Overview of Councils on Aging
There are 348 Councils on Aging (COAs) in Massachusetts that provide more than 440,000 elders and their families and caregivers with direct services annually. Since 1956, the mission of these volunteer, municipally appointed agencies is to link (elder) needs and resources by developing and/or coordinating services, community education and advocacy.
While each COA is unique to its community, most Councils offer information and referral, transportation, outreach, meals (congregate and home delivered), health screening, and fitness and recreation programs.
Some COAs also provide health insurance benefits counseling (SHINE), food shopping assistance, telephone reassurance, friendly visiting and other in-home activities, peer support groups, supportive day care, pre-retirement programs, minor home repair, computer training, case management and intergenerational programs, among many other activities and services.
Volunteers are critical to the operations of Councils on Aging. There are currently 33,000 volunteers at COAs in Massachusetts contributing some 2.7 million hours of service annually. Their annual value - using nationally recognized figures from the Points of Light Foundation - exceeds $40 million.
There are more than 300 senior and drop-in centers in the Commonwealth ranging from a part-time volunteer staffed room in town hall or a meal site to extensive multipurpose facilities with state-of-the-art amenities. Senior centers are truly a "home away from home" for the Commonwealth’s 1.1 million elders. They are a safe place for Massachusetts elders to remain independent, productive, and in the community for as long as possible.
Download Directory of COA Sites in Massachusetts.