The goal is to provide, under one roof and at one convenient location, a multitude of services for the people over age 60 or retirees of the community. It is a place where Seniors can socialize and get services.

The center offers many services free or at low cost. Services include flu shots, filing income taxes, free eye exams for cataracts and glaucoma and seminars on problems which seniors are prone to. 

The center gives between 2,000 to 3,000 flu shots to seniors each year at a cost of $2 for those without Medicare and free for those with Medicare. 

Another service that many seniors take advantage of is the free assistance with filing tax forms. Volunteers, who are trained by and IRS class, provide their assistance free of change to the Alliance area seniors. The program runs annually from February through April. 

The senior center also offers seniors a chance to get out of their house and explore the world. 

The center plans several trips each year and plans on going to several this year. The senior center will be taking trips to spend Christmas in New York, Amtrak to West Virginia and a trip to Boston. They also will be taking a trip out of the country to visit the heart of Europe. 

A trip to Florida is also planned which involves the 65 member senior center chorus. The chorus was selected to sing at Walt Disney World in Orlando. 

Beside the longer trips out of state and country, the center also has one-day trips almost every week that seniors can visit the many beautiful parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. 

The future looks bright for the senior center as plans include affordable housing on the property next to the senior center. 

Also next to the senior center on their 43 acres of land, a nature trail runs through one of the only wooded areas left inside the city limits. Seniors can walk by the lake and small creek that runs through the property. 

The center also holds special fundraising events that have been a big hit traditionally with the seniors. 

The Strawberry Festival kicks off in the spring and the annual Apple-Pumpkin Festival features arts and crafts, as well as fresh made autumn desserts. 

The senior center is open to all seniors in the Alliance area regardless whether or not they are a member. Members receive discounts on classes and tours and is sort of an incentive for seniors to become a member. According to Senior Citizen Center Director Helen Miller, there are nearly 2,000 members at the center. 

Memberships cost $l0 for a single person and $15 for a couple. Memberships not only entitle seniors to discounts on the classes and tours, but they receive a monthly newsletter that has a calendar of events for the month and focuses on the activities at the center. 

Miller said they try to provided the services that seniors would need and let them know the answer to many of their questions are only a phone call away. She said if they don’t have the answer for the seniors citizens, they will put them in touch with someone who will. 

The Alliance Area Senior Citizens Center Inc. is a nonprofit, tax-exempt corporation that raises all of its own funds. The center does not operate with any help from state or federal money. 

The center is located at 602 W. Vine St., Alliance, OH 44601. For further details or program information, the center can be reached by phone at (330) 821-3348 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., weekdays.