Mercer Island Senior Resource Fair focuses on health and wellness, lifestyle enrichment and more
Published 6:10 pm Thursday, February 19, 2026
Making connections and obtaining information about health and wellness, lifestyle enrichment, personal safety and more will be key components of the third annual Mercer Island Senior Resource Fair on March 7.
The city’s Parks and Recreation Division and Youth and Family Services (YFS) Department have organized the free event, which the city describes as a “one-stop shop for local resources to help seniors live their best lives.”
To start the day, about 55 local and regional vendors and senior issues and aging experts will set up booths and interact with attendees from 10 a.m. to noon in the Mercer Island Community and Event Center at 8236 SE 24th St. Following the fair and refreshments, from 12:30-1:30 p.m., five organizations will step into the spotlight with the following presentations: Sound Transit (riding the light rail), End of Life WA (end of life documents), Mercer Island Police Department (how to deal with text scams), UW Public Health (nutrition education) and Vineyard Park (assisted living).
City recreation specialist Chris del Pilar said the fair has grown in popularity each year and attendance numbers reached a few hundred last March.
He said the primary focus of the event is ensuring that the senior community is able to access resources related to health, housing, volunteerism, social connections and more.
“Attendees really like the event. It’s great to inform our senior community that whenever they come in — whether they’re coming in for a different program, drop-in sport, other meetings — that this is happening. It’s a completely kind of more open house-type of event,” said del Pilar, adding that people attend the fair to see what resources will benefit them or other family members.
On the presentations front, del Pilar said that last year they were short and occurred during the fair. This time out, presenters will be allotted more time to delve into their areas of expertise after the fair has concluded.
Del Pilar said the city is also eyeing ways to get people involved with the Senior Resource Fair to share their knowledge beyond the event realm.
“Our hope is to gauge interest with the vendors and the attendees and try and see if there’s the interest and ability for future presentations and or workshops from any of these groups for the senior community going forward throughout the rest of the year and into next year, too,” he said.
YFS programs coordinator Marina Gonzales said that seniors can gather and connect with each other along with community services, organizations and supports at the fair.
“An in-person connection can be an important first step to finding a volunteer opportunity, joining a support group, engaging in home-care services, or starting the conversation about finding a retirement or assisted living facility,” she said.
Event sponsors are: Visiting Angels of King County, Andersen Life Stories, Vineyard Park of Mercer Island, FirstLight Home Care and Island House MBK Senior Living.
