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South Langley centre offers seniors an array of activities

Members decide which courses and activities are offered at the Brookswood Seniors Centre.
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The Brookswood Seniors Centre offers an array of activities throughout the month, including Zumba, to help people stay active. (Heather Colpitts/Langley Advance)

Volunteers can get a lot done. Just ask the many who support the Brookswood Seniors Centre.

The centre has close to 600 members who not only help ensure the centre keeps running but also partake of its many activities.

“Our executive and management team are all volunteers who try to maintain the facility, handle finances to pay expenses such as insurance, hydro, Fortis, telephone and wifi, Socan fees, security, cleaning and paper products, etc. We also assume some of the costs for the bimonthly [Food and Friends] luncheons and speakers,” said Bonnie Hartrup, the centre president.

The centre offers an array of events and activities and those are decided based on demand.

“Deciding on activities comes from requests from our community and availability of leaders to lead any particular activity,” she explained.

The largest group that uses the hall at 19899 36th Ave., is the Square Wheelers Square dance group.

“Several quilting groups became members when they found we had a great space for their activity,” she added.

The centre hosts one of the Food and Friends luncheons offered through Meals on Wheels Langley. It’s at capacity with 69 attendees.

“Our chair yoga group, zumba group, line dance group, toning group, bridge, pool, cribbage, chess group and Mexican train [board game group] came from requests from our seniors,” Hartrup said.

The centre hopes to add computer courses to its 2019 line-up.

“We would offer more but time and space availability is putting constraints on any more offerings,” she said.

The Brookswood Seniors Centre is actually the Brookswood Senior Citizens branch 132 of the BC Old Age Pensioners. The group leases the Township-owned building.

The group also supports community efforts.

“We contribute to the Langley Food Bank and to the BCOAP scholarship fund,” she said. “Member groups contribute to the Centre for Child Development, kids cancer and more.”



Heather Colpitts

About the Author: Heather Colpitts

Since starting in the news industry in 1992, my passion for sharing stories has taken me around Western Canada.
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