EMPORIUM — With a facility in need of a new heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system, volunteers at the Emporium Senior Center knew raising the funds for such an expense in their small community would be almost impossible.

In mid-May, the center received word from the Pennsylvania Department of Aging that they were one of 40 centers from across the commonwealth approved to receive more than $50,000 in competitive grant funding. This week, department Secretary Jason Kavulich stopped by the Cameron County building at 105 E. Fourth St.

The Emporium Senior Center on East Fourth Street.

The total award of $55,546 will cover the new HVAC system and more. Jill Perry of the center’s board of directors said the facility’s lighting will be upgraded to more efficient LEDs, non-slip mats at the entrances and for use when the community room is set up for events.

“The floor throughout the building is ceramic tile,” Perry explained. “We’re going to have Gator mats for indoor/outdoor use so we have a place where we can set up chairs and things that is not slippery.”

Perry agreed securing grant funds to cover the facility’s HVAC system is “great news” and “a biggie.” She said, “We’re very fortunate to own our building, through some other grants. We have to raise the money to maintain the building and operate — utilities, like water and electric, and that sort of thing. Our Senior Club raises the money for those things.”

Perry said the local Office of Human Services Area Agency on Aging advised center volunteers that the grant was available, and they began the process of applying for the competitive grant last September.

The grant funding is appropriated by the General Assembly in the budget for fiscal year 2024-25 with proceeds from the Pennsylvania Lottery.

Thirteen other senior centers in McKean, Elk and Cameron counties will each receive a non-competitive grant of $2,525. These are Greater Bradford, Eldred, Mount Jewett, Kane, Port Allegany, Smethport, Driftwood, Johnsonburg, Ridgway and St. Marys and Jones Township in Wilcox, Fox Township in Kersey and Bennetts Valley in Weedville.

A total of $3 million dollars in Gov. Josh Shapiro’s budget was earmarked for investment in the state’s senior centers to help ensure older adults are supported in familiar, local places with services to stay healthy and connected to their communities. Of that, $1 million was permanently established for the smaller annual non-competitive grants that support these important facilities and their programs.

Shapiro’s 2025-26 budget includes $2 million for the department to increase accountability and oversight of the Area Agency on Aging (AAA) network, which, among other things, provides resources and protective services for seniors, and a $20 million investment in the network to continue providing key services to older adults.

“Pennsylvania’s Senior Community Centers are a cornerstone in our communities and a pillar of daily life for the older adults they serve. A center may provide the only interaction that an older adult has some days, and we want to make sure that our centers are welcoming, inclusive assets to the local area,” said Secretary of Aging Jason Kavulich. “The projects funded by both the competitive and non-competitive grants will help the recipients enhance the programs and services already in place as well as create new opportunities to welcome current visitors and attract new consumers.”

This most recent funding came in addition to $300,000 announced in late April by state Rep. Martin Causer, R-Turtlepoint. Of that, $100,000 went to four Potter County centers — Coudersport, Galeton, Shinglehouse and Ulysses — and $200,000 was split evenly in McKean and Cameron counties between Bradford, Eldred, Kane, Mount Jewett, Port Allegany, Smethport, Driftwood and Emporium — awards of $25,000 per facility.

In a region with a prominent aging population, senior centers are vital, providing a space to connect, valuable programs and information, nutritious meals and even a place to find cooling or warmth.

Perry said that, at the Emporium center, groups of folks come in daily to enjoy a cup of coffee together and play cards or pool. They host bingo every Wednesday afternoon, offer informative programs on topics such as fraud and digital wellbeing and schedule assistance with things like the state Property Tax/Rent Rebate program.

“The most important thing,” she said, “is that (centers) get seniors out of their homes to have conversation, see somebody. Maybe they live alone and their family members don’t live around here, this gives them an opportunity to come in and enjoy other people.”

Perry continued, “For some of them, the noon meal is the only meal they probably get because they don’t cook for themselves. It’s no fun to cook for one. It’s a nutritious meal at a very affordable price, or free if they can’t pay. The most we ask them to pay is $4 and if they don’t have it, it doesn’t matter. We’ll still provide them a meal.”

A complete list of the non-competitive grant recipients is available online. For more information on other services and programs benefiting older Pennsylvanians, visit the Department of Aging’s website.