Seniors visit the many stations set up at tables at last year’s Senior Resource Fair.
Submitted Photo
Angela Lowe and Beth Pantano are vice president and president, respectively, of Caring Hearts of Wyoming Valley, which is planning its fourth annual Senior Resource Fair for Sept. 23 at Mohegan Pennsylvania.
Mary Therese Biebel | Times Leader
When people visit a casino to gamble, they never know whether they’re going to win.
But if you visit Mohegan Pennsylvania to attend the Senior Resource Fair on Sept. 23, organizers say, you can expect to be a winner, because you’ll come away with all sorts of information.
“It’s designed for people to visit every table, and have a meaningful conversation at each one,” said Angela Lowe, vice president of the Caring Hearts of Wyoming Valley organization, which is sponsoring its fourth annual fair.
Past fairs have been attended by 250 to 300 people, Caring Hearts president Beth Pantano said, and they often say afterward that they had no idea that so many resources are available for senior citizens.
Not that you have to be a senior citizen to attend, Lowe said. “I’ve seen 18-year-olds who come and say ‘my grandmother is in this situation …’”
Often, it’s best to have information about assisted living, or hospice care, or respite care, or home health care, or elder law, or cataract surgery or physical therapy or many other services — before you actually need it, the organizers pointed out.
“Not to be morbid,” Pantano said, “but we have funeral services represented.”
Caring Hearts of Wyoming Valley is comprised of people who work in health care and/or with senior citizens. They take part in several volunteer activities throughout the year, from hosting ice cream socials at area senior centers to helping to clean the historic Swetland Homestead and Dennison House, with the Senior Resource Fair their largest effort.
“We all have our full-time jobs,” Lowe said. “But we look for ways to give back to the community.”
When guests come to the fair, which is set for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 23 at Mohegan Pennsylvania, they will receive a card. As they visit the tables of some 40 presenters, each presenter will mark the card to prove the person has visited and spoken with them. A full card entitles you to a chance to win an overnight stay at Mohegan Pennsylvania and other prizes.
And just for being there, you’ll likely fill a goodie bag with little gifts from each presenter — an aspect that has been compared to “trick or treating for adults.”
