Anyone who stops in casually for a weekday lunch at the Senior Citizens of South Dickens County (often simply called the Spur Senior Center) might not realize the considerable planning, maintenance, preparation, and execution that goes into this healthy, convivial mealtime.
New director Debbie Pritchett, who moved to Spur from Lorenzo in March, certainly does. And her ideas don’t stop there.
Earlier this month Pritchett took the place of longtime director Linda Alexander, who took the position of Spur city clerk.
“I do believe I was led here” to open up doors for senior citizens, said Pritchett. A property manager at a mobile home park, working with seniors for eight years, she had also worked for Home Instead, an in-home care service.
Not only does the Spur center provide hot meals five days a week for eligible citizens, it also welcomes other diners of any age, for a suggested cash donation amount. Right now it’s one of the most popular dining spots in Dickens County, with Spur’s dearth of open restaurants. But the center also delivers carry-out meals to more than 30 homebound residents over 60 who are unable to prepare healthy meals at home, relying on volunteers to make deliveries on those days.
“There is a need for more meals to be served to homebound,” explained Pritchett. There is an application process and a format to follow for the Senior Center weekday program; local churches help out on weekends.
The comfortably appointed Senior Center building—a grocery store, in years past—has been extensively renovated in 2022, with a new metal roof, new carpet, and fresh paint. Fixups are ongoing weekly, with inviting furniture and décor, a pool table, a piano, card and puzzle tables, reading material, and other features that make the space a great rental venue for family and community gatherings as well.
Every Tuesday night is game night, with pool and dominoes, said Pricthett. Two or three local bridge clubs also convene at the center.
Ongoing improvements open up avenues for local volunteers, Pritchett said. “The Seniors here have worked so hard in the last couple of months and still have projects they want to complete. This is their place, it belongs to them, and we want to help them make use of it in even more ways.”
While they are always looking for volunteers to help with donations, “we can really can use manpower,” she said. “We are in need of handymen, painters, electricians, cleanup duty, gardeners etc.” There are also paid summer positions for a couple of extra workers during the summer.
Pritchett feels right at home in Spur, where she found a home on West 3rd Street that feels just right for her. “I’ve never met a community with such camaraderie; they just reach out and help one another.”
- Log in or Subscribe to post comments.
