HAKOL Senior Living 2014

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JULY/AUGUST 2014 | TAMUZ/AV/ELUL 5774

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With volunteering, rewards abound

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Senior volunteers mobilize to help community & each other

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Allentown woman shares WWII tale of survival

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Keeping kosher as we age

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“I’d rather be giving” - Couple delivers for meals on wheels

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The rewards & struggles of volunteering

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on the

rewards & struggles of volunteering

Reported by Ben Notis JFLV Marketing Intern As a volunteer for Jewish Family Service, Ron Segel gets around town. “I drive an extremely bright lady,” he said in a recent interview, referring to the JFS program that matches drivers with seniors who need rides. Segel is happy to help her get to doctor’s appointments. Plus, he said, “She’s terrific to talk to … I feel like I’m the one getting the benefit.”

He brings up a good point.

Studies have found that seniors who volunteer tend to live longer than those who don’t volunteer, possibly because of the increased physical, social and mental activity associated with volunteering. According to the Corporation for National & Community Service, volunteering offers abundant benefits for both the recipient and the volunteer. In particular, seniors who volunteer report lower disability, higher well-being, a shorter course of depression following bereavement and more sense of purpose.

That’s because many volunteers, Segel included derive a tremendous satisfaction from knowing they can help people.

In addition to his nearly 20 years of service with JFS, Segel has been on the board of Tikvah House for 21 years. His role: keeping the books, in cooperation with Eva and Larry Levitt. “It’s not a complicated thing,” he said. On the side, he’s dabbled in landscaping at the house.

But Segel has also found another way to help others, proving there are always new frontiers as a volunteer. “Right

Even volunteers need to relax. From right, Ron Segel, shown with Larry Levitt and Mike Weinstock.

now, besides driving for Jewish Family Service, I am [a volunteer at an] outpatient pediatric clinic,” Segel said. “One half day a week, I volunteer … as a reader. People bring their whole family sometimes because they can’t afford a sitter. I just find the young kids fascinating.”

In the process, Segel is de-

veloping a new skill, because many of the patients and families are Spanish-speaking.

“A good friend of mine lent me a Spanish learning course because I want to be able to communicate at the hospital. I just like it. I am always trying to practice my Spanish and they roll their eyes. I’m not yet

conversational …”

Segel’s experience shows some of the many ways volunteering becomes a bridge between people. “A lot of [the kids] struggle in school because they are in single parent homes or because they have no place to study because the house is chaotic,” he realized, adding, “I ask [the kids] to read to me; they love that, to feel like they can do something.”

To help the young readers connect with him,“I try very hard to get their names, to call them by their names,” he said.

“They love that. Kids come in, they are adorable and anxious to learn. I enjoy children; I enjoy people. I told my supervisor, ‘I would pay you to come in here to do what I’m doing.’”

The need for volunteers just keeps growing. “On my particular shift, I’m the only person,” Segel said. “I regret that I can only take care of two or three kids. It’s a struggle to get volunteers.”

Jewish Family Service is here for seniors

Jewish Family Service of the Lehigh Valley has many services to assist seniors to live a more healthful, satisfying and safe life.

THE GO PROGRAM: In cooperation with ShareCare Faith in Action, volunteer drivers can take you to medical appointments, shopping, visits with friends and on errands. In addition, “Groups on the GO” provides grants to transport groups of seniors to community events.

SENIORLINK: This service gives you and your loved ones the tools they need to make the best choices to age healthfully and happily.

COUNSELING: Highly trained staff works with people of all ages to offer expert counseling on life’s issues.

COMMUNITY FOOD PANTRY: Provides food at times of great need.

BENEFITS CHECKUP: Helps seniors and younger people with disabilities identify federal, state and local benefits.

OUTREACH TO SENIORS: Friendly visits and programs to residents of senior care facilities.

SUPPORT GROUPS YIDDISH CLUB: Kibbitz in the Mama Loschen while learning and having fun. All levels of fluency welcomed, including beginners.

For more details, call 610-821-8722.

VOLUNTEER

DRIVERS NEEDED FORMAL TRAINING INSURANCE COVERAGE MILEAGE REIMBURSEMENT Drive who you want, when you want.

