Greetings from the Friends of Mendon Elders

Welcome to 2024 from the Friends of Mendon Elders. Our year ahead is very exciting as plans are pulled together for a new center. To help our endeavors, we need all the friends we can get. Each new friend is a source of new ideas and skills. Please consider joining our ranks and sharing your talents with us. Please help us get the word out about the wonderful programs running at the senior center and share with us the programs you would like to see in the future. The Friends meeting is a great place to start making new connections and getting involved in the community. As a new resident of Mendon, I have found a warm welcome here. Come join us Monday, Feb. 12 at 10:30 a.m. Carolyn Wass (President)

The Friends is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization raising funds for the benefit of the senior center and the seniors it serves. New members are always welcome. Join us to learn more about the events and activities at the Senior Center. Catch up with members and enjoy some light refreshments prior to start of meeting.

We have not raised the membership fee this year ($5) but if you are able, we would welcome an additional donation. We hope to see you at our next month meeting on Monday, Feb. 12 at 10:30 a.m. Board members, please arrive early at 10 a.m.

We also invite you to join us for the Friends monthly Dine Out. 

Friends Dine Out— Carpool with friends from the senior center the 3rd Wednesday of each month at 11:30 a.m. or meet at the restaurant at noon. The cost of lunch is your responsibility but the company is free! Wednesday, Feb. 21 Dine Out ~ Roast House, Blackstone

New Players Welcome!

The Mendon Senior Center offers a variety of recreational activities including:

-  Scrabble – Tuesdays  9 a.m.

-  Cribbage – Wednesdays  9:45 a.m. The Cribbage group is always looking for new players, stop in Wednesdays at 9:45 a.m., all levels welcome.

-  Hand, Knee and Foot Card game – Tuesdays 1 p.m.

-  Mah-Jong (tile game) – Thursdays 1 p.m.

Please check our schedule regarding days, times, and availability. Don’t see your favorite game listed, please let us know what you’d like to see offered.

Weekly Lunches – Tuesday and Thursday noon

Consider this friendly, affordable alternative to eating out or eating at home alone. Our volunteers will make you feel right at home. The varied Tri-Valley menus offer nutritious, delicious choices. Lunch is served noon on Tuesdays and Thursdays for $3. Transportation is available. Come be our guest. Your first meal is on us! (New diners only please.)

Thank you to our friendly Tri-Valley lunch servers: Janet Ahearn, Phil Cieply, Betsy Edsall, Bev Fior, Rosie Hare, Julie King, John Lauzon, Peg Nogueira, Dona Son, Carolyn Wass, Karen Mills and Diane Howell. If you’d like to volunteer once or twice a month, please contact Amy Wilson Kent at 508-478-6175.

February Menus

Thursday, Feb. 1 - Lasagna & Meatballs

Tuesday, Feb. 6 - Braised Beef & Gemelli Pasta

Thursday, Feb. 8 - Jambalaya & Rice Pilaf

Tuesday, Feb. 13 - Hot Dog, Baked beans & Coleslaw

Thursday, Feb. 15 - Chicken Cacciatore, Gemelli Pasta & Spinach

Tuesday, Feb. 20 - Chicken Pesto & Delmonico Potatoes

Thursday, Feb. 22 - American Chop Suey, Broccoli & Birthday Cake

Tuesday, Feb. 27 - Non-Tri-Valley meal – Pizza & Salad $5

Thursday, Feb. 29 ~ Leap Year! - Potato Crunch Fish, Veg Rice Pilaf, Peas & Birthday Cake

Friendly Reminder! Meals are served at noon. The cost is $3 donation per meal. Reservations must be made 48 hours in advance. Transportation is available. Call to schedule. Meals are subject to change.

