Winter activities for seniors return

It's back! The Yuma Parks and Recreation Department's winter activities schedule for seniors, age 50-plus, is packed with fun-filled programs and special events from November through March.

With the arrival of cooler weather, participants start to pack the North End Community Center (NECC) and the Yuma Readiness and Community Center (YRCC), filled not only with year-round residents, but now with hundreds of winter visitors who come from near and far, who know that the NECC and the YRCC is the place to be when it comes to fun activities and meeting and making new friends.

The senior recreation program offers interesting, leisure activities that will suit almost everyone's special interest, whether it be woodcarving, oil painting and 3-D art, just to name a few. Joe Cox, recreation supervisor says, “The North End Community Center is an exciting place to visit. On any given day, we may have as many as 100 seniors stop in and participate in one or more of the leisure programs offered here.”

A selection of educational enrichment, and arts and crafts courses are offered at both the NECC and the YRCC. Some of the more popular programs are silversmithing, fused glass art, zipper art, 3-D art and, of course, the very popular wood carving. There are a variety of instructional course offerings, and with a little investigation and actual involvement, you may find a class or program that piques your interest, and you'll become hooked.

All activities are designed to encourage seniors to share their knowledge of a subject or try something new. Courses are offered for a nominal fee and for a specified length of time.

If you want to be more active, Parks and Recreation offers opportunities for seniors to stay fit. Over the past few years, increased emphasis has been placed on seniors to improve their health and fitness as they start to get closer to the “golden years.” As the typical aches and pains start to plague us all, it has been proven to be more manageable when some type of exercise is added to your daily regiment. Keeping active by doing daily exercise programs, such as walking, swimming or participating in an aqua aerobics class, have been shown to have a beneficial effect, helping seniors maintain health and balance.

There are plenty of fitness activities to help seniors stay active. Softball, pickle ball, volleyball, badminton, belly dancing, water aerobics, adaptive aquatics and, of course, the 2013 Senior Games, which each year boasts over 30 different events participants can compete in. Each of the activities listed above is scheduled on various days and times throughout the winter season at numerous recreational facilities around the city, allowing you to plan for something almost every day of the week to keep you busy.

There are dozens of activities planned. While every event may not be of interest to you, stop by the NECC, at 160 E. 1st St., say hi to the friendly staff, check out why it's the place to be and see what's happening. You'll probably end up staying the whole day and making many new friends. For a full list of programs and events for seniors, pick up a copy of the city of Yuma Parks and Recreation 2012-2013 Fall and Winter Activity Guide at any Parks and Recreation facility, view it online at www.yumaaz.gov or give us a call at 373-5243.

Oscar Chavez is the recreation program supervisor at Yuma Parks and Rec.