Call Rebecca Axelrod-Cooper at Jewish Family Service, 610-821-8722 In partnership with ShareCare Faith in Action

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HomeInstead.com/217 SENIOR LIVING | HAKOL LEHIGH VALLEY | JULY/AUGUST 2014 3

senior volunteers mobilize

to help community & each other

By Maayan Jaffe JNS.org Editor’s Note: This summer’s Senior Life special section shines the light on volunteerism among seniors, something which seems to be a rising tide as more and more adults are staying healthy and fit well into their retirement years. In the Lehigh Valley we have many seniors volunteering with their congregations, and with agencies like Jewish Family Service. This is a sample of a trend happening across the country, as this story shows.

Age can be just a number.

“Just because someone is older or has limitations does not mean that [he or she] cannot continue to be valuable and make a difference for others,” said Carol Silver Elliott, president and CEO of Cedar Village Retirement Community in Mason, Ohio.

It was with this in mind that Cedar Village’s Chesed

Corps was established in 2009. Elliot said the group, the brainchild of a former director of resident programming, came when staffers realized that many of the center’s 300 residents had been successful businesspeople and engaged community volunteers before moving to Cedar Village, and that there was an opportunity to harness their drive.

“We felt there was no reason for them to stop contributing to our general community just because they lived in a retirement community,” Elliott said.

In northwest Baltimore, older residents of an entire neighborhood are giving back through a supported community network, which was launched by Comprehensive Housing Assistance, Inc. in March 2013.

According to program director Risyl Edelman, Northwest Neighbors Connecting (NNC) is a

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4 JULY/AUGUST 2014 | HAKOL LEHIGH VALLEY | SENIOR LIVING

grassroots, membershipbased model in which services are provided to seniors by other senior members, volunteers, and vetted vendors. It gives the area’s aging population the practical means and confidence to live independently and remain in their homes and community.

NNC was created after a 2010 Jewish community study revealed the 85-years-andolder population increased by 166 percent since 1999, and that 40 percent of Baltimore Jewish seniors over 65 who are living alone are in poor or fair health.

Edelman said NNC members are interviewed to learn what skills they can “easily and happily” share with others, and to determine any needs they have.

“After they sign up, we plug them in,” said Edelman.

“While our vision is to assist people to remain in their homes for as long as possible, our work is to get them out of their house as much as possible.”

Currently, there are more than 170 NNC members and another 70 people involved with the initiative in some way. The oldest volunteer is 92. Transportation and technology assistance are among the top volunteer

services provided.

In Florida, older adults and baby boomer volunteers are trained to function as liaisons, resource specialists, peer counselors and agency envoys in their own gated communities through the Ferd and Gladys Alpert Jewish Family and Children Services (JFCS) agency. Called “Ambassadors,” the program creates a trained network of seniors who can solve problems and support their frail neighbors.

Some 13,000 elderly people live in West Palm Beach retirement communities, and as many as 70 percent of the area’s over-65 community is Jewish.

“This is civic engagement at the basic level,” said Jenni Frumer, the incoming JFCS CEO. Frumer told JNS.org that ambassadors are trained

by JFCS to identify neglect, listen and offer empathy

in times of crisis, and offer personal planning advice to their peers. The volunteers created their own end-of-life planning guide, which they distribute throughout their retirement communities.

They also write and act out skits at area synagogues, mah jong tournaments, and other venues, educating seniors about matters such as the need to wear their hearing aids, to remember to put their emergency alert buttons on in the morning, and to improve dialogue with their adult children.

“Our older adults can still teach us how to make the world a better place,” said Cedar Village’s Elliot. “Their example of commitment and volunteerism speaks volumes about Jewish values and our obligation to help others.”

Maayan Jaffe is a freelance writer in Overland Park, Kansas.

friendship circle announces gabriel award

By Steecia Kofsky Special to HAKOL Friendship Circle is delighted to announce that Cynthia Weiner, a relatively new member, is the recipient of the coveted Gabriel Award for her generous efforts this past year on behalf of Friendship Circle. She received the award at the annual finale luncheon on June 9. Next year, it could be you.

Upon entering the Kline Auditorium for the last Friendship Circle Luncheon meeting of the season, the sounds of an orchestra tuning-up were heard, filling the room with an air of festivity and anticipation.

Infused with these sounds was the lively chattering of 60 or more women and men dressed in their finest, and seated at eight tables resplendent with sparkling silverware and china.

