Town of Caledon celebrates Seniors Month with free events

Strawberry social, afternoon in the garden among upcoming offerings

By Zachary Roman

June is Seniors' Month, and the Town of Caledon wants to make it a special one.

The Town's age-friendly Caledon coordinator, Katie Sawyers, took time on June 8 to chat with the Citizen about the variety of events and offerings the Town has to mark the occasion.

One event has already happened, explained Sawyers, and it was a lot of fun. The event was a watercolour painting workshop hosted by the Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives. Held on June 7 in Inglewood, it allowed residents over the age of 55 to experiment and learn about art in the watercolour medium for free — all materials included.

“Working with our community in Caledon, we understood that we needed to have some fun engaging things to help with the morale of everybody in our community,” said Sawyers.

One such thing coming up is the Strawberry Social being held at the Caledon Seniors Centre in Bolton on June 17. Sawyers explained the Centre is taking the lead on the event and that she'll be there in support to celebrate the strawberry season and have a fun afternoon. The event runs from 2 to 4 p.m. and takeout or delivery options are available for those not yet comfortable gathering.

Those interested are encouraged to register on the Town's website, caledon.ca/adult55, or by calling 905-951-6114.

The next scheduled event is the Afternoon in the Garden hosted by the Caledon Public Library on June 22. Running from 1 to 4 p.m., the event will be held at the Southfields Village branch of the library in its reading garden.

From 1 to 1:15 p.m. there will be a welcome and music by Cindy Krishendeholl. From 1:15 to 2:45, there will be guest speakers focusing on the therapeutic and mental health benefits of gardening. The speakers are Kerry Furneaux and Taya Kehler from The Riverwood Conservancy.

Until the event finishes at 4 p.m., residents can socialize and find out more about services offered for Caledon's 55+ community. Registration is again available at caledon.ca/adult55.

Rounding out the month's selection of events is a Zentangle Art Session on June 28 at 2 p.m. at the Caledon Public Library's Margaret Dunn Valleywood branch. The instructor will be Yvonne Westover, who has been practicing art for over 40 years, has a degree in Visual Art, and is a Certified Zentangle Teacher. Registration for the event begins online on June 13.

“Yvonne's no fuss and supportive go with the flow way of teaching allows for each participant to gain confidence in their own creative practice,” said the Town on the event.

Ongoing throughout June are free, drop-in fitness classes. One has passed, but four are still available, and they'll be held at the Southfields Community Centre on the following dates and times: Zumba on June 13 at 9:30 a.m.; Forever Fit on June 22 at 9 a.m.; Chair Yoga on June 23 at 2:30 p.m.; and Bone Builder on June 29 at 9 a.m.

The Town's Tea and Talk event originally scheduled for June 15 has been cancelled.

The Town has created “swag bags” for seniors' month, which feature a variety of useful items and are still available. Interested parties are asked to call 3-1-1 to find out more. Last but not least, as part of Seniors' Month, the Town has selected its annual senior of the year. More details will be released later, but the Senior of the Year is set to be celebrated at Caledon's Town Hall in Caledon East before Caledon Council's June 28 meeting.