AARP Tax Preparation

The AARP Foundation Tax-Aide program offers free tax preparation. You don’t have to be an AARP member, and there’s no age requirement to get tax help from IRS certified volunteers. The Hopedale Senior Center will hold free tax preparation clinics for Seniors and low to moderate income individuals on Thursdays, beginning Feb. 8 through March 9, 2024 between 9 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. The procedure for the program is as follows:

1. Schedule an appointment

2. Meet with a Tax-Aide volunteer to go through your documents.

3. A Tax-Aide volunteers will complete and review your Tax Return. (Those filing jointly, must both attend and sign.)

4. After you approve and sign the Tax Return, the document will be filed electronically.

Registration is required. Call 508-634-2208. You must speak to a Staff member to schedule an appointment.

Please bring the following documents if applicable: 1. Prior years’ tax returns, 2. Social Security Benefit statement, 3. W-2s, 4. All income documents, Retirement Plan, IRA, and Brokerage statements. 5. If you are filing for Circuit Breaker Credit a copy of your last three (3) years of Real Estate Tax bills and your Water and Sewer bills for the prior filing years.

Valentine’s Day Luncheon Wednesday, Feb. 14 at noon.

Plan to join us for a special holiday meal. We’ll be serving pasta, meatballs, salad, garlic bread and dessert! Our COA Co-Chair Earl Pearlman will serenade us with piano ballads while lunch is served and enjoyed. Registration is required for this special event and the cost is $5 pp. Space is limited.

Valentine’s Cards and Crafts ... during the week of Feb. 5 an assortment of materials will be provided for this free craft. Just bring your creativity and imagination. Also, do you have a picture of you and your sweetheart or a special someone that you would like to share? Bring the picture in to the Center by Feb. 8 and we will incorporate it into a display for Valentine’s Day! Photos will be returned.

Mendon History with Jim Buckley

Join us on Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 11 a.m. when life-long educator Jim Buckley, a Milford resident, volunteers his time to dip into his treasure trove of Mendon stories and share with us some of the more exciting people and events of our town’s past. Jim has written over 1,400 published historical stories, including dozens that highlight stimulating stories from Mendon’s past. On Feb. 20 Jim will enlighten us about a Mendon sharp-shooter and his son during the Revolutionary War. Please stop by or call the Mendon Senior Center at 508-478-6175 to register for this free program.

Home Safety Tips for Fall Prevention Thursday, Feb. 22 at 11 a.m.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),falls are the leading cause of injury for adults ages 65 year and older. Over 14 million, or 1 in 4 older adults, report falling each year. Join us for an informative fall prevention program called STEADI offered by Debra Vescera, MSN, BSN, RN, Regional Public Health Nurse, with Blackstone Valley Partnership for Public Health (BVPPH) Please call the senior center at 508-478-6175 or stop by the center to register for this important program.

Virtual Freedom Trail Tour ~ Including Boston’s Black Heritage Trail Tuesday, Feb. 27 11 a.m.~ followed by Pizza & Salad lunch at noon.

Embark on an immersive journey through Boston’s rich history with a curated historic tour of the iconic Freedom Trail  without leaving your seat and the comfort of the Mendon Senior Center on Tuesday, Feb. 27 at 11 a.m. Our tour guide Chris Joazard will engage our audience with conversation, storytelling, and humor during Black History Month. Travel the cobblestone streets, trace the footsteps of figures from the past, and explore significant landmarks, all while delving into captivating narratives that shaped the course of our history. Join Chris for an unforgettable tour of Boston’s Freedom Trail, including Boston’s Black Heritage Trail, where the echoes of history resonate in every step. Please call 508-478-6175 or stop by the center to register for this program generously sponsored by the Friends of Mendon Elders, Inc. Please register separately for the pizza and salad luncheon following the program. The cost of lunch is $5 per person paid in advance if possible.

Mendon Senior Center Spring Day Trip ~ Friday May 24 Register now, space is limited. Duck Boats of Boston with lunch at Maggiano’s Little Italy and tour of Isabella Gardener Museum. Motor coach departs and returns to Mendon Senior Center - 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Cost: $145 per person (includes everything: round trip transportation, duck tour, family style lunch, and admission to Isabella Gardner museum and gratuities) Payment is due May 1. Checks should be made out to Friends of Mendon Elders (please add ‘trip account’ in memo line) Call Trip Coordinator Beverly Fior, 508-473-8382 for more information.

