General News
8 June, 2022
Senior Citizens Club celebrates 50 years
MORTLAKE Senior Citizens Club members gathered to celebrate a belated 50 years of friendship last week.
MORTLAKE Senior Citizens Club members gathered to celebrate a belated 50 years of friendship last week.
The club celebrated the milestone half century last year, but due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions decided to delay the commemorative cake cutting until this year, as the club approached its 51st year.
Mortlake Senior Citizens Club secretary Pam Smith delivered a speech which noted the concept for the club was developed by Rev Ike Smith of St Andrews Uniting Church.
He worked with members of the inter-church council Rev Tom O’Brien from St James Anglican Church and Father Pat Downs from St Colman’s Catholic Church.
A public meeting was called on July 4, 1971, and the Mortlake Senior Citizens Clubwas born.
Ms Smith said the club still enjoys many of the same activities it did in previous years with monthly luncheons and entertainment, day trips, indoor bowls and table tennis, exercises, games and movies.
But friendship and community connection remains the lingering attraction of the club, unchanged after five decades.
“It’s a relief to finally be able to come together and celebrate, and it is exciting to still be going after 50 years,” Ms Smith said.
“We hope we can still be a service to our seniors of Mortlake in to the future.
“We’ve got lots of activities but few participants, as we’re all getting older and young ones aren’t coming along.
“We’re still going and would love to have more seniors, especially those new to the town.”
Club president Jeanette Feeney acknowledged the joy of the milestone but also noted the reality the club membership has declined.
“I think it’s a wonderful achievement to have reached the 50 years, but I also think it’s a shame the membership is dwindling,”she said.
“It’d be nice to have some more members because we have a variety of functions."
“The hall is under-utilised, but the members who do use it really appreciate it and we get a great deal of enjoyment from it.”
The club once boasted around 150 members during its heyday, but Ms Feeney said the current members get a lot of enjoyment from club activities and each other’s company.
“We’re a congenial group with a range of people from 55 to 95, who all socialise well and look after each other,” she said.
“It’s a lovely club, and we always welcome new members who are welcome to get in touch with any of the members or see the notice on the front door of the Senior Citizens Centre (Corner of Townsend and Webster Streets) for contact details."
“We have wonderful services, such as a bus which goes to Warrnambool every third Monday which is under-utilised and we’re looking like we might lose it."
“The council supplies the bus and for just $5 per head, for anyone in the community, it will take people in to town to Gateway Plaza and in to the CBD for a few hours before returning home again.”
