May 17, 2023

A wise person once said, “Variety is the spice of life,” and Akila Gibbs, Pasadena Senior Center’s executive director, 
agrees. When asked what a given week might look like atthe center, Gibbs paused, saying, “No two weeks are the 
same.”

Indeed, there is always something exciting happening at the center. Last week, it hosted the celebrated New York City-based modern dance troupe 
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Beginning in May, the center will host its annual Pasadena Senior Games, attended by over 1,200 participants, featuring Olympic-style sporting events like track and field, cycling, pickleball, swimming and powerlifting.
“Our main objective is that we want seniors to age well with dignity,” Gibbs said. The Pasadena Senior Center has served older adults in Pasadena for over 60 years. As a nonprofit, the center is a minority, and Gibbs estimates that only around 2% of senior 
centers nationwide occupy a nonprofit status.

Annually, the center serves around 10,000 seniors and 200 to 300 on any given day, depending on class schedules. The center offers over 30 classes, like Art and Joy of Sewing, qi gong and tai chi, and chair Pilates, along with self-defense and meditation. Since the pandemic, many classes are now offered both in-person and virtually, allowing those who are immobile or ill to participate.

In addition to classes, the center hosts lunches, events and nearly 20 clubs, including those devoted to running, bridge, needle arts, scrabble, writing and reading. The center is a haven for many who come for classes and programming and flock to the center to connect with friends, have lunch, or play cards or pool. The center’s lounge is often populated with people relaxing, reading the newspaper, and sipping a hot drink 
from the coffee bar. “One woman comes every day, and she just puts puzzles together,” Gibbs noted.

On the first Friday of each month, the center partners with a food bank to provide meals to seniors in need and currently has the largest food distribution program for older adults in Southern California.

Seniors comprise one of the most vulnerable populations, with many older adults not receiving proper care or support. The center runs a “telephone reassurance” program that does regular phone check-ins on seniors in the community. “Over the years, we’ve gotten to know many of these people, so we know when something’s amiss with them. If they don’t answer, we will call the authorities, and on 
many occasions, we have found people in dire straits,” Gibbs said.

The programming and classes at the center are intentional and feature a two-pronged approach — keeping seniors healthy physically through movement and exercise and mentally to stave off loneliness and “keep people interested in life and in learning new 
things,” Gibbs said. Physical activity is especially vital for older adults who experience muscle atrophy at a rapid pace without exercise.

“If you cannot get out of your chair or get up and down off the floor, it’s hard to want to age in place. A lot of people want to age at home. … We want people to have a choice. We don’t want them to go to a nursing home if they don’t want to,” Gibbs explained. As children move away and friends and spouses begin to pass, many seniors experience loneliness and isolation, the health ramification of which is equivalent to 
smoking almost a pack of cigarettes a day.

At its core, the center means to create a welcoming community to provide seniors with a place to expand their lives and social circle and continue learning about themselves. “When you come to a place like the Pasadena Senior Center, you meet new friends. You get to learn something you didn’t know before. We have people taking art classes who never thought they could paint, and they find out, to their surprise, that there is an artist living in them. That’s wonderful — seeing people discover new things about themselves and learn new things,” Gibbs explained.