CAST director touts senior programs

CAST, chamber meets for 'Hot Topics' breakfast

By RON LARSEN

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM--It was Dian Fasse at her finest during the New Ulm Chamber of Commerce "Hot Topics" breakfast at the new New Ulm Community Center Friday.

The C.A.S.T. director trumpeted the value of the seniors programs that can now be given more space and attention because of the new building. She pointed out where more money was needed and exhorted slow-eaters to hurry up and finish so she could stay on schedule with a Fasse-guided tour of the new facility.

One of her concerns was that, with the round tables, only 200 or so individuals could be served at a sit-down dinner in the new performance-dining facility.

Sneaking a peek at Park and Recreation Director Dave Bechtold, Fasse told the group, "I'd like to try it with rectangular tables to see if we could feed more because, you know, you baby boomers are growing older. I don't know how we'll be able to handle it because the senior population will double by 2030."

While elaborating on a long list of services that C.A.S.T. (Community and Seniors Together) provides to seniors, she noted that with the arts and crafts being moved from the Riverside building, "we will offer inter-generational programming, for young and old, too."

Fasse said the New Ulm facility "even reaches beyond New Ulm in some aspects." Each day meals are prepared in the new center's kitchen for several area senior centers.

"We try to provide services that are informational and recreational. We can even help seniors with their Medicare payments, and as every senior knows, there's nothing more difficult than getting payments from Medicare."