IRON MOUNTAIN - The Dickinson-Iron Community Services Agency (DICSA) may cease to fund meals through the Crystal Falls Senior Center if the agency's governing board approves a recommendation by executive director Jeffrey Heino.

Heino said that he recommended the discontinuation due to low attendance and the high cost of food.

"The more meals you make, the lower the cost per meal," he said. "You can't justify supporting a program that isn't drawing in numbers."

Through DICSA, the center serves congregate meals at noon on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, and at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Less than 10 people attend each meal, Heino said.

The center also provides home-delivered meals to 35 people in the Crystal Falls area. If DICSA stops funding the center, these people will continue to receive home-delivered meals through one of the other centers in Iron County.

"There will be no interruption in services to these seniors," Heino said.

Crystal Falls Senior Center Council Chair Geraldine Spisak does not agree with Heino's proposal to send the meals from another center.

"Will they (the meals) still be warm, at the mealtime the clients need if they're diabetic, and will the cost increase with the travel expense involved?" she asked.

Heino pointed out that a lack in DICSA funding does not necessarily mean the center has to close.

"The centers are all privately-owned," he explained. "The city or the center's council can choose to provide meals on their own."

DICSA governing board member George Brunswick offered another solution - closing the center for another day or two each

In addition to meals, the Crystal Falls Senior Center currently hosts cribbage games on Mondays and Wednesdays, free bingo games on the third Thursday of each month, and a potluck supper on the second Saturday of each month.

"The center is an integral part of the community," said Spisak. "We need all the support the people in our community can offer to keep going."

The topic will be discussed at the next meeting of the DICSA governing board on Nov. 12 at the Crystal Lake Senior Center in Iron Mountain.

Nikki Younk's e-mail address is nyounk@ironmountaindailynews.com.