Featured
Move your way into the Malden Senior Center programs
There are lots of opportunities for fitness and other activities at the Malden Senior Center. Anna Maria Amigo’s zumba class is a particular favorite. […]
Malden Senior Center
Arts
6th Annual Hispanic Festival offers a lively celebration
By Sabrina Monteiro On October 7, the North Shore Hispanic Association celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month for the 6th consecutive year in Malden. Among the local figures attending was Mayor Gary Christenson, who gave a speech about the importance of this celebration. “They say to never underestimate the power of music,” Mayor Christenson said, excited about the opportunity to showcase Hispanic culture in Malden. He finished by saying, “Gracias por estar aquí y disfruten el evento.” Soon enough, everyone was on the dance floor. Iliana Sanchez, the 2023 Preteen Miss Honduras winner, began the festivities with her rendition of “I Am Woman.” Other performers followed, including Pumawari Tusuy, a traditional Peruvian dance group from the Boston area. Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15th to October 15th. The initiation of this celebration first began in 1968 as Hispanic Heritage Week under President Lyndon Johnson. It then expanded into the span of a month by President Ronald Reagan and turned into a law on August 17, 1988. The event in Malden was held at the Malden […]
Featured
Q&A with Mikeneil Paul, Director of the Malden Senior Center
By Jack Drees Mikeneil Paul has served as the Malden Senior Center’s program coordinator for more than two years. His days – Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. – include anything from meeting with the mayor or the city’s Council on Aging, to assisting anyone who needs him. Between tasks, activities, or solving problems, there’s always some new challenge for Paul. It is a job he continues to “take a lot of pleasure in,” whether dealing with seniors who come in every day, or only once a week. While they may not be family, Paul sees himself as the seniors’ noble grandson who rises to the occasion whenever called upon. And by making the job a staple of his life, Paul has become a factor in the center’s ongoing success. He recently took a moment out of his busy schedule to chat with Neighborhood View. How would you describe a typical day as the Program Coordinator of the Malden Senior Center? One of the things I actually like about this job is that […]
Featured
It’s not about ping pong: Restorative practices come to Malden
Sometimes the best way to tackle a problem is to come at it in a whole new way. The city is taking a unique approach to conflict at the Malden Senior Community Center by employing “restorative practices,” an outgrowth of restorative justice, using talking circles and trained facilitators to get at the root of an issue and repair relationships. Tensions at the Senior Center came to a head at a meeting on November 10 around the issue of the movement of a ping pong table from the more public and open space in the auditorium to a smaller room on the second level. Ping pong is a passionate pastime in the Chinese community and the Chinese players were upset about the move. But the heated debate and expression of emotion on both sides of the issue revealed tensions and conflicts that went deeper than the topic at hand. Karen Colon Hayes, community outreach coordinator at the mayor’s office had the idea to call upon Candace Julyan, a restorative justice practitioner who has been running a […]
Featured
80 is the new 60 at the Malden Senior Center
Many senior citizens know it’s advantageous to keep their mind and body active for their overall well being. Numerous older people make use of the John and Christina Markey Malden Senior Community Center located at 7 Washington Street, better known simply as the Malden Senior Center. The new facility opened in 2009 after a dedication ceremony to Senator Edward Markey’s parents and life-long Maldonians, John E. and Christina M. Markey. A public/private partnership leveraging funding resources brought this project to life in downtown Malden. To be specific the sources were as follows: $2M- HUD Section 108 Loan, $7.2M- City, $ 450K- Cambridge Health Alliance Donation, $250K- Private Foundation Grant. Rehabilitation cost $7.6M and $2.3M was used for acquisition of the old church site. Neighborhood View opted to profile a few of the seniors to obtain their insight as the intended end users of the facility. Join us as we meet 85 year old Ed Clarke, 86 year old Mary Peabody and 64 year old Peter Huang. We also hear from Silvia Banos, the current director of […]