Volunteer of the Month
Archives

September 2018
Ed & Vivian Foster

Photo of Ed & Vivian Foster

This month we don’t just have one Volunteer to show kudos upon, we have two! Ed & Vivian Foster are our newest Thrift Store volunteers. They actually came to us thanks to Vivian who was a member. Once they retired following twenty-five years of retail experience, Vivian told Ed that they should help us out at the Thrift Store. That was all it took. They first started out by bringing in store shelves and then by arranging the stock. Now they work 1-2 days a week moving the items from our center to your house. Ed was originally from Fort Huron, Michigan, and came west to Long Beach thanks to the navy. It was fate that the two met at the Central City Mall (the Carousel mall to you youngsters) where they both worked, each taking turns as the other’s supervisor at various stores. They worked so well together they ended up with six kids, fifteen grandkids, and eight great-grandkids! Thanks to Ed & Vivian for arranging our store and for arranging your time to help us out.

Featured Class

Brain Fitness
Date: September 12, 2018
Time: 1:00 - 3:00 pm
Length: 8 Weeks
Cost: $8 members
      $8 non-members
Instructor: Member Based Instruction
Location: Sun Room
Description: Quite sure we could all use a little better Brain Fitness. Your brain may not be a muscle but you need to keep it active to keep it healthy. Some of our members take advantage of our university classes, but learning is only a part of exercising your brain. To help you out we offer this Brain Fitness class. The class promotes brain health through fitness, nutrition, cognitive exercises and activities to boost memory skills and stimulate the brain. Adults are living longer and longer, and we need to promote mental as well as physical health. The group does crosswords, puzzles, trivia, and encourages active discussion. Everything is designed to get those synapses firing. The class is taught by various students, who take turns coming up with lesson plans. That in itself is a brain fitness activity! If you want to sharpen your skills and learn new things this group is for you . The group meets on Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m. in the game room and is always full, so make a mental note to show up at registration to ensure your spot. If you forget to register, you really need to get fit!

Featured Activity

Friendly Visitor and Phone Pal
Time: Dailys
Cost: members
       non-members
Location:
Description: This month we'd like to shine the light on two programs that not only help out those who participate, but the people they help out as well: The Friendly Visitor, and Phone Pal programs. The Friendly Visitor Program is a free program designed for those who have trouble getting out of the house on their own, to make friends and maintain social interaction. We have volunteers who go and visit people in their own homes and let them know that someone does care about them. Sometimes the two will simply talk or play a game of cards. Other times they will go out to lunch or a movie. The level of interaction depends on them. Our Phone Pal Program is similar to the Friendly Visitor Program, but is more designed for those who don't want or need someone to come over to their house. They are happy with a simple phone call. Some enjoy long conversations, while others just want someone to check in on them once a week. This program has come in handy several times when a senior could not be contacted by phone. The Phone Pal volunteer either went over to the house or contacted us with their concern and we went over. On a few occasions we discover that the person had fallen and injured themselves, and had this program not been in place, might have died. If you would like to be a part in volunteering in these programs, or if you could benefit from any of these programs, or if you know of someone who could, please feel free to contact us at (909)862-8104 and ask for the Outreach Office.
Ice Cream Party
By:
With the Dog Days of August causing all our dogs to bark, we definitely needed a place to cool down. So the center came to the rescue as a part of us being an official Cooling Center. We held another one of our Ice Cream Parties.

Sponsor Laurel Brown with Home Instead Senior Care helped out by bringing Cookies and Cream ice cream for everyone. However, they had to work for it. The crowd played a bit of 50\'s & 60\'s Trivia for their scoops. Some of the answer the crowd got without much thought. Some of the others caused a bit of head scratching, while some questions left people with that deer in the headlight look.

No matter how they did they all had fun. After all, who can’t have fun coming in from the 100 degree plus days into a cool building for ice cream and games? Thanks to everyone who came in to party with us. Special thanks to Home Instead Senior Care for sponsoring the event.