It’s not feeding crabs—Lake Elizabeth’s Age-Well Center celebrates its 14th annual Crab Feed

2–3 minutes

In a lively event, Fremont residents gather to feast on crabs and support Fremont’s seniors

Staff Writer

On February 14th, the Lake Elizabeth Age-Well Center held its 14th annual Crab Feed where it offered an all-you-can-eat crab dinner, a raffle, and alcoholic drinks for attendees.

As live music played, attendees chatted at their tables, digging into the feast of salad, pasta, and—most importantly—crab legs. “I have been coming to every Crab Feed every year; I think it’s a wonderful event,” Jeannie Thomson, former Biology teacher at AHS and member of the garden club, said. “It really gets people together.”

Molly Sokhom wandered around talking to friends who she had not seen in years. “It’s a great socializing and bonding opportunity with my old friends,” Sokhom said.

Volunteers bustled around to keep things running smoothly. Volunteers at a table in the corner served wine and beer, while another volunteer, Giuliana Gloria, a sophomore at Castro Valley HS, attempted to sell people raffle tickets. “It’s a little overwhelming because you have to manage money and I don’t want to pressure [the attendees],” she said. “If they say no, it’s okay, I’ll just make a joke. These people are here to have a good time.”

“Older people have the chance to lose connections since their life is winding down. This is a beautiful thing for them to be able to socialize,” Giuliana Gloria said while the event wrapped up, and the food service manager, Marc Wong, gave a speech thanking everyone for attending the event.

With entry fees at $80 per meal, the center is estimated to have raised $2,000 to $3,000 from this event according to center manager Monica Gloria. “[It] helps fund senior programs such as fall prevention, help with Medicare, and our support groups,” Monica Gloria said.

Additionally, the Age-Well Center’s website noted that the money also helps ensure that the Center’s variety of activities—including Tai Chi, yoga, dances, senior-run clubs, culture groups, and more—remain free and cheap for the public.

However, a majority of the money funds the center’s meal program. The program provides various different dishes, all depending on the date. According to the center’s website, these range from seafood curry to soy yuzu New York steak.

“The meals are $6 a member, so it’s really competitive,” Tiffany Kwok, the senior office specialist, said while dressed in a crab costume.

“[The Crab Feed] keeps this accessible for our most vulnerable population,” Monica Gloria added.

The Center also relies on sponsors. “We solicit people for donations,” Kwok said. “For this, we heard from Home Depot and they let us come pick stuff up.”

With the success of this crab feed, the organizers are looking to revamp next year’s event. “We want to have a theme around it to draw more people in, and make it more like a party,” Kwok said. “Maybe we can try to bring in some music and bigger sponsors to make a better event.”