On this annual occasion, paid-up members of Friendship Circle are treated to a gourmet luncheon, gratis, catered by Boscov’s and as an outreach to the community at-large guests were invited to attend the performance, at no charge, after the luncheon.

This season’s finale, planned well in advance, met all of our expectations. Led

by George Fennell, conductor -- whose charm, wit and grace

Cynthia Weiner, shown with Ruth Meislin, receives Friendship Circle's Mae and David Gabriel Award at a luncheon on June 9. captivated us all -- was the Lehigh Valley Pops orchestra, 50 musicians strong. And what a musical treat it was!

But don’t despair with the close of the past season’s festivities. During the summer months, members and non-members are invited to an afternoon of mah jong, Scrabble, bridge or any other game of your choice on Monday afternoons at 1 p.m. at the JCC. Admission and coffee are free.

For the forthcoming season which starts in September, if you are not yet a member, join us and expand your circle of friends.

To learn more, contact Betty Mendelson at 610-395-6282.

I’d rather be giving

Dr. Gwen S. Greenberg Podiatric Medicine and Surgery

couple delivers for meals on wheels

By Ben Notis JFLV Marketing Intern On Monday and Wednesday mornings, Alan and Judy Morrison spend two hours making deliveries for Meals on Wheels of Lehigh County.

“I’ve been volunteering since raising kids. It’s just what you do,” Judy said. “We’re at the stage when life’s been pretty good to us. I’d rather be giving than receiving.”

Every weekday, volunteers deliver meals to 380 Lehigh County adults, many of whom cannot drive because of advanced age, physical handicaps or mental disabilities.

“We deliver over 140,000 meals every year to 380 clients each weekday on 33 delivery routes,” said Pamela S. Bechtel, Meals on Wheels executive director. She added, “We have two clients

who are over 100 [years old].”

The Morrisons, who are members of Congregation Keneseth Israel, began volunteering with Meals on Wheels one year into their retirement. Serving a range of people, from young adults to the elderly, Meals on Wheels provides five different meal options: Regular, diabetic, renal, soft and pureed.

According to Bechtel, some of the clients receive their meals for free because they have a very low income and are eligible for government funding. The rest pay a fee based on their income and expenses.

After assembling the meals at a central packing facility, the volunteers receive their assigned routes and begin to deliver. “We go out in all weather, except if it’s hazardous,” Judy Morrison

said. “In the fall, we give them blizzard bags filled with non-perishables in case we can’t come. Nobody is left without food.”

The nature of the Morrisons’ work allows them to come into contact with different types of people. Some clients crack open the door, take the meal and disappear. Others, appreciating the volunteers’ company, engage in warm conversation. “You get to know the people in a quick way,” Judy said. “In a few minutes, you get a capsule of their lives.”

The Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley delivers meals on Christmas Day and has an ambitious goal: “We try to cover all the routes so the volunteers [who observe the holiday] can be with their families,” explained Abby Trachtman, project coordinator for the Meals on Wheels delivery.

“This year Congregation Keneseth Israel made this delivery their Mitzvah Day project,” she added. “We had too many volunteers. That was really nice.”

with volunteering,

rewards abound

By Alice Level Special to HAKOL Regina Brenner is a member of the Jewish community of the Lehigh Valley and an active volunteer. Not only does she help her synagogue by raising money

for diverse causes, she also volunteers her time to countless activities. “It is a joy to me because I feel that in some way I have helped my community, which is my biggest reward,” Brenner said in a recent interview.

“The volunteering started in the ‘80s when a lot of Jews from Russia came to immigrate to the U.S,” Brenner explained. “A lot of them needed help adjusting to this new country, and my husband, who spoke fluent Russian, felt we were in a position to help them.

He taught them English, he taught them how to drive; we even let a piano teacher use our piano to practice!

“After my husband died, I felt I could use the free time I had to continue helping people. I started to volunteer in a hospital, and also I

helped my synagogue raise money.”

In addition to raising money for Congregation Sons of Israel, Brenner joined the Sisterhood and helped with many projects, from the Kiddush Committee to helping with the kitchen and from decorating the room for the Purim Gala with another volunteer to helping with the family services.

Of how to get involved, Brenner said, “I always accepted any volunteering work I was asked to do.

