At 5 foot, 3 inches tall, Beverly Zynosky has to lean in a little to flip all the hamburgers on the grill.

But height is not the first obstacle you would suspect for Zynosky, a senior citizen who helps prepare the Salvation Army community meals each day.

Although Zynosky faced retirement some years ago, age does not deter the Butler woman, who seems undaunted by shuffling large trays of pizza in and out of the oven to provide a steady flow of food that is warm.

"Mostly I can do a lot of that myself," she said of handling the industrial-sized containers. "If I can't lift it, I yell for Donald."

Well past 40 himself, dishwasher Donald Kuron confirmed he occasionally hoists 50-pound sacks of potatoes or transports pots of water, estimated to weigh close to 30 pounds.

Although volunteers are sometimes on hand to help with the serving, Zynosky, Kuron and head cook Thressa Fair are responsible for providing the lunch for as many as 100 people.

Zynosky was once retired from cooking, but she is among a growing group of senior citizens who choose to re-enter or remain in the workforce.

Zynosky re-entered the workforce by way of the Senior Community Service Employment Program, a state program administered by the Lutheran Service Society of Western Pennsylvania through a contract with the Butler County Area Agency on Aging.

With the help of eight host agencies, the program places senior trainees in paid temporary positions with the hope they will gain enough skills to vacate the subsidized jobs and be hired in the private sector.

Although Zynosky worked as a cook for 24 years beginning in the mid-1950s, she decided to return to work after seeing how sitting idle affected her peers.

Calling it "wasted retirement," Zynosky said inactivity in her senior apartment complex led to depression among many of the residents there. "Here, something changes every day. I like this place. It's a nice place to work," she commented.

Since pension and Social Security incomes cover her primary living expenses, Zynosky said the added money is a secondary motivator — although the paychecks allow for "extra things."

Donald Cress, another member of the employment program, does janitorial work at the Tanglewood Senior Center in Lyndora. Citing boredom as his primary reason for working, the 66-year-old man also placed slightly less value on the monetary aspects of working.

"I just love the work. I'm never late for work," he noted.

"I really enjoy the people I'm working with. They're very fantastic. I just like to get out and meet people and do things," Cress said, adding he doesn't plan to "die in a chair waiting."

The program is one way to help Cress and other seniors achieve that goal while combating the stigma that health issues will undermine their dependability.

"When you reach my young age, people tend to say we're overqualified," said Edith Kelly, who was hired as the senior employment coordinator after completing the program herself. "That's an old story, but that's what they tell you."The society's director, Maureen Huff, said senior workers at that agency have more than dispelled the myth. "If you look at the time sheets, most of the sick days are the younger staff," she said.Of the society's six employees, three are senior citizens. Among them is Anna Peffer, who was hired to do office work more than 25 years ago. Peffer has accumulated more than 200 sick days as a result of the 12 per year that have gone unused, Huff said.Huff also refuted the notion that seniors are too inflexible to handle a changing workplace.Again pointing to Peffer, Huff noted the longtime worker has had to keep abreast of changing technology in order to enter data over multiple decades."Old people don't like change: That's a myth. Let's face it. Nobody likes change," Huff said, commenting how many seniors have adapted to computer technology late in their careers.Although no system is in place to track the reliability of senior workers, Rocco Claroni, a Pennsylvania Department of Aging worker in Harrisburg, said employer feedback has proved consistent."All I have is anecdotal data, and reliability is one of the reasons employers hire older workers — they're going to show up," said Claroni, who has worked as an aging service specialist for eight years.Hosting events through the Pennsylvania Hall of Fame Champions of Older Workers program, Claroni said feedback has been consistent. "Mainly, these employers have been coming to the awards luncheon, and every one of them will cite: 'I will always go for the older workers because of their reliability. They're going to show up for work.' "From all appearances, the employees will not only show up, but do so with a positive attitude."I enjoy the business world," said Kelly. "As long as I am able, I will be working.""I really do believe that everybody should go out and do it," agreed Cress, "If you're retired and you've got the ability and you've got the health, I recommend everybody should do it."It's great to get out and do things and be mobilized. I can't see just sitting around and doing nothing. It's just so boring."