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Senior-Friendly Urban Design

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on June 5, 2025| 2 Comments »

Photo: Christopher Thomond/The Guardian.
Elaine Unegbu, the chair of the Age Friendly Manchester [UK] older people’s board, and Paul McGarry, the head of the Greater Manchester aging hub. 

Where I live now, in a retirement community with various levels of care, the management favors pilot projects from academia and startup companies to test technology that can keep people independent longer. I haven’t volunteered for any of them, but I think it’s a good idea, especially as Erik still holds patents for something along those lines.

I recently read about some simple but ingenious innovations in Manchester, England, that I thought might interest readers like Making Home Home. I mean — how obvious but how overlooked is putting numbers on outdoor benches to aid in emergencies?

Chris Osuh  reports at the Guardian, “Futuristic planning for spaces where people can age well and live in an area designed for them to grow old in is accelerating in the UK with a radical project backed by £1.5bn [$1.7bn].

“The plan to transform a hospital into the first neighborhood in the country designed for people to thrive as they age will be a national testbed for holistic health and social care approaches. It will include hi-tech homes that adapt to occupants’ life stage and care needs, transport, a village green and a social calendar to combat isolation.

“The master plan for the North Manchester general hospital (NMGH) redevelopment in the Crumpsall district is the result of collaboration by public health officials, local politicians, experts and architects.

“Michelle Humphreys, the director of strategic projects for Manchester University NHS foundation trust (MFT), described it as a neighborhood that ‘adapts around people as they go through life,’ powered by advances in medical wearables and remote monitoring. …

“NMGH’s ‘healthy neighborhood‘ scheme is multigenerational. It will include family housing and will be built in line with age-friendly concepts, spearheaded by the World Health Organization (WHO) in response to two major trends – the aging population and urbanization.

“By 2050 60% of the global population will live in urban environments and 27% of people will be over the age of 65, the OECD predicts, yet experts say cities are often defined by spatial agism where environments are not set up for older people.

“The age-friendly movement aims to ensure older people can still play a part in civic life. The Elders Council of Newcastle, Northern Ireland’s older people’s commissioner and Wales’ commitment to becoming an age-friendly nation reflect how UK regions and devolved governments have been preparing for demographic change.

“The humble bench – improved with armrests, numbered to aid in a medical emergency, or placed strategically for wellbeing and intergenerational conversation – can be transformative, with dozens installed in Manchester, taking inspiration from New York’s CityBench initiative. However, the UK has further to go.

Akita, in northern Japan’s Tohoku region, where 30% of the population is over 65, has more than 60 heated roads to prevent slips on ice.

“In Singapore, where one in four are predicted to be over 65 by 2030, the Admiralty ‘vertical village’ has a central medical tier, so older residents, who live in slip-proof homes with alarms alerting neighbors in an emergency, can have surgery without leaving. In Germany in 2007, BMW made 70 changes to its Dingolfing factory to adapt to an older workforce. …

“Prof Stefan White, from Manchester Metropolitan University and Manchester School of Architecture, said the NMGH project would exemplify how to free up hospital space and allow people to ‘age in place’ with the type of support ordinarily provided in a care home made available to the whole neighborhood on a flexible basis.

“Elaine Unegbu, the chair of the Age Friendly Manchester older people’s board, has successfully lobbied the Greater Manchester mayor’s team for transport adaptations, benches and afternoon matinees. She said the healthy neighborhood would give residents peace of mind at a time when gentrification ‘whitewashed’ older urbanites, with many forced from their homes by health crises to the detriment of communities.

“Manchester, where previous age friendly projects include the Derek Jarman Pocket Park inspired by LGBTQ+ over-50s, has been pioneering the movement in the UK since 2008. Last month the city hosted international experts at the Age-Friendly Futures Summit.

“Paul McGarry, the head of the Greater Manchester aging hub, said: ‘The task is to get a national conversation on aging.’ “

More at the Guardian, here.

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Still Choreographing at 91

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , on March 23, 2025| 8 Comments »

Photo: Teagan Glenane/The Guardian.
Australian choreographer Elizabeth Cameron Dalman at her property in Bungendore, just outside Canberra. “I’d always been inspired by nature, which I imagined as I was performing.”

As an older citizen who thinks backing up in a parking lot is living life on the edge, I can never resist a story about elderly people who ignore aging.

Steve Dow at the Guardian wrote recently about a dancer in Australia.

“At 91, Elizabeth Cameron Dalman dances in nature at her bushland retreat outside Canberra, Mirramu Creative Arts Centre, surrounded by writers, singers and visual artists. … ‘So many people bring up this age thing,’ she says, ‘and my reply is that in dance we are ageless.’

“A contemporary dance pioneer in Australia, Dalman has just seen the final performance of one of her ‘great inspirations’ and occasional collaborators, dancer Eileen Kramer, in a filmed component of the dance work ‘Afterworld,’ part of Sydney festival. Kramer died in November at 110. ‘I’m going to live to that age,’ Dalman chuckles.

“In Adelaide in 1965, Dalman co-created Australian Dance Theatre, running the company for a decade, confounding the era’s prejudice against modern dance and women artistic directors. …

“She [likes to] talk about what feeds longevity, pointing to medical research showing the health and mobility benefits of dancing for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s patients. ‘It’s not just pure exercise, you are adding creative activity,’ she says. ‘You’re engaging the left and right side of the brain.’ …

“Dalman has been consulting with ADT’s current artistic director, Daniel Riley, on the company’s 60th anniversary production ‘A Quiet Language.’ … The show, created by Riley, is billed as an examination of legacy, ‘transmuting the rebellious energy of the company’s early days into an electric new era.’

“Over the past decade, Dalman herself has graced international stages, notably touring for four years as part of the Irish choreographer Michael Keegan-Dolan’s critically acclaimed ‘Swan Lake/Loch na hEala,’ which transposed the classical ballet to the Irish midlands. When Keegan-Dolan posted an international callout for a woman aged 60 with long white hair to play the story’s cranky, arthritic matriarch, Dalman – 82 at the time – emailed saying she had the requisite long white hair. …

“Dalman has always been determined to dance. … She enrolled in dance class at three, learning both classical ballet and modern. Later, she began an arts degree at the University of Adelaide. …

“In 1957, aged 23, Dalman paid her way to London with the hope of launching a dance career. There, she saw a life-changing performance by the Mexican choreographer José Limón. ‘He touched my soul. I thought, “Oh wow, that’s how I want to dance,” ‘ she recalls. In 1960-61 she studied at the Folkwang school in Essen, Germany, where her classmates included Pina Bausch: ‘She was amazing, a technical whiz.’

“In Germany, Dalman met the Colombian American choreographer Eleo Pomare, who rose to prominence in the civil rights era. She created works with Pomare’s company from 1961 to 1963, living in Amsterdam with him and four other dancers. Pomare later remarked that Dalman danced ‘as if she swallows the heat and you feel that the heat is burning from the inside out.’ …

“Dalman returned to Australia in late 1963, and performed in the artist Stan Ostoja-Kotkowski’s experimental theatre show ‘Sound and Image’ at the 1964 Adelaide festival. It inspired her to open a dance school, and in 1965 she took her students on a regional tour, alongside dancers from Royal Ballet alumnus Leslie White’s Adelaide academy.

“Buoyed up by the tour’s success, Dalman and White set up Australian Dance Theatre, but the going was financially tough, and White left in 1967. Dalman put Australian Dance Theatre forward to perform in the 1968 Adelaide festival, but when it turned down her request for financial support she instead bought some half-price cruise ship tickets and took the troupe on its first international tour, sailing to the Netherlands, Switzerland and Italy.

