Bay County Building
515 Center Avenue
Bay City, Michigan 48708-5941

Bay County Department on Aging Senior Olympic Games kicks off June 1

Press Release - For Immediate Release

Bay City, Mich. — Now on its 30th anniversary of promoting physical and mental health for Bay County seniors, the Bay County Department on Aging will sponsor the 2017 Senior Olympic Games June 1 through June 16.

Debbie Keyes, Program/Event Manager for the Department on Aging, has been involved in the games for 25 years now and said the event has grown from a day-long event to over two weeks long during the time she has been involved.

“I encourage people to come out and see what it’s all about,” said Keyes. “It’s a blast – just the spirit of comradery, fellowship and health through activity.”

This year’s theme is “Sharing the Olympic Spirit.” The mission of the Olympics is “Promoting fellowship, physical and mental health through activities for adults 55 years plus.”

“With almost 25 percent of our county’s citizens aged 60 years or older, events like this are crucial to providing our seniors with fun, rewarding and healthy activities,” said Bay County Executive Jim Barcia. “I want to thank our staff, volunteers and community sponsors for working so hard to put on such a worthwhile program.”

The Olympics will open with a Kick-off Breakfast on Thursday, June 1 at 8 a.m. in the Bay County Community Center gym, 800 John F. Kennedy Drive in Bay City. The Awards Ceremony and Banquet will be on Friday, June 16 at 4 p.m., also in the Community Center gym. Menus for all the meals offered during the course of the Olympic Games are in the registration packet. There is also a calendar of all the events for easy reference.

Barcia, who plans on attending the kick-off breakfast as well as the closing ceremonies to assist in awarding medals, said he is looking forward to seeing the turnout this year. “I encourage our seniors to participate – those who do well in our games have the chance to move on to represent Bay County in Senior Olympic games on the state as well as the national level.”

Keyes said some of the biggest draws during the two and half weeks of games are the card tournaments. “Bay County is definitely a card-playing county for sure,” she said. “Some of the largest tournaments are euchre and smear, but we also have a great turnout for the golf and fishing tournaments too.”

“This event is all about keeping our seniors engaged, active and out there doing things they are passionate about,” said Keyes. “It’s about having a good time.”

Other events include a bicycle ride, a shuffleboard tournament, putt-putt golf, a walking tour and a bowling tournament, among the other activities and meals.

Early registration is due by May 30, 2017. For more information on how to register, or to volunteer during the events, call the Department on Aging main line at 989-895-4100 or call toll-free at 877-229-9960. Packets are also available at the Department of Aging offices on the second floor of the Bay County Building located at 515 Center Ave. in Bay City.

The cost for early registration is $7 for Bay County residents and $10 for non-residents. After May 31, the cost to register is $10 for residents and $14 for non-residents.

The event is sponsored by the Bay County Community Center, McLaren Bay Region, Spring Valley Golf Course, Buoy 18, Financial Edge Credit Union, Monitor Lanes, Riverside Activity Center, Canteen – Fairgrounds, Bangor Rail Trail, Frank Anderson State Park and the Bay City State Recreation Area.

The Department on Aging would like to offer a special thanks to COPOCO Credit Union for their help to defray the costs for the medals.