Each afternoon after the Duplicate Bridge Club has completed their four-hour game at Meridian Activity Center, one older lady sits in wait for her daughter to come pick her up. She enjoys watching the exercise class working out in the big room at the center; I imagine she is “working out” in her mind along side them. Her body is bent from the effects of arthritis but she still manages to walk without a walker.

    This past week was my last week as director at the Meridian Activity Center and she came into my office to hug me and wish me well. She told me she was going to be 88 soon and how much she enjoyed coming to play bridge. I asked her if she was a “life master” and she said that did not mean much to her, she came mainly to keep her mind sharp.

    “In bridge,” she explained, “strategy is most important, thinking over your plan of action in your mind keeps one from getting Alzheimer’s.”

    Seems everyone worries about memory loss, forgetting names or faces. This was something I had begun to notice about a year ago, knowing my 65th birthday was approaching. In all my previous years and birthdays, the idea of aging simply had not been much of a concern. But, then my knee began to give me trouble – a torn meniscus, which was repaired last May but still bothers me some four months later.

    People tell me it will take longer to mend. Good grief! This is what aging is all about?

    I first became involved with the Senior Citizens Center in 2003, after months of passing by the small sign on Highland Avenue I decided to check it out. There, I found the only yoga class in Meridian taught by Sybil Belcher, who was then probably in her late 60s or 70s. I was the youngest member of the class at age 54, but the older ladies welcomed me and squeezed me in— it was quite a large class.

    After a year or so, the director, Lorine Mosley, planned to retire and my yoga classmates urged me to apply for the position. The mayor at that time was looking to fill positions with employees who had master’s degrees and I had recently gotten mine at MSU-Meridian in counseling with a focus on caregivers and seniors.

    When I arrived in my new office, there were no files, no operational procedure, nothing to indicate what my duties were to be. It was perfect!

    My first thought was to fill the parking lot every day — put the buildings to good use. We expanded that parking lot twice. The dining room and kitchen were retiled. The kitchen was remodeled to include a large island. There were some major adjustments with some of the clientele, but we all soon came to an understanding.

    Because I lived so close by, the center became a “home away from home” for me. It became Meridian’s “Best Kept Secret” when I became aware of the calibre of instructors there, many former educators at Meridian schools — they were our “living treasures.” We were Shangrila at the end of two dead end streets.

    Who knew 10 years would pass so quickly? In time, the name was changed to Meridian Activity Center” as there had been an occasional confusion as to our purpose. (We were not a day care for seniors, we were active adults.)

    The general consensus was that there was nothing like it in the entire state. Our decorative painting club was flying in artists from California to teach workshops; our smocking class had grown in so much popularity that we hired another teacher; we were teaching classes such as tai chi and bamboo pole exercise; Spanish language lessons; ballroom dancing; dulcimer music playing; creative writing and storytelling — we had a statewide storytelling conference. Not everything stuck, but we had a good time in the attempts. One of my favorite aspects was writing a column about our activities in The Meridian Star.

    Of course, after 10 years separated from downtown city of Meridian activities (we thought of ourselves as the country cousins to city hall), something is eventually going to change. We did work quite effectively for 10 years without raising our expenses – finding instructors who were willing to volunteer to teach or be paid a small sum directly by the student, rather than be put on payroll — was important to me. Our stained glass and ceramic classes were buying materials to sell to students, but if anything we were making money rather than not. There was no reason why a community center that provided for the recreational, educational and social benefits of the citizens in a community could not exist on its own. Our major expenses were the salaries of the 25 instructors, a director and a custodian — and electricity.

    My decision to resign has come with a sense of relief for me. I do plan to attend classes at the center and, if able, to do some volunteer work there. Meridian is very fortunate to have such a facility with the talented instructors available to keep the classes going. It has always been up to the citizens of Meridian to give it heart and soul.

    I love my Meridian Activity Center family and will miss seeing a lot of them, but I look forward to taking classes there this winter. Thank you, everyone — all the retiree groups, card players, students and Meridian Parks and Recreation employees who keep it running so smoothly. You have been wonderful!

    • Barbara Wells served as director of Meridian Activity Center.