Casey Kasem's Top 40 Countdown was must-listen radio on Sundays in the 1970's and 80's. It was the best way to stay informed about national and international song trends. Every January, he kicked it up a notch and would compile the most-played songs from the previous year. That show was the inspiration for what is now the 15th annual MySeniorCenter Big List, What's Hot and What's Not edition of Fun Facts. We recap the most popular programs from the past year, but with a twist. We group the top five programs in each category, highlight the one program with the most percentage growth over the previous year AND show if there were any programs with negative growth.
Each section below borrows its title from one of the Top 100 hits of 1985. If you'd like to join along, you can access the full list of songs from that year or a montage of Casey's show. Push play and crank it up. In case you didn't know, each section heading below links to the full-length version of that song.
Let's have a look.
Welcome to...Fun Facts - the Big List, What's Hot and What's Not edition
Enjoy!
Events in the Fitness and Exercise category represented roughly one third of all program participation in 2024. Yoga was the most popular fitness program again, and third overall behind lunch and bingo in popularity of all programs. Tai Chi, Line Dancing, and Pickleball continued to be very popular. Circuit training had the highest growth within the category. Generally speaking, chair-based programs were popular in 2024, but Chair Cardio dropped compared to 2023 as did Zoom Yoga.
Group exercise and efficient sweating are hot. Being stuck at home is not.
As we pointed out in the Feed The World issue of Fun Facts, there are many different elements to Nutrition programs at Centers: congregate dining, curbside pickups, home-delivered meals (HDM), food bank, amd food pantry.
- 28% of Centers across the Network provide emergency food services through a food bank or pantry
- Almost 9% are still doing curbside pickups (no sign of going away)
- 62% serve at least 3 congregate meals per week
- 19% have an active HDM function
Keeping people fed in whatever way possible is in.
Piano, jazz, blues, and rock n' roll concerts dominated the Art/Music/Dance/Craft category. But it wasn't just about consuming music, there were plenty of band practices, jam sessions, and choral clubs as well. Ceramics and pottery classes were the largest growth area and nudged out the knitting-related activities by a stitch.
Live music is in. Apparently, a sense of humor is as well. Books & Bourbon is a good activity name. Blues Man Group is a great band name. Relieving stress through creativity is very in. Decorative writing and musical theater is not.
The Education category continues to take a larger slice of the participation pie every year. Computer classes and computer labs grew quite a bit in 2024 after leveling off for a few years. Tax prep grew nearly 300%. Speaking of tax prep, keep an eye out in late January and early February for information on how to schedule your tax appointments through MySeniorCenter.
Maximizing your refund is hot. Learning new languages is not.
Bingo was, once again, the most popular activity in the Social/Recreation category. The top card games were pinochle, pitch, euchre, cribbage, and canasta. Dominoes was less than 1% behind Mahjong (and all its various spellings). Billiards had the highest growth within the category and is the only activity where the men outnumber the women. Pickleball for beginners is interestingly categorized as social for many Centers before it switches over to fitness once the competition kicks in.
Daubers, tricks, tiles, cues, and paddles are hot. Bids and contracts are not.
Blood pressure and podiatry clinics are staples in the Health and Wellness category. Meditation has become very popular in the last few years. Massage is new in the top grouping and had the most growth.
Self-care to maintain physical and mental health is in. Worrying about a daily temperature check and the latest vaccines is thankfully not.
Summary
Once again, we were blown away by your innovative programming and compassion for your participants. You took advantage of all available spaces and tools to deliver socialization, nutrition, fitness, education and well-being. Congratulations on a successful year.
To paraphrase Casey Kasem, you kept your feet on the ground and reached for the stars.
Happy New Year!
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