorothy Hart Community Center. To reach ANNETTE JONES: 540/368-5046 abjones@freelancestar.com The Fredericksburg Senior Citizens Organization has office hours at the Dorothy Hart Community Center, at the corner of Prince Charles and Canal streets in Fredericksburg, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The phone number is 371-2429. The organization is always looking for new members, said membership chairwoman, Kitty Durity.
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