Menu
After operating in Santa Cruz on Pioneer Street for the past 19 years, Elderday Adult Day Health Care has moved to 501 Main Street in downtown Watsonville!
Our new home is 3,600 square feet larger than our current location and adjacent to Community Bridges headquarters at 521 Main Street. This proximity will allow for transformative intergenerational activities between Elderday and our other programs operating at Community Bridges headquarters such as La Manzana Community Resources. The move is made possible by a $2.5 million grant from the Central California Alliance for Health.
A study released by the National Council on Aging in March 2021 found that social isolation increased mental and physical health problems in older Americans, exacerbated poverty for those unable to work, and increased food insecurity. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified social isolation among older adults making it likely that the demand will be higher for services like Elderday for some time to come.
In addition, the National Council on Aging also found that 80% of older Americans cannot afford to pay for long-term care, making community-based day services like Elderday all the more essential.
Elderday serves about 150 of Santa Cruz County’s most vulnerable residents (older adults and adults with disabilities) annually. Our program is so much more than health care. Through our planned daily activities we ensure Elderday is a fun, active, and supportive community for everyone involved.
The new facility’s increased size and accessible location will allow Elderday to meet the needs of Santa Cruz County’s growing aging population by keeping more vulnerable older adults and people with disabilities at home, living in their own communities, and out of institutional care.
How will families in the northern region of Santa Cruz County get to Watsonville? Lift Line offers door-to-door transportation services for all Elderday participants.
What is the cost of Elderday’s services? Elderday is free for those eligible for Medi-Cal. Costs can also be covered by the Veteran’s Administration, long-term care insurance, or private pay on a sliding scale.
When will the new location open? The new Elderday Adult Day Health Care headquarters opened September 2023.
Titled “Wisdom of Our Elders,” this vibrant 225-foot-by-32-foot mural at 501 Main Street in downtown Watsonville represents a collaboration between Community Bridges, Elderday Adult Day Health Care, and local Chicano muralists, The Jams, aiming to underscore the profound significance of our older adults within our community. Through compelling imagery, we seek to illuminate their indispensable role in our daily lives, while also emphasizing our shared commitment to providing them with the care, support, and dignity they rightfully deserve.
Last year, Community Bridges embarked on an ambitious journey to create a mural that would capture the essence of aging, the depth of knowledge accumulated over a lifetime, the importance of history, and the strength of our community. Through a rigorous selection process, The Jams were identified as the artists who could elevate this project and truly capture these themes. This collaboration was deeply rooted in community engagement. Input sessions with local residents, Elderday staff and participants, Community Bridges staff, and older adults from the Watsonville Senior Center ensured that the mural would reflect the diverse and vibrant voices of our community.
We invite you to stop by and view this celebratory mural, and learn more about the mural by clicking HERE.
Community Bridges celebrates opening of new Elderday center – Santa Cruz Sentinel, October 2023
Elderday is an adult day health care program that has operated in Santa Cruz County since 1981 to provide resources and activities for older adults with disabilities during the day while still allowing them to live independent lives at home. The program is run by Community Bridges, a nonprofit based in Watsonville that provides human services. After 19 years on Pioneer Street in Santa Cruz, Elderday’s new digs aren’t too far from Community Bridges’ main office. The 12,591-square-foot property features administrative office space, a main room with a stage, gym, game room, computer and art room, conference room and the program’s first examination room.
Elderday project off to smashing start – The Pajaronian, March 2022
In a brief ceremony in Community Bridges’ sunny outdoor atrium Friday, the organization held a groundbreaking ceremony for what will eventually be Elderday’s new, expanded adult day health care center. When complete, the center at 521 Main St. will provide services for Santa Cruz County’s older adults regardless of income level or immigration status, the only such facility in the county. That’s important at a time when rising rents and an economy beset by the Covid-19 pandemic have left many worrying about how they will support themselves, let alone their aging parents.
A new day for Elderday begins with move and expansion in Watsonville – KSBW, March 2022
Elderday Adult Day Health Care has been in existence for 40 years in Santa Cruz County, soon it’ll call Watsonville home. On Friday, the nonprofit broke ground for a new facility. Advertisement The new site will have more space and it will be easier to get to which means participants will spend more time at the facility receiving care and being active instead of being stuck in traffic.
Elderday will move to downtown Watsonville – The Pajaronian, December 2021
After operating for years in Santa Cruz, Elderday Adult Day Health Care will soon relocate to Watsonville. The move comes thanks to a $2.5 million grant from Central California Alliance for Health, which Elderday will use to purchase and modernize the space at 521 Main St. Elderday, a program of Community Bridges, currently provides care for about 150 older adults with medical conditions such as dementia, and people with disabilities, allowing them to stay in their own homes and out of institutional care. The new space offers an additional 3,600 square feet than its current location.
519 Main Street
Watsonville, California 95076
Phone: 831-688-8840
Fax: 831-688-8302
Email: info@cbridges.org
Community Bridges is a registered 501(c)(3) organization.
Federal Tax ID number: 94-2460211
