For more than 40 years, the Gilroy Senior Center Gift Shop has served as an avenue for seniors to sell their knitted goods and make a supplementary income, while also providing a much-needed source of socialization.
Also over the decades, the shop has donated funds to a sizable list of charitable organizations, which includes Meals on Wheels, Live Oak Adult Day Services and St. Joseph’s Family Center.
But on July 1, it made its last donation, as the shop, located in the center that is currently undergoing a conversion, has closed.
Gift Shop President Beverly Kirk and Treasurer Shirley Kennedy visited St. Joseph’s Family Center during one of its food distribution events, handing a $1,000 check to the organization’s Director of Community Engagement Vicky Martin to help support the food services.
Martin said St. Joseph’s food distribution program, which runs three days a week, serves about 500 people daily, down from a peak of 900 a day during the onset of the pandemic.
“This helps support our food services which are growing immensely,” she said. “The support we receive really helps us bridge the gap.”
Kirk said the Gift Shop, run by volunteers, offered a wide variety of hand-knitted items, and Kennedy added that it was well-known for its selection of baby clothes that grandmothers would purchase.
“This is bittersweet for us,” Kirk said. “We’re so happy to give, but we feel like this is it. This is the last time we can do something like this.”
Kirk said the Gift Shop paid the city $100 a month to rent the room, and offered to pay more if it could permanently stay in the spot. But the city has plans to turn the room into a flexible spot, offering meeting space, parent/children workshops, classes and other purposes.
Kennedy added that the Gift Shop has closed its bank account as it winds down operations, calling it “heartbreaking.”
“We were senior ladies knitting to make a supplementary income,” she said. “We’ve been doing it for many years. We’ve been good neighbors.”
Council rejects Senior Center name change
The Gilroy City Council on July 1 rejected a name change for the Senior Center that would have reflected the new offerings it is planning in the near future.
In 2019, the city hired PROS Consulting to develop the Recreation Facility and Program Needs Assessment. That report, released in 2020 after various community meetings, found that Gilroy was in need of an indoor community center that serves all ages.
With funding non-existent for a new building, city officials turned their focus to the Senior Center at 7371 Hanna St., which they found was being underutilized, Recreation Manager Adam Henig said.
The center plans to offer activities such as tutoring, arts and crafts, community meetings and more, for all ages. Henig said senior services will still be provided during the daytime hours, such as tax services, lunch programs and other social activities.
Recreation Division staff will also be moving from City Hall into the center.
“Ultimately, the goal of the conversion is for the center to serve the entire community, regardless of age,” Henig said. “Whether you are 90 or 9, the enhancements to the existing Senior Center will better accommodate the recreational and social needs of all residents.”
Henig said the seniors could still have the opportunity to sell their crafts, suggesting that the center could host monthly pop-up boutiques with the support of the city.
However, the council rejected that proposal, with only Mayor Marie Blankley and Councilmember Peter Leroe-Munoz voting in favor. The vote, however, was only for the name change, as the conversion will still continue.
Councilmember Rebeca Armendariz said she’s heard from countless residents lamenting the Gift Shop’s closure.
“That just tells me how important it is to the community and the folks who are active in the Senior Center,” she said.
Blankley said that although the conversion means the Gift Shop will no longer have exclusive use of the room, it can still operate at certain times.
“No one is saying they can’t have use of the room, but it has to be in a pop-up form,” she said.
