Gloucester Health Department
Karin Carroll, Public Health Director
3 Pond Road
Gloucester, MA 01930

For Immediate Release

Wednesday, Jan. 8. 2020

Contact: Kelsey Bode
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: kelsey@jgpr.net

Gloucester Health Department Hosts Holiday Lights Tour with Cape Ann Seniors on the GO

GLOUCESTER — Seniors in Gloucester had the opportunity to view local light displays on a bus tour this holiday season, thanks to an event offered by a new Cape Ann Seniors on the GO Program.

Gloucester’s new Cape Ann Seniors on the GO program, launched in October, offers senior residents of Gloucester Housing Authority’s Clark, Lincoln, McPherson, Poplar and Sheedy neighborhoods access to healthy food and fitness opportunities. Through the program, seniors can sign up to ride an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant bus operated by Cape Ann Transit Authority to locations such as the Open Door Food Pantry, Cape Ann Farmers Market, grocery stores, Rose Baker Senior Center, Gloucester Boulevard for walking or a bowling alley.

On Monday, Dec. 16, Cape Ann Seniors on the Go brought seniors on tours of holiday light displays through McPherson Park, Sheedy Park, Curtis Clark, Poplar and Lincoln Park. Throughout the tour, riders also enjoyed holiday music and sang carols.

“We’d like to thank everyone who made this holiday lights tour possible,” Public Health Director Karin Carroll said. “This outing was a special way for local seniors to get out and celebrate the holidays, socialize and simply have fun. We hope to see many of them return for future Cape Ann Seniors on the GO programming, and encourage others to sign up as well.”

Seniors on the tour also received goody bags with cookies, fruit and a copy of the latest schedule for Cape Ann Seniors on the Go.

This winter, the Cape Ann Seniors on the Go bus is also transporting seniors to and from Cape Ann Lanes on Gloucester Avenue for bowling every Tuesday, a weekly event that began in November. Shoe rentals and a string cost $6, and the alley is completely ADA accessible. With every trip residents participate in on the bus, Cape Ann Seniors on the GO will give riders a raffle ticket through the month of January to be entered to win a $25 gift certificate to Cape Ann Lanes. Rockport senior residents will also be able to take part in the bowling events.

Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken spoke to the benefits of the program at her inauguration on Wednesday, Jan. 1.

“I am always looking for ways to leverage opportunities for our citizens to obtain the services they need for better physical, emotional, and psychological well-being,” Mayor Romeo Theken said. “Working together with our Board of Health we have recently launched Cape Ann Seniors on the GO, an initiative to increase healthy food access and opportunities for physical activity for low income older adults in our community.”

Seniors looking to learn about the Cape Ann Seniors on the Go program schedule or reserve a free seat can do so by calling the Cape Ann Transit Authority at 978-283-7916. Riders are limited to two bags on the bus.

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