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A desire to attract Baby Boomers can be found everywhere, from political rhetoric to Muzac in grocery stores.
And as the Baby Boom population ages, their presence has gained notice of senior centers.
"That's our absolute focus this year, to identify the needs of those who are just turing 60," said Maureen Huff of the Lutheran Service Society, which operates the county's senior centers for the Butler County Area Agency on Aging.
As part of its comprehensive four-year plan, the agency will adapt menus and activity programming to attract new clients while continuing to serve those already attending its 11 centers.
To begin the process, administrators began surveying their clients in January.
"We talked with people who come to the center, who don't eat at the center," said agency director Lisa Monday, explaining how some younger senior citizens attend the center activities but don't partake of the meals.
Sample menus were created based on that input, then put through various stages of approval. The first new meal items are appearing in centers this month, including entrees like grilled chicken salad and turkey burgers with a side of broccoli salad.
One such item was featured Oct. 7 at the Butler Senior Center, where offerings included a low-salt vegetable soup followed by cold tuna and chicken salad, a whole-wheat bun and tropical fruit for dessert.
"I think we all requested more salads," said Margaret Campbell, 69, of Center Township who was among 37 seniors present at the meal.
"I wouldn't want a salad every day," she said. "But it has been a wonderful change."
Fran Brown, 88, of Butler Township prefers a hot meal, but said she was satisfied with the soup and sandwich combination that day.
For 93-year-old Florence Klingensmith of Center Township, the new items are just as satisfactory as the old ones — despite the limited use of salt."We just sprinkle (extra salt) on when we need it," said Klingensmith, already on a low-salt diet at home.Klingensmith's sentiments were echoed for the most part on a sheet of paper passed around after lunch that asked "How's the Meal?" in orange marker.The first 11 responses on one sheet included five "Goods," three "Fairs," one "Excellent," one "Very good" and one "Soup could have been better."Although most client evaluations have shown a favorable response to new items, Huff said designing the menu has been challenging. The light, low-fat meals reflect a difference in eating habits beginning to emerge with the younger seniors. Low attendance from that group coincides with a dropoff in mealtime numbers, she said."We're not the kind of people that have ever had meatloaf and mashed potatoes for lunch," Huff said."I think the younger seniors are more apt to eat salads and light soups."With an average age of 78 years old, Huff said the centers are currently catering to several age groups, serving people in their 60s through 90s and older."We're dealing with a lot of World War I folks, and of course the Korean War era and those of us that were born in the late 40s and early 50s (who are nearly eligible to attend the centers)," Huff said.Their input will be reviewed by committees to help adapt the menus. The committees will comprise those who eat at the centers, but coordinators hope to include members from the outside community.In future months, committees also will assess programming at centers. Current activities, which often focus on health and wellness, have received a favorable response from users in multiple age groups.For more information or to participate on a committee, contact the Butler County Area Agency on Aging at 724-282-3008.