Once people know you and know that you are willing to volunteer, demand rises pretty fast. Yes, sometimes it’s a lot of work and sometimes the task is daunting. Nobody likes to call hundreds of people on the phone to raise some funds, but if I don’t do it, who will?”

SENIOR LIVING | HAKOL LEHIGH VALLEY | JULY/AUGUST 2014 5

AmeriCorps launches recruitment drive for volunteers for Holocaust survivors

Allentown woman shares

WWII tale of survival what really happened.

Jewish Telegraphic Agency AmeriCorps-VISTA, the federal anti-poverty volunteer program, has launched its recruitment drive for volunteers who will assist Holocaust survivors.

The program is seeking volunteers for 14 agencies operating in seven states, according to a June 19 press release from the Jewish Federations of North America, one of the partner agencies.

The states are: California, Illinois, Florida, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey and New York and the year-long volunteer stints are expected to begin in the fall.

Vice President Joe Biden announced the partnership with AmeriCorps in December in outlining plans to assist impoverished Holocaust survivors.

According to JFNA, there are about 113,000 Holocaust survivors in the United States, of which about 25 percent live below the poverty line.

“In order to remain in their homes and communities, Holocaust survivors need home health care, assistance with transportation, help paying medical and dental bills and rental assistance or affordable housing,” the JFNA said in its release.

Michèle Levy with her mother, Frieda Willner, in 1945. They survived World War II in France by moving around and using false papers. Michèle’s father, Charles Willner, was earlier arrested and taken into the French Foreign Legion, serving for a short time in North Africa before re-joining his wife and daughter in France.

By Alice Level Special to HAKOL Michèle Levy, a member of Temple Beth El, is a longtime volunteer with the Institute for JewishChristian Understanding’s Youth and Prejudice Workshop, a semiannual program held at Muhlenberg College and attended by middle and high school students. She also visits schools with the Holocaust Resource Center and has been the subject of several radio and television interviews. The Spielberg

Foundation interviewed her in 1998.

When did you start volunteering with the IJCU? When I arrived in the Lehigh Valley in the ‘60s, I became friends with a Judy Freeman, z”l, who was a Holocaust survivor herself and who convinced me to participate in the program.

I was hesitant at first, because I wasn’t comfortable with speaking in front of an audience, but I realized I had to do it to explain to children

What was your experience with the Holocaust and World War II? Both my parents were born in Germany. My dad came from a very religious Orthodox family, while my mother’s family, which was very wealthy, was [the equivalent of] modern Orthodox. One day in May 1933, some “Brownshirts” (Nazis) beat my father up in the street. He was very athletic, fought back and hurt one of them. He knew that they would kill him if they ever saw him again, so he fled right away to France. He was 25. My mother was able to join him a month later and they got married in France.

My dad found a job as a sweater designer and life went on until I was born in November 1938, barely two weeks after Kristallnacht. My parents were still communicating with their family in Germany and understood that something terrible happened to the Jews there. They were deported in September ‘42, first to Theresienstadt, possibly because my grandfather had fought with the Germans during World War I, [but] ultimately, they were deported to Auschwitz in 1943.

As for my parents’ cousins, uncles and other relatives still in Germany, all were either shot right away or deported and died in the camps.

Was life in France safer for your parents?

When WWII started in September of ‘39, the French government rounded up all the Germans living on French soil and sent them to a stadium near Paris for 10 days; my father was among them. Fortunately for him, he had tried to enlist in the French army a few months earlier, had been refused because he was a German, but was then able to enlist with the French Foreign Legion. He was shipped off to the south of France and left with the Legion for Africa in December ‘39.

Meanwhile, the Germans had invaded Paris, and my mom decided to leave flee to the free zone. The train station was crowded because everybody wanted to escape to the free zone and she wouldn’t have been able to board a train with her luggage and me had there not been on the train several Czech soldiers who dragged me and my mother through the window of the train. She stayed in Niort from June to October 1940.

Meanwhile, my father had been released from the Legion.

He found a job as a knitter in Périgueux , bought false papers for himself and my mother, and that’s how my mother was able to join him again in August ‘41.

A French doctor let them rent an old primitive cottage he owned in the countryside. My father joined the Maquis (the French Resistance) and that’s how we lived until the end of the war.

Why do you think it’s important to tell your story to others?

