EngAGE changes lives by transforming affordable senior and multigenerational apartment communities into vibrant centers of learning, wellness, and creativity.
How does EngAGE change aging? Here’s an example: our Arts & Creativity program goes beyond providing classes and exhibition opportunities in the visual arts; it also includes music and dance.
In 2018, EngAGE brought a dance/drumming workshop to Long Beach Senior Arts Colony. Thanks to a generous grant from The NAMM Foundation and our partnerships with Maha & Company and Percussion of Discussion, a ten-week workshop gave our residents a weekly opportunity to meet with the young dancers and percussionists. You can see their enthusiasm in the video below.
The culminating event held in the theater at LBSAC was standing-room only. The audience was enraptured as our residents shared the stage alongside the young performers. The finale had them dancing, drumming, singing, and smiling as everyone got in the spirit to Move & Groove!
Maha shared her thoughts on this experience: “I cannot even describe how incredible the outcomes were. The concert was above and beyond what the expectations were for the individuals and for the whole group. Other than what the performances represented, it was the positive reactions of the seniors who performed and the audience’s wonderful remarks that confirmed the positive outcomes.”
Heartwarming comments from the senior performers included:
“This was amazing.” “I never thought I could do this.” “This helped me get out of my shell.” “I am so sad this is over.” “When can we do this again?”
Once again, EngAGE sincerely thanks The NAMM Foundation for this opportunity, and we applaud our residents for their willingness to try something new.
We hope you’ll enjoy these highlights from recent programming at our communities in California and Oregon.
EngAGE 25th Anniversary Celebrations
We are encouraging residents at all of our communities to choose how they’d like to acknowledge this special milestone.
Patton Home: A community-wide barbecue was the choice at Patton Home. Program Director Pauline organized the event. Residents shared stories and enjoyed each other’s company. There was even a rousing cheer of “thank you” when we cut the cake!
Magnolia@9th: Residents decided to go bowling! This unique event included family, friends, and Program Director Jessica. WSH Management provided pizza to the group before they departed, and EngAGE booked three lanes – including snacks. Residents shared that it was a lot of fun to go out together and do something away from home.
Arts & Creativity
Piedmont: The Piedmont music group meets every Monday under the direction of Program Director Arnold. The first Chair Volleyball Tournament of 2024 against Burbank Senior Artists Colony gave the Piedmont house band an opportunity to perform at BSAC before the games began. The group delivered an energetic and meticulously choreographed musical piece, featuring the Piedmont Kazoo horn section. The audience loved it!
LBSAC: Resident Artists have been having a great time in the ceramics classes this summer. Working Artist/Instructor Melodie inspires them to stretch their skills and creativity with the medium. We look forward to seeing what they share in the upcoming LBSAC Fall Art Exhibition.
Community Building
Metro@Compton: Residents gathered in the community room and outdoor courtyard for the annual Aloha Summer Cookout. EngAGE Program Director Sandra got on the grill and cooked burgers and hotdogs. DJ Distance provided music and there were raffles. Special guests were Nancy Goodhart and former fitness instructor David Smith.
Tizon: Staying with the tropical theme, residents were treated to a community-wide luau provided by property management company CONAM and EngAGE. CONAM catered the luau with a delicious barbecue. Residents enjoyed games like Pin the Nose on the Tiki Man and a scavenger hunt. EngAGE provided fruit and vegetable trays and prizes for the games.
Culminating Events
Metro H’wd: A potluck for residents preceded an exhibition in the community art room of work by participants in both the drawing and the painting classes. Program Director Michelle and Drawing Teacher Nelson facilitated a discussion with the artists about what they learned and found interesting during the program year. One resident exclaimed, “Wow, WE did ALL these this year?!” Most of the residents had not taken any art classes before participating in EngAGE’s programs. Several family members shared the fun.
Magnolia@Highland: Crafting with Teaching Artist Alma often means exploring creativity in unexpected areas. In February, the resident artists started a new project: making fascinator hats! However, the project was so exciting that it quickly inspired them to want to learn how to make other hat styles, too, including a cowboy hat, a cap, a fedora, and more. Over several months, the crafters worked on their hats and decided to celebrate their completion with an Oscar Party! At the end of the celebration, the guests voted for the best hat, and the top four were awarded a mini-Oscar and a gift card. Resident Gail won first prize with her Jessica Rabbit outfit! In the email you’ll receive summarizing this presentation, we’ll include a link to our blog post that has many photos of the entire process.
Fitness & Wellness
Piedmont: Residents enjoy their weekly exercise class with Instructor Jack. The full-body workout wraps up with a health and wellness discussion on a specific educational topic. The program helps the residents stay fit and focused.
