November 08, 2022

I have been reflecting lately on the importance of having good neighbors, and of making the time to cultivate and develop those relationships.

My husband Al underwent a life-saving lung transplant in July of this year. I could not have gotten through the three months of hard recovery without my good neighbors, Alex and Ed. They provided most of my meals during the three weeks Al was in the hospital, and for the three weeks after Al came home.  Our friendship forged long before, during the 22 years we have lived next door to each other, I consider them family. We’ve always given each other rides to the airport, taken turns doing the grocery shopping for our families, and always called each other before placing to-go food orders for delivery or pick up.

Similarly, the Pasadena Senior Center is blessed to have good neighbors, without whom we could not have weathered this global epidemic.  During the past two years, we had to switch from serving daily lunches to our members in our Pavilion, to providing boxed lunches for pick-up and delivery to home-bound seniors, as well as establishing a monthly food distribution program serving all in the community.  We needed more hands than the Center has.  That is when churches, companies, banks and non-profits in Pasadena, San Marino and Alhambra stepped up in a big way.  Each month, on two different Fridays, we have hundreds of people showing up to pick up grocery items, including a fresh produce giveaway organized by the Knights of Malta that rivals the fresh vegetables and fruits sold at Whole Foods.

Thanks to the dedicated volunteers who sign up, the Center has become the largest food distribution site in Southern California for older adults. 

As we all know though, eating food alone can fill an empty belly, but true nourishment comes from breaking bread together.  The “Dine Out & Benefit PSC” program developed by our very own Manager of Facilities and Programs, Dion Ferguson in 2021, fulfills this need to socialize, and then some.

The program partners with neighboring restaurants to offer a day where the Center’s members and friends dine, and the restaurant makes a donation with a portion of the proceeds.  People have told me how much they’ve enjoyed socializing on an outdoor patio and meeting fellow members for the first time.  Someone who always attends morning classes at the Center might never cross paths with a member who usually came in the afternoon.  This brought our members closer together.

Whether it was at Twohey’s, El Portal, Edwin Mills, Mijares, Slaters 50/50, Foothill, Sorriso, or World Seafood, I enjoyed seeing familiar faces (members and my staff) at these restaurants, in a new and different social setting, where we could actually have a relaxed conversation.

With the pandemic forcing us to close our Pavilion and industrial kitchen to private event rentals, the Center experienced a drop in funding. The “Dine Out” program has raised close to $10,000 for the Center, helping us financially as well. 

I would like to take this moment to thank the Center’s good neighbors: these restaurants and the many volunteers who helped us not only put food in our bellies, but also nourish our souls with the social interactions that we need to thrive and age well.

Whether you own a restaurant, want to volunteer, or need to rent a facility for your next special event, consider becoming a good neighbor to the Center.

After all, everyone could use an “Alex and Ed” in their life.
Here’s to good neighbors! May you be one.  May you find your own “Alex and Ed.”