EngAGE changes lives by transforming affordable senior and multigenerational apartment communities into vibrant centers of learning, wellness, and creativity.
We thought it would be interesting to see what we posted about on this date ten years ago and discovered it was an article in ArtNews titled, “You Become Better with Age.” Here’s an observation from the article:
“At what age do people hit their stride professionally? Categorically speaking, athletes, engineers, politicians, television writers, salesmen, and actresses all have varying norms and shelf lives, sometimes affected by physical attributes or societal expectations. Seemingly immune to ageist perceptions and traditional notions of retirement are artists. A historical look reveals that a striking number have been highly productive and turned out some of their best work late into old age.”
At EngAGE, we have always believed that everyone, regardless of previous exposure to the arts, can develop an appreciation for art and become a practicing artist. For 25 years, we have been providing classes and encouragement to make that happen. We know that it’s never too late to start!
Here’s a wonderful two-minute video featuring a resident who began painting in her 80s.
Congratulations to the winning community in our “Naturally EngAGEd” photo competition: ACE/121, our intergenerational arts community in Glendale, CA!
The challenge for residents was to explore nature in their own neighborhoods. We received photographs ranging from expansive landscape views to flowers and trees to a tiny insect. Each community that submitted photos was entered in a random drawing to select the winner. ACE/121 residents and Program Director Nirvan will enjoy a party as well as a gift celebrating nature (to be determined).
Here are the entries from ACE/121. Click here to see photos from all 16 participating communities.
We hope you’ll enjoy these highlights from recent programming at our communities.
ENGAGECALIFORNIA
Long Beach Senior Arts Colony: Resident artists collaborated with Working Artist/Instructor Trinh Mai to bring a visual art exhibit to the LBSAC gallery space. The exhibit was a compendium of art generated over Winter 2023 and the first quarter of 2024, ranging from hand-painted lanterns for the Lunar New Year to a mix of still life and portrait work in charcoal and/or acrylic paint. The well-attended reception included a visit from EngAGE C.O.O Nancy Goodhart. Also pictured is Program Director Henry with our resident artists.
Magnolia Villas: Residents in Teaching Artist Jen’s art class proudly displayed their completed work at their art show culminating event. Friends and family also attended to celebrate the achievements of the artists. One resident stated that this class had been a lifeline for her while she was undergoing challenging life situations.
North Hollywood Senior Arts Colony: The community celebrated the opening of resident Luz “Lucy” O.’s art exhibit. Lucy began her artistic journey by painting the gray concrete pillars in the community’s art studio, then became inspired by another resident artist to spread her artistic wings. Her work is made with acrylic paint using a brush, fork, spoon, forced air, and cotton swabs. Some paintings have 3D embellishments. Lucy tells the story of her life through many of her charming creations.
Pacific Avenue Arts Colony: Our creative PacArts residents were excited to participate in an Art Walk organized by the San Pedro Waterfront Arts District. In addition to our PacArts Gallery, the Art Walk also offered the opportunity for the public to visit many open studios of professional artists in the neighborhood. It was a fun night (despite the rain) and the walking tour was very successful.
The Piedmont: Program Director Arnold welcomed his brother, professional guitarist Dr. Markus Schmidt, for an acoustic guitar concert. Markus had just finished a teaching and concert series in India, and he was visiting the U.S. from Germany. Residents from The Piedmont, NoHo SAC, and BSAC enjoyed an hour of virtuoso acoustic guitar music covering a wide variety of musical styles. At the end of Markus’ performance, Arnold, who is also an accomplished guitarist, joined his brother for three rocking songs, covering country, blues and reggae music.
Downtown Hayward: Resident artists worked on acrylic pour projects during Open Art Studios. One of the things the residents particularly enjoy happens at the end of the project when leftover paint on the catch cloth is used to make bookmarks, cards, and envelopes. Anything is fair game for the leftovers; even dollar store items lying around may randomly become new creations.
Patton Home and Cascadian Terrace: Residents at both communities participated in an eight-week writers workshop facilitated by nonprofit Write Around Portland. Their favorite pieces were published in Write Around’s latest anthology, and the writers were invited to read them at a culminating celebration. The residents were thrilled to be published authors and to have the experience of sharing their work with an audience.