“Back home, Dalman faced discrimination because of her gender: ‘I felt the battle, I had to keep proving myself. Even once we got a little bit of funding later, in 1973, and I’d been running the company since 1965, never in the red, this board member, a man, said, “Oh we have to do something about the finances, they haven’t been run correctly.” Then he took us into the red the next year.’

“Dalman remained artistic director until 1975. Then, having split with her husband, she and [their son] Andreas moved to Ventimiglia, a seaside town in northern Italy. … She founded a dance school and a youth dance theatre there in 1976, and it became ‘a place of healing.’

“In 1986, on a visit home to Australia, Dalman met another mature artist, who became an inspiration: the Japanese butoh dancer Kazuo Ohno, then almost 80. … A decade later, Dalman and Andreas visited Ohno – who was still dancing, and preparing to tour the US – at his Yokohama home. ‘He said, “Oh Elizabeth, it’s so good to talk to a senior, mature artist.” ‘ Dalman, then 60, had been contemplating ending her career. ‘When I met him, I realized I had to keep going.’

“In 1989, Dalman bought a 40-hectare property at Bungendore, near Weereewa/Lake George, outside Canberra. The bush reminded her of Italy, dancing among the olive groves or by the river. She established Mirramu Creative Arts Centre there the same year, followed by Mirramu Dance Company in 2002. …

“ ‘It was hard leaving Adelaide because that was my home, but the pull of this place, the land and the lake, is very powerful.’ “

More at the Guardian, here.

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Nurse Still in the Fray at 97

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on October 25, 2024| 4 Comments »

Photo: The Valley Ledger.
Grace Carr became a nurse cadet in 1944. She is still active as a volunteer at St. Luke’s Sacred Heart Campus in Allentown, Pa.

Nancy L and I, both living in retirement communities, have been fascinated to see how differently we ourselves — and the people around us — age. It’s like we’re making a study of our cohort.

Nancy tells me with a certain awe about an active woman over 100 that she’s met where there are people in their 70s who can barely function. What makes the difference? she wonders. We ponder together whether it’s all genetics, something about the life they’ve lived, a combination of those elements, or what.

From the Washington Post comes a story about an elderly WW II-era nurse called Grace Carr who adds to the wonderment.

Cathy Free writes, “Grace Carr was 17 when she left her family home in the coal town of Freeland, Pa., to pursue a dream she’d had since she was 5 years old.

“ ‘Ever since I can remember, I wanted to be a nurse and work in a hospital,’ said Carr, who as a child spent hours wrapping her dolls in bandages and taking their temperatures. …

“Carr, now 97, is still at it, working exactly where she started: St. Luke’s Sacred Heart Campus in Allentown, Pa., about 60 miles from where she grew up.

“Although she retired from her nursing job at age 62, Carr continued as a volunteer at the hospital, and she now shows up every Wednesday to escort patients to their tests, deliver flowers to rooms and take specimens to the lab.

“ ‘From the time she shows up in the morning until she leaves in the afternoon, Grace always has the same happy smile,’ said Beth Fogel, the hospital’s volunteer engagement specialist, who has known Carr for 20 years.

“ ‘She never shows any weariness and always has the same pep in her step,’ she said. ‘Everyone loves talking to her.’

“Carr has logged more than 6,000 hours as a volunteer, taking only a few months off at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. ‘I love people, and my health is good, so I’m happy to do what I can,’ she said. …

“Carr, formerly known as Grace Malloy, started training to become a nurse at Sacred Heart Hospital during World War II in 1944.

“ ‘When I went to nursing school at the hospital, we all lived on-site in a home for nurses,’ she said. ‘We had classes for most of the day, then we’d go onto the floors and learn about all the usual things nurses did, like making beds, taking temperatures and helping to keep the patients comfortable.’ In her first year as a trainee, she was paid $15 a month.

“The U.S. Army paid for her training on the condition that she serve in the U.S. Cadet Nurse Corps and work in a public hospital like Sacred Heart after graduation, she said. The nurse cadet program ensured that U.S. hospitals didn’t experience nursing shortages during the war. …

“Carr said the Army gave her two cadet uniforms — one for summer and one for winter — and she’d often wear them when she took the train home to visit her parents. …

“When Carr’s boyfriend, Edward Carr, came home from serving in the military, they were married in 1947 — the same year she graduated from nursing school.

“Carr was then hired to work the night shift at Sacred Heart, which she did for more than 20 years while raising four daughters and a son. She laughs when people ask her whether she slept during those years.

“ ‘I’d take little naps,’ Carr said. ‘Then when my husband came home, I’d let him take over until it was time for my hospital shift to start at 11 p.m. I look back on it now and I think, “How in the world did I do that?” … I always felt thankful to be doing something I loved.’

“Carr passed her work ethic along to two younger sisters who followed her into nursing. Her daughter Grace Loring also worked at the same hospital. …

“Loring, now retired after 35 years as a pediatric nurse, picks up Carr at her home in Allentown every Wednesday and drives her to and from the hospital. She said she often wonders how her mother managed it all while she was growing up.

“ ‘I also worked nights when I became a nurse, but I was single, and I could just go to bed,’ she said. ‘My mom was there for us after school, she handled the housework and the gardening, and she made matching Easter outfits for us every Easter.’ …

“ ‘When I was a student nurse, I was working in the maternity nursery and had to take this adorable baby boy to his mother,’ Carr said. ‘That little boy later married my oldest daughter, Janet, and he’s now 78. …

” ‘I’ve been given a lot by the hospital,’ Carr said. ‘So as long as I’m healthy and able, I’m going to keep coming back.’ ”

More at the Post, here, and at the Valley Ledger, here.

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Breakdancing for the Elderly

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on September 30, 2024| 4 Comments »

Photo: Justin McCurry/The Guardian.
Members of Ara Style Senior breakdancing club at a recent class in Tokyo, Japan. 

When John was in middle school, he got into breakdancing for a while, an activity that seems manageable for young people. But what about for the elderly? For them, the more recent nomenclature, “breaking,” seems more appropriate.

But not in Japan. Justin McCurry filed another story at the Guardian about that endlessly fascinating country.

“Ten people – wearing bright orange and green T-shirts that mark them out as members of Ara Style Senior – do not belong to the demographic you would normally associate with breakdancing. Their average age hovers just below 70, and the oldest is 74.

“But on a hot afternoon in an eastern Tokyo suburb, amid nervous smiles and initial timing issues, the group ends with a perfectly executed pose the dance’s originators in 1970s New York neighborhoods would probably agree is not too shabby at all.

“Senior breaking is one of a growing category of sports tailored to Japan’s large population of older people who, thanks to the country’s extraordinary longevity statistics, are determined to keep popping and locking for as long as their bodies will allow.

“ ‘At first I thought, there was no way I could breakdance at my age,’ says 69-year-old Hitomi Oda. ‘And of course, we can’t do anything extreme, but it’s fun just to do the easy moves and get your body working.’

“These superannuated b-girls and b-boys, who meet twice a month at a community center in the capital’s Edogawa ward, have the organizers of this summer’s Paris Olympics, and former breaking national champion Yusuke Arai to thank for this novel approach to fitness in their later years.