Piedmont: We know that mental health is as important as physical health, so Georgina, from Independence At Home, a community educational service provided by SCAN, presented “Calming Your Worried Mind – Understanding Anxiety and Reducing Stress.” She talked about different types of anxieties, their causes, and ways to deal with constant worrying. The residents found the talk very helpful.
Intergenerational
Broadleaf Arbor: Resident Lisa Hunter was the guest cook for the cooking classes in June. She taught the kids how to make her son’s favorite English muffin pizzas and Chicken Little sandwiches. The kids asked to learn how to make chocolate-covered strawberries, and Lisa made it happen.
Terrace Glen: Residents enjoy a weekly Art Hub class with Program Director Laura. This intergenerational group includes residents of all ages and their older adult friends. The older adults are often inspired by the freedom of expression they see in the kids’ approach to creating and appreciate the joy to be found in art without boundaries. They also enjoy sharing their life experiences with the kids as well as learning about the kids‘ interests.
Lifelong Learning
Crescent Park: In June, we kicked off a new 6-week session of cooking classes with 18 Reasons Cooking Matters. Residents learn nutrition, cooking skills, and recipes. We make a collaborative meal to eat for lunch, then participants receive bags of groceries with printed-out recipes to take home. Pictured here are residents during our first session.
Huntington: Thanks to a grant from the California Public Utilities Commission, EngAGE offers residents tech training on tablet understanding and proficiency. The purpose of this program is to help older adults stay connected through technology. Residents can keep the tablets if they complete the workshop curriculum. This streamlined course is facilitated by trained and certified instructor Miles Morse. The Huntington residents all passed the course and were thrilled to be able to keep their tablets.
Resident-led
Piedmont: Piedmont resident Tom Jenkins has written and directed many movies and commercials. Recently, the community was treated to a special talk and screening of his film, “Bed & Breakfast.” Tom shared entertaining stories about the making of the movie, including the fact that the shooting was completed the day before the big Covid shutdown. The movie was very well received by the attendees, and Tom said that he had a great time experiencing the reactions from the audience of neighbors and friends.
Portofino: Twice a month, residents congregate, share funny stories, and make a variety of beautiful baubles for themselves, friends, and family. This resident-led jewelry class was started by Sam (at right), a retired jeweler, who wanted to share her gift and talents with her community. The group has discussed having a fashion show or maybe a tea party this fall to show off their handiwork!
Food Partners
We are grateful for our valuable partnerships with the organizations that provide supplementary food to our residents:
CA
Helping Hands Worldwide
Second Harvest
OC Food Bank
San Diego Food Bank
Food Connection
Brother Benos
Panera
Bracken’s Kitchen
Lighthouse Mobile Food Pantry
Love Does
Mercy Brown Bag Program
NW
Mainspring Community Food Pantry
Columbia Pacific Food Bank
Testimonial
Henry: Sometimes very special connections are made between our team and the residents we serve. Program Director Henry shared this story at the conclusion of our service at one community:
It was a bittersweet Painting Class session this August at El Verano; it was our final meet-up. The students wrapped up their painting projects, having accomplished so much along the way. They discovered the joys of painting, the value of patience, and, most importantly, they developed self-confidence and learned to trust their creative talents and skills. The outcomes were fantastic for all of us. I encouraged the artists to keep it up and stay EngAGEd!
After class, I helped Chris get his painting shipped to his family. A few days later he left me a kind message thanking me for all my extra help with his paintings over the years and encouraging him to persist. He asked if we could remain in touch and be friends, to which I responded, “Yes, of course. We need to celebrate your B-day…Your Friend, Henry!”
Story
This is a first for EngAGE! Program Director Sandra reports:
During our summertime barbecue, Bong, one of the residents of The Jasmine, was enjoying the event while walking by the swimming pool. Suddenly, she started to lose her balance. After flailing for a moment, she fell in! Although she is a tiny woman, I thought she’d just stand up because she was in the shallow end. But I also knew she couldn’t swim.
She was bobbing up, then repeatedly going back under, and she was panicking. I jumped in, fully clothed, including shoes, holding my phone and keys, and I pulled her above water.
I carried her over to the steps and told her to touch bottom. She did.
She had a large purse on and sputtered that the weight of it pulled her into the pool when she lost her balance.
The stunned celebrants were sitting with their mouths open. The music had stopped. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Bong was okay!
A bit of extra excitement for the party! [An understatement by Sandra, who truly saved the day!]
Support Us
If you’d like to support our efforts to provide valuable programming in the arts, wellness, lifelong learning, and community-building to the older adults and families we serve, please visit the Donation pageon our website. Thank you for your interest in EngAGE!
