Health & Wellness Activities

Pen Friend

 Pen Friends is a social isolation program by the Cortland County area Agency on Aging, based on randomly selecting pen pals for our area seniors.  Created during the COVID-19 pandemic, Pen Friends reinstates the old ideas of writing your thoughts on paper and sharing with your friends, offering an offline option for anyone interested.  
 
If you are interested in becoming a Pen Friend contact the Area Agency on Aging at 753-5060.
seniorletter

Health & Wellness Services Through Our Volunteer Program


The volunteers lead an 8-week class series called "A Matter of Balance." The classes are geared for people at risk of falling, people who are fearful of falling, and people who are starting to limit their daily activities because of fear of falling.

Volunteers lead a weekly weight-bearing exercise class called "BoneSaver Exercise Program." These classes are hour-long gentle routines that provide strength training, and improve balance and flexibility. Volunteer leaders have been trained to lead these classes.
**UPDATE**
Due to COVID-19 all BoneSaver classes have been temporarily postponed.  We encourage participants to follow along with the original "Strong Women" classes through this YouTube video: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1YvnvQo4Yc

The National Institute on Health offers a 15 minute video, geared to seniors through this You Tube video: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ev6yE55kYGw
​

Bonesaver classes are held at the following locations and times:

Class Location
 Day of Week
 Time
Cortland Senior Center Mondays & Wednesdays 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
Harford Senior Center Tuesdays & Thursdays 9:30 - 10:30 a.m.
Homer Senior Center Wednesdays & Fridays 1:30 - 2:30 p.m.
Cincinnatus Presbyterian Church Mondays & Wednesdays 9:00 - 10:00 a.m.
McGraw Senior Center Tuesdays & Thursdays 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.

Health & Wellness Through the Nutrition Program


Nutrition Education is available free of charge to individuals 60 years of age and older. The Nutrition Program does this by sending a nutrition article to Meals on Wheels participants.
They also send the same article to all of the Cortland County senior centers. A dietician will conduct a presentation at each center quarterly. If the dietician is not available, the senior center managers will discuss the article with interested seniors.

A Dietician through the Nutrition Program will provide free individual nutrition counseling sessions for individuals 60 years of age and older; either at the senior centers or in the Nutrition office located in the basement of the Cortland County Office Building.

Blood Pressure screenings are available at each of the eight senior centers at least once per month. The Nutrition Program also promotes healthy living by providing several healthy activities through the local senior centers. For additional information regarding center activities, please reference the special events on the back of the monthly menu that is available at each senior center or in the Thursday edition of the Cortland Standard. Activities vary by senior center.

For additional information or to make an appointment, please contact the Nutrition Program at
607-753-5061. For information to stay active in your community, check out the Exercise Directory (PDF).