BERNARDSTON — The Bernardston Senior Center has been named an Honorable Mention in the National Institute of Senior Centers’ Programs of Excellence Awards for a diverse marketing campaign that led to significantly increased membership.

According to Senior Center Director Jennifer Reynolds, a partnership with NNE Digital led to the implementation of a marketing campaign that used strategies such as retargeting — repeatedly exposing individuals to information from one advertiser to increase the likelihood of making an impression — and geofencing, which targets individuals within a certain geographic location, among other techniques. This was paid for through a grant from the Massachusetts Council on Aging and the Executive Office of Elder Affairs.

“From that grant period, we had a 30% increase in membership [in six months] and we just keep continuing to grow from there,” Reynolds explained in an interview. “When I first started here, two and a half years ago, we only had about 200 members or so, and now we’re up to almost 800 members.”

According to an award announcement from the National Council on Aging, this campaign enabled the Bernardston Senior Center to recruit more older adults, promote an all-day conference on offerings, and expand programs in the LGBTQ and Hispanic communities.

“We’re so proud to be recognized and honor all our incredible staff doing the work each day with the clients we serve,” Reynolds said in the award announcement. “Older adults deserve much more than just a place to occupy their time, which is why we offer a range of resources and activities, from exercise, a daily lunch program, games, transportation, quilting and many other classes.”

Reynolds recently traveled to Washington D.C. to be presented with the recognition.

“It was a competitive award — it was available to the whole country — so for a small town like Bernardston to be able to win an award like that … it was just a really big honor for Massachusetts,” she said in an interview.

The Programs of Excellence Awards are judged by a panel of peers and National Institute of Senior Centers affiliate members. The competition is divided into seven categories: Marketing/Public Relations, Social and Support Services, Health and Wellness, Intergenerational, Nutrition, Technology, Virtual and Hybrid Programming, and Modernizing Senior Centers. There were seven total winners, and nine organizations received honorable mentions.

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