“ ‘Some of my mother’s friends told her they were interested in learning how to breakdance, and when it was chosen as an Olympic sport, I thought, “Why not give it a go?” ‘ Arai tells the Guardian. …

“The 39-year-old tailors his class to bodies that may not be as supple as the children he has been teaching for almost a decade. ‘You have to lower the hurdles to make it possible for older people to do the moves, so I begin with a focus on easy moves using the top half of the body,’ says Arai. …

“The class is just a few minutes old when the dancers, faces flushed from stretches and warm-up exercises, take the first of several breathers. The genteel approach works: since the classes started last year, not a single dancer has so much as sprained an ankle.

“A few have backgrounds in other forms of dance, but most had never tried breaking until a combination of Olympic excitement and gentle peer pressure brought them through Arai’s door. Now they are converts, practicing together between sessions with the help of YouTube tutorials.

“The class ends with a meticulously rehearsed routine that combines toprocks and floor moves and, as its sign-off, a baby freeze the dancers are asked to re-create multiple times by a visiting Japanese TV crew.

“ ‘The rhythm and the perseverance mean it stimulates your brain as well as your body,’ says Kazuharu Sakuma, the only male dancer, who is here taking a trial class.

“The 71-year-old says he will be back. ‘It’s not like you have to memorize the moves … you just do them two or three times and you realize, “yes, I can actually do this.” That’s when it becomes really enjoyable. It’s also great for general fitness … I’m hoping it will make it easier to walk up stairs.’

“Class regular Takako Mizutani removes her trucker cap and pronounces herself ‘not in the least bit tired. … It doesn’t matter if you’re not very good at it, it’s a lot of fun and a proper workout,’ adds Mizutani, who has a background in jazz dance. ‘I plan to keep breaking for as long as I can.’ ”

More at the Guardian, here. No paywall.

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First Starring Role at 94

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on September 18, 2024| 10 Comments »

Photo: Magnolia Pictures/AP.
Actor June Squibb with Richard Roundtree in the movie Thelma. 

I’ve been wanting to see this movie since I first read about it, but I have trouble accessing movies these days. Some get shown on the tv network in our retirement community, but we may not get this one for a while as it’s not available yet.

What’s cool about Thelma is that the lead actor is 94 and also that she has glowing reviews.

Fiona Sturges writes at the Guardian, “There’s a new action hero in town. In Josh Margolin’s wildly entertaining Thelma, an elderly widow is duped out of $10,000 by a scammer masquerading as her grandson. Realizing her error, she resolves to track him down, retrieve her cash and dispense some rough justice.

If summer blockbusters are about the action, then Thelma has it all: guns, explosions and mobility scooter-based stunts.

“When the 94-year-old actor June Squibb read the script, with its mischievous nods to Mission: Impossible, she knew she had to do it. She also knew she would do lots of the stunts herself. ‘I have more security in my physicality than a lot of people do, and I thought riding around on that scooter was going to be great fun,’ she beams. …

“She says she is in excellent health, even though, ‘I should be doing pilates more than I am, because I’ve had such a crazy schedule. I was doing it for one hour a week with a trainer, and it makes a huge difference. I’m in good shape.’

“Extraordinarily, Thelma is Squibb’s first ever starring role. Until now, she has been viewed as a character actor, someone you’re more likely to know by face (or by voice: she is Nostalgia in Inside Out 2) than by name. She has spent decades quietly propping up lead actors playing their wives, mothers and grandmothers in films such as Scent of a Woman, About Schmidt and Palm Springs. …

“While Thelma is primarily a comedy, it is underpinned by a more serious theme: the way society treats its elderly. We see Thelma’s well-meaning family talking about her when she’s still in the room and pondering whether to move her into a home. … But she is happy to report that, in her 10th decade, she has had nothing but love and respect from her family and has retained her independence. She lives in an apartment complex in the San Fernando Valley. … ‘And I have a wonderful assistant without whom I couldn’t keep working,’ Squibb says. ‘I have two cats and I make sure that, first thing in the morning, they’re taken care of. And then I have most of the day to myself if I’m not filming. I have no trouble getting around, though I do get tired. Tiredness is real when you get to my age.’

“Yet Squibb has rarely been in such demand. She credits her increased workload to a ‘greater interest in the aging process. There’s more work for people my age than ever before. … When I was a young, good-looking actor in New York, I was constantly aware that people looked at me as an object.’ She and her contemporaries had their coping mechanisms, ‘but I got mad too. When #MeToo happened, all of us in our 80s were amazed. We were, like, “Oh my God, we’ve lived this our whole lives.” ‘ …

“Squibb learned her craft in the 1950s at the Cleveland Play House, where she met Jack Lee, who went on to become a leading musical director on Broadway. ‘He decided I had to sing. So, I began singing and I did all the comedienne roles in all the musicals. … My first 20 years in New York were all musicals.’ Then came a gear-change after she met her second husband, Charles Kataksakis, an acting coach. Kataksakis thought she had it in her to play more serious roles (he and Squibb were together for 40 years until his death in 1999). …

“Squibb was 61 when she made the move from stage to screen. … ‘I went to my agent and said, “I think I should be doing this too.” The next week I was auditioning for Woody Allen.’ That film was Alice, a romcom starring Mia Farrow in which Squibb played a maid. The casting director, Ellen Lewis, took an instant shine to Squibb and set her up for a meeting with Martin Brest, who cast her in his new Al Pacino vehicle, Scent of a Woman. …

“After that came roles in TV shows . … [Alexander] Payne brought her on board for 2013’s Nebraska, in which she played the abrasive and unfiltered Kate, wife of Bruce Dern’s delusional Woody. The role earned her an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress. …

“Squibb just wrapped another film, playing the lead in Eleanor the Great, about a 90-year-old who moves back to New York after decades in Florida. It is the directorial debut of Scarlett Johansson, who Squibb describes as ‘so bright, so smart.’ Being No 1 on the call sheet, she says, means ‘going into it with a feeling of responsibility that you don’t have with a supporting role. I always felt what I did was important. But as the lead you’re kind of responsible for the whole film.’ ”

More at the Guardian, here. Have you seen this movie yet? (Looking at Laurie, who seems to see everything.)

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Fighting Loneliness in Japan

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on May 7, 2024| 8 Comments »

Photo: Oscar Espinosa.
Residents of a Japanese apartment building designed to combat loneliness in seniors are seen weeding with a boy from the child development center on the first floor.

Social media, working at home, and lack of face-to-face interaction are among the reasons for the increased isolation of all ages in our world. Isolation is not good for individuals or for society.

At the Christian Science Monitor, Oscar Espinosa describes an apartment building in Japan specially designed to bring people together more.

“A message on a small whiteboard near the elevator,” he writes, “is a reminder that dinner in this apartment building is tonight at 7 p.m., as it is once every month. Many of the residents are likely to attend, since being together is the point.

“Nagaya Tower, in the peaceful city of Kagoshima on the Japanese island of Kyushu, houses 43 people, ages 8 to 92, including a family with five children. With shared community spaces, the tower was built so that different generations could meet and interact. The staff is dedicated to supporting residents and connecting them with each other to generate that community life so important to combating the loneliness of older people, which has become a significant problem in Japan’s increasingly aging society.

“ ‘This community is inspired by the ancient nagayas of the Japanese Edo period,’ says Nomura Yasunori, who moved here five years ago with his wife. ‘From children to the elderly, families, singles, from different occupations, all lived together in the same long compartmentalized house.’

The building was designed in a V shape so that everyone could see each other when they enter or leave their homes.

“[In 2021], the Japanese Cabinet Office appointed a minister for loneliness and social isolation. … According to a survey conducted in 2017 by Japan’s National Institute of Population and Social Security Research, 15% of older men who live alone talk with one person or no one every two weeks, while 30% feel they have no reliable people they can turn to for help in their day-to-day lives.

