Senior Centers and Places of Worship as Primary Active Aging Settings

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Nowadays, an increase in the elderly population can be observed, and it leads to a higher demand for services, establishments, and facilities providing care for this vulnerable part of society (Fields & Dabelko-Schoeny, 2015). A senior citizen may choose to age in the comfort of their home or a specialized institution. In the first case, the necessity to stay an active participant in social life may be satisfied through dynamic aging settings. There is a variety of places that can accommodate the elderly or help to fulfill their needs for community interactions, and among these places are community settings and places of worship. These types of facilities are necessary to ensure that as many senior citizens as possible have access to resources that would allow them to age in a positive and inclusive environment.

One of the senior centers providing care for the elderly in NYC who are over 60 years old is founded by the Carter Burden Network. The services provided there include arts and cultural events, gatherings dedicated to health, advocacy, supportive counseling, money management, and end-of-life planning (Burns, 2017). The elderly can fulfill their socialization needs by attending a variety of events offered, thus, ensuring their frequent encounters. For instance, the elderly may participate in weekly health and wellness workshops designed to educate senior citizens about maintaining their well-being (Burns, 2017). Educating the elderly is one of the main goals of the establishment besides involving them in communal and active lifestyles. Moreover, a volunteering program is also available in the center: the main requirement for potential facilitators is previous experience in organizing workshops. On the other hand, transportation may be a problem for senior citizens, especially those who have mobility issues – it is the area that may be improved.

Similar to the senior center, Heath Evangelical Church in Cardiff views senior citizens as an indispensable part of their congregation and, more broadly, their church family, where seven out of the 12 elders are aged over 60 (Orchard, 2018). Heath Evangelical Church treats seniors with the respect that is supposedly common to all cultures, with no regard for the cultural background. Unlike the senior center created by Carter Burden Network, the axis of Heath Evangelical Church is prayer meetings and Bible studies, of which senior citizens are the most frequent and active goers (Orchard, 2018). Furthermore, the church provides voluntary help for the elderly in their homes, which embodies Felician Values, such as compassion and respect for human dignity. Church membership gives emotional support, which helps to combat depression and loneliness among retirees.

Both the senior center and the place of worship investigated here share similar attitudes in approaching the incorporation of the elderly into their social life. Nevertheless, the church does so in a more natural way, and the intentionality of the process is not evident in this case. Moreover, in the church, the elderly have an opportunity to interact with diverse age groups. Senior citizens who have access to an active aging setting or to places of social gathering, where they are treated with attention and concern, have more substantial opportunities to live a fulfilling and engaging communal life. The strain that the four aspects of aging (physiological, social, physiological, and cognitive) put onto senior citizens can be to a degree alleviated by the help that active aging settings provide.