The Council on Aging at the Human Services & Senior Center is located at 30 Sudbury Rd, Rear.
Telephone: 978-929-6652 Email: seniorcenter@actonma.gov Website: www.actoncoa.com/ Facebook: www.facebook.com/actoncoaOpening Hours: Monday: 8:00am-4:00pmTuesday: 8:00am-6:00pm Wednesday & Thursday: 8:00am-4:00pmFriday: 8:00am-12noonRevolutions and Banana Wars: US Intervention in Latin America from the Monroe Doctrine to the Cold War
with Paolo Di GregorioMonday, February 23rd, 1:00-2:00pm Open to out-of-towners 60+ for $5For the last 200 years, the United States has had a complex, often controversial, relationship with our southern neighbors. Recent events in South America and the Caribbean illustrate that the story of this relationship is still unfolding. This illustrated talk examines the history of US involvement in the Americas, and the politics, economics, and ideologies that shaped the story. Paolo
Di Gregorio is a historian, archaeologist and educator. He is a Visiting Lecturer in the History Department at Bridgewater State University, and his passion for telling stories of our past is enthusiastically received by Acton’s older adults!Generate Hope for a Good Future Workshop via Zoom Tuesday, February 24th, 1:00-2:00pm Open to all age 60+/freeHope can uplift and motivate us while we navigate challenges, uncertainty, and unpredictability. Join Dr. Miriam Rosalyn Diamond to take steps toward envisioning a better future through inspiration, a growth mindset, maps, receiving and providing support. Participate via Zoom from home or via a large screen TV with others at the Senior Center. Register:
seniorcenter@actonma.gov or 987-929-6652.
Miriam Rosalyn Diamond, PhD, is an educator, program developer, and inclusion specialist. She teaches adult education and college classes on lifespan development, friendship, and ethical awareness. LitLovers Study Group/Masterpieces of Short Fiction: The Rocking-Horse WinnerTuesday, February 24th, 2:30-4:00pm Open to all age 60+/freeThe group views a 30-minute lecture from
The Great Courses: Masterpieces of Short Fiction, followed by a vibrant discussion on the lecture, the featured story and the author. This month’s story is
The Rocking-Horse Winner by D.H. Lawrence. Short stories have the unique ability to deliver a powerful emotional impact within a concise format, and we are studying some of the best! Upcoming authors include Flannery O’Connor, James Baldwin, John Updike, and Margaret Atwood. If you need a copy of the story, pick up at reception or contact facilitator Chris Chirokas at
cchirokas@actonma.gov to have a digital copy emailed.
Dinner with DougTuesday, February 24th, 4:30pm Acton 60+ onlyWe will be having chicken kabobs with tzatziki sauce, rice pilaf, vegetables, pita bread and dessert. Please sign up prior to the event. $5.00 is requested.
Greatest Love Songs of All Time Part 2 PresentationThursday, February 26th, 1:00-2:00pm Open to out-of-towners 60+ for $5Join John Clark to reminisce to the sound of these beloved romantic songs, from lighthearted twenties tunes like
Side by Side and
I Can’t Give You Anything but Love to more serious standards like
All of Me and
(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman. Hey, I’ll bet you a plug nickel that you remember slow dancing to these 1950s favorites: the doo-wop classic
I Only Have Eyes for You and a familiar hit song
Play Misty for Me. Or how about Rosemary Clooney’s sweet and lovely
Tenderly that became a jazz standard and
Old Black Magic that got a musical makeover on the lively Louis Prima & Keely Smith version? Other performers and recording artists include the Glenn Miller Orchestra, Frank Sinatra, Kay Starr, Cliff Edwards, Diane Krall, Aretha Franklin, Carole King, Bobby Vinton, Louis Armstrong, Gene Autry, Art Garfunkel, The Beatles and more! It’s the month for Valentines so come and take a sentimental musical stroll down Memory Lane!
Prior to a career as a high school and adult education teacher, John Clark worked in music publishing in Nashville. He enjoys sharing his passion for music with senior centers and senior residences.Join the Massachusetts Center for the Book 2026 Reading Challenge!Looking for guidance on selecting what to read, a new genre to try or just motivation to read more? The Acton Council on Aging is partnering with the non-profit Massachusetts Center for the Book to foster a love of reading throughout 2026! Each month offers a prompt for what to read—the prompt for February is book outside your usual genre or spin the wheel to select a genre on the Mass Center for the Book website. Other prompts include a short story or essay collection and an adult classic you have never read. Participants are welcome to submit the title read each month to Massachusetts Center for the Book to qualify for prizes. Participate as little or as much as you desire. For more information or to sign up to receive the reading challenge newsletter, go to
https://www.massbook.org/ and scroll down to Reading Challenge. The site also offers book recommendations for each month’s prompt.