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JCA Insights, September 2023

By JCA on September 22, 2023

Interages® Kicks Off the New School Year with Lots of

Volunteering Opportunities

The Heyman Interages Center is starting the new school year with volunteer opportunities in several Montgomery County schools. They are seeking volunteers for Grandreaders, Readers Theater, Dialogs Across the Ages, Book Clubs, Career Panels, tutoring, and in before- and after-school programs. View the whole list on the volunteer portal. Check the list frequently for updates or contact the Interages volunteer coordinator.

Senior HelpLine: 240-290-3311 or 703-652-1515

In this issue:

➢ New school year offers many volunteer opportunities

➢ JCA receives proclamation

➢ Staff Profile

➢Freewill protects your legacy

➢ OMA art show

➢ JCA Blog Highlights

Montgomery County Presents

Proclamation to JCA

Evan Glass, President and At-Large member of the Montgomery County Council presented JCA with a proclamation honoring JCA’s 50th anniversary. The presentation took place at the 2023 Annual Meeting. Councilman Glass had many kind words for JCA. View a video of the presentation.

Staff Profile: Elaine Looney

Elaine Looney is JCA’s indefatigable SCSEP (Senior Community Service Employment Program) Case Manager and Job Placement Administrator. Elaine came to JCA nearly four years ago after graduating from the Career Gateway program. She has a Master’s in Geriatric Psychology and came to JCA from the corporate world.

Wanting to get involved with nonprofits, Elaine was attracted to the mission of JCA. The same afternoon she started the

Career Gateway session, she was interviewed for a position with JCA. It was a perfect fit. The position was with SCSEP, where Elaine continues to help low-income seniors build their skill set, add valuable experience to their resumes, while providing service to one of the nonprofits that JCA partners with. “The greatest reward is to contribute to someone’s success. Their state of wellbeing is enhanced and their self-confidence goes up,” says Elaine. “JCA is the go-to for aging gracefully,” adds Elaine.

Build bridges across generations through your legacy

Your legacy can sustain the mission of JCA today and for years to come. By including a legacy gift in your will, you can provide programs and services that support older adults and their families for this generation and the next. To create your legacy, we invite you to use FreeWill: an online estate planning tool that makes it 100% free to write your will and, if you choose, include a legacy gift to JCA in your plans.

Start my free will

Interages and Kensington Clubs Kick Off Inaugural Opening Minds Through Art (OMA) program

Opening Minds Through Art, also called OMA, is an award-winning, intergenerational art making program for seniors. Its mission is to build bridges across age and cognitive barriers. The artists are trained to rely on their imagination and focus on their strengths. Originally designed for people living with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of neurocognitive disorders, its failure-free design provides opportunities for creative self-expression and social

engagement for people with limited cognitive abilities. OMA also provides the young volunteers with opportunities to improve their attitudes toward aging through the weekly one-on-one interactions. OMA artists leave a legacy of beautiful abstract artwork showing their unique creative expression.

At JCA this summer, OMA engaged participants from two of our programs: the Heyman Interages® Center and the

Kensington Clubs (KC). Ten young adults participated with ten Kensington Club members from all three KC locations. The eight-week program included one week of aging awareness training for volunteers, six weeks of artmaking and a final art show.

Participants were asked to reflect on their experience. “This art is like my mind on a page,” commented one OMA artist. You may have seen some of the artwork adorning our High Holiday pieces. It really is spectacular!

50+ Employment Programs Launch for Fall and Beyond

The Career Gateway and 50+ Employment Expos are back with plenty of sessions for jobseekers (and employers!) from September ’23 to June ’24. Visit the Career Gateway and 50+ Employment Expos webpages for the full schedule and enrollment details.

Senior Resources Guided and Blog Highlights

In August, the Senior Resources Guide focused on the active and productive lifestyles of today’s older adults. The JCA Blog, Information for the Sandwich Generation, shared insights about career success for older workers, the increase in cannabis use by the over-65 crowd, and updated Alzheimer’s testing criteria.

Check back often for more useful articles and resources of particular interest to older adults.

Come learn about the impact JCA has in our community in a 45-minute Zoom “tour of our mission.” You might be surprised at what you hear as we introduce you to our CEO, board president, Career Gateway graduate, Interages volunteer, and Kensington Club activity leader. Reserve your spot for September 28 at 4:00 p.m., October 18 at 9:30 a.m., or October 26 at 4:00 p.m. We really would love to meet you!

Steer your car donation to JCA!

It’s easy to gift your car through CAR-J, a collaborative program of JCA, Makom, and the Bender Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington. Get started by filling in the CAR-J form.