Volunteer of the Month
Archives

April 2021
Leisa Alexander

Photo of Leisa Alexander

This month we’d like to shine the light on someone few of you may have seen, but may have benefited from her volunteering. Lesia (pronounced Lisa) Alexander has been helping us out since 2020. During that time she has helped serve meals for Thanksgiving, Operation Senior Claus, and most recently, the Grab-n-Go dinners Monday thru Friday she can be helping out her sister, Mae Lucero, getting the dinners from the local restaurants, then helping to distribute them to seniors at the center. However, Leisa doesn’t just come here help to serve food. All that work can wear a person out, so when she’s not volunteering, she enjoys coming to the center’s Aerobics Program to boost her cardio. Originally from Meridian, MS, she and her two siblings came out Calif., to live with, and be raised by their big sister Mae, when their mom passed away. After she grew up she went to work for the Dept. of Corrections where she worked for 27 years before retiring. During that time she raised a son, who in turn, gave her a grandchild. Thanks Leisa for helping to ensure that our senior don’t go hungry.

Featured Class

Spanish
Date: April 23, 2020
Time: 1:30 - 2:30 pm
Length: 8 weeks
Cost: $8 members
      $8 non-members
Instructor: TBA
Location: Game Room
Description: This class is designed to teach students conversational Spanish. The class will enable you to carry on limited conversation at first just to get you started. Then as you progress, so will the levels. As for what to bring, just bring a writing instrument and paper. Books might come later. We hope to see you there, or as you will soon be saying, Esperamos verte ahí.

Featured Activity

Hand and Foot
Time: Mondays 12:30 pm
Cost: Free members
      Free non-members
Location: Game Room
Description: You might think it’s related to Twister but it’s not. It’s actually a card game, related to Canasta. Hand and Foot is a North American game variation where each player is dealt two sets of cards using one as the “hand” and one as the “foot. There are numerous variations of the game and no “standard” rules. You can either play as individuals or as teams. The most common version of the game is played with four players in partnerships; it can also be played by six people in two teams of three or by any number of individuals. The following rules are for our “favorite” way to play with four people, two teams of two. To play you’ll need four to six full decks of 52 cards, including the jokers – Rules vary from one to two decks per player, or one more than the number of players). The aim is to get rid of cards from your hand (11 cards), and then from your foot (11 cards), by melding them. A meld is a set of three to seven cards of equal rank placed face up on the table. The play ends when one of the partners “goes out”. It’s a very popular game here at the center and the group is always looking for new players and are eager to teach people how to play. If you like Hand and Foot, Canasta, or card games in general and you think you might be interested in play, the group meets on Mondays at 12:30 pm in the Game Room
Zumba is Back
By: Mike Sylva
We have brought back a new exercise class to the center, Zumba. Zumba is a mix of low-intensity and high-intensity set to interval-style, calorie-burning Latin and World dance moves. For those who see the words \"high-intensity.\" Fear not. This class is \"Simply Zumba for Seniors\", similar to Zumba Gold.

This class will be tailored towards active older adults who are looking for a modified Zumba class that recreates the original moves at a lower-intensity. The instructor is Faith Knox, a certified Zumba instructor, who says the class will consist of toning, cardio, and some resistance.

Class start in November, every Thursday starting at 11:00am. Be sure to bring some water, a towel, and wear comfortable clothing and good shoes. Classes are free but donations will be gladly accepted.