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Pat Arbuckle Chronicle Staff So you think senmior citizen centres are for little old ladies with blue hair who come to play bingo or a game of cards? Look again. Chances are you‘ll see those seniors snowshoeing, swimming, hiking, travelling or even producing their own television show. Today‘s senior citizens are changing, accordâ€" ing to Kathy Durst, senior citizens program coordinator at Waterloo‘s Adult Recreation Centre in Waterloo. They‘re more independent, active, involved in the community and what is more important, they‘re happier. _ "Seniors themselves see their image changing but the public is slower to pick up that change," she said. Those who see what the centre offers as "passive, sedentary, timefilier activities are unaware of the programs where seniors are active. We are catering to a small segment who are sedentary but, for the most part, seniors are active, contributing members in the communiâ€" ty," Durst added. During Seniors Week June 19 to 25 and throughout the year, Durst and other workers at the centre are striving both to create a more positive image for senior citizens, and dispel many of the myths that exist today about them â€" primarily that life in a nursing home or institution is an inevitable consequence of reâ€" tirement. Statistics show that only 8.7 per cent of the population over 65 years of age live in nursing homes or homes for the aged, she said. The rest live either in their own homes or apartments and Durst feels that many of the home support services, available through federal government grants, have enabled older people to remain inâ€" dependent. ‘"Many people in the community, if they were not receiving some form of home support service such as Project Shine, Meals on Wheels, Senior Outing Daycare or Project Hear, would be institutionalized," she said. Another belief that poverty is an inevitable consequence of old age does not hold true at least in the Kitchenerâ€"Waterloo area, according to Durst. ‘"We have not come across any financial poverty in Waterloo. _ 1e â€" “Théy are not starving. They can pay their bills although they may not have a lot extra," she said. Durst feels that increases in pensions, free medical insurance, drug plans and reduced transportation costs have all helped to make seniors more financially secure and therefore happier. A recent study by Drs. Jiri Zuzanek and Roger Mannell, two UW researchers in the department Little 17â€"month old Adam Tignanelli of Waterioo checks out the watering can of threeâ€"yearâ€"old Elizabeth Longmire at Lion‘s kiddie pool Sunday during W Days (left). Then Adam decided he liked Elizabeth‘s just a little more than his oyfh, and grabbed the spout (right) but Elizabeth wasn‘t about to relinquish Today‘s seniors are active, involved and happy, too! IT‘S SPOUT TIME of recreation, seems to support this view. Commissioned by Statistics Canada to examine the leisure activities of the elderly in Kitchenerâ€" Waterloo, the study concluded that ‘"by and large, they (seniors) are quite happy with their lives, particularly if they have something close to what they regard as an adequate retirement income... that is, if they have no serious money worries." Both Durst and Irene O‘Toole, coâ€"ordinator of Project Shine, agree that emotional poverty and social deprivation are greater potential probâ€" lems among the elderly in Waterl‘hln The wide range of programs at the Adult Recreation Centre are designed to respond to these needs among others. An everâ€"increasing number of senior citizens, about 100 to 300 daily, are participating in these programs or taking advantage of the services the centre offers. Of course there are recreaâ€" (Continued on page 8) The Vaudevillians, a group from Toronto whose members range in age from 66 to 79 years, performed during Saturday‘s first dinner theatre .held at the Aduit Recreation Centre. The event was held to raise funds for Project Shine, a home support service for seniors. Rick Campbell photo V is oulh, :‘ Spring cleaning _ in order; smoke 1 blankets Square The investigation continues into the cause of a fire last Thursday evening which resulted in more than $500,000 in damâ€" ages to the Waterloo Square shopping mall. Fire department offiâ€" cials estimated the smoke and water damâ€" age to the bowling alley could reach as much as $400,000 with smoke damages throughout the rest of the mall estimated at approxiâ€" mately $100,000. Waterloo fire chief John Staller said Tuesâ€" day that the Ontario Fire Marshal‘s Office had been called in to investigate the blaze, but could not say when the cause would be deâ€" termined. Chronicle Staff Approximately 1,000 shoppers and employâ€" ees had to be evacuatâ€" ed from the mall when the fire broke out Thursday at approxiâ€" mately 7 p.m. in the Twin City Bowl, locatâ€" ed in the Square‘s lower level. Mall manager Gary Boudreau, however, said in an interview that fire department estimates of smoke damage are ‘"conserâ€" vative"" and predicted that losses "will be substantially more than reported." ‘‘I don‘t think they‘ve come up with an anâ€" swer," said Staller. "It‘s very, very diffiâ€" cult to tell. It‘s all burned out back there ... the cause may not be known for months." The majority of Waâ€" terloo Square shops reopened for business by noon Friday and many merchants have conducted fire sales to dispose of smokeâ€" damaged inventory. After fire comes smoke sale and hundreds of shoppers flocked to Waterioo Square early this week to take advantage of bargains as merchants attempted to clear smokeâ€"damaged merchandise. _ o Boudreau estimated it will take at least two weeks before clean up of the mall is completâ€" ed. ‘"Everything has to be washed down and brought back up to standard, the floors, walls, furniture, draâ€" peries. It‘s a major spring clean up and more," he said. Boudreau could not say how much it wili cost to remove the smoke odor and soot ‘‘The problem was that when we got down there it was so black there was no way to find the fire. We just had to feel around, just keep inching it, feeling "it get hotter and hotter until you were on it," Staller said. Waterloo firefighters were assisted by the Kitchener fire departâ€" ment as well as volunâ€" teer brigades from St. Jacobs, St. Clements, Baden, Elmira and Maryhill. "It was just great. We went on the air to get help from Kitchener and the volâ€" unteer brigades reâ€" sponded automatically . They weren‘t even offiâ€" cially called," said Staller. from the mall, but added ‘"at this point we‘re just saying, ‘Hang the expense, we‘ve got to get operaâ€" tional again‘." Staller Thursday called the fire one of the worst he has seen in Waterloo because of the dense, dark smoke which quickly filled the building. The fire was conâ€" tained in the rear of the bowling alley and was believed to have startâ€" ed near a compressor which drove the pinsetâ€" ting equipment. Firemen had to drill a hole through a concrete platftorm in Waterioo Square last week to battle a fire which broke out in Twin City Bow!l. C To help locate the source of the blaze fireâ€" men were forced to call in the city‘s public works department which drilled a hole through six inches of steelâ€"reinforced conâ€" crete in the patio outâ€" side the mall, to reâ€" lease trapped smoke. Waterloo city council Monday night unaniâ€" mously decided to offiâ€" cially commend the city‘s fire department for its work in fighting the blaze. Boudreau commentâ€" ed also that Waterloo‘s firefighters *should be put on a pedestal and heartily commended for the job they did. They‘re tops in our The fire was brought under control at apâ€" proximately 10 p.m. _ Ironically the mall, which is owned by Cambridge Leaseholds Ltd. and Canada Life Assurance Co., had unâ€" dergone an extensive $100,000 renovation during the past four months. "It‘s very unfortuâ€" nate. We were just rollâ€" ing along very nicely, at a point when we just about finished with the renovations, when this happened," said Bouâ€" dreau. Pat Arbuckle photo Pat Arbuckie photo