GEORGE BUSH CENTER FOR HUMAN SERVICES 2015 ANNUAL REPORT

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1 OLD BRIGE SENIOR CENTER 1 Old Bridge Plaza, Old Bridge, New Jersey GEORGE BUSH CENTER FOR HUMAN SERVICES 2015 ANNUAL REPORT Our mission is to provide information, referral and social services for senior citizens; create a caring and nurturing environment; encourage interests, creativity and artistic expressions; offer support systems for seniors to lead active and independent lives; and promote the celebration of life through physical and mental well-being.

2 A Message from the Manager I am proud to say that 2015 was a great year for the Old Bridge Senior Center. The Mayor, Council and Director provided essential support to ensure our year was successful. We again developed a great partnership with several medical providers and facilities this year in addition to maintaining past partnerships. This enabled us to bring needed educational and wellness programs and seminars to our seniors specific to the aging process. One of our continued partnerships is with our local Friendly s Restaurant. The owner provides $5 lunches every Thursday for our seniors to enjoy. It s a nice afternoon out and Friendly s has been a most gracious host for a variety of senior programs. The Senior Center also celebrated its 20 th Anniversary in June, I was extremely happy to be a part of this milestone celebration. The senior center has come a long way over the past 20 years offering exceptional transportation, topnotch programs and activities, and a caring and nurturing environment for our seniors to socialize. Our special guest for the evening was Mrs. Maureen Bush. It was a pleasure to have Mrs. Bush and her family join the celebration in honor of her late husband and former Councilman and Mayor George Bush. Our highlight of the year came about on December 3, 2015 when we were informed that we achieved the status of National Accreditation from the National Council on Aging and National Institute of Senior Centers. We were positively noted for our programs, activities and creativity that we provide to our senior participants. Old Bridge is the fifth accredited senior center in the State of New Jersey and the first in Middlesex County. Diane Amabile

3 Health, Wellness & Recreation The Old Bridge Senior Center offers a variety of programs designed to promote health, wellness and recreation for older adults in the community. Many of these programs are made possible through the generous contributions of our community-based partners and grants from Middlesex County Department on Aging. We also provided the following services: gait & balance screenings, flu prevention, sleep disorder programs, oral hygiene and dental care programs, healthy heart programs, nutritional counseling, glaucoma and cataract screenings, cholesterol screenings, hearing screenings, injury protection programs, sun safety and dermascan screenings, pelvic health programs, personal hygiene programs, identity theft education, dental home services programs, arthritis basics program, fall prevention programs, physical therapy programs, breast cancer awareness, medical emergency awareness, fire prevention education, Medicare open enrollment, mental health and group counseling programs, spine care programs, monthly blood pressure checks, medication reviews, and fire safety programs. The senior center offers traditional and innovative recreation programs in keeping with the changing needs of seniors. In addition, we offer special programs targeted to specific needs. These programs are very popular and offer seniors ample opportunities to make new friends and create lasting memories. We have a history of offering special events that have become tradition and we proudly offered a number of new programs and events this year such as our Passport to Health, painting classes, Move to the Groove exercise classes, and TV Game Shows (Wheel of Fortune) Senior Health Fair Passport To Health Program

4 Partners & Collaborations We would not be able to offer such a wide variety of programs, services and activities without the ongoing support of our community partners. While some of our partners have supported the center for many years, there are newly established connections. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital St. Peters University Hospital Raritan Bay Medical Center Visiting Nurse Association of Central New Jersey COPSA Rutgers University Middlesex County Department on Aging Meal Site Middlesex County Public Health Middlesex County Surrogate Department of Consumer Affairs Fire Marshall Thomas P. Gerity Dr. Devindra Poonai, Podiatry Middlesex County College Dental Care Dr. Robert M. Scharfman Madison Center Bright Star Home Care Senator Sam Thompson s Office New Jersey Department of Human Services Puerto Rican Action Board for Utility Assistance Golden Living Old Bridge Spine & Wellness AARP Tax Aide Services Congresswoman Watson-Coleman Walmart Pharmacy & Vision Program Licensed Massage & Spa Therapy Old Bridge High School Cosmetology Students New Jersey State Department of Agriculture Friendly s This list is not all-inclusive; it would be impossible to list everyone we work with to improve the quality of life for our senior residents.

5 Transportation The transportation program is one of our most relied upon services to the seniors in Old Bridge. Transportation to and from the center is offered Monday through Friday for members who have no other means of transportation. We also provide our seniors with the opportunity to shop every day at supermarkets and stores in Old Bridge. Medical transportation to and from doctor s appointments in Old Bridge is also offered and it is our priority. Transportation services are provided on Monday evenings from Costello Home on Route 18 to the Walmart on Route 18 for residents of the Costello building. This transportation service began in November 2014 when Middlesex County Area Transit eliminated the Walmart store from its scheduled run. We continue to serve the residents of Costello home on a weekly basis. Our transportation services have suffered a bit since October 2015 when a permanent full time driver went out on sick leave and our substitute driver was not permitted to substitute the full week. This was especially challenging during the holidays when the remaining full time drivers had requested vacation time off causing us to eliminate certain transportation runs daily. The senior buses are also utilized for the Camp Robin Therapeutic Program which operates 8 weeks on and 8 weeks off during the course of the year. During the time of operation, four to five buses and drivers are provided to transport disabled individuals to the program or event planned for that evening. Camp Robin also requests the use of our buses for their Saturday skating program to pick up individuals at the arena after their lessons and transport them to the Camp Robin facility. Our transportation services are heavily relied upon for a variety of programs. It is extremely important that our buses be equipped with appropriate radio transmission to the center at the times they are in operation. Our radio communication is provided by the Old Bridge Police Department and the need for updated communication still remains urgent.

6 Food Bank Under the Assistant Director of Social Services, the township operates a food bank for low income residents in need. The food bank, staffed by volunteer personnel, relies on grant funding from the CDBG program and donations from the general public, corporations and other organizations help to keep this service running. During 2015, the food bank serviced 3,775 individuals (2,531 adults, 1,244 children) Of this total, 1,057 clients served are seniors and/or disabled. Partnerships with the Food Bank include: Wakefern Foods Tyler Distribution Blonder Tongue Industries The Friendly Sons of the Shillelagh St. Thomas the Apostle Church & School Old Bridge Township Public Schools & Clubs & Transportation Temple Shalom of Matawan BJ s Wholesale Whole Foods of Manalapan Shop Rite of Old Bridge Ammidyhha Muslim Community of Old Bridge E. Duie Pyle Trucking Company Amboy Bank Rotary Club of Old Bridge/Sayreville/South Amboy Simpson United Methodist Church YMCA Maintenance Mart The Haunted Woods of Old Bridge Old Bridge Republican Committee Reformed Church Home Old Bridge Rotary Club This list is not all-inclusive; it would be impossible to list everyone we work with to improve the lives of our residents.