Accessible and affordable options and services for older adults make Washtenaw County a better place to live.
Panel Discusses Ways to
"Age with Attitude"
Alfreda Rooks Jordan, Mary Rumman, and Sherry Marcy
On May 22, 2007, over 40 older adults and other community members gathered to listen to panelists talk about enhancing quality of life in retirement. Speakers at the event, called "Aging with Attitude: A New Stage of Life," included Mary Rumman, LMSW, of Turner Geriatric Clinic; Sherry Marcy, Blueprint for Aging Core Leadership Team Member; and Alfreda Rooks Jordan, Director of U-M Health System Volunteer Services. They addressed a variety of topics, from developing creativity and resilience, to coping with leaving the workforce, to giving back to the community.
"How we do in each stage of our lives depends on our attitude."
Mary Rumman noted that people with a positive perception of aging live longer and that qualities like resilience, hardiness, and a spiritual lens for understanding adversity can have a profound impact on quality of life for older adults. "You have a choice," Rumman said, when faced with circumstances, like a traffic jam or like aging, that are outside your control: "you can decide whether to get stressed or to figure out what to do about it."
Rumman also stressed the value of maintaining quality relationships with others, the importance of life-long learning, and the benefits of creativity. "This is the time to be creative," she said, noting that "practical creativity—solving everyday problems—peaks later in life," and that creativity can keep life "fresh" and give people a continuing sense of moving forward.
"Who I am now that I'm not working is an issue that I have to face."
Sherry Marcy spoke candidly of her recent transition to retirement after being let go from Pfizer along with 3,500 others in the community. "I feel like I've just let go of one trapeze and am flying in the air," she said. Marcy, 64, is continuing her role as an active volunteer in the community and searching for the next trapeze to grab onto. Many listeners nodded their heads in agreement as she talked about the changes that come with retirement. "The hard part for me is to go from earning and saving to spending," she said, also touching on the uncertainties of health care, the cost of insurance, and the stresses of supporting children in college while in retirement.
Marcy encouraged seniors to stay involved and connected, and to embrace technology, especially new tools offered via the Internet, as a means to stay in touch and informed. She told listeners to "find some teenager and ask them about Facebook."
"All my elders had one thing in common: they all gave back."
Alfreda Rooks Jordan started her talk with memories of the elders she grew up with, from a great-grandfather who lived to be 115, to a god-father tinkering with Volkswagens at 98, to others who taught, did volunteer driving, and took care of others late in their lives. "Giving back stimulates the mind," she said.
Rooks Jordan went on to discuss volunteer opportunities in the U-M Health System, and stressed the fact that older adults have a lot to offer as volunteers, to the community as a whole, but especially to other older adults. "My goal is that when any of our patients walks through the door, they will see someone who looks like them, has experienced some of the same things, and is there giving back," she said. "We're looking for people who have some life experience to share, people who care and want to give support."
"Aging with Attitude: A New Stage of Life" was sponsored by the Turner Senior Resource Center, the Blueprint for Aging, the U-M Work/Life Resource Center, Faculty and Staff Assistance Program, and the Center for the Education of Women.
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Blueprint Events
Community Forum with State Representative
Rebekah Warren
Sponsored by Senior Advocates of Washtenaw
Monday, June 25, 2007
10:00 a.m. - Noon
Washtenaw County Library Learning Resource Center (LLRC)
4135 Washtenaw Avenue at Hogback Rd.
(entrance off of Hogback)
Ann Arbor, MI
Come ask questions and share your concerns.
Representative Warren, a member of the House Senior Health, Security, and Retirement Committee, will discuss current issues and pending legislation affecting seniors.
Click here to download flier.
All events are free and open to the public.
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What Is the Blueprint for Aging?
The Blueprint for Aging is a diverse coalition of community members and representatives from over 40 public, private, and nonprofit organizations who have actively worked for over five years to help Washtenaw County become more responsive to its older residents.
Our vision is of a community that encourages the highest degree of health and independence for seniors—a place where people of all ages live, work, and thrive as full and valued citizens.
To achieve this goal, the Blueprint collaborative has developed four major initiatives:
Aging in Place:
Improving the services essential to living well
Senior Leadership:
Utilizing the skills and wisdom of older adults
Technology Innovation:
Using technology to work more efficiently
Foundation Building:
Creating an elder-friendly community
Learn More
For more information about the Blueprint for Aging, visit our website at www.Blueprint.For.Aging.org, or contact us at (734) 712-0548. |
Aging with Attitude Panel 
Hearing and Vision Testing