STATE REP. AERION ABNEY ADDRESSES THE 175 SENIORS IN ATTENDANCE AT THE SENIOR FAIR, “65 AND ALIVE,” SEPT. 5, ON THE NORTH SIDE.
On Thursday, Sept. 5, it was a day football fans had been waiting for—the NFL’s Opening Night, the first regular season game of the year between the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens.
But for 175 Pittsburgh seniors, it was a day they’d been waiting for, too.
It was the first “Senior Fair,” entitled, “65 and Alive,” an active night out held at the National Aviary on the North Side. State Representative of the 19th House District, Aerion Abney, hosted the event, and the seniors were scoring touchdowns of their own, in the form of winning Bingo, eating good food, listening to good music, dancing, and a chance to “really feel loved and appreciated,” Rep. Abney told the New Pittsburgh Courier, Sept. 17.
STATE REP. AERION ABNEY, OF THE 19TH HOUSE DISTRICT, HOSTED A SENIOR FAIR AT THE NATIONAL AVIARY ON SEPT. 5.
“The feedback that we got from all the participants there was very positive,” Rep. Abney said. “Everybody had a great time and we’re looking forward to doing it again next year.”
Representative Abney said the event took eight months of planning, which included attaining sponsors like Highmark, PNC, Dollar Bank, the Pittsburgh Penguins and UPMC. Representative Abney, 36, has been in office for about two and a half years, and he said he’s made a commitment to being open to his constituents as well as being transparent.
“We’ve brought in over $60 million since I’ve been in office from Harrisburg, back to the district to help with different development projects that are underway in my district, as well as different social service programs that provide opportunities for folks in the community who are in need,” Rep. Abney told the Courier.
His office is located at 730 James Street, North Side, near E. Ohio Street. “We get a mix of walk-ins, a mix of phone calls, we’ll get emails, but we try to be very intentional about being out in the community,” Rep. Abney said.
The 19th District stretches all the way to Hazelwood, the Hill District, Downtown and the North Side.
Representative Abney said he is very proud of his record of community work and service. And the senior fair was a chance for the seniors who may never have met their state representative, to meet him in-person.
“They showed up,” Rep. Abney said of the seniors. “Even though the building only allowed us, because of capacity issues, to have 175 people, we had well over 200 people call and try to RSVP for it.”
Rep. Abney added: “We will have it again next year, and there’s some things that we probably want to improve on, but we got a really good showing of folks who were interested, and without even us providing transportation, people actually showed up and had a really great time.”
