Come In and Cool Off With Us!

If temperatures in July seemed especially sweltering, it wasn’t your imagination. According to scientists, several days were likely the hottest in Earth’s modern history, as a surge of heat across the globe shattered temperature records from North America to Antarctica.
But summer is far from over, and we’d like to remind everyone that the La Pine Activity Center is a cooling center. That means you and your loved ones are welcome to come inside and get out of the heat. We’re open five days a week, Monday – Friday, from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
While you’re here, we’d love it if you join us for lunch, or try out our other regular activities such as exercise classes (including Yoga with Michelle, Balance & Bones, Fit for Life, and Body Groove) and bingo (scheduled for Monday nights and Tuesday afternoons).
We especially urge those who are still in Covid mode, and reluctant to leave their homes and mingle, to enjoy the Activity Center’s hospitality. People of all ages — not just seniors – are welcome to sit on the couch, work on their laptops, read a book, or just socialize. There’s always someone who would appreciate a friend.
When we first opened up as a cooling center last summer, after temperatures reached 100 degrees, our air conditioning went out. It was horrible! We’ve since purchased a new A/C system, which I’m happy to say is working well, and keeps the inside of the Activity Center nice and cool.
The idea of offering a cooling center initially came about when we realized that a lot of people in the La Pine area may not have A/C — some of them can’t afford a larger bill for power. And as we’re always here to try and help people in our community who are in need, providing a place to rest and refresh made sense.
(The Activity Center is also available, inside and outside, when wildfires or other disasters result in evacuation orders.) And remember, per the Oregon Health Authority: All Oregonians are asked to check on vulnerable friends, family, and neighbors who may be susceptible to extreme heat to help them access ways to stay safe – especially those who live alone or lack air conditioning. Signs of heat stroke include fever, rapid pulse, nausea or vomiting, and hot or damp skin. OHA advises people to call 9-1-1 immediately is someone shows signs of heat stroke.

It’s already June and that means Rhubarb Festival time! Volunteers in all areas are needed, so please contact me if you would like to help. We are already getting requests from local business to become sponsors in 2024, and have a waiting list of 10 or 11 vendors for this year because we’re full for vendor space!
Check our website and Facebook page in the near future for the dates and times of our Healthy Walking classes, which will be starting up again now that the weather is nice.
We need bingo callers! We only have one right now, so ladies, if you want to get your husband out of the house once a week, send him over here on Monday nights one or two times a month!
Our “Angel Wings” scholarship program has been going on for a couple of years now. If someone comes in the Center and they don’t have the funds to pay the $40 yearly membership fee, we have “Angel Wings” scholarships available so they can become an Activity Center member for a year at no cost. But we need more sponsors for this wonderful program, from individuals and businesses. I have received calls from mental health services who refer individuals to us that are suffering from isolation or loneliness, and they need a place for these people to go where they can interact with others and feel safe. We just awarded an Angel Wing scholarship the other day and this person has come into the center and has signed up to be a volunteer. She now feels like she’s part of something. So if you would like to become an Angel Wings sponsor, please let us know…there’s someone out there (and they don’t have to be a senior, by the way) who would really appreciate becoming part of our family! This is a confidential program and no one will know who is a recipient of this scholarship except for the person who receives it.
A big part of my job is to be an intermediary of sorts, connecting those in need to the resources that can help them. We’ve had people come in here who can’t pay their electricity bill, for example, and I’ve put them in contact with NeighborImpact, and they’ve gotten the assistance they needed. Or someone comes in here and says they’re a victim of a scam of some sort, so we help them contact the appropriate authorities. Seniors or not, we’re here to help those in our community who need help the most.
So why do YOU come to the Activity Center? What do you like most about what we offer? I just received a 100-piece blank puzzle with very large pieces that you can write a word on that reflects why you come here. We’re going to have people fill those pieces out, then glue them together and make a wall hanging that shows all the different reasons to come here. Keep a lookout for that in the near future!
Make sure to take advantage of the free presentations we hold during lunch occasionally. We now have a calendar listing a whole month of lunches at the Center (see page 3 of this newsletter) that shows which lunches have a presentation.
That’s it for now — see you at the Rhubarb Festival!

