What’s old enough? Council on Aging wrestles with stigma of growing older

In her past life, Jane Brigham, 79, was a chaplain at a nursing home.

But after the COVID-19 virus broke out, Brigham’s family started to worry about her safety, working in a place where she could easily contract the deadly virus. After leaving her job, Brigham started to search for another place where she could forge community. In 2023, she found it at the Weston Council of Aging.

“I was looking again for a place with people and to just continue my life in an atmosphere of that form. So, this had a calling to me about it,” she said. “I remember laughing the first time I came. I learned something the first time and I met some new friends.”

As a program participant, Brigham enjoys the movies the council shows on Friday afternoons.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a film here that I’ve already seen. And that’s saying something considering my age,” Brigham said with a small chuckle.

After every screening, there’s a discussion between attendees about the film they watched. Brigham said each session leaves her with something new to tell her family.

Brigham is one of the residents who have found community after joining the Weston Council on Aging.

“Older” adults don’t identify with the Council on Aging

Despite the many resources and programs they offer, it can be difficult to convince older adults to go to their local council on aging.

Stephanie J. Keane, the director of the Weston Council on Aging, said the stigma associated with aging discourages many older adults from joining their programs.

“A lot of times, people think that they’re not old enough,” Keane said. “They don’t want to admit that they’re old enough to attend a council on aging.”

About 27% of Weston’s population — 3,164 people — are at least 60, according to the 2025 Massachusetts Healthy Aging Community Profile. Yet, just a little more than 40% attend programs, according to Keane.

The smallest group served is between 60 and 70 years old. A lot of people within that age bracket, Keane said, are either still working or don’t feel the need for the council’s programming.

“They just don’t have the awareness of what we do here,” Keane said. “We mail out our newsletter to every household in town with someone 60-plus. But I think a lot of times they’re not reading it because they’ll see ‘Council on Aging’ and they’ll think that we don’t have something for them.”

As a town department, the Council on Aging is responsible for advocating for and providing resources to the town’s older population. Programming includes trips to Castle Island, barbecues, international cooking classes, weekly golf games and support groups.

Ingrid Kannel, 77, is especially fond of the fitness classes. A participant since 2018, she’s made it a habit to consistently attend each session. She said she likes that her trainer Michelle Nickerson talks her through the workouts and keeps each session fresh.

“She makes us work hard — very hard,” she said with a soft chuckle.

Programs such as these help destigmatize councils on aging. Instead of drab, fluorescently-lit buildings filled with elderly folks hunched over tables stamping bingo cards, these are “incredibly vibrant hubs” offering unique programs for older adults wishing to live independently, according to Madeline Noonan, the acting director of the Massachusetts Council on Aging.

Noonan, former director of the Barnstable Council on Aging, said she and her staff used to joke that they couldn’t wait to retire so they could enjoy the programs and activities her center had to offer.

“Today’s senior centers are so active in terms of lifelong learning opportunities and wellness resources,” she said. “They really have something for everybody. They focus on such a wide array of activities to keep people engaged.”

At 82, Barbara Bornstein said she keeps her body and mind sharp with fitness classes and the usual mahjong game the Weston Council on Aging has to offer. Bornstein has been regularly participating in the council’s programs since 2023, after a friend roped her into a fitness class.

Before that, she said she had never attended an exercise class in her life. Although skeptical at first, it only took one session for her to be committed.

“I don’t think I could fault with anything here,” she said. “But, I’m also easy to please.”