By Scott Brinton
When Bob Hackett reached retirement age in 1996, he had no desire to join a senior center. "I said I would never come to the senior center. It's all old people," says the now 75-year-old Merrick resident. But with sufficient prodding by his wife, Carol, he agreed to peek in at the Town of Hempstead senior center on Clubhouse Road in Merrick. Ever since then, he and Carol have come to the center nearly every week.
"It's a home away from home," says Bob Hackett, who serves as the center's treasurer. "It's a place where you have all the same problems and memories."
To join one of Hempstead's 16 senior centers, you must be at least 60 years old, and you can join only one center, Hackett says. He notes, though, that you need not join the center nearest to your home; you can join any of the town's centers.
The Merrick center is immaculate, with an expansive dining room beside a fully functioning kitchen, a set of card tables and an open area where classes are held. The center is set between Little League baseball fields, tennis and basketball courts at the rear, and a soccer field, so there are athletic facilities available to more active members of the center. When the weather's good, though, the shuffleboard court is where it's at, Hackett says. The center has its own team that competes against squads from the town's various centers.
Like Hempstead's other senior centers, the Merrick branch offers a low-cost hot lunch program, as well as a range of classes, from painting and drawing to woodworking to dance, even jazzercise. In a program called Senior Care, the town also provides physical and art and music therapy once a week at four centers: Franklin Square on Monday, Valley Stream on Tuesday, Uniondale-Hempstead on Thursday and Merrick on Friday. Transportation is available to the centers for those in need.
Hackett says many of the members' families and friends no longer live in the community, or anywhere nearby, for that matter. A number of them are frail and would be alone much of the time without the center. "I know a lot of [the members] live in a one- or a two-room apartment," Hackett says. "They would really, literally be stuck in the house if not for a place like this."
The following lists the Town of Hempstead's 16 senior centers:
Baldwin Senior Center
1810 North Grand Ave.
Baldwin 11510
(516) 546-7110
Bellmore Senior Center
2000 Bellmore Ave.
Bellmore 11710
(516) 221-9696
Cedarhurst Seniors In The Park
Village Hall
200 Cedarhurst Ave.
Cedarhurst 11516
(516) 295-1177
East Meadow Senior Center
1485 Front St.
East Meadow 11554
(516) 794-2458
Elmont Senior Center
138 Elmont Road
Elmont 11003
(516) 354-4777
Franklin Square Senior Center
1182 Martha Place
Franklin Square 11010
(516) 328-3010
Green Acres Senior Center
400 Flower Road
Valley Stream 11581
(516) 872-8810
Hempstead Senior Center
260 Clinton St. (M-W-F)
Hempstead 11550
(516) 489-8500, x135
Levittown Senior Center
555 North Newbridge Road
Levittown 11756
(516) 433-5454
Merrick Senior Center
Merrick Road Park
2550 Clubhouse Road
Merrick 11566
(516) 868-4777
Oceanside Senior Center
2900 Rockaway Ave.
Oceanside 11572
(516) 766-8888
Rosa Parks Senior Center
2 Babylon Tpke.
Roosevelt 11575
(516) 867-1612
Salisbury Senior Center
460 Salisbury Park Drive
Westbury 11590
(516) 333-5440
Uniondale-Hempstead Senior Center
840 Uniondale Ave.
Uniondale 11553
(516) 292-1313
Uniondale-Merrick Senior Center
750 Jerusalem Ave.
Uniondale 11553
(516) 538-5050
Wantagh Senior Center
1150 Seamans Neck Road
Wantagh 11793
(516) 785-8505
Enriching senior life
The Town of Hempstead's Department of Senior Enrichment offers myriad programs in addition to its popular senior centers. More than 190,000 residents use the department's various services annually. To learn more, check out the department's Web page at www.townofhempstead.org/content/tr/srservices.html, or call the department at (516) 485-8100. The Nassau County Department of Senior Citizen Affairs Helpline can be reached at (516) 227-8900.
Comments about this story? SBrinton@liherald.com o r(516) 569-4000 ext. 203.