I like to think that telling my story to children who, more often than not, had never heard about the Holocaust will make an impact. Maybe one of these children will hear in 10, 20 or 30 years some people saying that the Holocaust never existed and this child will tell his family, “These people are lying. When I was a kid, I met a woman at school who told me her story and I know it really happened.”

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keeping kosher

By Lisë Stern JNS.org We all have our traditional kosher favorites -- and for many this means Ashkenazic fare, like slow-roasted brisket, matzo ball soup, lockshen kugel and perhaps cholent and blintzes. Unfortunately, such kosher classics aren’t the best choices for us as we get older.

Toby Smithson, RD, CDE, is a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and founder of DiabetesEveryDay.com. She says, “Age 50 appears to be the time when some of our nutritional needs change.” Our metabolisms begin to slow down, so we need fewer calories, yet at the same time, we still need food that is high in nutrients.

The challenge, then, is to get all the nutrients we need without overeating. If you are physically active, great -- though most people are not scaling the same number of mountains at 60 or 70 that they were at 30. There are also specific vitamins and minerals we need more after we hit 50, Smithson said, notably potassium, calcium and vitamins B12 and D. We also need fiber, but slightly less than we do when we’re younger.

Sodium is a concern in the opposite direction: Too much can contribute to high blood pressure and we need to significantly reduce consumption as we get older, to about 3/4 teaspoon per day (1500 milligrams). That amount includes both what we add to our plate and what occurs in foods natu-

as we age

rally. Unless specifically made for seniors, prepared kosher foods can be high in sodium.

Too much sodium is a concern regarding blood pressure, and potassium helps blunt sodium’s affect, Smithson said. Calcium, coupled with vitamin D, helps with bone strength, and vitamin B12 protects against anemia.

Fiber serves multiple purposes; it helps with digestion and heart health, and can help prevent certain kinds of cancer. Good sources include fruits and vegetables, as well as whole grains like oatmeal and brown rice.

The National Osteoporosis Foundation indicates that our vitamin D needs can almost double once we hit 50. Those under a half century need 400 to 800 IU daily, while those over need 800 to 1000 IU. “Vitamin D is needed to help keep bones strong along with calcium,” Smithson said.

The primary natural source of vitamin D is sunlight, but how our skin absorbs it can depend on where we live, if we use sunblock and how much time we spend inside, an issue for shut-ins.

If you don’t spend much time in the sun, you may need vitamin D supplements; check with a health care provider for the best balance. Kashrut can be an issue for some vitamin D supplements. Smithson noted that there are two kinds, D2 and D3, and “D3 is derived from ultraviolet irradiation of a substance derived from sheep’s wool.”

In general, the most ef-

ficient sources for the nutrients we need as we get older is food, rather than supplements. Supplements should do just that: help with what we’re getting from food already. Food has the added advantage of being good for multiple nutrients. Dairy products, for example, contain both calcium and potassium.

Other good sources for potassium include beans (think cholent) and fruit, including dried apricots, prunes, and raisins (tzimmes, anyone?). Dates are also a good source, along with pistachios and other nuts.

(Nuts can be high in fat, so moderation is key.)

For the most part, it’s easy to fit a healthy diet into a kosher diet. Brisket isn’t the leanest cut of meat, but it can be reserved for special occasions. “Unfortunately the leanest cuts of beef are not kosher, so we need to have a stronger focus on cutting back on our sources of fats, especially saturated fat,” Smithson said.

“Many traditional dishes can be modified,” she advised.

“Dishes like lockshen kugel can be made with a heat-resistant sugar substitute and egg whites to make it more hearthealthy and diabetes friendly.”

“The best advice is to modify recipes, watch portion size and add more vegetables to your meals,” she added.

Good advice as we head into our 60s, 70s and 80s. And if we make it to our 90s, that may be the time when we no longer have to worry about moderation and we can have a second helping of brisket.

shake

high calcium potassium

BY SANDI TEPLITZ

An easy and delicious way to fill your daily vitamin requirements naturally is to begin the morning with this easy-to-prepare shake. In a blender, combine one container lowfat vanilla yogurt, one very ripe banana, 1/4 c. pomegranate juice and four large strawberries. Blend until smooth.

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610-794-5300 | phoebe.org/allentown SENIOR LIVING | HAKOL LEHIGH VALLEY | JULY/AUGUST 2014 7

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