May 19, 2017 - Meeting Recap

President Elect Ben Brewer lead the meeting and what a great meeting it was!  Ben began by asking for a show of hands as to who would be interested in attending the Savannah Bananas game on July 20.  Ed Donoghue presented Tom Hollis with his Paul Harris Fellow Pin +2 and the club had the pleasure of having Roger Smith speak.  

 

Roger Smith is the Director of The Learning Center of Senior Citizens, Inc.  Senior Citizens, Inc was founded in the 1950's with the mission to help people age successfully.  Services provided by Senior Citizens, Inc include but are not limited to Meals on Wheels, transportation to and from doctor appointments, minor home repairs, and Adult Day Care.  In 2005, Senior Citizens, Inc was approached by an organization in Atlanta to be the fifth site for a new program that would offer education to those individuals who were older.  Savannah was chosen as the fifth site for a learning center due to the average age of people living in the area (34% of those people who live in Ardsley Park are over the age of 55).

 

The Learning Center opened their doors in January 2007 offering mini college courses which were held on Wednesday.  Now, courses are held five days a week.  A typical course will run 8-9 weeks on one topic.  The Learning Center is funded through memberships and the cost of attending a course.  A membership is $75 per person for a 12 month membership.  Currently, there are 575 members.   You do not have to be a member to attend a course but most courses are offered at a discounted rate for members.  The Learning Center is in the middle of a capital campaign to raise $3 million to help with building renovations which will fix existing problems as well as increase the footprint of the building.  The Learning Center has provided wonderful learning opportunities as well as socialization for those who attend.  To learn more about current and future course offerings, please visit www.seniorcitizensinc.org/the-learning-center