Hampton Bays Senior Center is Always Giving Back

Judy Eames worked feverishly on yet another handmade gift for the Indians on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.  Judy and her friends are part of the needlework group that meets at the Hampton Bays Senior Center to work on crocheted and knitted garments and blankets for the poor and underserved in our local community and beyond.

"They live worse than the people in Afghanistan," Eames said of the Pine Ridge Indians to whom she has been donating items for more than 10 years.  "They live in hotels.  In the winter, people will take shelves off the wall and burn them for heat."

Liz Boyd makes baby hats for the newborns at Southampton Hospital.  "I can do one in a day and a half," she said.

The needlework group is in need of more knitters.  They also will gladly take donated yarns and knitting materials so that they can continue to their charity work.

The Hampton Bays Senior Center is also where nearly 200 Meals on Wheels are cooked, boxed and transported to homebound seniors around town on a daily basis by dozens of volunteers and staff.  The kitchen staff comes in at 5 a.m. and the Meals on Wheels are out by 8:30 a.m.

"Hampton Bays is where they do it all," said Ben Antinori, volunteer coordinator for Southampton Senior Services, adding that the daily meals that are provided to seniors at the other two town centers are also cooked in the kitchen of the Hampton Bays center and brought to Flanders and Bridgehampton.  On average, the Hampton Bays center gets about 50 people per day for lunch.

Volunteers help get seniors registered for the government-subsidized food and nutrition program.  "The bus picks them up and they have lunch for three dollars," Antinori said.  A continental breakfast is just fifty cents.  Some seniors drive themselves to the center, but the shuttle bus is always available for them.

In addition to providing excellent opportunities for seniors and others to volunteer or fulfill community service, the center has outstanding facilities and provides an array of programs for seniors, including bus trips and dance, exercise and computer classes.

For more information on the Hampton Bays Senior Center and its programs, call (631) 728-1235.