Call the Council on Aging at 508-841-8640 24 hours a day or fill out our "Request Help for a Senior" form online.

Elder Abuse and Neglect is a serious and growing problem. If you suspect that an elder is being abused or is neglecting themselves. a special state agency can help. You may call the COA or fill out our "Request Help for a Senior" form online, or you may call the Shrewsbury Police at 508-845-1212. You may also call the Commonwealth's Elder Abuse Hotline at 1-800-AGE-INFO.

The Shrewsbury Senior Center is open to all seniors. Actually, there is no such thing as "joining" the Senior Center.

If someone lives in town and is 60 years or older, they are welcome to come and enjoy the Center. It is their tax dollars that funded it, and as a public building, the Senior Center is truly theirs to utilize.

However, various clubs meet at the Senior Center, such the Shrewsbury Friends Mens Group, the Shrewsbury Senior Citizens Club, and the Colonial Chapter AARP, some of which charge dues to join. There is also the Friends of the Shrewsbury Senior Center, Inc. organization, which is the fundraising arm of the Senior Center. It charges dues of $5 and assists in making the COA Newsletter possible and helps fund things that are not in the Town's COA budget. Although there is certainly no obligation to join the Friends, the organization is a great support to the COA department and the Senior Center.

Most activities can be enjoyed free of charge. Some activities have a suggested donation, and some are done in conjunction with the Parks and Recreation department, which do require registration and fees. Most of the meetings and activities are listed each month in the COA Newsletter. If you have any questions about a certain activity, program or group, feel free to call the Senior Center to learn more.

For Non-Shrewsbury Senior Residents:
The following guidelines are in place for non-residents who wish to participate in activities:

Non-Residents Who Belong to A Shrewsbury Senior Organization:
Each Shrewsbury senior organization using the building will be allowed to make their own rules pertaining to non-Shrewsbury residents. The COA will honor the guidelines of each organization. It is hoped that each organization will encourage any of their non-resident members to join or contribute to the Friends group to support the Shrewsbury Senior Center, regardless of where they live.

Non-Residents Who Participate in a Parks and Recreation Senior Activity at the Senior Center:
Since Parks and Recreation is funded by Town tax dollars, they have traditionally charged senior non-residents an additional $5 to their registration fees. The COA will honor Parks and Recreation's fees for its activities and any changes it should make regarding them.

Non-Residents Who Wish To Participate In General Activities:
The COA will not charge any extra fees to a non-resident participant for any of its programs, services, or activities that are not provided in their community. However, for activities or programs with space limitations, the COA has the right to restrict participation to residents only, if necessary. It is hoped that any non-resident will contribute to or become a member of the Friends group to help the Senior Center with its on-going programs.

If you live in Shrewsbury, simply call the Senior Center at 508-841-8640 any time and give us your name and address with your request. Our voice mail service is on 24 hours a day.

If you want to request the Newsletter not for yourself but for a senior in town, simply call in and give us their name and address and your request. We will check to make sure that they are not already in our database.

If you live outside of Shrewsbury, we ask for a $5 donation to our Friends of the Shrewsbury Senior Center, Inc. organization to cover the printing and mailing cost. Simply send a check with your request, made out to the Friends organization. Please write "for Newsletter" in the Memo portion of the check.