In a world of constant change, it can be easy for senior citizens to feel disconnected or forgotten. Technology, politics, health, the economy and trends among the youth can be difficult to keep up with.
“Just accept us for who we are,” Wanda Hardy, a senior from Mansfield, said. “That’s the easiest thing I can say, whoever we are, whatever we have, because now we may have mental issues, physical issues. Just accept us.”
The senior education program of the TCC Continued Education Department gives senior citizens a pathway to continuing their education, finding employment or connecting with resources for living improvements.
Jean Britton, a former TCC student, had attended a senior education class on bead work and painting in the past. She said that she was able to reconnect with old friends and make new friends at the program.
“There was girls that I knew that needed a job because their husbands had passed away and it helped them kind of get out of that grief and go get their confidence back up in their skill sets and actually get good jobs.”
The dean of CE, Carrie Tunson, a senior citizen herself, expressed how seniors need community.
“I hope that they take away that they have value, that they have places for them that they can go and they don’t have to be alone,” she said. “I serve on the Arlington Senior Citizens Mayor’s Council and so we’re talking about most [how] the thing that’s a tragedy to seniors is loneliness.”
Tunson said she enjoys seeing younger students interact with the CE students at TCC.
“I think the kids need to see the seniors on campus, and the seniors need to be involved with the students,” she said.
One of the events the CE department hosted to reach out to the local senior citizen community was a Senior Spring Fling on March 12 on SE Campus. Arlington senior citizens and students gathered to connect with each other and with community resources.
A group of lively senior dancers called the Steppin’ Grannies of Fort Worth celebrated their 20th anniversary by providing some entertainment for the event. They shuffled to ‘The Cookout’ by Cupid as onlookers clapped and cheered.
Hardy expressed interest in learning how to dance with the Steppin’ Grannies. She said she wants to explore life and, in the future, sign up for a few senior education classes.
“I’m trying to get old and live,” she said. “I still want to live, but I have to find a different kind of living. That’s just actually not an easy thing to do. … I love that I’m intelligent enough to branch out to see other options as I have matured.”
Alzheimer’s research, social security access, live-captioned telephones and retirement planning were only a few of the services advertised at the event.
The event didn’t just give seniors the opportunity to connect with local service providers, giving them the opportunity to speak with experts about issues that senior citizens struggle with often.
Fort Worth White Collar Crime FBI agents warned seniors about fraudulent calls and texts, stating that seniors are frequently targeted by these scammers. Care Life, a company that provides senior caretakers with support and resources, said that seniors are struggling with getting their social security packages and Medicare coverage.
CE coordinator and assistant to the dean James Tucker, said the CE department currently offers an estimate of 20 to 25 courses for seniors. The program offers seniors the chance to enroll in as many senior education classes they would like for a reduced fee.
“There are activities and agencies that are out there that are really in support of them [seniors] and for them,” Tucker said. “They don’t have to sit and just feel as if there’s nothing to do. Feel as if there’s no one they can go to.”
