Archdiocesan Catholic Health Care Services’ Norris Square Senior Community Center has received a Senior Community Grant of $80,877 from the Pennsylvania Department of Aging primarily to upgrade its community kitchen, which provides daily meals to visiting seniors from the surrounding area.

“The grant will enable us to upgrade and replace our walk-in freezer, and our walk-in refrigerator for our produce,” said Karen Becker, director for the senior centers conducted by the Philadelphia Archdiocese. “We serve lunch to about 120 people a day at Norris Square Senior Community Center and breakfast to another 60 people.”

Funding for the program comes from the Pennsylvania Lottery. Your ticket may not be a winner, but it hits the jackpot with our senior citizens.

Last year the center served approximately 37,000 meals to at-risk seniors, some of whom are residents of Casa Carmen Aponte, senior supportive housing located at the same site and named for Carmen Aponte, the first administrator of Norris Square Community Center when it opened in the 1973.

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Norris Square, because of its location in North Philadelphia, serves an overwhelmingly Latino population and is totally bilingual in all of its operations.

It is one of four such centers conducted by Catholic Health Care Services in Philadelphia. The others are St. Anne’s Senior Community Center (Port Richmond), St. Charles Senior Community Center (South Philadelphia) and Star Harbor Senior Community Center (Southwest Philadelphia).

The centers provide opportunities to enjoy hot meals, social and recreational events, art and music activities, spirituality programs and day trips, as well as educational programs focused on health, nutrition, consumer issues and technology.

“Our focus is on three issues: food security; health and welfare; and opportunities for socialization,” Becker said. “We are very pleased with the support from the Department of Aging for keeping our facilities efficient and modernized.”

In total, the Pennsylvania Department of Aging gave 43 grants totaling $2 million to 43 senior centers throughout the commonwealth.

Funding for the program comes from the Pennsylvania Lottery. Your ticket may not be a winner, but it hits the jackpot with our senior citizens.