They had 85 booths to choose from, but most of the hundreds of people who turned out Friday for the 17th annual Senior Day at Enfield Square came for the local flavor.
Local flavor came in the form of old friends and a goodies booth. Older residents crowded around three deep for free samples of foods made from recipes in the new Enfield Senior Center cookbook.
The center’s baker, Josephine Smith, doled out samples of pumpkin bread, Irish soda bread, a homemade cheeseball and the most popular item in the pre-lunch rush, spinach-cheese balls.
At lunch hour, the fare was turkey meatballs or corn chowder. And for dessert, dietetic and ordinary baked goods.
As she handed out the samples, Smith tirelessly hawked the cookbook, noting that the $7 worth of coupons in the back pages would more than cover the $6 price tag.
The book’s title is also the center’s motto, “Enjoy Your Age.” It is available at the center, 100 High St.
Senior center Director Kay Tallarita said the center sells Smith’s baked goods all year, not just on Senior Day, to raise money to augment its funding from the town. Townspeople and organizations hosting parties can order ahead for her cakes, cookies and pies.
“She earns her keep,” Tallarita joked.
Donald and Stella Maynard made sure Friday to have their cholesterol checked at the Enfield Visiting Nurse Association table before they went to the goodies table.
“It’s better than getting checked after you eat,” Donald Maynard said. Stella Maynard said she was unhappy with her cholesterol reading, but glad she got it checked. “At least I tied with him on blood pressure,” she said of her husband.
The couple said they go to Senior Day every year.
“You get a lot of good information because every table is geared to seniors,” Donald Maynard said. He said that last year he learned more about supplemental health insurance.
On Friday, he and his wife signed up for a course at Asnuntuck Community-Technical College’s University for a Third Age program.
UTA, as the program is known, offers continuing education for older people. The Friday afternoon series at Asnuntuck includes lectures on topics as diverse as salamanders and hospice health care programs.
