The Golden Gala glows in the New Year
BY KADIE TAYLOR
THE LAFAYETTE SUN
VALLEY — Kicking off the New Year with glitz and glamour, the Valley Senior Center is hosting a Golden Gala — a prom for seniors age 60 and older. The event will be held Dec. 31 at the Valley Community Center, with doors opening at 6 p.m. ET.
“We’re going to be meeting in the community center, and we’ll have music, dancing and refreshments,” said Valley Senior Center Manager Kelsey Overby. “Anybody in the community who is 60-plus is invited to come. Admission is free — we do accept donations, but it’s not a mandatory thing.”
Overby said she created the Golden Gala to give local seniors a night of fun together.
“I wanted to do something different — they deserve to have a night where they can come out, have fun, socialize, dress up and listen to music,” she said. “I asked around, and it was something that hadn’t been done before… [I wanted to do this] because they deserve it, with everything going on, they deserve a night where they can celebrate. I’m hoping [it is a] magical night — something that they will not forget.”
Along with the fun and festivities, Overby said the Golden Gala is a way to honor the seniors who have shaped the community by holding an event designed just for them.
“These people have put so much into the community — so now it’s time for us to give back to them, and [with this event] they get to feel like kids again,” she said. “They get to feel like they were back in the day, and it’s important for them to feel special and like people care about them… They’re so excited — they’re talking about going shopping [for] it. I get [people] on Facebook [messaging me] about how they’re excited and how they think it’s the cutest thing.”
In addition to the Golden Gala, Overby said the Valley Senior Center also offers other options for local seniors to stay engaged every week.
“We meet Monday through Friday — we play games, take field trips, have different guest speakers and have people come in and do music with us — we just try to keep them active,” she said. “We do a morning Zumba — it’s a chair Zumba because they can’t get up and actually dance — and they think it’s the funnest thing. Then we also have different groups that’ll come in and play games with us.”
Overby said volunteers are welcome to help with the Golden Gala or other senior center activities.
“We’re more than welcoming of volunteers who would like to come help out at the Golden Gala or just would like to come back to the Senior Center in general and just hang out with them — because some of [the seniors] come [to the Senior Center] for the companionship,” she said. “Anybody would like to come out, volunteer time, play games and just socialize [are welcome].
For more information, visit the Valley Senior Center on Facebook or call (334) 756-5265.
