Pay It Forward: Giving seniors new life and purpose

MELBA, Idaho (CBS 2) — In rural Idaho, neighbors can be separated by acres of farmland. And for the elderly, some of whom have limited mobility or can no longer drive, the distances can seem insurmountable.

That is why the Melba Valley Senior Center has become so vital to this community. It brings neighbors together.

There is usually a hot lunch being prepared in its kitchen. A game of billiards in the back room. The center has a van that's always available for trips shopping, or to the doctor.

And of course, there's always bingo.

The center is a gathering place where people talk, laugh, and connect. Here they know that others care about them. They’re among friends.

This place, said Sandi Riley, is a lifesaver, “This means that I’m still alive. If I didn’t have it, and you just get old and you sit at home and do nothing, you probably aren’t going to be around.”

“It helps to have a place to gather,” said Michelle Martinez, the director of the Melba Valley Senior Center. “And I love it! It’s so much fun!”

The center also provides seniors with the opportunity to give back. During the week, they take turns with other community groups putting together sack lunches. They hand out the lunches in a nearby park to students who are out of school for the summer.

And that is not all. A couple of times a month, Melba Senior Center volunteers – both young and old – have a drive-up food distribution.

The day CBS 2 cameras were there, they were handing out boxes of fresh strawberries and vegetables from the Idaho Foodbank.

There can be as many as a hundred cars lined up for the food boxes. And it is not just for seniors.

Michelle has expanded the role of the senior center, making it a community center where all are welcome and wanted.

“I’m glad that we can help,” said Michelle. “I’m glad we can do something and just make everybody feel that this is our community, and this is what we do.

“Age doesn’t matter. And I think that’s the biggest thing I hear. ‘I can’t go to the senior center because I’m not old enough.’ What’s old? What’s age? Like, how many wrinkles do you have to have? What does that look like to you? You know, we just have the best time and it’s like, age doesn’t matter.”

By her own admission, Michelle has become something of a mom to people who are older than she is! “Yes! And I don’t know, I’m sure there’s another word than ‘mom’ for it, but that fits and so if they’re older, who cares?” she said.

Michelle tells me, she’s just paying it forward.

“This community loved us. They loved my boys that were still at home. They loved my boys that had moved out. They loved my husband and me. They showed love in a million different ways. If I can give back a tenth of that love, I’ve done right.”

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