A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Giving. Friendly. Welcoming.
When we think about what it means to be a good neighbor, those are often the words we think about. And as your Ardsley Park neighbor, that is what Senior Citizens, Inc. strives to be.
Have you ever driven by the stately brick building where Washington Avenue ends into Bull Street and wondered what goes on inside? This historic structure was built in 1927 as a hospital for the Central Georgia Railway, and became SCI’s headquarters in 1982.
But our history goes back much farther, all the way to 1959, when Harley C. “Nippy” Morrison, a Union Camp executive, began noticing that many of his friends and neighbors could no longer provide adequate nutrition for themselves. A take-charge kind of guy, Morrison, and his friends began lovingly packing bags of pre-made lunches for once-a-week delivery to 13 seniors throughout the community. From there, SCI began the Meals on Wheels program, which today feeds 1,800 people.
No doubt you’ve heard of Meals on Wheels, but did you know that SCI provides more than a meal? In addition to serving freshly-made, locally-prepared meals Monday through Friday, we offer a myriad of private services, including:
· In-Home Care, which provides everything from overnight, post-surgery care to long-term care;
· The Learning Center, which offers academically-rich and humanities-based programs, shared-interest groups, workshops, and travel opportunities; and
· Adult Day Health Care, a safe place for frail adults to enjoy engaging activities and healthy meals.
To be sure, offering these and other services during a global pandemic has been challenging to say the least. But whether we’re doing so in person or virtually, SCI meets seniors where they are, helping them bridge the gap from being recently retired to needing round-the-clock in-home care.
To that end, we began a renovation and expansion of our building two years ago that will have the capacity to serve 20,000 older adults and their families. This new Center for Successful Aging will give the community a state-of-the-art Adult Day Health Center for people who require supervision during the day because of short- or long-term cognitive issues; an expanded Learning Center for the hundreds of active adults interested in life-long learning; and a multi-purpose space for up to 275 people for community events.
And once COVID restrictions ease, our team (which has more than 250 years of aging expertise) stands ready to welcome you in and give you a friendly smile.
We’re proud, Ardsley, to be your neighbor.
Patti Lyons is president of Senior Citizens, Inc., a nonprofit organization in Savannah and coastal Georgia that has been helping people age successfully since 1959. She serves as the chair on the Meals on Wheels America Board and is a governor’s appointee to the Georgia Council on Aging. Learn more at www.seniorcitizensinc.org.
This article was originally published in the September 2020 issue of Ardsley Living.