“Dozono Haruhiko, founder of one of Japan’s first palliative care clinics, saw how his patients could suffer from social isolation. He believed that what these patients needed was human interaction, and so, in 2011, he applied for a government grant with his idea for Nagaya Tower, which was completed in 2013.

“By 6 p.m. on this evening, residents are starting to arrive with food for the communal dinner. Some of them rearrange tables to form a single one that takes up almost the entire room; others go to the kitchen to lend a hand.

“ ‘After coming to Nagaya Tower I feel rejuvenated,’ smiles Kukita, who arrived three years ago with his wife. … ‘Here you stay young because you are surrounded by children and young people.’ Kukita says he walks every day in the park, swims in the pool, participates in the art workshop once a month, and, above all, takes every opportunity to talk and spend time with the children.

“ ‘I can learn a lot from the elderly people through the exchange,’ says Takai, who is in his 30s and is one of the younger residents. ‘We help each other from time to time if we have a problem.’

“The building was designed in a V shape so that everyone could see each other when they enter or leave their homes, allowing them to greet each other, which is not common practice in other places, according to Moemu Nagano, age 27, who has lived here for two years. …

“After dinner, Kawasaki Masatoshi sings Bob Dylan’s ‘Blowin’ in the Wind’ to a standing ovation, making it clear that Nagaya Tower’s motto, ‘Life is happy when you have someone to smile with,’ is more than just a phrase on a piece of paper. He loves community life and boasts of being resident zero, when he moved in 10 years ago.

“ ‘I signed up before the construction of the building was finished, and I will stay here for the rest of my life,’ Mr. Kawasaki says.

More at the Monitor, here. No firewall. Charming photos. And for more insights on communal or supported living, read the blog Making Home Home, here.

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The “Say Hi” Campaign in Sweden

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on February 4, 2024| 2 Comments »

Photo: juniperphoton via Unsplash.
In a world of increasing isolation and loneliness, a community can encourage people to say “hi.”

In retirement communities, I’m learning, there’s a big push to connect people with other people and combat isolation. When new residents go to the dining room, the hosts invariably ask, “Would you like to sit with some other folks?” That effort, I find, can either be helpful or strange. I had one elderly couple write down all the things I said about my history and our decision to move and then not recognize me the next day!

But I understand why the organization does it. Isolation is historically a problem for older people.

Nowadays it’s a problem for younger people, too, who often communicate through electronic media only and don’t gather in person.

Orla Barry writes at the radio show The World, “Loneliness can be as bad for your health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, according to an international commission launched by the World Health Organization this month.

“Saying hello to a stranger may not seem like that big of a deal. But Åsa Koski, a social strategist with the Luleå municipality in northern Sweden, believes its impact could be greater than one might think. She started the Säg hej! (‘Say hi!’) campaign in Luleå to try and get people to interact more with each other to combat widespread loneliness.

“Luleå is a coastal city located around 93 miles south of the Arctic Circle. Winters there are long and cold and the average temperature can drop to 5 degrees Fahrenheit.

“But Koski, doesn’t think the weather alone is to blame for the isolation that many Swedes reportedly feel. Recent research by Sweden’s public health agency found that a third of 16-29-year-olds say they experience problems caused by loneliness.

“Koski thinks the continual urbanization of the town and an ever-growing dependence on digital technology are far bigger factors than the long dark winters. …

“California-born Lauren Ell is familiar with the Swedish reticence to engage in friendly banter with a stranger but she thinks it’s a generational thing. Ell first moved to Sweden as a foreign exchange student in 2006. Making friends with Swedish students was almost impossible, she said. 

“Like Koski, Ell thinks digital technology is part of the problem.

“ ‘Even back in 2006 gaming was really big and I remember a lot of my classmates would just go home and play video games all evening.’ Today, everyone is stuck on their phones, she said. Ell, who now lives in Skaulo, a small Swedish town north of Luleå, said she knows things aren’t that different in the US. But she said Swedes appear to have a natural tendency to keep to themselves or just mingle within their own social circles, and that makes it even harder for foreigners to integrate into the community.

“Swedish Italian filmmaker Erik Gandini believes other factors may be driving the problem of loneliness in Sweden.

“ ‘A long time ago, this country really embraced the idea of personal autonomy and independence,’ he said. Gandini was born and raised in Italy to a Swedish mother and Italian father. When he moved to Stockholm at the age of 20 he was struck by the number of people in their late teens already living alone.

“In 2021, Sweden recorded the lowest average age of young people leaving the parental home across the European Union — at 19 years. In Italy, the average age is closer to 30. …

“Gunnar Andersson, professor of demography at Stockholm University said Sweden’s ‘culture of individualism’ dates back centuries, with teenagers in rural communities typically leaving home to go and work on another farm. The strong welfare state allows young adults to live independently without the support of their parents. …

“It’s very different from the traditional Italian family structure that Gandini grew up in and in 2015 he made a documentary about the Swedish system called The Swedish Theory of Love. The film got a mixed response in Sweden. Gandini said it touched a nerve. 

“ ‘The idea is so strong in Sweden of making sure that you never need anybody else, it’s become something sacred here. Swedish people don’t like to see that criticized or questioned,’ he said.

“Gandini believes it’s a double-edged sword. The government changes in the 1970s led to greater female emancipation and pushed Sweden toward becoming a more modern society, he said, but that has left people more prone to isolation and loneliness.

“US native Lauren Ell said she often feels lonely living in Sweden. She never intended to live in the Nordic country long term, but 10 years ago, Ell fell in love with a Swedish man and moved to his hometown of Skaulo.

“In the last couple of years Ell, who now has two small children, set about trying to get to know her community better. She began organizing events to bring local residents together. … But Ell finds that just getting people to show up is not easy. It’s demoralizing, she said. …

“Ell, who’s 35, said she finds it harder to connect with Swedes who are her own age and younger. Many of her best conversations are with older neighbors in their 60s and 70s, she said. …

“Teachers in Luleå have reported that the campaign is already having an effect. Koski said students are now challenging each other to see how many ‘hi’s’ they can get in a day. A teacher told Koski that one student, who usually spends most of his time alone, admitted he was buoyed up when other students began to say ‘hi’ to him.”

More at PRI’s The World, here. No firewall.

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Walking Soccer for Old Folks

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , on August 5, 2023| 5 Comments »

Photo: Michael Briones via Vancouver Island Free Daily.
Vancouver Island Walking Soccer Alternate’s Rob Jonas (left) and Bob Unwin try to stop Harry Hubbal of UBC Masters.

The second time my neighbor Ralph broke his leg playing pick-up soccer with other old folks, he decided maybe it was time to give it up. But he loved playing the game. Giving it up was going to be hard.

Wait! There’s hope for people like Ralph! Meeri Kim describes the interesting alternative at the Washington Post.

“Aside from his wife, soccer is the love of Gary Clark’s life. He started playing at age 7 and kept it up for more than four decades, even representing his home country Canada at the international level.

“His involvement in the sport, though, was cut short at age 48, following a knee replacement surgery. When Clark asked about getting back on the field, his doctor told him to go ahead — but only if he wanted another knee replaced.

“He dipped his toe in the water by joining a pickup game and tore the cartilage in his other knee.

