This past week my mind has opened ten times more to what I had thought senior wellness centers were meant for. I always thought senior centers were depressing, tiresome, and plain boring. I was completely wrong when I stepped into Gary and Mary West Wellness center yesterday, February 2, 2022. Coming into the wellness center I immediately was received with welcome hands and directed to this amazing and beautiful conference room. Where I came to find out was a room used very often for exercising and dancing. I was blown away by how clean and colorful the environment was because I was expecting it to have boring colors and be ugly in all honestly. The tour began with the CEO of the establishment explaining to us what it means to have affordable housing and what the benefits and outcomes are to have it in various communities. I was impressed, yet shocked, by the fact that there is so little affordable housing and that there are so many older individuals that would rather take their chances on the street than stay at a shelter that is not age friendly. I was upset hearing this because knowing that there are simple but yet impactful things, we can do to make these shelters more age friendly. Which will contribute to having a more sustainable and friendly community for the elderly. After hearing the CEO out, we then were given the opportunity to tour the facility and again I was completely shocked by how colorful and amazing the place was. Seeing that they had a diverse staff from a social worker on hand to a dentist on hand was incredible. Understanding that there are so many things we young folks can push for to help the elderly will bring us to success and a better outlook in life in overall health for everyone.
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Gema LopezGema Lopez is a Human Development major with a specialization in Healthy Aging. She is from Archives
March 2022
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