By Cecilia Nasmith/Today’s Northumberland
June is Seniors Month and, to mark the occasion, the Community Training and Development Centre and Northumberland YMCA are partnering on a June 8 event that will introduce local seniors to more than a few new ideas.
“We have a very large older-adult community in Northumberland County,” CTDC Chief Executive Officer Madelaine Currelly said, noting that almost half of its residents are over the age of 55.
“I wanted to do something that was fun,” Currelly said. And she believes the day’s agenda fits the bill, starting with the morning screening of the movie Silver Screamers at the Best Western Plus Cobourg Inn and Convention Centre.
Featured at Toronto’s Hot Docs festival, Silver Screamers is about a group of senior citizens who decide to do something really new and different – create a horror film.
“This movie shows seniors taking on active roles in acting, as well as being the crew for this movie – people in their 70s, 80s, 90s going into something that was completely different from anything they ‘d done before,” Currelly said.
“This will be entertaining, as well as a really significant message for us. The message, of course, is that as we age, we do become wiser. Our experiences make us more knowledgeable about where we live and what we do and how we should behave.”
Following the 9:30 a.m. screening, there will be brief presentations as well as a question-and-answer session with the director, Sean Cisterna.
“I picked this movie because it encompasses so much about the aging experience, and suggests that when we get older trying new things, learning new information, and taking small risks are all good for our physical, emotional, social and brain health,” Currelly explained.
“Since the movie introduces these concepts through the seniors’ involvement in the filming, I wanted to expand a little on these themes.”
Specifically, she will have Brain and Body Health information on such topics as the positive impact continued employment has on brain health, the importance of protein to enhance muscle for better health and longer independence, research on the Sing Well Project and the positive impact of singing on those with Parkinson’s Disease, updated research from The Brain Repair Centre at Dalhousie University, and a short presentation on the new Caredera app for seniors – the most direct route to finding health assistance when needed in the home.
At 12:30, the posters and information and participants move down Elgin Street West to the YMCA for lunch and various activities focused on movement and music and creativity – please wear clean indoor athletic shoes,
“There will also be information from Active for Life to promote the importance of staying physically active,” Currelly said.
“Because I am focused on the older adults taking risks as they get older and I want to focus on the brain and keeping the brain healthy and active, I am very interested in music and the role music plays in our brain and our brain health. So we have designed a program called Music and Movement at the Y.”
One important impetus for this event is the 30th anniversary of the CTDC – where the older worker still matters. They even have a podcast series “where we talk about all things senior-drive and of senior interest. We are really concerned about the lives that we get to live when we are older and wiser – I want to make sure we focus on it as an ongoing area of interest for our organization,” she said.
“You can keep working. It’s OK – it may be doing something completely different than before, but applying your skills, your knowledge and your strength and character to new opportunities.
“Yes, we are older, but we are also very good at doing new things because we draw on a lot of experience doing those things. I want people to recognize that. I like that idea that, as we age, we are able to make very interesting decisions. I think our community should respect that and want us to do that. I want us to be involved,” she urged.
“Seniors are active and interesting and interested. I think that’s kind of the message here. We need to stay active, we need to stay involved, and we are an asset to our community.”
The event runs until 3 p.m. and everything is free – even the lunch provided by the Y and the use of its facilities for activities (including Music and Movement).
To sign up, register at the Y or call the CTDC and leave a voice mail with your name and phone number at 905-372-9967 ext. 802.
