By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

          HAVANA (AP) -- The elderly men and women applauded when the
          saxophonist showed up and some of the more audacious got up to dance
          to an old Cuban classic, ``The Peanut Seller.''

          Earlier, they enjoyed a lunch of steaming vegetable soup, a generous
          portion of chicken and rice, and bananas for dessert. Before their meal,
          some played dominoes, other watched movies -- all for free.

          ``It is marvelous here, I never want to go home,'' Aida Del Valle, 74,
          said as she clapped to the music.

          As Cuba struggles to overcome an economic crisis triggered by the
          collapse of the former Soviet Union and exacerbated by the U.S. trade
          embargo, Miraculous Medallion Roman Catholic Church in south
          Havana is trying to fill gaps in the nation's social safety net.

          Cuba's older citizens -- one out of every four Cubans will be over 60 by
          the year 2025 -- have been particularly hard hit by economic need.
          While most citizens don't pay rent and receive much of their food at
          heavily subsidized prices, elderly Cubans often live alone on pensions of
          about 80 Cuban pesos , or less than $4 -- not enough to cover other
          necessities.

          The need to attend to the nation's elderly will only grow with time. Cuba
          has the longest life expectancy in Latin America -- 68.4 years, according
          to the World Health Organization.

          At Miraculous Medallion Church, more than 100 elderly people every
          weekday visit the center established for them in Santos Suarez, a once
          fashionable neighborhood now characterized by pothole-marked streets
          and once splendorous homes crumbling in disrepair.

          The government had operated similar centers for decades, but many
          were shut down during the worst years of economic crisis. Some are
          now reopening.

          Miraculous Medallion's priest, the Rev. Jose Maria Lusarreta, saw the
          need for some kind of help for the neighborhood's elderly when he
          arrived from Spain six years ago. Many older people lived by themselves
          in extreme loneliness and poverty.

          Lusarreta established the center in a two-story building next to the
          church.

          Here, volunteers try to ``create an environment of hope,'' ensure that
          people are not alone and that they are enjoying themselves, while
          improving their diet, said Lusarreta, himself now 62.

          The center opened in 1997 with just 12 participants and now serves 175.
          People eat breakfast and lunch, socialize with their peers, take part in
          activities and receive medical attention.

          Along with the meals and the socializing, the center offers twice-weekly
          haircuts and pedicures for both men and women, a library, a video room
          for up to 28 viewers, and a workout area. There is even a laundry
          service.

          To be eligible, participants must live alone and have small incomes and no
          economic assistance from their families.

          Lusarreta and a dozen volunteers seem to do magic with donations of
          cash and clothing from private individuals, churches, and local
          governments in Spain. The Cuban government helps by selling the center
          food for the breakfasts and lunches at heavily subsidized prices.

          The participants, too, help keep the center going, assisting in preparation
          and serving of meals. When one of their companions falls ill, they visit him
          or her at home, bringing food and medicine.

          ``We owe our well-being to Father'' Lusarreta, said Nicolasa Ordonez,
          97.

          With a cigarette dangling from her mouth, near eyes that no longer see,
          Ordonez leaned in close to the priest.

          ``Do you remember, Father?'' she asked. ``You gave me my first
          breakfast here. You, yourself. Bread with cheese and a glass of hot
          chocolate.''