Quin-Town Senior Ctr. Turns 30 With Expanded Programs, New Site Mgr.

Tillie Kingsbury (standing, right) of Rochester dishes up some cheese strata for lunch last Friday at the Quin-Town Senior Center meal site at the Hancock Town Hall. (Herald / Martha Slater)

The Quin-Town Senior Center (so dubbed by Barbara Story because of its five member towns of Granville, Hancock, Rochester, Stockbridge and Pittsfield) has come a long way since it was founded in 1973. There were no meals served then, heat was furnished by a wood stove, and cold drafts came up through the floor of the Hancock Town Hall.

Three decades later, the center is a cheerful, comfortable place; where area seniors are assured of a hot meal and a warm welcome.

Presiding over the colorfully decorated hall at last Friday’s Valentine party was the center’s new site manager, Holly Brown of Granville. Brown, who began her new duties in mid-January, has added a number of new activities to the center’s schedule, and says her goal is to stream-line as much of the paperwork as possible, "so I can spend more time with the seniors here; they’re my real job!"

"After my husband died, I wanted to do something that wasn’t just a job," said Brown, who previously worked as the Human Resources Director at Advanced Animations in Stockbridge. "I wanted to help people and I’ve always had a knack for organizing and doing things with groups, so this seemed like a very good fit."

As site manager, Brown lines up entertainment and guest speakers, plans other events and activities, and prepares reports to send to the Vermont Council on Aging and the Vermont Council on Independent Living, letting these organization know how their funding has been used.

The center also receives annual funding from all of the member towns, except for Hancock, which has allowed Quin-Town the use of the Town Hall as its contribution. Each of the towns has two members on the board of directors that oversees the general operation of the center.

The board of directors also works on its own fundraising activities, including publishing a cookbook and holding several popular Antiques Appraisal Days. Quin-Town and the Stockbridge-Gaysville Historical Society will co-sponsor the next Antiques Appraisal event with appraiser Jim Marquis, Saturday, March 29 from 1-3 p.m. at the Stockbridge Central School. A successful "Ticket to Ride" project with the Stagecoach taking seniors to swim at VTC in Randolph Center was also launched several years ago.

Brown says her goal is to add to the range of activities offered by Quin-Town and make people more aware of what the center has to offer. She’d also like to expand the meals on wheels program.

The center’s meals are prepared by Gilda Eaton, with assistance from Eberly Sharien and volunteer Marion Cantell. Over half of the 55-70 meals Quin-Town provides each Monday, Wednesday and Friday are delivered by volunteers Rodney Bisson and Claire Domina to seniors who are unable to come to the center. The Stagecoach drivers also help with meal deliveries.

"I like the meals here because they’re nutritious and taste good. Gilda does at great job!" said Quin-Town regular, Tillie Kingsbury of Rochester, who also noted that she enjoys "the social angle of seeing everyone" when she comes to the center.

In addition to meals and opportunities to socialize, Quin-Town offers an array of activities and events for seniors. During February, for example, there was a presentation from Pat Nelson of the Alzheimer’s Assoc. and one from Mim Herwig on the 1927 Flood; low-impact exercising to music was led by Burma Cassidy; a Valley Trivia game created by Holly Brown was a big hit; there was a Valentine party with games and a 50-50 raffle; and live music was performed by Danny McIntyre and Gail Osha, the Chord Cutters, the Rochester Middle School Chorus, and the Harold Luce Band.

Events planned for March (with more in the works) include a "Dogs in Our Lives" presentation by Neil Gibbs of the Rutland Humane Society; blood pressure checks and cholesterol screenings by Gifford Health Services; a field trip to Michael Egan’s glassblowing studio in Granville, and a Hawaiian Festival.

Perhaps the single most important thing the center offers however, is the same thing it offered 30 years ago: an opportunity for the valley’s older folks to get together and have fun with others of their generation and know that someone cares about them.

When Governor Howard Dean was a guest of honor at Quin-Town’s 25^th anniversary celebration in 1998, he noted, "One of the wonderful things about Vermont is that we’re small enough to be like one big community—we pay close attention to our neighbors and help each other out. Quin-Town is a good example of that."

For more information about Quin-Town programs, or to volunteer to help out in any way, call Holly Brown at the center at 767-3763.

By Martha Slater