“ ‘There was a sense of loss at not being able to go out and partake in my passion,’ said Clark, now 68, of Coquitlam, B.C. ‘And I knew that if I tried, I would injure myself again.’ …

“The game requires rapid accelerations, decelerations, turns and stops, which take a toll on players’ knees and ankles. A standard soccer pitch, at 115 yards long and 74 yards wide, is larger than an American football field. Players cover, on average, nearly seven miles, in a single match.

“So when a variant of the sport with no running allowed emerged in 2011, some laughed it off as a joke. Walking soccer, however, has become a global phenomenon.

“In 2011, Chesterfield FC Community Trust launched its walking football program in Derbyshire, England, as part of an initiative for older adults.

“Players can’t run or jog, with or without the ball, and one foot must be in contact with the ground at all times. Other rules also differ from regular soccer, to prioritize players’ health and safety. For example, tackling is only allowed with no contact; all free kicks are indirect; and the ball must never go over head height.

“Walking soccer is played on a smaller field (55 to 65 yards long, and 35 to 45 yards wide) and with six people on each team instead of 11.

“There are about 600 walking football clubs in England alone, for men and women.

“The country is also home to the international governing body for walking football, the Federation of International Walking Football Associations (FIWFA), which includes member organizations from countries such as Italy, Nigeria, Australia, South Korea and India. And the inaugural World Nations Cup — the equivalent of the World Cup for walking soccer — will take place in August in the United Kingdom.

“Clubs have cropped up in Seattle, Chicago, Southern California, Vancouver and a few other cities and regions in the United States and Canada. …

“ ‘I have lost weight playing, so I think that’s a good sign,’ said Clark, who has played with the Tri-City Walking Soccer Club for about a year. He logs up to 13,000 to 18,000 steps in a single game, but notes that most players average around 3,500 to 7,000 steps.

“George Gorecki, 62, started Walking Soccer Chicago in early 2019, after hearing about the sport from a U.K.-based friend. The Chicago resident used to play competitive amateur soccer with a club before arthritis in his left knee and right hip slowed him down. Many older members of Walking Soccer Chicago found themselves in the same boat — unable to play because of medical conditions. …

“ ‘The guys really took to it because they were able to reconnect with their teammates, both on the field and in a social setting after the game,’ Gorecki said. …

“Most studies on walking soccer have small sample sizes, but a 2020 review of research on the sport determined that it may have health benefits and help build social connections. A 2015 study found that 12 weeks of walking soccer, in the form of a two-hour training session per week, significantly reduced body mass and percentage body fat in 10 older men. Participants, with an average age of 66, had various comorbidities, including hypertension, knee osteoarthritis and Type 2 diabetes.

“The researchers concluded that walking football is safe and effective as a public health intervention — for not only healthy individuals but also those with various exercise-limiting medical conditions.

“Other research has focused on the mental and social aspects of the sport. In a 2022 study, seven men with mental health conditions such as depression or anxiety underwent a walking football intervention. It involved up to an hour playing a game, followed by an opportunity to meet and socialize. The men reported several positive effects on their well-being. They enjoyed socializing, developed new friendships and felt a renewed sense of purpose.” More at the Post, here.

I don’t know why I am chuckling my way through this story. I do think it’s a great idea for soccer lovers — maybe even less dangerous than pickleball.

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Making a Move

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on June 22, 2023| 18 Comments »

Photo: Suzanne and John’s Mom.
Flowers from some staff to inaugurate our move. Note the packing boxes in the background.

A story could be written about the move to a retirement community. But what kind of story? Richard Osman of Thursday Murder Club fame saw the possibilities of all the aging expertise in such places for solving crimes, so he launched a mystery series.

Maybe something more literary would be in order, along the lines of Katherine Mansfield or the late Edith Pearlman, who sometimes wrote stories about aging.

Some folks might see the Twilight Zone aspect — but in a good way.

I better explain. When you go to a Place, you pretty much know it’s your last stop. It’s the place where you will decline, get more hard of hearing, have trouble walking, break a bone, get it fixed, and eventually die. The look of new people arriving there is invariably both anxious and relieved. The relieved end is more prominent for me right now.

You get introduced at a new-resident party, and longtime residents need no encouragement to step up and welcome you, talking about cool events (and committees), and helping you figure out how things work. I was delighted to find someone who maintains a garden plot and told me where I could compost my vegetable scraps.

These folks have already gotten used to the idea that it’s the last stop, and they are really happy to be in a place with lots of friends, interesting things to be part of, and — when trouble arises — all kinds of help. I observed an impressive level of comfort with infirmities. No one blinks if you have to ask a couple times for someone to repeat, and I saw folks with fairly severe infirmities who are still in charge of various things.

I knew one person here, only slightly, and she was very welcoming. I did see lots of familiar faces as we have lived in the town more than 40 years. Blogger/singer Will McMillan performs at this place several times a year with pianist Joe Reid, and he paved the way for me to make another friend.

Although boxes still aren’t unpacked and lots of things still feel kind of up in the air, we are doing OK. The dinners are very good. I don’t think I will be having to use our new kitchen much, and that is welcome.

PS. I am awkward with using Google photos but want you to see a funny video of our young movers. Can you figure out how this works?

https://photos.app.goo.gl/641cpVKfebMa8TzK7

My move manager took it, so in case it is locked or something, I will tell you that the three moving guys admired a big gong in the house and I told them each to take a turn with the mallet. It was pretty cute.

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Multiage Communities

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on August 15, 2022| 3 Comments »

Being around kids can be good for old folks.

As my friends and I discuss whether or not to sign up for senior communities, one big worry is not seeing children very often. Not necessarily just children in our own families, but the kids that are in the neighborhood or that we pass on our walks or our trips to the the library and shops. Many of us don’t want to be somewhere with no sidewalks to a town, where you can feel a bit normal.

Eleanor Laise at MarketWatch recently reported on a trend that aims to deal with that issue.

She writes, “It’s a warm spring Monday in Easthampton, Mass., and from the front porch of her townhome in the Treehouse intergenerational community, Sue Brow can see several neighbors’ well-kept gardens in bloom. Brow, 60, has helped plant the garden of one neighbor who was ill, and she’s pitching in to grow tomatoes on another neighbor’s patio. Later in the afternoon, residents gather to play games in a communal building. Brow’s 16-year-old son helps take out the older neighbors’ trash, and in their living room sits a birdhouse he just painted at a community celebration attended by residents and friends ranging in age from three to 83. 

“In her four years living at Treehouse, a community designed to bring together seniors with families who are fostering or adopting children, Brow … raised her adopted son with the help of dozens of fellow residents who live within a few minutes’ walk along the horseshoe-shaped street that forms the neighborhood’s backbone. ‘I don’t know what I would have done’ without that [says] Brow. …

“As America enters an era of unprecedented age diversity, new designs for intergenerational communities are taking shape across the country, intentionally weaving together the lives of older and younger residents and breaking down barriers that have segregated elders in traditional senior housing.

“In these new communities, octogenarians can help 8-year-olds with their math homework after school, residents of all ages can prepare and eat meals together, and neighbors can take turns caring for a sick resident who might otherwise wind up in a nursing home. 

“[The] communities often feature smaller, age-friendly dwellings tightly clustered around shared green spaces. Many include community gardens and common buildings where older and younger residents can work and play side by side.

