Shelbyville, TN

The Shelbyville-Bedford County Senior Citizens Center is a busy place.

The center serves 275 seniors a day with its varied activities‚ including providing meals on site for 65 people Monday through Friday and delivering 55 to 60 meals to homebound seniors.

The center also runs the county’s only public transportation system for all ages.

Seniors can shoot pool‚ play cards‚ attend regular birthday parties‚ take yoga classes and participate in edu cational programs on home safety‚ financial issues‚ and health and wellness‚ says Sonia Miller‚ director of the center.

What she finds rewarding is “just knowing that you’re helping.”

“People come in and they have needs – they don’t know where to start or who can assist them. Even if we can’t directly provide a specific service to them‚ we can connect them with other organ izations that can. When they come back in and say‚ ‘Oh‚ you’ve helped me so much‚’ … you realize what it’s all about‚” Miller says.

“Some people have preferences – some who do yoga wouldn’t do anything else. Then we have some who will do pretty much anything we offer.”

Serving transportation needs in Bedford County‚ the center has a fleet of 11 vans‚ which hold nine to 14 passengers‚ Miller says. There are regular routes‚ but special requests can be met‚ too‚ with notice. The transportation is very affordable – local trips are $1 and outside the city limits $2 each way.