Senior center helping Byron residents stay active and connected

Organizers say the center helps older adults stay socially engaged while building friendships and community connections.

BYRON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — A Byron senior center is working to combat senior isolation by giving older adults a place to connect, build friendships and stay active in the community. 

Senior isolation is dangerous because it triggers physical and mental declines. That’s why Byron opened its senior center in 2023, where local seniors can come, make friends and have that home away from home feel, according to site manager Victoria Thornton.  

“The truth is social isolation is a real thing, and it harms our seniors,” she said. “Being able to come to a place where you can relive and retell stories, and being engaged with other seniors, and other people who care about you, it makes a big difference. We have some people who come every day and tell their families don’t make anything for me until I get home from the senior center. It’s that important to them.”

She says seniors who come here are looking for a connection. Senior center president Mae Holt says the center’s primary goal is to eliminate social isolation. 

“If you’re sitting constantly all day, then the muscles as well as the bones become stiff,” Holt said. “So, by coming to the senior center, it gives them an outlet also for social interaction, so they’re not just sitting at home doing nothing.”

Thornton says the center has a clear impact on the seniors who walk through the doors. 

“I hear that we’re family to them,” she said. “That this is their family, I hear some say it’s changed their lives. One woman told me she’s changed, she’s not the woman she was before coming to the center, she’s happy now, she smiles and laughs.”

Center Vice President George Floyd says the feedback they hear from seniors encourages them to keep going. 

“I’ve had a couple seniors that have attended here say this is the best place they’ve ever been,” Floyd said. “I had one lady today say, ‘You know, I think I’m going to like this.’ So, evidently, we must be serving some type of purpose that’s good for the community, especially the older citizens that don’t have as much and can’t move as much, they will definitely enjoy this.”

The center is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. There is a $25 activity fee that covers the entire year.

They’re located at 401 Main Street in Byron.