According to the 2012 American Community Survey, one-third of St. Louis County’s senior population is age 65 or older. Our community has placed a high priority on senior services, evidenced by the St. Louis County Strategic Plan (2013), which includes the promotion of health and wellness of seniors among its goals. Additionally, the St. Louis County government is developing an action plan for its Age-Friendly Communities initiative, focusing on health, inclusion and accessibility. St. Louis County Library is a resource for adult programming and community interaction; however, the expressed interests of our government and community highlight areas of opportunity and innovation in senior programming. Through this collaboration with MEAAA, seniors can attend sessions of interest facilitated by experts in a familiar and comfortable environment.

To serve the greatest number of seniors, three SLCL branches located in north, south and west St. Louis County, were chosen to host Healthy Living for Seniors programs. Each region has a team, comprised of SLCL and MEAAA staff, working together on topics of interest for that specific community, speakers from area organizations and space logistics. MEAAA offers donation-based healthy lunches, catered by Panera Bread, to attendees, as well as transportation to the library branch. Joint marketing efforts offer increased communication about the Healthy Living for Seniors series to keep seniors engaged in their communities and healthy lifestyles.

From the initiation of Healthy Living for Seniors in September 2014 through February 2015, we have witnessed several successes. 307 seniors have attended programs, with over 61% attending multiple sessions. 89.9% of attendees were new to MEAAA services. MEAAA takes registrations centrally via phone or online, and information is communicated to SLCL staff to allow for changes to set-up. Communication between our organizations is essential, which led to regular SLCL and MEAAA meetings of all key players to discuss any issues, trends in attendance, impact of weather and convenience of scheduled times. We continue to reevaluate days and times that programs are held to ensure the most appeal for our target population. We anticipate program expansion based on our current success at three locations.