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Lifestyle Coaching Alzheimer's and Auto-Immune Therapy Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement HCG and Healthy Weight Loss Stem Cell Therapy Laser Facial Rejuvenation Botox and Fillers IV Infusions and Vitamin Shots Youthful Looks! Healthy Aging & May 2022 edition Special Advertising Supplement to the Santa Cruz Sentinel Young at Heart Young at Heart In Santa Cruz County Continued on page 2 Elderday Adult Day Health Care Lift Line Senior Center Without Limits Learn more at / Obtenga más información en www.CommunityBridges.org or call/ o llame (831) 688-8840 Day services for adults with complex medical conditions Servicios de dia para adultos con condiciones médicas complejas Transportation to medical appointments Transporte a citas médicas Online classes and workshops Clases y talleres virtuales Mid-County Senior Center: An Abundance of Fun Activities in Capitola By Tara Fatemi Walker Did you know that Capitola's Mid-County Senior Center is the only self-supported senior cen- ter in Santa Cruz County? That makes the incredible number of classes and events it offers even more impressive! Here is MCSC's official description: "a mem- ber-owned nonprofit center where adults 50 years and older enjoy rec- reation, social, education- al, and healthy lifestyle activities." Hundreds of people, both members and non-members, utilize the Center every week. It was founded in 1970 and moved into the current location in 1974. Center Coordinator Marilyn Jessup refers to MCSC as a "very active activity center." These are some of the currently offered activities; most of them occur weekly: Bin- go, Book Club, Bridge, Canasta, Dance (West Coast Swing, Country Line Lessons, Waltz Lessons, International Folk Dancing), Fitness (exercise and stretching), Japanese Flower Arrang- ing, Mah Jongg, Photog- raphy, and Ukulele Jam. They also have a few new classes and workshops ready to start in June and July. There are more than 400 current MCSC members. Purchasing a membership ($40/year) is a great way to help support the Center. "Membership is not re- quired but recommended, as these fees help keep us going," says Marilyn. Activity fees are typically $4 for members and $5 for non-members. Dances and certain activities cost more, and they are work- ing on creating additional "members only" events and benefits. Also, mem- bers receive discounted rates if they want to rent the Center for private events. There are Friday night dances at MSCC; these days, there are three per month. Some have a DJ while others have live music. They also host a monthly Potluck BBQ in the Garden during the warmer months; the most recent one on May 14 drew lots of attendees. In the past, there were regularly scheduled break- fast and dinner events, but these are on hold for now. There are occasion- al "Choraliers Musical Shows" with a group of performers from the Cen- ter. These individuals— dancers and singers—are currently rehearsing for an August event. MCSC has a garden with 54 plots. Members can rent these for additional fees. Right now, there are none available, but you can get on a waiting list. "The garden is truly wonderful; all gardeners practice organic gardening and sometimes even share the bounty with our mem- bers," says Marilyn. "A neighborhood hawk helps keep the rodents away." People are thrilled that the Center is once again able to offer regular pro- gramming; they definitely missed MCSC when it was completely closed for more than a year. When the COVID-19 pandemic started in March 2020, the Center shut down. It partially reopened, offer- ing just a few activities, in June 2021, and has gradu- ally added more program- ming since then. "For the safety of our participants, vaccinations are required to enter the building, says Marilyn. "Masks are no longer required—but sug- gested for activities with close proximity." The "Lavender Ladies," an MCSC group, and the Garden Committee host occasional sales to help raise funds. A recent May Day Parking Lot Sale included veggie starts, flowers, books, and more. A couple years ago, I saw the Lavender Ladies at the Live Oak farmers' market and bought some won- derful massage oil and sugar scrub made from lavender grown at the MCSC garden. I recently talked to Cindy Kiernan, an MCSC member that coordinates the Lavender Ladies, and discovered they are now making so many products that they need more lavender than the garden can grow. "The lavender we use is fully sourced from Santa Cruz County. We have two families that grow lav- ender at their homes and generously donate their flowers. We groom their plants in exchange. We are very grateful to them as it allowed us to expand how much we can do." There are currently nine Lavender Ladies, who all started as members of the MCSC Garden. "Howev- er, being a garden member is not a requirement to be a Lavender Lady," ex- plains Cindy. "We volun- teer our hours and donate needed materials to sew the products and spend hours out in the Gazebo cleaning lavender to use." They meet Wednesdays at 10 a.m. and anyone is welcome to help. In addi-

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