SCOPE offers one-, two- and three-day trips and tours throughout Ohio, Kentucky and Pennsylvania. Our older adults stay busy visiting Amish country for tours and food, seeing great and epic shows at wonderful theaters, along with shopping trips, lake and river cruises, museum visits, train rides, historical locations and casino stops.

SCOPE (Senior Citizens Opportunity for Personal Endeavors) is proud to partner with tour operators Sharon Grover of Ridgeview Tours and John Sinclair of Anderson Coach & Travel who have logged over 2 million miles over their careers.

We are a nationally accredited senior citizen service organization and are recognized as one of the best providers of older adult trips.

Doreen Kascsak, our Niles SCOPE Center manager, handles the reservations and details of our trips working with our trip operators Sharon and John. To receive a tour brochure and to learn more about our SCOPE trips for the public, call Doreen at 330-574-2888.

There was so much concern during and after the pandemic with isolation and loneliness along with depression according to many mental health professionals. Getting the elderly out of their homes is a priority. SCOPE took on this challenge by putting together at least one or two trips per month to destinations our tour operators are familiar with. We also survey our almost 4,000 members on where they would like to visit and what they would like to see if they choose to take a trip.

Trips such as cruises on the Lady Caroline on Lake Erie, Lake Chautauqua in New York or the Ohio River in Cincinnati and Pittsburgh are quite popular. You can choose to ride the rails of the Cuyahoga National Park train or the trains in Ashtabula County even with a western-style train robbery show all with a great scenic view.

Plays and musical shows in Lancaster, Pa., at both the epic Sight and Sound Theatre, and Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre, as well the Ohio Star Theatre in Sugarcreek are hugely popular. Speaking of Sugarcreek, Ohio, our Amish country stops there as well as in Geauga County are also quite popular and yes, we eat at wonderful mom-and-pop establishments and private Amish homes.

Visits to historical sites, small towns and museums are on our list every year. Great food and shopping opportunities are some of our senior’s trip priorities and we provide you the best in both states.

This trip program builds friendships as many widows, singles, as well as couples, make new friendships by participating in these types of social activities.

We have expanded our partnerships with the Howland United Methodist and Cortland Christian churches as well as with the Ravenna Parks and Recreation Center in Portage County to market to older adults and serve as trip loading points.

SCOPE is one of several senior centers that are going above and beyond to provide older adults in their communities with helpful resources and opportunities to prevent social isolation. For details on our activities and programming please call 330-399-8846 to receive a brochure or a monthly newsletter.

Contact Mike Wilson, director of SCOPE Senior Services, with column topics at 330-399-8846.