Newspaper Page Text
THE CENTER'S
News from the Atlanta Jewish Community Center, Inc.
From
Mike Lainoff
Assistant Executive Director.
New Beginning
"Old lime pals and old time gals,
Where are your smiles today?
Friends of old with hearts of gold,
Where have you drifted away?
Where is Johnny and Mary and all the rest?
And where is the one I love best?"
(Words by Jack Yellen, from the song“I Wonder What’s
Become of Sally,” Published in 1924.)
The writer of this song, which was popular some 62 years
ago, didn’t know' it at the time, but his words asked the
questions which many of our elderly still ask today. Life is
l ull of beginnings, middles and endings! Most of us tend to
think that becoming elderly is an ending. Actually, even in
the elderly phase of our lives, we are still faced with
additional beginnings, middles and endings.
1 remember my mother’s tears the first day 1 went off to
school; to her and me, this was a beginning. The years in
between were the middle and when 1 finally graduated
elementary school, it was an ending. However, it didn’t
take me long to realize that 1 was again a beginner, since in
high school I was a “new kid on the block;” my four years in
high school were the middle and upon graduation, it was
another ending. And so through life, we are all faced with
beginnings and endings which lead to still other phases of
our lives.
Lor many years, the Atlanta Jewish Community Center
has run a five-day-a-week program for the elderly which
consists, aside from a nutritious kosher meal, of activities
that take place in the morning before the noon meal, and
activities that take place after the meal. Many of the elderly
who start the program have lost a spouse and are looking
for a new beginning; many are new to the community, and
they have a desperate need to make friends and begin
activities. 1 hey are also looking lor a new beginning; many
are native Atlantans, who still enjoy the company of their
spouse, but are just plain lonely—they, too, are looking for -
a new beginning.
The five-day Nutrition Program is a program for the
well-elderly; these are older adults who can participate in
physical activities, who enjoy good social activity, who
enjoy trips, and who are by-and-large independent and
capable of independent living and actions. Many of the
people in this program have been involved for over 10
years, some for over 15 years and some for almost 20 years.
Up until several years ago when our elderly members
became too frail to continue to participate in this program,
they were faced with another ending because they were no
longer able to be involved with the well-elderly. However,
the Senior Adult Day Service Center was started three-
and-a-half years ago, and the purpose and goal of the
center is to provide new beginnings and middles for the
elderly who have become the frail-elderly.
The Senior Adult Day Service Center, under the
supervision of Louise Spiro, is located in a large residence
on Long Island Drive just south of Sandy Springs (soon to
be moved to the Zaban Park grounds). It serves those
people who are no longer able to get around independently
in high-traffic areas, have a need for smaller surroundings,
and need more intensive, one-on-one attention from staff
which they are not able to receive in the Nutrition Program
at the Peachtree Building.
For many senior adult participants, the prospect of no
longer being allowed to participate in the Nutrition
Program is a devastating blow, since they view the Day
Service Center as another ending. Actually, it is another
true beginning. A typical week’s activity at the Day Service
Center follows: Trivial Pursuit—Show-and-Tell—Word
Games- Bingo With Barbara Busby—Speaker from the
Atlanta Historical Society on the Civil War —Exercise—
Music and Singing with Jim Sedlack—Bowling (Sandy
Springs Lanes)—Human Bingo —and Arts and Crafts.
Other activities on an ongoing basis include: Trips to places
like the Cyclorama, Ping Pong, Card Tournaments, Enter
tainment, Health Presentations, Sing-Alongs, and Holiday
Projects. Each week, different activities are planned, and
participants in the Day Service Center enjoy the same
nutritious meals (which are prepared in the main kitchen of
the Peachtree facility) as those in the Nutrition Program.
And so, for those elderly who can no longer participate
in the Nutrition Program at the Peachtree facility, the Day
Service Center offers, again, a new beginning. With a
variety of activities, with nutritious meals, and with the
benefits that are derived from smaller groups and a large
ratio of individual-care staff people, those involved in the
Day Service program can look forward to many years of
activities, of friendship, and of interacting with caring and
loving staff.
Business After Hours
A networking group will have its first program Tuesday,
February 11, at 5:30 p.m. Business After Hours, to be held
bi-monthly at the Peachtree building from 5:30 to 6:30
p.m., will feature speakers of wide interest and who have
made an impact on life in Atlanta.
The First program will feature Ike Herbert, executive
vice president of Coca-Cola, a delightful and informative
speaker who will answer questions after his presentation.
The formal part of the program will be followed by light
refreshments and an opportunity to socialize and network.
There is no charge and the entire community is invited.
For more information, call Chana Shapiro at 875-7881.
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PAGE 15 THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE February 7, 1986