In early February 2008 I visited the Oliver
Seniors’ Centre to see how seniors in the Okanagan keep active
during retirement. I was making a trip to Japan at the end of the
month to talk to a Japanese seniors’ group about the lifestyle of
the Okanagan seniors. What is the connection between the Okanagan
and the Japanese seniors? The Japanese baby-boomers are now
starting to retire. Many of them had worked very hard all their
lives and they did not have the time to develop skills and
interests outside of their jobs. They face retirement with unease
and trepidation, and many were at a loss as to how they would
spend their later years. I thought my presentation may give them
ideas on how they could keep active and enjoy their retirement
It was my first visit to a seniors’ centre, and my first
impression was how active and busy the seniors were during their
so-called “retirement.” There was nothing “retiring” about it at
all in my opinion. As one member told me, “I have a far busier
schedule now I am retired than I had when I was working
full-time!” I walked into the Oliver Seniors’ Centre during
their Saturday morning dance class, and the last thing I expected
to see was the 221 dancers packed into the dance hall accompanied
by a terrific Country and Western band. It took me a couple of
minutes to take it all in, and after the initial surprise I
started taking pictures of the dancers and musicians and introduce
myself. Everyone was having so much fun, and I couldn’t wait to
interview everyone! Luckily one of the ladies in charge of the
Saturday dance program managed to recruit a few of the
participants and I asked them to tell me their stories. I was
first told the Oliver Seniors’ Centre was built in 1989, and much
to my surprise most of the funds were raised entirely by
volunteers. The founding members of the centre accepted a few
government grants but the vast majority of the money came from
their own volunteer efforts. Volunteers designed and helped
construct the centre, and at present they are also in charge of
the centre’s day-to-day management and operations. This volunteer
spirit impressed me to no end, and I could see and feel its
presence all around me as I talked to one member after another.
The list of programs at the centre is impressive: physical
exercise classes, bingo, floor curling, crib, skat, whist, bridge,
dancing, luncheons, pot luck dinners, concerts, and on and on it
goes! The programs are organized and run by volunteers, and while
many of them readily admit “it is a lot of work!” this volunteer
spirit seems to be the secret behind the success of the centre.
The classes are full and the programs run daily throughout the
year. I loved interviewing the members of the centre to see why
they were so active and full of life. My first interviewee was
Bill from Manitoba who at 92 years young was eager to tell me all
about his life in Oliver. He moved to the Okanagan for health
reasons, and shortly after the move his health improved
dramatically and he stayed on. I asked him the secret to his long
life and good health and he told me “I never worry about anything,
I am always happy. People who are stressed and unhappy live very
short lives.” He went on to say, “I knew many people who led very
unhappy and stressful lives and they are now all long gone.” Bill
leads a very active social life which he also attributes to his
long, happy life in Oliver. He is very involved in senior square
dancing, Catholic Church activities, the Sunnybank Centre, various
community activities, and a volunteer Alzheimer’s group. This
social network is very, very important and he has many, many
friends. “I help others and they help me,” he concluded. The
next person I interviewed was Georgina from Nova Scotia. I was
surprised how youthful and active Georgina appeared and asked her
secret. She told me a healthy diet is one key ingredient. When
Georgina and her husband first moved to Oliver they bought a
couple of acres and now grow a wide variety of fruit and
vegetables such as blueberries, raspberries, loganberries,
apricots, cherries, tomatoes, potatoes, onions, and green beans.
She loves making stewed tomatoes and fresh tomato juice as well.
Georgina keeps active by dancing, dancing, and more dancing!
Georgina and her husband go to dances in Oliver, Osoyoos, Keremeos,
Okanagan Falls, and Kelowna. Her favourite festivals are the
Bluegrass Festivals which are held in Oliver, Osoyoos, Summerland,
and Falkland. At the festivals she meets so many people and makes
lots of friends. Georgina and her husband are very close and they
believe their tight relationship coupled with their relationship
to their family and friends keeps their lives happy and full of
fun. I met two more dancers that day – Dorothy and Ray from
Saskatchewan. Dorothy and Ray are “Snowbirds” who spend the
winters in the Okanagan. They love the Okanagan and visit the
centre about three or four times a week to go dancing. The centre
has endless activities to keep them busy and they have made so
many friends there. They told me they knew about 50% of the 221
dancers in the centre that morning. According to Ray, “people who
complain there is nothing to do in the Okanagan are recluses and
choose to stay inside their homes.” Gordon is from central BC,
and like Dorothy and Ray, he loves dancing. In fact, Gordon is in
charge of the Pattern Dancing classes at the centre. He told me
the members of the Country and Western band that morning are all
volunteers, and some of them come as far away as Keremeos to
perform. Dancing is held five times a week at the centre, and he
keeps himself very busy teaching others how to dance. Besides
dancing he enjoys carpet bowling, cards, the after-dance lunches,
and the pot-luck dinners. Like Ray, Gordon feels “boredom is
self-imposed – there are so many things to do here. Come on over
and join us, and you can meet lots of pretty girls too!” In
addition to the dance programs, I also met two people from the
ladies’ Keep Fit program. Carol and Corrie run the Keep Fit
program which boasts 36 members and has been in operation for over
20 years. The Keep Fit program lasts from 8:45am to 9:45am, three
times a week. The program involves walking exercises to warm up,
floor exercises, and finally chair exercises to cool down. The
program has been checked over by a physiotherapist and the local
high school PE teacher, and they also added their own suggestions
to make the program better. The Keep Fit program runs from
September to April each year. In the spring and summer, the Keep
Fit members get together and go on long walks to keep in shape.
Again, I asked for the secret to the program’s success. They told
me it is the spirit of volunteering. The members get along well,
and they come from all over Canada and around the world and bring
their own ideas to help create and run the programs. There is a
very close community feeling in the centre, and this feeling
produces great results they explained. I had a wonderful time
visiting the Oliver Senior Centre and listening to the members
talk about their lives in “retirement.” When I visited Japan later
in the month, I did a presentation on the centre and its members.
The Japanese audience were fascinated by my stories and asked many
questions. They also asked me to summarize the key to the success
of the centre and the rich lives of its members. I told them the
centre’s volunteer spirit coupled with the member’s active pursuit
of friendship were two important ingredients. Physical exercise
and a healthy diet were also very important for the seniors. Also,
the desire to look at life in a positive way and to share
knowledge and skills with others contribute greatly to both the
centre’s success and the fulfilled lives of its members. I look
forward to many more visits to the Oliver Seniors’ Centre. Indeed,
one day I hope to be able to introduce my Japanese friends to the
centre and show them what a strong volunteer spirit and a
positive, healthy lifestyle can produce. |
