Amid COVID-19 closures, this Haltom City resident continues to serve its seniors
For the last 27 years, Bobbi Arthur has made it her mission to serve the people of the Haltom City Senior Citizen Center. When the center closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, it didn’t discourage her from continuing her work — she instead looked for different ways to serve.
When the center was open, members would spend most days there, Arthur, the center supervisor said. It’s a place where they socialized and were taken care of. For some, their only family is the center staff.
When the city notified the center that it had to close, the whole dining room went silent, Arthur said.
“The biggest concern was food,” she said. “A lot of our folks have difficulty getting a hot meal.”
Arthur couldn’t let her “center friends,” as she calls them, stay without the services the center offers. And while the days of being in each other’s company are gone for now, Arthur, her staff, volunteers and city employees devised a plan to keep everyone in touch and fed.
They came up with a plan to deliver meals from Sixty and Better Inc., a nonprofit that provides resources for the elderly.
The center operates 13 delivery routes and provides meals to over 100 members, Arthur said. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, Arthur, her staff and volunteers are at the center giving food to members who can make the trip there.
Both options allow a vulnerable population to get food they need while minimizing the risk of contracting COVID-19, which has affected the elderly population the most. According to the World Health Organization, eight out of 10 COVID-19 deaths reported in the country have been people 65 or older.
With most members at home due to the pandemic, the center offers ways to keep everyone in touch and updated. A newsletter also goes out with updates and sometimes includes food recipes from members.
Arthur keeps track of the center’s Facebook page, which allows members to stay connected and continue with group exercises at home.
During these trying times, Arthur said the community has come together even stronger. From volunteers to city staff, it wasn’t only her who made it possible for the center to support its members.
“In the worst of times, you see the best of people,” Arthur said.
Center volunteer Jana Kristofek nominated Arthur for recognition in the Star-Telegram’s Hometown Heroes series because of her never-ending selflessness to help members of the center. If someone needs something, Arthur would find a person who could do those things for her members.
“Calling Bobbi is like calling their mother,” she said.
Hometown Heroes is sponsored by Lockheed Martin, which is providing $1,000 each to the 28 people selected by the Star-Telegram to be featured in the weekly series.
Kristofek describes Arthur’s passion to help as contagious. The center has had to turn down volunteers because they already had more than enough people.
“If everyone had a heart like Bobbi’s, the world would be a better place,” she said.
Brenda Selzer, who would take her husband Ronald Selzer to the center, said Arthur has been there for her since her mother died about seven years ago. Arthur has made sure she felt safe and loved.
“One day I was kind of sad because my husband was in the hospital, and she put a card — she just slid it in my door with a picture of my mom,” Seltzer said.
Without Arthur, Seltzer said her life would’ve been chaos. She wouldn’t have found a safe place for her mother or her husband.
“Bobbi never says ‘What can you do for me?’ She says, ‘What can I do for you?’” Seltzer said.
To nominate a hometown hero
To nominate someone to be featured in the Hometown Heroes series, go to star-telegram.com/nominate.
This story was originally published July 30, 2020 at 5:45 AM.