Thanks to EngAGE Program Director Henry for #MakingADifference and sharing this story. about the conclusion of our service at one community:
It was a bittersweet Painting Class session this August at El Verano; it was our final meet-up. The students wrapped-up their painting projects, having accomplished so much along the way. They discovered the joys of painting, the value of patience, and, most importantly, they developed self-confidence and learned to trust heir own creative talents and skills. The outcomes were fantastic for all of us. I encouraged the artists to keep it up and stay EngAGEd!
After class, I helped Chris get his painting shipped to his family. A few days later he left me a kind message thanking me for all my extra help with his paintings over the years and encouraging him to persist. He asked if we could remain in touch and be friends, to which I responded, “Yes, of course. We need to celebrate your B-day…Your Friend, Henry!”
Bobbee Zeno and Tim Carpenter walking to KPFK’s studio for the first “Experience Talks” show Tim co-hosted with him. Tim: “Me, nervous; Bobbee, the consummate mentor/friend.”
To take our message about creative, positive aging to a wider audience, EngAGE produced “Experience Talks: A Radio Magazine for the Experienced Listener,” which aired weekly on 90.7 KPFK-FM Los Angeles and other Pacifica Network stations from 2003 – 2019. “Experience Talks ZoomCasts” were produced in 2020/21 and hosted by Tim Carpenter.
You’ll find “The Best of Experience Talks Radio Shows” archived on YouTube, including interviews with author/TV personality Dick Cavett, poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and actor/activist George Takei.
Our Zoomcasts are also archived on YouTube, including interviews with psychologist Derenda Schubert, journalist/former First Lady of California Maria Shriver, and Howard University professor Dr. Yolonda Wilson.
In 2015, Meta Housing Corporation finalized its first “family arts colony” apartment project with programming provided by EngAGE. The Pacific Avenue Arts Colony is in the SPACE (San Pedro Arts, Culture, and Entertainment) district in San Pedro, CA, an area filled with art galleries, theaters, music venues, restaurants, boutiques, and artists’ studios. PacArts, as it is known, has 48 affordable apartments for artists, including six ground-floor live/work spaces. There is also a community art studio, outdoor stage, and garden. Here’s some of the creative work from our talented youngest residents!
Get a taste of life at an arts colony! Aroha Philanthropies (now E.A. Michelson Philanthropy), our generous partner, produced this wonderful five-minute video about EngAGE in 2015. It features residents from Burbank Senior Artists Colony, North Hollywood Senior Arts Colony, and Long Beach Senior Arts Colony.
Bandida ~ “A Pistol, a Plan, and Sensible Shoes” (2006) ~ is a funny, touching, 12-minute short film created by Burbank Senior Artists Colony resident Suzanne Knode.
The story of its creation is also the story of personal transformation and the power of the creative environment found at an arts colony.
Bandida tells the story of an older woman who rides a senior bus to a convenience store, uses her walker to saunter up to the counter, puts on a mask à la the film Scream, and proceeds to rob the older Armenian gentleman who owns the place. However, during the course of this first-time felony, the story takes a surprising turn.
First-time screenwriter Suzanne Knode had spent most of her life as a single mom working to raise her kids. After she retired, she was surviving on social security income alone (well below the poverty level), was depressed, had suffered a traumatic accident, and was in chronic pain. Fortunately, she moved to the Burbank Senior Artists Colony where EngAGE provides engrossing programming in the arts, wellness, lifelong learning. The atmosphere was creative and welcoming.
Suzanne thought she’d like to try her hand at writing, so she attended an EngAGE writing class at the Artists Colony. Bandida was her class project. As EngAGE Founder Tim Carpenter has observed, he was simply hoping that the script would be “not terrible.” Instead, he and Suzanne’s classmates were delighted to discover that it was wonderful! It was so wonderful that EngAGE formed a production company, recruited director/cinematographer Ronny Novick and other professional help, cast the film with residents, and produced it under the banner of “Last Gasp Productions.”
The making of Suzanne’s film and her story of reinvention were profiled on national television on the show This American Life on Showtime (now available on Prime; free short promo here). Suzanne was thrilled to watch the premiere of her film on the big screen along with an audience of hundreds at the El Portal Theater in the NoHo Arts District as part of the 2007 Valley Film Festival.
In 2010, she was selected as one of 11 subjects for a nationwide campaign and photo exhibit to help raise awareness of “how people can keep their minds beautiful.” The campaign, “Beautiful Minds: Finding Your Lifelong Potential,” was co-sponsored by the National Center for Creative Aging and Martek Biosciences, a company committed to Brain Health.
After her film’s success, Suzanne continued writing, took up painting, and became a mentor to young students. And Burbank Senior Artists Colony continues to be a good place to grow.
We are delighted to present Bandida on our YouTube Channel!
