At the heart of every great community are its seniors. Cullman County is no exception, and with hard-working entities such as the Cullman County Commission on Aging and Senior Outreach, the county if full of fun activities for its seniors. So much so that the Cullman’s special events often attract senior groups from around Alabama.
At this year’s Oktoberfest, a senior from Irondale’s senior center said, “Cullman is always a fun place to come. They always have great events for seniors and that’s not the case everywhere.”
Drop by any of the 17 full-time or part-time senior centers in Cullman County and you will have a great time. Activities vary from center to center. In Colony, be ready to play dominoes. Rummikub is wildly popular at West Point, and at Good Hope, the Sizzlin Seniors enjoy spirited games of bean bag baseball. The Rowdy Bunch at Hanceville recently created a hysterical murder mystery for Cullman County Sheriff Matt Gentry to solve.
Whether you visit Cullman’s Donald E. Green Active Adult Center, Crane Hill, Fairview or any of the other centers, bingo is the crown jewel of senior center activities and special senior events. Even Tuesday’s threat of ice and snow didn’t deter more than 35 seniors from coming out to the Donald E. Green Center for afternoon bingo.
I felt honored when I was asked to participate but worried about actually winning a game. Considering I haven’t come close to winning a game in over a year and a half of covering senior happenings, the ladies at our table seemed confident that my playing posed zero threat to their own chances.
After two games, the players were waiting for bingo prizes to arrive. When the nice young man, who had braved the cold and rainy mess outside came in with the prizes, everyone was relieved. He placed a four-pack of toilet paper, a roll of paper towels, some boxes of snack cakes and a couple of boxes of tissues on the table. The players were appreciative as they always are.
I, on the other hand, thought to myself, “Our seniors deserve more. Cullman can do better.”
The senior centers and the hard-working individuals working at the centers do a fantastic job. They stretch the funding further than one might think possible. The love they have for seniors can be seen and felt. What is missing is support from our area businesses and perhaps that is innocently due to lack of awareness.
I reached out to my employer, The Cullman Tribune, and said, “WE aren’t doing enough.”
My publisher agreed, and with the platform we have and our love for our seniors, WE are going to do better and hope others will join us. The Tribune is inviting businesses and individuals to help by donating fun but sensible prizes to be distributed to all our senior centers- prizes that evoke genuine enthusiasm and show our seniors that they are cherished by their community.
The senior centers are filled with our parents, grandparents, retired teachers, church elders and neighbors. There are veterans and widows. Those with family nearby and those with no one. They deserve our love, respect and appreciation for shaping who we are today. They deserve 48 rolls of Charmin, not four rolls of generic. In a town that prides itself on being great neighbors, a box of snack cakes just isn’t enough.
When asked, the ladies and gentlemen at bingo had many simple and inexpensive ideas that would make bingo days even more fun. The most popular suggestions from the players were gift certificates or gift cards to area businesses. They repeatedly mentioned Wal-Mart, Belk and Lowe’s as places they often shop. Many suggested gift certificates to Cracker Barrel, Golden Corral and Logan’s as places they like to eat with friends.
Simple things like coffee, hot chocolate, kitchen items and other everyday needs like toilet paper, laundry pods and cleaners are appreciated. Let’s all work together to make sure it’s the best. Besides, these are the amazing people who worked together to help make Cullman a wonderful place for us and our children. It is now time for the community to take care of them.
If you are so inclined, donations can be dropped off at The Cullman Tribune, 219 Second Ave. SE.
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