Under the mushrooms at Lido Beach

Activities, food and entertainment highlighted the Five Towns Senior Center barbecue, where 50 seniors also enjoyed a beautiful, sunny day at Lido Beach on July 20.

Located in the Carriage House on a portion of what was the Hewlett Homestead and now the campus of Hewlett High School, the Senior Center provides many programs and services for its members.

Enormous fixtures that resemble mushrooms dot Lido Beach and the barbecue was called “under the mushrooms.” These mushrooms vary in color and provided cover from the hot sun, when it was needed.

Upon arrival everyone was greeted with a water bottle and a fan in the attempt to stay cool in the scorching hot weather.

The first activity planned for the day was the current events session with Carol Carlton, which took place on a patio. Various ideas were discussed ranging from politics in the U.S. to hot topics in Europe. An occasional refreshing sea breeze cooled everyone. Then it was off to the designated mushroom for yogalitis, a form of yoga, with instructor Yvette Harris.

After a morning full of activity is was time to eat. With an excellent volunteer chef, there was a plethora of food that included hamburgers, hot dogs, turkey burgers, salad and fruit. There was even enough to have second servings! Hewlett High School sophomore Vicki Safer and her mother helped by distributing the food and making sure everything ran smoothly.

Perhaps the most entertaining aspect of the day, there was a wonderful show located under a giant tent. Performed by a group of the center’s seniors known as the “Star Dust Singers.”

“The crowd was very upbeat and overall the day was perfect,” said Natalie Iberian, president of the center’s advisory council.

The group boasted many beautiful voices with multiple solos and duets with a piano. The songs were not contemporary, but famous oldies and the audience was encouraged to sing along. Working in unison, all the female performers wore red shirts and white pants and all the male performers wore blue shirts and white pants.

“In the past there has been entertainment from other senior centers, but this year it was just from our center which was very nice,” said Stanley Brill, a member of the Five Towns Senior Center.

Once the singers’ performance ended, the seniors were given the opportunity to rest or walk on the beach, some went swimming. Despite the hot weather, the day proved to be very enjoyable.

People appreciated all the hard work and planning that Georgiana Wolfson, the executive director of the senior center put into the event. “All in all it was a huge success and everyone who went really enjoyed it,” Lynn Mines, another center member, who also serves on its advisory council. “We’re definitely looking forward to doing it again!”

At 3:30 p.m. the seniors got on the air-conditioned bus to leave. While reflecting on their experiences, the seniors realized how delightful the day was. Whether it was because of the abundance of food, the exercise or even the people, the barbecue’s participants enjoyed summer time at its finest.

“It was a fabulous day thanks to the Town of Hempstead and there was a magnificent performance by our Star Dust Singers, and food from the excellent chef, which the seniors really enjoyed,” Wolfson said. “We hope to be able to do this again with the town’s help in many years to come.”