Stephanie Antonucci passes out cool drinks on a hot summer day.
BROOKHAVEN — About 20 percent of the residents in the Town of Brookhaven are over 60 years old, and many of them are in poor health and unable to care for their own nutritional needs.
That is why the Town of Brookhaven Nutrition Senior Program came into existence more than 20 years ago.
From the beginning, CSEA members have been heavily involved in the program as workers at the Rose Caracappa Senior Citizens Cultural and Wellness Center in Mount Sinai, one of two centers in Brookhaven where seniors gather to receive nutritional meals. The other location is the Mastic Recreation Center.
For many of the seniors who visit the center or get their meals delivered to them as part of the town’s Home Delivered Meal Program, the centers’ workers and volunteers are often only contact the seniors have with people all day.
Stephanie Antonucci, a senior citizen aide II at the center, does in-home inspections for those who want to participate in the home delivery program. It’s her job to make sure that the person requesting the service is someone in need.
“The last person I assessed is a 90-year-old man whose wife just passed away,” said Antonucci. “He can’t cook; he has no family and no kids. For him, we’re his only source of a nutritional meal.”
Kitchen Manager Julia Zito unpacks food that has just been delivered to the Rose Carracapa Senior Center.
The center delivers more than 90 meals per day and feeds more than 1,000 senior citizens per month as part of the program.
There have been times when those who deliver meals find seniors in a potentially life-threatening situation.
“We’ve had people show up at seniors’ homes and no one answered the door,” said Antonucci. “That raised enough concern for us to call their emergency contacts. Ultimately, we found out that the person had fallen and was unable to answer the door. A few times, we found out that the person had passed away.”
“What would have happened had we not been there?” said Antonucci.
The center provides more than just food. It’s also a place where seniors can socialize at dances, meet for shopping trips and play games like bingo.
“I’m happy that they have somewhere to go where they can eat and also enjoy themselves,” said Julia Zito, part-time kitchen manager. “I feel really good about being able to help them.”
The senior centers are open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. A contribution of $2 is suggested, but not required. Transportation to the center is also available for those who qualify.
To learn more about this programs and other programs for seniors in the Town of Brookhaven, visit brookhaven.org.
— Wendi Bowie
