As COVID-19 restrictions come to a close, many places are opening their doors back open to the public.
Prince Albert’s Community Heritage Centre opened their doors on June 24th after being closed for the past 16 months.
“We try to encourage people not to stay at home, if you’re sitting at home by yourself and living alone, it gets pretty boring,” Bill Norman, president of the Heritage Centre told paNOW.
The centre is a spot for senior citizens to visit, play cards, and dance along to live entertainment.
“We play Kaiser two or three times a week, crib twice a week, whist once a week, a few people shoot pool,” Norman said. “We also have BBQ’s, dances, and birthday parties. We have a birthday of the month. Anyone who has a birthday that month, we have a party for them.”
They are open Monday to Saturday with the live music happening every Monday.
“We have as many as 11 to 13 musicians who come and give their time freely,” Norman said. “The dancers say they are the best bands in town. We have about 80 to 100 people there in the afternoon.”
One of the musicians is violinist, Neil Brackhan.
“It’s a jam session. It’s a good feeling. Music is a happy feeling,’ Brackhan said. “When you can get together with friends, and there’s nothing concrete, it’s just about the fellowship. We get together and play.”
They are open to anyone 55-plus. Prior to the pandemic, the organization had close to 300 members the Norman explained.
“We’re an ageing group down there, we aren’t getting many young people,” Norman said. “Some are a little hesitant to come right now, I think within the next little while they’ll all return.”
Having nowhere to visit familiar faces, the past year and a half have been hard on a lot of the members.
“It was taking a toll on some of them. We had some people at home getting so bored, they would get in the car and drive down and sit in front of the Heritage Centre for a while, hoping that it might open” Norman said.
“I phoned a lot of the people that are living by themselves and talked to them at different times. A lot of them phoned me, inquiring and some of them just to pass some time. It was a long 16 months for some people.”
Anyone who joins them for an afternoon of cards or entertainment must first be vaccinated and have a membership. Until July 12th, members have to be masked to participate.
The organization is planning a bigger re-opening celebration this fall.
“There will likely be a BBQ and a few other things,” Norman added.
The first live performance at the centre is on July 19th.
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Dawson.thompson@pattisonmedia.com
On Twitter: @dawsonthompson8