“The trend is not so much a new idea as the resurrection of a very old one. ‘Multiple generations living close by and looking out for each other is possibly the oldest of all human ideas,’ says Dr. Bill Thomas, a geriatrician who last year announced the launch of new, intergenerational Kallimos Communities. …

“In addition to Kallimos, which plans to open its first community in Loveland, Colo., next year, other intergenerational communities in the works include Regenerative Communities, spearheaded by hospitality entrepreneur Chip Conley; Agrihood, designed around an urban farm in Santa Clara, Calif.; and 4300 San Pablo, an Emeryville, Calif., community designed for seniors and young adults who are aging out of the foster care system. …

“These communities are springing up at a time when COVID-19 has spotlighted the pivotal role they can play in society, aging experts say. During the pandemic, it was ‘truly heartbreaking and horrifying how all these ways we’ve separated people — including by age — left us ill-prepared to deal with a crisis of this magnitude,’ says Marc Freedman, president and CEO of Encore.org, a nonprofit focused on intergenerational connection. 

“Isolation proved devastating not only for seniors in locked-down facilities but also younger people stuck taking Zoom classes in their bedrooms, says Bob Kramer, cofounder and strategic adviser for the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing and Care. Now, when he teaches college students about the impact of isolation, he says, ‘for the first time, 22-year-olds I’m speaking to can empathize with what I’m talking about.’ …  

“Intergenerational communities reflect efforts ‘not just to remake housing but to reinvent the notion of what a family is,’ Freedman says. Those efforts come as the U.S. reaches a new milestone in age diversity, with the population roughly evenly distributed across chronological ages through the mid-70s, according to a recent study from the Stanford Center on Longevity. … ‘The demography of America is changing faster than the financiers and developers of housing are willing to change,’ Thomas says. Housing that was developed for a much younger population, he says, is ‘increasingly out of sync with who we really are.’ “

More at MarketWatch, here. No firewall.

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Bicycling When You No Longer Can

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on June 10, 2022| 10 Comments »

Photo: Cycling Without Age.

Thinking a lot about ageing these days. For one thing, hiding from Covid all the time makes me feel old, and then there are the inevitable health issues.

How does anyone make a plan? There is no way to predict exactly what will happen next. So far my husband and I do everything we always did, but I have felt a need to start looking at “Places,” to use the word of humorist Roz Chast.

Some Places boast activities that look interesting. Today’s story is about an activity that would make a good addition.

Jessica Coulon reports at Bicycling magazine on a clever nonprofit initiative. “Ole Kassow, of Copenhagen, Denmark, was riding his bike to work one morning in 2012 when he noticed an old, disabled man sitting on a bench outside a local nursing home. The man reminded him of his father, who uses a wheelchair.

“Knowing the challenges that come with limited mobility in old age, and thinking about how deeply ingrained bicycling is in Copenhagen culture, a thought occurred to him: The man likely hadn’t ridden a bike in a long time and, Kassow thought, he probably missed it.

‘I couldn’t get that thought out of my head, that I needed to get this man back on a bike,’ Kassow told Bicycling.

“Kassow acted on his idea the very next day by renting a rickshaw and offering rides to seniors at the retirement home. He ended up piloting a woman, who began telling him stories about living in Copenhagen as they rode around. When they returned, the facility’s staff were amazed at the woman’s energizing reaction to the ride.

“These volunteer rides grew into what is now the nonprofit Cycling Without Age. The organization partners with nursing homes and senior care facilities around the world to offer bike rides to the people who live there. Volunteers who sign up can pilot rickshaws, also known as trishaws, which can carry up to two passengers. There are also bikes that can accommodate wheelchairs.

“The primary goal of the program is to improve the lives of seniors by getting them outside and back into the community and bringing them joy through riding a bike. According to Kassow, the program gives its participants a greater ‘sense of belonging.’ It’s also a way for the younger generations who volunteer to connect with and learn from older generations.

“ ‘It quickly became something that the other care homes wanted to do in Copenhagen,’ Pernille Bussone, the global community captain for Cycling Without Age, told Bicycling. From there the program began to spread into neighboring countries, like Sweden and Norway. Now, the organization boasts chapters in more than 45 countries. …

“Their evidence of this was anecdotal at first. But after conducting an impact study in their Singapore chapter, they discovered that these rides have the potential to improve participants’ reported mood and outlook on life by up to 80 percent.

“While the shorter, one-day outings are perhaps the most common type of ride that volunteers offer, some of their volunteers have gotten creative. One chapter in Sweden, for example, began offering ice-fishing trips using the trishaws. …

“They’ve also introduced bike touring in certain chapters, which consist of three or four day outings in large groups, that include family members of the elderly passengers and staff from their nursing homes. They stay at hotels and often have picnics outside. Some of the bike tours have had more than 100 people take part. …

“The organization is now gaining ground in the U.S. where there are currently 418 chapters. ‘I’ve personally witnessed the joy and effects getting seniors back outside brings to their quality of life,’ Shelly Sabourin told Bicycling. Sabourin was the director of nursing at a care facility in Madison, Wisconsin, when she found out about the program in 2016.”

Andrea Morris at CBN News has more.

” ‘I see CWA as a catalyst for better lives by helping socially isolated elders and people with limited mobility gain access to their local communities,’ Kassow told CBN News. ‘We all know that exercise and fresh air is good for us, but not many people know that happiness and longevity are mainly the result of both a few close relationships and access to interact with several people in our daily lives. I see Cycling Without Age play(ing) a key role in making relationships a human right for all elders in all societies.’ “

More at Bicycling, here, and at CBN News, here. No firewalls. And be sure to check out the organization’s website, here.

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Coding a Game at 82

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on March 10, 2022| 7 Comments »

Photo: Takehiko Kambayashi.
Octogenarian app developer Wakamiya Masako creates fabric designs with Excel art (note her shirt) and also games that older people can win against kids.

I know I’m not the only one when I say that I miss Jimmy the Geek. He would make an initial housecall for computer problems, but after that, he’d solve problems over the phone, usually without charge.

Jimmy died two years ago. And I have managed to take care of myself, techwise, mostly by following his approach to finding solutions.

The common wisdom that old folks need to ask children for tech help gives us a bad rap. Many older bloggers know how wrong that is. We have learned to do all sorts of fancy things with WordPress, for example, adapting when the platform makes its endless “improvements.” My grandchildren have no idea how to do this. They could learn it fast, but I would have to teach them.

You can see why I was drawn to today’s story about Wakamiya Masako, 86, who learned to develop a game app at age 82.

Takehiko Kambayashi writes at the Christian Science Monitor, “Retired from bank management for about 25 years, she has spent a lot of her time helping older friends and neighbors learn to use smartphones, and she’s developed the theory that they have a hard time because there aren’t games and apps aimed at their age group.  

“One possible solution, she thought, was to create a gaming app to encourage and enchant older people into more comfort with their smartphones. …

“Her idea has made her famous at home and abroad for being one of the oldest app developers in the world, lauded by Japanese leaders and global technology executives for transcending age barriers.  

“ ‘Ms. Wakamiya asked me to develop a gaming app in which seniors can beat young people,’ recalls Koizumi Katsushiro, president of Tesseract, a company that teaches computer programming and app development in the northeastern city of Shiogama. 

“But he suggested she create the app herself, and that he would help her. The energetic Ms. Wakamiya took on the challenge, struggling for six months to create the game. …

“In 2017, at the age of 82, she launched Hinadan. The game features Japan’s traditional Hinamatsuri festival, a celebration of Girls’ Day. On the Hinadan app, which takes its name from a tiered stand for displaying traditional Japanese dolls, users must move dolls – puzzle-like – into appropriate positions according to roles: the emperor and the empress, court ladies, and court musicians with instruments. It has now been released in five languages. 

“ ‘I was pleased with the launch. But I did not think it was such a major achievement,’ says Ms. Wakamiya, surprised at the global interest in her work. 

