Legacy50 Summit

A theme of community emerged from our Legacy50 Summit on June 4, 2026. For the past 50 years, we’ve been fortunate to have an incredible community of staff, volunteers, Board members, civic leaders, nonprofit allies, business partners, health providers, and supporters. Our community enables Mystic Valley Elder Services to grow and makes aging a safer and more positive experience.

We are deeply grateful to everyone who attended our Legacy50 Summit, not just for celebrating with us, but for their commitment to building age-friendly and disability-positive communities. With their help, we raised funds that are critical to supporting our meals programs. Additional Legacy50 Summit highlights:

• Presenting the MVES Community All-Star Awards. Read about these inspiring individuals!
• Seeing our vendors, providers, and sponsors connect and share what makes them special at the Expo Fair.
• Ashton Applewhite’s keynote address on ageism, followed by her discussion with MVES Board member Mike Festa on ageism and ableism in our own lives and communities.
• Recognizing three retiring MA legislators who’ve supported our mission: Senator Pat Jehlen, Senator Jason Lewis, and Representative Bradley Jones.

Video: 50 Years of Mystic Valley Elder Services

Click to Meet the Community All-Stars We Honored at Legacy50!

11 Communities, 11 Events

We serve 11 towns and cities that have been incredible partners over the years. To thank our local leaders and residents, we hosted a unique event in each community over the course of our 50th year. The gallery below shows some of the highlights from our festivities, in the order they were held: North Reading, Medford, Chelsea, Stoneham, Reading, Revere, Everett, Melrose, Winthrop, Wakefield, and Malden.

Kick-Off Event

On June 24, 2025, Mystic Valley Elder Services officially kicked off our anniversary year with a joyful event at Rivers Edge in Medford. Click through the gallery below to view 50 photos from our kick-off.

For five decades, MVES has been dedicated to empowering older adults and people with disabilities to live with dignity and independence in the 11 communities we serve. This remains our core mission thanks to the support of state and local leaders, nonprofit partners, sponsors and supporters from the business community, and fellow aging services professionals. It was an honor to have these allies join us on June 24 to commemorate the past and look forward to the future together. MVES CEO Lisa Gurgone, our Board of Directors and our team would like to thank our Keynote Speaker Edward Alan Miller, Professor of Gerontology, Chair of the UMass Boston Gerontology at UMass Boston, and MVES Board member; MA Senator Jason Lewis, who presented us with a Resolution from the Massachusetts State Senate; and everyone who attended and made it such a special day.