State Rep. Gray Day, R-187th, hosted the annual Senior Expo Oct. 2 at the Lower Macungie Township Community Center. The 187th district includes Alburtis, Macungie, Heidelberg Township, Lower Macungie Township, Lynn Township, Upper Macungie Township (Part, District 03, 07, and 08), Washington Township and Weisenberg Township.

Finding a parking spot was a challenge, as a steady flow of over 300 visitors made their way into the community center over the three hour period. Over 50 vendors participated in this annual event including St. Luke’s and LVHN/Jefferson, AARP, insurance companies, investment companies, retirement home care, volunteer organizations, county and state organizations.

In addition to Day’s office staff, U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-7th, and staff were available in person assisting constituents along with state Sen. Jarrett Coleman, R-16th, and his staff.

Clerk of Judicial Records Michelle Graupner interacted with seniors providing them information about a new free service for Lehigh County residents to register their property and receive alerts when a document is recorded involving their property. This service helps protect seniors from fraudulent use of their property. Graupner also answered questions about wills and inheritance taxes.

Physical therapists from St. Luke’s Therapy challenged seniors to test their grip strength as well as their reaction time and balance using Blazing pods. Seniors appeared to enjoy beating their own scores the more times they practiced the Blazing pods and the grip tester.

Juh-Huey“Judy” Chen, of Lower Macungie and her husband Po-Wen Wang spent the morning visiting the numerous vendors and participating in the activities. Chen was excited to see she was able to increase her reaction time from 18 to 21 on the Blazing pod. St. Luke’s Physical Therapists Melissa Kugler and Dana Horowski encouraged the seniors to try the activities several times to show them the more they practiced, the better their scores improved.

Day expressed the importance of seniors “staying active.”

Secretary for the Friends of the Lower Macungie Library Jackie Leipert volunteered to share information at the event. She commented that volunteering for the numerous events keeps her active in the community. The library hosts regular events for seniors to participate in and provides numerous resources and services to seniors to take advantage of at no cost, such as books, videos and newspapers.

Similarly, volunteers for AARP had seniors signing cards to be mailed to public officials to keep them focused on legislation important to senior citizens. Seniors who signed a card were able to spin a wheel for prizes. AAA provided a free piece of luggage to seniors who registered for their new AAA credit card which offers discounts for gas, groceries and other purchases.

Day said this event is coordinated by his staff under the direction of Ella Kavitt, district legislative aide and communications specialist. Kavitt said this event is an annual event usually taking place in October. They are discussing options for holding an event for seniors who still work during the day and were unable to participate in this Expo.

Day noted St. Luke’s, Jefferson/LVHN, Coleman and staff and Mackenzie and staff and all the vendors provide significant information to seniors who can take these materials home with them to learn more, be informed and to be able to “live great lives in their senior years.”

There was a constant group of seniors moving throughout the expo and overflowed into the adjacent room.

A lunch was provided at no cost including roast beef, ham and turkey sandwiches, chips, candy and water. There was seating for about 100 and some seniors had to take their lunch to another area because all the seats were taken.

Day spoke before the lunch crowd sharing his personal story of his father’s experience living with dementia. This is why this Senior Expo is important to Day.

“Stay active. Socialize. Volunteer,” he told the seniors.

Day acknowledged Emmaus High School students Noelle Weiner, Anshi Kanani and Paige Salley for assisting with the “senior games” for the event. The senior games top scorer was Tonya Palmer, followed by Faye Eckroth and Kathy Rau. Recognizing the top scorers were all female, one male senior commented “the women are smarter” which received chuckles at his table.

Day explained to the seniors it is “his constitutional duty to represent them in Harrisburg and while today’s event focused on staying active,” Day appreciated hearing about other issues with the budget, education and senior care he will continue to work on.

The program concluded with raffle prizes donated by the vendors. Prizes included American flags, pepper plants, flower arrangements, GIANT gift cards, Wawa gift cards, AARP kits, St. Luke’s kits and T-shirts, word searches and puzzles, dermatology baskets, blankets and a tailgating basket for Eagles fans. Seniors who left the event early and won a raffle prize will be contacted by Day’s office.

The seniors who attended said they were appreciative of the event and received information they needed such as rent rebates. They enjoyed the lunch sharing the “roast beef sandwiches were the best.” Many of the seniors said they follow Day’s advice by staying active at the community center and attending their events on a monthly basis.