FRASER – Fitnesss buffs who’ve got a little silver in their sneakers (and hair) will be doing a dance as they walk into the Grand Park Community Recreation Center starting Aug. 1.

That’s because eligible seniors, 65-and-older, will receive a free membership to the rec center through the new Heathways SilverSneakers Fitness Program, a nationwide-organization to which the Fraser Valley Metropolitan Recreation District was recently accepted.

“We’ve been waiting on this since October 2009 when we applied in hopes of the the program here,” said recreation coordinator Lucy Fisher. “It’s such a great program for seniors on a fixed income. It allows them to use rec center at no cost.”

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SilverSneakers memberships can be used at qualifying facilities throughout the country, so the rec center will now be open to visitors who already have their SilverSneakers pass.

Membership offers free use of all the rec center’s ammenities, including the fitness area, pool, hot tub, steam and sauna rooms plus free admission to SilverSneakers classes, including conditioning, yoga and aquatics workouts.

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For starters, the rec district will be offering a muscualar strength and range of motion class on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10 a.m.

To qualify for the program, seniors have to be enrolled in a participating health Iinsurance plan. According to SilverSneakers program managers, more than 500 Fraser Valley residents meet the criteria to qualify for the program.

Current participating health plan providers in Colorado:

AARP MedicareComplete

AARP Medicare Supplement Insurance Plan

Anthem Extras Packages

Anthem SurveValue Enhanced HMO

Anthem SureValue Basic HMO

Humana Medicare Advantage

Humana Medicare Supplement

Humana MyOption Fitness Well-being

Kaiser Permanente of CO Senior Advantage Medicare Medicaid

Kaiser Permanente of CO Core, Silver, Gold, Plus Choice or Group