“Hailing her as the world’s oldest app developer, Apple chief executive Tim Cook invited her to the company’s Worldwide Developers Conference in San Jose, California, in 2017. …

“Ms. Wakamiya, who serves as vice chair of the Mellow Club, a Japanese online group for older people, soon found herself on the global speaking circuit encouraging older people to overcome discomfort with technology.

“In 2018, she delivered a keynote address at a United Nations conference in New York on ‘Why are digital skills critical for older persons?’ And she has published several books on aging and technology in Japan, including one titled ‘Life Becomes More and More Interesting After 60.’ …

“In Japan, her advocacy for the use of technology at older ages is particularly notable. Japan has struggled with difficult problems associated with its declining birthrate and aging population, including labor shortages and slow economic growth.

“Those age 65 or older account for 29% of Japan’s population. That’s projected to rise to 38% by 2065, estimates the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research in Tokyo. 

“Ms. Wakamiya began using computers a few years before she retired in 1997 in hopes of socializing online while looking after her aging mother at home.

She says she found that, more than just a new way to expand her circle of friends, computer literacy enriched her life with opportunities to broaden her perspective and satisfy her intellectual curiosity.

“The deficit of online material for older people made her get creative: Using Excel spreadsheets, she saw patterns that she translated into art – designs for fabric and paper fans. She calls it ‘Excel art.’ 

“ ‘Excel looks difficult for seniors. But I came up with an idea of drawing designs using its functions. Then, I got so excited as I was able to produce one new pattern after another,’ says Ms. Wakamiya. … 

“Ms. Wakamiya has taught other seniors how to produce artworks online, using the Excel software as a design tool. ‘It’s very important for seniors to be creative and produce something original,’ she says. 

“Ms. Wakamiya, who sits on Prime Minister Kishida Fumio’s digital policy committee, is known as an information technology evangelist with a mission to get seniors to acquire digital skills. … On her own initiative, Ms. Wakamiya flew to Estonia, which is pioneering the e-Residency concept of digital nations, in 2019 to see how seniors are able to fit in its e-government systems. She also made a speech and held workshops on Excel art during her stay. …

“Hashimoto Kayoko, retired from her career at a major trading house, stumbled upon Ms. Wakamiya at an Apple store in Tokyo, where she was giving an inspirational speech. ‘It was as though rain in the dark sky suddenly turned to a brilliantly sunny day. Ma-chan lights up my heart,’ she says. ‘Ma-chan shows me a can-do attitude.’

“Ms. Wakamiya, who lectures across Japan, encourages older people to be involved in volunteer work especially because many, particularly men, do not know what they are going to do in their post-retirement life. 

“ ‘While you contribute to society, volunteering can help broaden your perspective by meeting and working with those in different age groups. Some of them have high aspirations,’ she says. … 

“Ms. Wakamiya’s life after retirement made her see things differently because, throughout her four-decade career at a bank, most of her acquaintances were in the same business, she says. She recently realized that often, in Japan’s culture of perfectionism, many people are simply so afraid of failure they won’t try something new.

“ ‘You should not worry about failures. There are no such things as failures,’ she says. ‘To just start something new is deemed a success because you still learn in the process.’ ” 

More at the Monitor, here.

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Shovel a Driveway

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on January 24, 2022| 8 Comments »

Photo: Filip Mroz/Unsplash.
A coach told his team the day’s workout would be shoveling for old folks at no charge. Where were these guys when I needed them?

I don’t know if there are any coaches reading this blog, but I just had to spread an idea that a football coach at a Pittsburgh high school had after a snowstorm. Over the years, there have been several storms when I was home alone and really needed the kind of help described here. Once the snow was so high, I had to climb over my picket fence.

Cathy Free writes at the Washington Post, “Pearl Moss looked out her front window in Bethel Park, Pa., and was instantly worried. A major snowstorm that pummeled the Pittsburgh area and the East Coast over the weekend had dumped nearly a foot of snow in her driveway, and there was more on the way.

“ ‘I thought, “What am I going to do? There’s no way I can get out there and shovel myself out,” ‘ said Moss, 74, surveying the white landscape on Monday. …

“A few hours later, there was a knock on her door. Moss peeked out and was surprised to see two teenage boys standing on her porch with shovels.

“ ‘I couldn’t believe it — they were going to shovel me out,’ she said. ‘And they didn’t want a single penny to do it.’

“David Shelpman, 16, and Aidan Campbell, 17, live in the same neighborhood as Moss and are on the football team at Bethel Park High School. Head Coach Brian DeLallo had emailed them and other team members Sunday to inform them that their Martin Luther King Jr. Day workout in the school gym wasn’t going to happen.

“DeLallo also posted a notice on Twitter with some instructions. ‘Due to expected severe weather, Monday’s weightlifting workout has been cancelled,’ he wrote. ‘Find an elderly or disabled neighbor and shovel their driveway. Don’t accept any money — that’s our Monday workout.’

“Shelpman and about 40 other team members put on their snow gear and took their assignment seriously.

“ ‘I grabbed some shovels and drove over to pick up Aidan, and we spent the next eight hours shoveling driveways and sidewalks for people that we knew couldn’t do it for themselves,’ said Shelpman, an offensive and defensive lineman for the Bethel Park Black Hawks.

“ ‘It was a fun way to spend the day,’ he said. ‘We just kept going until we’d done six houses. We even skipped out on having lunch. It made me feel like I was a part of something bigger than myself.’ …

“Braedon Del Duca, a guard for the Black Hawks, shoveled out five houses with two of his friends, Colton Pfeuffer and his brother, Tanner Pfeuffer.

“ ‘I like helping other people, and I love the snow, so it was fun to get a workout outside,’ said Del Duca, 16. ‘It was cool to see how happy people were when we showed up.’ …

“ ‘My dad went to school here, and he also used to shovel snow around the community,’ he said. ‘Whenever there’s a snow day, it’s just what you do when you’re on the football team.’

“DeLallo, 51, said the ‘shovel day’ ritual was started in 2002 by former head coach Jeff Metheny, who is now retired.

“ ‘I was on staff as an assistant coach when he started it, and it’s something everyone is proud to keep going,’ he said.

“In Bethel Park, a Pittsburgh borough with about 32,000 residents, community support of the football team is strong, DeLallo noted.

“ ‘Our games are always well attended, so giving back is the right response,’ he said. ‘Most of our kids know the older people in their neighborhoods, and shoveling snow is a way to connect outside of the usual Friday night football game.’ …

“Other high schools in the area do similar service projects in the community, DeLallo said.

“ ‘The feedback has been awesome, but we’re not the only ones making a difference,’ he said. ‘When you get 11 inches of snow, this is something a lot of communities have stepped up to do.’

“Pearl Moss said she’s grateful for the teens, adding that if they hadn’t shown up when they did, she probably would have been stuck in her house for a while.

“ ‘Those kids did a fine job, and I’ll never forget it,’ she said.”

I believe many teens would like to help neighbors but don’t know where to start. Do you have online neighborhood bulletin boards in your area where people can post needs or trade services — say, a batch of homemade cookies for shoveling the front walk?

We have a pretty reliable paid service right now, but I had a new neighbor offer to help out with his snowblower in the last storm, and you can bet I will keep him in mind. I find it’s unusual for New Englanders to volunteer their help in this way. Please correct me if that has not been your expeience!

More at the Post, here.

