Seniors, COA Move Back to Community Center

At long last, the Council on Aging (COA) has moved back into the Community Center.

Yesterday morning, the COA staff moved out Town Hall, where the COA had been since Aug. 28, and welcomed their first group of senior citizens back to the Community Center's dining area at around noon. The COA was forced out of the Community Center when the Wellesley Health Department found evidence of

Gayle Thieme, director of senior services for the COA, said she's glad to be back in her office. She thought the COA would only be out a couple weeks, not a couple months.

"When we moved out of this building, never in a million years would I have imagined we be moving back in on Nov. 10," she said.

For this reason, much of the office equipment and records were left behind, Thieme said. While they were forced to keep out of the Community Center, the COA had to shack up in the Great Hall of Town Hall, a room typically dedicated to ceremonies and presentations; not what one would picture for office space.

"It certainly was not ideal," she said adding she her staff worked hard to keep senior activities and events running smoothly despite having a central location for senior activities.

Thieme gave credit to the various town organizations and facilities that stepped up to help accommodate the technically "homeless" seniors who participated in senior services. She said Wellesley's houses of worship, the Library, Town Hall and other buildings were insturmental in keeping the nearly two months of pre-planned activities going, but there's no place like home.

"To have the majority of programs meet here just makes life so much easier," she said.

Twelve seniors returned for their once routine daily lunch yesterday. They were happy to be back, as most of them were "forced to feel like they were homebound" without being able to have a place to eat in the afternoon. Some did not know why they were kept out of the buiding for so long.

"Everybody knew there were issues with the facility," Thieme said. "There were lots of rumors. A lot of people needed some clarification…Getting the group back together, just hearing the conversation. It was wonderful."

The Community Center Board of Directors entered into an agreement with Wellesley Board of Selectmen to maintain a daily cleaning service at a raised rental fee to the town.  The Board of Selectmen is also openly discussing new plans to knock down and rebuild the Community Center building and the adjoining Friendly Aid Society building located at 219 Washington St.