LARSO annual meeting to honor Older Americans Month at Betty Ehart Center

A free Frito pie lunch at Betty Ehart Senior Activity Center gave LARSO’s annual meeting a social draw, but the larger issue behind the noon gathering was how Los Alamos keeps older residents connected in a building the county says now needs renovations, improvements and HVAC replacement after 26 years of operation. The meeting was held Friday, May 22, from noon to 1 p.m. at 1101 Bathtub Row, and it included a proclamation honoring Older Americans Month.

That civic recognition matters because the annual meeting was not just a celebration. It linked LARSO’s work to the broader question of what older residents can actually use day to day. LARSO describes the Betty Ehart and White Rock senior centers as gathering places for people age 55 and over, open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a fitness room, computer lab, library, billiards and game tables. In practical terms, those rooms are where seniors in Los Alamos go to exercise, read, play and spend time with neighbors without having to leave town.

LARSO says it is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) social impact organization focused on healthy aging through social engagement, physical well-being, civic involvement, creativity and lifelong learning. Its board meetings are open to the public and alternate between the Betty Ehart and White Rock Senior Activity Centers, giving residents a way to watch how the organization is led. The board includes Jerry Fleming as president, Donald Dudziak as vice president, Jan Dye as secretary, Katie Fry as treasurer, and Lee D’Anna and Wendy Marcus as board members.

The proclamation tied the meeting to Older Americans Month, observed every May by the Administration for Community Living. The 2026 theme is Champion Your Health, a reminder that prevention, wellness and personal responsibility are part of healthy aging, but so are the public spaces that make activity possible.

For Los Alamos, the annual meeting pointed back to a concrete local issue: whether Betty Ehart can keep serving as a reliable hub for older adults as the building ages. The lunch and proclamation offered the ceremonial side; the county’s capital planning shows the stakes on the practical side, where maintenance and upgrades determine whether the center remains a usable part of daily life for seniors.