Senior Programs

Local senior citizens who wish to stay active and engaged are fortunate to have the option to join the Hilton Head Senior Center. About 422 residents and snowbirds are members, said Cherie Bronsky, director of the center. The average age is 75, and one member is 102.

Single members pay a $35 annual fee and couples, $60. It entitles them to attend all programs, workshops, health fairs and activities, with the exception of a few, such as chair yoga, tai chi and country line dancing, which require an outside instructor.

A nominal $3 fee per class is charged. Activities are scheduled year-round, and 122 members are regularly active, Bronsky said.

“We have to keep seniors actively engaged in the community they live in,” she said. Cards, board games, table tennis are scheduled, as are day adventures for high tea, museums, educational events, and boating tours of Savannah, Beaufort and Daufuskie Island.

Holiday parties with notable speakers, a walking group at Jarvis Park, bowling and seasonal golf also are in the lineup.

Of the island’s nearly 40,000 permanent population, 38.4% are age 65 and older, according to the U.S. census. Bluffton, which doesn’t have a senior center or programs, has a median age of 37.5. Bluffton residents are invited to attend the programs on the island, as are walk-ins from anywhere.