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By Daniel Curtin
Hometown Weekly Reporter
The Council on Aging kicked off the summer with a barbecue last Wednesday at the Senior Center in Westwood. This is the fifth year in which the barbecue luncheon has taken place at the center. The food and entertainment were provided by the The Ellis Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, which serves as a partner for the event.
Director of the Council of Aging Lina Arena-DeRosa says the barbecue provides not only an opportunity to eat delicious food, but also a chance to come together and socialize with friends.
“For a lot of them, this is their time they get to socialize with their friends … this is a time they can come together and be with their friends without it being any big expense or big to-do … so it’s really meaningful. It’s about the food, but it’s not about the food,” Arena-DeRosa said. “It’s about the socialization and being together as a community.”
The dozens of seniors at the event had their choice of burgers, hot dogs, corn on the cob, watermelon, and potato salad as they listened to musician Tom Madden sing classics by Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire.
The Senior Center typically throws events of this kind every month.
After the the main course, a dessert of shortcake was served with a strawberry sauce on top. The event also involved a raffle in which candies and gift cards to Starbucks were given out as prizes.
Arena-DeRosa credited the hard work put in by the volunteers cooking and serving the food, her staff, the sensational senior community, and sponsors.
“We’re very blessed to have amazing sponsors, as well as an amazing senior community … It would be no fun if people didn’t join us. It’s a nice partnership.”
