Merrian "Miss Delta" Edun is 75 years old, "but I’m celebrating 50 years old," she says.

Miss Delta, as she’s known at Gibbons Community Center, is a singer/entertainer/actress/costume designer and costumer. The former USO performer has music in her blood and still sings with her local Kiwanis swing band. As proof, she broke into a medley of "Old Black Magic," "Just My Imagination," and "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow," all sung with feeling while not missing a note.

Donning her straw hat for the photo, the costume designer part of her says, "After spring, you go to straw." A mixture of Choctaw, Seminole, and Creole blends Miss Delta into "a gumbo. I’m a bit of everything."

Of her community center experience, she says, "It offers security, friendship, and guidance. We see folks fall in love, pass to the other side, see their kids grow up. It gives me a feeling of belonging in this community where I am not from.

"We bond with people here. We bond like a family."

Programs helping older people to be active and engaged are among many services empowering older Californians for 50 years and counting.