We’re gearing up for the Rhubarb Festival which will be held June 17 and 18 here at the Center. It’s our biggest event of the year, here’s an update of what’s been happening with this event:
We need volunteers to help make Granny Pies for the Rhubarb Festival. We have about 900 pies ready so far, but we usually have about 1200 for sale, so there’s still a lot of work to be done. Connie Burger and others are helping to finish out the year.
Sina Wallace Streeter donated two cases of the BIG cans of Crisco, which were badly needed. Thanks Sina!
This year’s Rhubarb Festival sponsors include: St. Charles: dessert contest; La Pine Community Health Center: entertainment; First Interstate Bank of Sunriver: rhubarb pies; MidOregon Credit Union: golf carts; Terry Mowry is organizing the entertainment; Dan Laibath keeps those beer kegs organized; Rusty Hoar takes care of security during the day; Denise and Dennis Sampson actually tape out our parking lot for vendor spaces; and Janice Delzer is in charge of coordinating all the vendors. We are FULL as far as vendor spaces, with 106, and 30 new ones this year!
NEW this year as a Rhubarb Festival sponsor is HD Botanicals! And they’re very interested in doing monthly informational sessions before or after lunch to speak about the benefits of cannabis for seniors.
We’re having pre-sales for rhubarb pies and T-shirts, so please give us a call starting this month to pre-order yours.
On to other news:

• If you need a medical device (wheelchair, walker, etc.) check here FIRST before going to rent or buy one. We have items you can either have for free or rent (such as knee scooters). Just give us a call – we have lots of medical supplies you may be able to get for FREE.
• We need volunteers to help deliver lunches to homebound seniors three times a week. Also needed are volunteers for the kitchen, front desk and events.
• Volunteers for Monday Bingo caller once or twice a month are also needed.
• Although Heart & Home Hospice has closed in La Pine, Partners In Care still has a presence serving the La Pine community with hospice, home health, palliative care, and transitions (non-medical, free resource-based program). They have a small office on Huntington Road not far from the Park & Rec building, but most of their team is out visiting patients in their homes throughout La Pine, so the office may be quiet. They work closely with the La Pine Activity Center! If you need them, call 541-382-5882.
• Get your stuff organized for our annual community-wide garage sale July 7 and 8, to be held here at the Center.
  Lastly, I want to recognize Annette Langenstein, who produces our monthly newsletter. Annette is a graphic designer and writer who volunteers her time to sell and design the ads, write the articles, and lay out the newsletter each month. These sponsorship ads bring in much-needed funds, and with the closing of Wise Buys, this newsletter is more important than ever to our little community! Thanks, Annette, for all you do for us!

As I write this, I just got back from vacation and now I’m already busy with lots of stuff happening at the Activity Center!
As of April 3 we will be open Monday through Friday, from 9am to 4 pm, which is the schedule we will continue to follow during the summer.
Upcoming events: The Gun and Sportsman Show is schedule for April 1 and 2, and we are taking vendor applications now.
The Rhubarb Festival in June has over 65% of vendor spots taken! We have over a dozen brand new vendors and my biggest fear is that our regular vendors may lose their preferred spots if they don’t renew NOW…we just have too many new vendors wanting those prime spots. So if you want to keep your spot, contact me now! And remember, if you join the Center as a business member at either the platinum or gold level, you can hang your banner at the Rhubarb Festival FOR FREE!
Our membership drive is continuing through March, and just last week we had about 45 people renew their membership. Remember, right now there’s a special membership rate of $35 if you sign up before the end of March. Even if you don’t want to participate in the classes the Center offers, or attend the lunches, your membership dollars keep our door open! For example, our gas bill usually runs about $399 a month….lately it’s tripled to about $1200 a month. And that doesn’t include our electric bill! So we really need those members to help us keep the lights on!
BIG NEWS! The Eclipse Theatre Company of Bend is coming to the La Pine Activity Center! We will have a performance of “Here On The Flight Path” on Sunday, April 16 at 2pm, complete with food and drinks! This is an adults-only play and hopefully the first of many in the future that we can offer this community. See page 5 for more information.
In other news, we are offering two new classes at the Center! We are not a gym or fitness center, but we have people coming here taking these two new classes and loving them. Shondra McGrath is the instructor for “Better Bones and Balance” held Fridays at 9am and Mondays at 11:30, and Carol Spaw is now offering exercise and strength activities. Her class is Wednesday at 1pm for low-impact exercises like weights, pull-ups, etc. Cost is $5 for members and $8 for non-members. See the article on page 7 of this newsletter for more information about these two new classes.
The High Lakes Car Club Swap Meet is scheduled for May 13, and we’re doing our annual Flea Market sometime in May or June. More to come on that!
Grants are being worked on for kitchen upgrades and improvements. We also received $10,000 from the Council on Aging for these kitchen upgrades.
Last year our big project was the asphalt parking lot, and this year our big project is upgrading our kitchen. Next year we may look at expanding our facility because we are growing, and there’s nothing to stop us continuing to expand!