Housing Solutions—Shape Mendon’s Future!

Mendon residents are invited to participate in an upcoming workshops offered on Monday, March 4, 2024 at 10 a.m. at the Senior Center to learn about the Town’s strategic planning efforts for local housing solutions. The workshops will be led by staff from the Town of Mendon and Central Mass Regional Planning Commission, and will feature a presentation, Q&A, and interactive activity. Your input will help the Town understand and plan for the types of homes that are needed in Mendon and the most appropriate locations for new housing. Please call 508-478-6175 to register. Drop-ins welcome. Feel free to contact  Emily Glaubitz [email protected] if you have any questions.

Real Estate Tax Exemptions  

While taxes cannot be avoided, some taxpayers may be entitled to partial relief via a “real estate tax exemption.” A tax exemption is a discharge from the obligation to pay all or a portion of a tax. There are several types of exemptions each with its own requirements; one that is age related (65 years or older; details follow), others given due to blindness, surviving spouse or veteran’s status. Mendon’s Principal Assessor, Jean Berthold will be at the Senior Center on Wednesday, March 6 at 1 p.m. to review the details. 

Please stop by or call the senior center at 508-478-6175 to register. If you are unable to come to our presentation on Mar. 6 please contact the Assessor’s office 508-473-2738 for confidential assistance.

Applications for all of these exemptions are due no later than April 1, 2024. 

Clause 41D of Chapter 59 provides a $1,000 exemption to persons 65 years of age or older who satisfy the following requirements:

1. An individual must be either 65 years of age or older or a joint owner with a spouse 65 years or older as of July 1 of the tax year.

2. An individual must have been continuously domiciled in Massachusetts for the last 10 years preceding the application and have owned and occupied the property or other property in Mass for 5 years.

3. The holder of a “Life Estate” satisfies the ownership requirements.

4. If the domicile is held in a trust, a person must be a trustee or co-trustee and possess a sufficient beneficial interest in the domicile through that trust.

5. Gross receipts, minus an annual social security allowance of $5,201 for the worker and $2,601 for the spouse, must be less than $29,123. if single, $43,731. if married (increases annually.)

6. Whole estate cannot exceed $58,307. if single, $80,174. if married (increases annually.) The value of a person’s domicile, cemetery plots, registered motor vehicles, wearing apparel and household furniture and effects kept at the domicile should be excluded from the calculation of the whole estate. If you qualify for this exemption, you also receive the full CPA exemption.

Deeds, Homesteads, Trusts and Estates

On Wednesday, Mar. 13, 2024 at 1 p.m. the Mendon Senior Center will host Worcester Registry of Deeds Registrar, Kathryn A. Toomey and Registrar of Probate Courts Registrar, Stephanie Fattman. Listen as the nuts and bolts on how the Registry of Deeds and Probate Court work together for the residents of Massachusetts. Join us in a dialogue about land ownership and how probate issues can legally affect what happens to your property. Introductory information and an 

overview will be provided about Deeds, Homesteads, Trusts and Estates. Save the date for this informative program. Please stop by or call the Mendon Senior Center at 508-478-6175 to register.

Tornado & Storm Chasers

Do not, I repeat do not, miss this soon to be rare opportunity to meet Bill Kessler, recently retired Mendon Fire Chief, prior to his departure to chase storms this spring. Bill will share his passion for the chase with us on the first day of spring Tuesday, March 19 at 11 a.m. Come listen to his thrilling experiences. He has said, "I went on my first chase in 2005 as a bucket item check off. Little did I know I have so many buckets to check it off from! Since that first year, I just can’t let it go. It’s not just the thrill of the chase, the exploration of the Midwest is pretty cool too." Register at the Mendon Senior Center. Space is limited.