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Rehoboth Age Exchange & G.H. Stark Centres:
Overall our two days at Rehoboth were the most memorable days because I felt that we were remembered and appreciated by the elders. It was a lively area and I hope more young people come and share their time with the elderly. I just felt that even though we did not do something grand, we were blessed so much and receiving good thoughts from the workers on our future was very loving. When I come back to South Africa I would really like to come back here and volunteer. -Sarah M
Today, I was blown away by quite a few senior citizens at the Rehoboth Hanover Park facility in the Cape Flats. They were such an endearing, vibrant and amusing group. We all had such a great time interacting with them. The facility was more than I could have expected for them; it seemed to house them very comfortably, and they all seemed really at home and happy there. -Kate
This whole senior center was much nicer than some that I have seen where I live in Huntington Beach, and this was a little surprising to me, but in a good way. -Jody
The second lady that I talked to was a fireball. When she first came up to me she had asked me to take her to go find someone that I didn’t know. Then all of a sudden she started shaking her hips and showing me that she could dance. Then Dr. Roberts began playing the ukulele which everyone, especially she enjoyed. She began dancing even more and I was dancing next to her. She grabbed my hands and we started dancing in circles together. She was smiling and laughing and having a ton of fun, and so was I. -Caitlin
The room that many of the people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease congregate at is the “Iris Room”, which I believe I enjoyed the most, because we were able to dance, sing, and talk with everyone. I believe this room must have been the inspiration to the motto they live by in this facility, and that is “Adding Life to Years”, which I can honestly say is what is being done at Rehoboth. -Danielle
While visiting patients in the Iris room, I met a woman, suffering from Alzheimer’s. We sat down and began talking about her husband. She told me he was picking her up today to take her home and began talking about how she and her husband met. After fifteen minutes of talking about her plans for the day I realized that she was not actually leaving. A nurse whispered to me that her husband was in fact dead. I was so convinced by her reality, that when I found out the truth, I was truly surprised. -Tara
During the tour we visited the Iris room for the dementia patients. The first lady I met was Arabic and reminded me of my grandma who had recently passed away. She kept saying “bosa,” which means kisses in Arabic. She was so nice and she asked me to call her Tata which means grandma. -Kellie
Out of the many individuals that I met, a few stood out… Ali made me laugh and feel happy at the same time. He is a prime example of how our presence there is a good thing. He was fascinated that we were from overseas and California at that. I then met a woman who could not speak a word of English. She was speaking Xhosa the whole time and I believe that she might have had a mental disability. When I was attempting to converse with her, I realized that through hand gestures and facial expressions I was still able to communicate with her.
-Geneva
Another thing that I thought was a little funny was that Florrie asked me to write to her when I get married. She talked about a young man who she had met last year who wrote to her, and how happy it made her to receive his letters. This made me realize how badly elderly people need to interact with the rest of the world. They need those social relationships to know that they haven’t been forgotten about, and that they are still alive. -Jody
The part of the games that stood out to most to me was when it was the one blind woman’s turn to play the Mouse Trap game. One of the staff members guided her up to the board and let her feel where the holes were. They then walked her back in a straight line to where she had to throw them from. Then the entire room became silent. Then another staff member walked back over to the board and clapped their hands over the holes so she could hear where they were. The woman threw the balls three times and all three times she made it through the holes. -Caitlin
Music brought the people to life. As Dr. Roberts played her ukulele everyone began to dance. It was quite a scene. We all were dancing with one another and singing along. This was the highlight of the day. -Sara F.
When the events were done Iris pulled Allison and I aside and gave us pumpkin fritters that she had baked for our whole class she also handed me the recipe and her address. She wanted me to cook the treats and send her pictures. I felt honored that she would think of me and our class in general. She also said that she had a doctor’s appointment and that you never know when something could go wrong. She said that you never know when you are going to die and that a number of her friends have died recently. -Kellie
I really felt comfortable within the center, it makes me want to pursue more volunteering opportunities back home with the elderly because many of them rarely get visits and want to have some excitement come into their daily routine. -Sarah M.
I have never really worked with seniors before and since I was there at the center it has opened my eyes to what I am missing out on. When I get home I want to look into a senior home that I can volunteer at. -Sara F.
I had a very positive experience on my first visit at Rehoboth. Everyone was very kind and it was evident that everyone there cared about the best interest of the elderly people… I did not expect a hospice to look anything like this facility. Hospices and elderly housing that I have been to in the United States do not come close to Rehoboth. They look like hospitals, not maintained, and have a depressing feel to them. The workers do not seem to take pride in their work and the facilities are not as clean. -Monica
Furthermore, my experience at Rehoboth made me realize how important it is to visit with the elderly. I know that I tend to get caught up with my own life and neglect to visit my grand parents and elderly aunts who are retired and often times lonely. I need to make an effort to visit with them more often. In addition, I also realized how much one can learn from the elderly since they have been there and done that. -Monica