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NORTHBRIDGE, Mass. – Whitin Park on Hill Street, once the location of a Whitin mansion and today shaded by 200-year-old trees, is quiet and serene today.
That will change from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday with the Whtin Community Center’s annual Tanglewood in the Park concert, a fundraiser that provides seniors with free or reduced membership to the center.
The quiet will be replaced with music provided by Point & Swing, a seven- to 21-piece band that plays music from the 1940s to the '70s. “Their music covers all the bases – hustle, jive, fox trot, swing – you name it,’’ said Karen Boyle, director of operations and member services at the center.
Along with the music, there will be beer, wine, water and soda; pizza from Harry’s, a bake sale, a bubble machine, face painting and crafts for kids.
“It’s an event we do for the seniors and their families,’’ Boyle said. “Part of our mission is to offer social programs, community outreach, and we have a very active senior population.’’
Many seniors participate in the exercise programs geared toward the older population, such as Silver Sneakers aerobics and aqua-aerobics. Those who aren’t able to participate in activities at the center are encouraged to take advantage of the park and its beautiful fall foliage, Boyle said.
Several members of the center’s board of directors donated tickets to area senior centers.
The ticket price is $10, $5 for seniors, $25 for families, and the proceeds provide scholarships to seniors who can’t afford membership to the center.
“We have over 500 senior members,’’ though it’s impossible to say how many are active, Boyle said.
The Community Center is open to all Blackstone Valley communities.
Fundraisers are necessary to keep programs such as senior scholarships alive. “There are still a lot of people who think we still get money from the town,’’ Boyle said, but it’s been many years since town founders, the Whitin family, carried the financial load for the center. “We depend on the community to participate so we can be here,’’ she said.
In the event of rain, Tanglewood will be held in the Community Center’s gymnasium. Participated are advised to bring lawn chairs or blankets.
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