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Land Trusts May Enable Aging in Place

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on September 20, 2019| 5 Comments »

capable_2_2_pyramid_900x600

Photo: Capable (Community Aging in Place — Advancing Better Living for Elders)
The Community Aging in Place — Advancing Better Living for Elders program sends a nurse, an occupational therapist, and a handyman to modify and improve the home environment of low-income seniors.

Many people I know are thinking about downsizing or signing up for an assisted-living arrangement that could be tapped when needed. It’s tricky though. Most places require a checkup to show you’re healthy when you arrive, but you may not want to use the service until you are routinely forgetting to turn off the oven or until the local building inspector is demanding expensive repairs on your property.

That is why so many new models are emerging.

Amanda Abrams writes at Shelterforce, “Three years ago, Lisa was in trouble. The Minneapolis homeowner had fallen victim to several recent misfortunes, including a divorce and diagnosis of a chronic illness. But it was the attention of a particularly punitive city housing inspections department that almost did her in. …

“Lisa was required to paint the trim around her own house, add handrails to the front steps, and fix the roof. Later, the city also pointed out that two elm trees in her yard were diseased and had to be cut down. The fines she was assessed had a steep interest rate and the total grew rapidly; within a few years, she owed $24,000; plus, she needed another $4,000 to cut down the elm trees.

“Lisa, then 65, didn’t have that kind of money, so the amount was added to her property taxes, putting her ownership of the house at risk. The home, a two-story duplex in an ethnically diverse North Side neighborhood, was paid off, but Lisa was unable to refinance it or otherwise raise the funds. …

“Lisa’s story sounds dramatic, but it’s not a particularly unusual one for low- and moderate-income seniors around the country. According to experts, the United States is about to face a giant wave of aging baby boomers who are hoping to remain in their houses as they age, but who are often one outstanding tax bill, major repair, or medical crisis away from losing their homes altogether.

“The statistics are daunting. According to LeadingAge, a national association of not-for-profit aging services organizations, in a little over 10 years, one in five Americans will be older than 65, and over half of them will need some sort of paid long-term care services. The organization recently released the results of a poll showing that at least 60 percent of seniors hope to remain at home as they age, even if they have a physical disability.

“But elderly Americans tend to have low incomes, as their life spans outstrip their savings. Roughly 20 million senior households pay over 30 percent of their incomes for housing, according to the AARP Foundation; almost 10 million pay over 50 percent. …

“ ‘For younger baby boomers, their economic situation is much worse than the older ones — they got hit in ’08 [by the financial crisis] and were unable to recover. There’s a growing number of baby boomers retiring with mortgages, so they don’t own their houses outright,’ says Robyn Stone, co-director of the LeadingAge LTSS Center @ UMass Boston. …

“Dan Soliman, director of housing impact at the AARP Foundation, agrees with Stone that a crisis is looming, but he’s more optimistic about the options for addressing it. ‘It’s a really, really big math problem.’ …

“There are definitely innovative programs out there, Soliman says. One is the Community Aging in Place — Advancing Better Living for Elders (CAPABLE) initiative run by the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. The program sends a nurse, an occupational therapist, and a handyman to modify and improve the home environment of low-income seniors who want to age in place. Initially piloted in Baltimore, it’s a modest program that can have a real impact — and save money for Medicare and Medicaid.

“ ‘They get that if we’re able to keep an older adult in their home rather than a facility, there’s significant savings,’ says Soliman. The program is now being expanded to several states.

“AARP Foundation itself has developed a new program called Property Tax-Aide to help older homeowners gain better access to property tax refund and credit programs; currently only about 8 percent of low-income seniors benefit from these initiatives. …

“And many cities have programs that help elderly residents retrofit their houses to make them more user-friendly. Washington, D.C., for example, offers grants of up to $10,000 to low- and moderate-income homeowners and renters for home modifications that reduce the risk of falls and improve mobility.

“But those programs don’t get at some of the bigger issues, like out-of-control tax bills that can eventually lead to foreclosure, major repairs costing tens of thousands of dollars, or medical crisis that interrupt mortgage or tax payments.

“There is a small program currently being implemented in Minneapolis that addresses just about all of the key problems, and then some. It funds housing retrofits and pays off outstanding bills so that seniors can age in place, and could cover some services as well. And it keeps the homes affordable to low- and moderate-income buyers in perpetuity, so that when seniors no longer live there, the houses don’t fall into the hands of investors or negligent landlords.

“The program, called Project Sustained Legacy, was created by Minneapolis’ City of Lakes Community Land Trust. It takes advantage of the land trust model — but tweaks it slightly. Rather than buying the land underneath a house in order to lower the initial purchase price for a new buyer — the traditional CLT approach — the organization takes over the deed to the land belonging to an existing homeowner. In return, City of Lakes addresses outstanding tax liens, mortgage payments, and deferred maintenance.”

There are, of course, challenges to implementing a program like this. You can read about that and about what parts of the country are tackling a land-trust model here.

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Benefits Seniors Get from Reading

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , on December 2, 2018| 6 Comments »

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I’m reading Book Six of Karl Ove Knausgaard’s My Struggle. The rings with the birthstones of my grandchildren are from Luna & Stella.

It’s always nice to learn that something you do anyway is good for your health. For example, I love to read. Now an article in the San Diego Union-Tribune tells me that reading books may help older folks stave off dementia.

Doug Williams writes, “If you want to live a long, healthy life, be sure to exercise, eat your veggies, get plenty of sleep and surround yourself with family and friends.

“Oh, and read a few good books each year, too.

“Several studies in recent years indicate that reading — especially reading books — is beneficial to health, wellness and even longevity.

“In 2016, research done by a team at the Yale University School of Public Health found that of more than 3,600 men and women 50 and older in a long-term health and retirement study, book readers — reading at least 3½ hours per week — had a 20 percent lower risk of dying over the next 12 years than non-book readers.

“Books, even more than long magazine or newspaper articles, seem to enhance quality of life, the researchers said.

“ ‘You have to engage more, hold on to information longer,’ says Avni Bavishi, one of the researchers and authors of the study done while she was completing her master’s in chronic disease epidemiology at Yale. …

“Bavishi, now a medical student at Northwestern, says regular book readers can find relaxation in reading. That can be an oasis — an old-school refuge — in this era of constantly changing stimuli from the Internet and 24-hour news cycle. Lifelong readers, too, may develop better critical thinking skills, vocabulary and empathy that can improve quality of life.

“The researchers believe books promote ‘deep reading’ that is a slow, immersive process. That cognitive engagement may help a reader over his or her lifetime to develop better skills for reasoning and concentration that can improve quality of life (better schools, jobs, income, standard of living). Plus, reading books can ‘promote empathy, social perception and emotional intelligence’ that can help create what they call a ‘survival advantage.’ …

“A study published in the journal Neurology in 2013 also cited the benefits of a lifetime of reading as a barrier to ‘late-life cognitive decline.’ It found that although there is no cure for dementia, ‘reading, writing and playing games’ can slow the progress of that affliction. …

“In a 2009 study at the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom, researchers found reading reduced stress levels by 68 percent, better even than listening to music or taking a walk. Stress reduction was indicated by a lower heart rate and reduced muscle tension.

“Other studies show reading — especially before bedtime — promotes better sleep. It also can enhance social skills and can boost overall intelligence and academic success. …

“In 2012, Stanford researchers — using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) — tracked blood flow to the brain of men and women critically reading excerpts of a Jane Austen novel. They found positive physical results, including increased blood flow to the brain in general, not just to the areas responsible for ‘executive function.’ ” More here.

FYI, I post mini reviews of all the books I read at GoodReads. You can email me at suzannesmom@lunaandstella.com about that.

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