A Virtual Community Center for RI Seniors
The physical closure of seniors’ and community centers due to the coronavirus has left a void in many older people’s lives. Gone are cards and fitness, book clubs and memory café–along with the exercise, mental stimulation and social connection that are so vital for the health and well-being of Rhode Island seniors.
Thanks to the power of technology and the creative thinking of Age-Friendly Rhode Island (AFRI) and its many community partners, and funding from the Tufts Health Plan Foundation, there is now a way for seniors to enjoy many of the same types of programs they used to attend in person, but from the safety of home.
The Virtual Community Center (VCC for short) is a great new service for all Rhode Islanders to take advantage of.
“The VCC offers a full schedule of free online activities and events to look forward to every day when in-person experiences aren’t possible. We hope they will help keep Rhode Islanders’ bodies healthy, minds sharp and spirits high during this time of pandemic and beyond, when we’re staying close to home and limiting our contact with others, and when many of the places we normally go are closed.”
There truly are virtual events taking place every single day at the VCC, and they are all free! Take a look at some of the many things happening in the month of June alone:
- Fitness classes
- Dance classes
- Gardening classes
- Boston Globe op-ed talks & TED radio hours
- Symphony selections curated by the New York Times
- Memory café
- Providence Public Library learning lounge
- Virtual museum tours
- Virtual card games
- Laughter yoga
- Movie night
- Virtual knitting group
- Tai Chi
- Guided mindfulness and meditation
- And more!
The programs are offered through various online tools, such as Zoom, Facebook Live and live streaming on websites. Some are live, meaning that they take place at a set time, and others can be accessed on demand whenever you’d like.
Because technology can be a challenge for many, there are also helpful tutorial videos that guide participants through the process of creating a Gmail account, using FaceTime, signing up for Facebook, and creating a Zoom account.
Lt. Gov. Dan McKee recently shared a conversation with Catherine Taylor, AFRI’s new director, who described how the VCC simulates the experience of a brick-and-mortar senior center, with the schedule of the day’s events.
As they were brainstorming how to adapt to the pandemic, Taylor and her colleagues realized that “people miss the experience of looking forward to things.” The VCC gives people that feeling of anticipation about events that are happening later in the week and month.
As Taylor described, AFRI also sees this as a tool with enduring value:
“We developed this in response to the crisis now. But it’s really something that’s going to be helpful to a lot of people going forward, even when this is all over. Because there are always going to be times in our lives when for whatever reason, we are just not able to participate in in-person sessions. Maybe it’s something as simple as you have a bad cold, and you don’t want to give it to people, so you’re going to stay home. But guess what, you don’t have to miss that class you wanted to go to.”
Check out the VCC today, and be sure to spread the news with others who could benefit from it!