Terrace Glen: The creative community celebrated Earth Day with an art show social. Our youngest residents showed off the ceramic flowers they made with teaching artist Lisa, as well as art pieces representing the Earth and the recent solar eclipse. The community shared refreshments and planted seeds to start their own kitchen herb gardens.
Food Statistics: EngAGE is proud to provide many of our residents with vital supplemental food delivered on site from multiple partner organizations. The value of the items provided is substantial. Recipients are always grateful for this service. The photo is from Parc Derian, one of the communities we serve.
Our weekly celebratory social media posts continue. All of the relevant blog posts are in our 25th Anniversary category and are tagged #EngAGE25 on all of our social media, so you can easily find and scroll through all of them.
As we did in our first quarterly report this year, we’d like to offer a special anniversary testimonial, this one from one of our younger residents. Thanks to EngAGE NW Executive Director Laura Spidell for this lovely story which occurred while working in her dual role as a Program Director.
One of the joys of the role of Program Director is the opportunity for small moments with residents that demonstrate that being present matters. A second grader who lives across the hall from my office occasionally pops by to say hello. One day his school got out early, and he was bored waiting for his cousins to come home from school. He asked if he could hang out in the community room, so I got him some markers and a coloring book and sat with him while I did my work. We talked about his favorite colors and how school is going, then he said, “I like to hang out here because you are kind.”
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 Jessica for #MakingADifference and sharing a personal story. Living in an EngAGE community can be transformational for residents; working with residents in an EngAGE community can be meaningful and rewarding. Here’s Jessica’s story:
As a Program Director, EngAGE has brought a purpose to my artistic abilities which makes sharing that gift with others rewarding. In one class, a resident told me that if it hadn’t been for craft classes, she wouldn’t have taken on crafting as a hobby in her own time. Her experience in the classes made her so enthusiastic that she is now facilitating craft classes at her local church and has found a great passion for crafting. I love being able to share my passion with residents and see it also become theirs.
EngAGE provides Lifelong Learning programs on many topics at our communities. Recent programming at The Piedmont Senior Apartments has been particularly robust thanks to the partnerships developed by Program Director Arnold with organizations such as Americorps Seniors, Dialogue Society, LA Works, and SCAN-Independence at Home.
For example, this year, Independence at Home has offered classes on starting the new year with a plan for good health; creating a gratitude practice, which included meditation techniques and haiku writing; how to get a good night’s sleep without medication; the benefits of drinking water; information about diabetes; how to dispose of medications safely; music appreciation, including a discussion of music as identity; and a “social cookbook” class that gathered family recipes and the stories behind them. We thank Georgina for her excellent presentations on these topics. The residents were delighted to be both informed and entertained!
Georgina discusses music as a reflection of culture; Georgina with Program Director Arnold. Below are photos from the sessions on creating the Social Cookbook, the importance of staying hydrated, and meditation/haiku writing.
EngAGE is pleased that USC student Xinyin (pronounced “Shinjin”) will be an intern with us for the next few weeks, alternating between the North Hollywood Senior Arts Colony and The Piedmont locations.
Xinyin first connected with EngAGE as a member of the USC chapter of the Dialogue Society, which is an active partner in our programming, especially at The Piedmont. Her field of study at USC is Gerontology, and she is particularly interested in learning about physical activity and tech support for different age groups, nutrition and diet, social isolation issues, intergenerational communication, ageism and stereotype influences, and successful aging. We know that our residents will provide good examples of the latter and will be happy that Xinyin will be spending more time with them.
Thanks to EngAGE Program Director Michelle for #MakingADifference and sharing a favorite story which she recalled from her earlier days working for EngAGE some seven years ago. EngAGE strives to create community for all of the residents we serve.
A resident badly missed his hometown in Italy and lamented that he could no longer fly back. So, EngAGE’s computer teacher taught him to use Google Earth to locate and zoom into his home village. After that, he regularly used the computer to look at satellite pictures of his hometown to feel connected again with his birth country. And in English Conversation class, we encouraged him to share his memories of his time in Italy. He said he felt comforted and supported.
