Volunteer of the Month
Archives
March 2010
Marty Martinez
This month we’d like to give thanks to someone who helps with our Spring Cleaning all year round. Marty Martinez is our Handyman/Jack-of-all-trades. He comes in several days week to help spruce up the place. He vacuums, takes out the trash...but he does much more than just clean. When we have something that needs taken care of or fixin’ he’s our go-to-guy. Need something put together, Marty has just the tool for the job. He doesn’t, he soon will. He’s started volunteering here just after joining the center. He has known Executive Director Penny Lilburn for a long time and former Program Director Annette Mendenhall for even longer so he had known about the center. He had just sold his business, the Green Frog Bar, which he owned for 12 years. He was looking for something to keep him busy. Volunteering at the senior center will cure you of that illness! Penny can always find something for someone to do. Originally from Fresno, CA, he spent 30 years in Air force. His last 17 were at Norton, where he retired from that job as a Loadmaster. He and wife Judith decided to stay in the area where they have raised two kids, 5 grandkids, 1 great-grand kid. Thanks for lending us a helping hand.
Featured Class
Brain Fitness
Date: August 26, 2009
Time: 1:00 to 3:00pm
Length: 22 weeks
Cost: No fee members
non-members
Instructor: Lisa Ballard
Location: Game Room
Description: When one hears fitness, we all think about physical fitness. Aerobics, tai chi...but what about mental fitness. Some of our members take advantage of our university classes, but learning is only a part of exercising your brain. To help you out we are adding a “Brain Fitness” to our catalog. The purpose will be to “facilitate older adult’s participation in activities to promote a lifestyle that encourages increased mental activity, physical activity, social interactions and emotional well being to increase the capacity of each individual to meet the demands of life.” Students will work on improving their range of motion, self-esteem, social interactions, memory/sequencing skills/concentration, understanding of proper diet/nutrition, community awareness, and their understanding of stress management. As we age, and our memory seems to be not quite what it used to be, we could all use a little boost brainwise. Like the old adage says, “Use it, or lose it.” So don’t forget to sign up for this FREE class.
Featured Activity
Ceramics
Time: Wednesdays 9:00 am
Cost: $1 per class members
$1 per class non-members
Location: Game Room
Description: This month The Highland Senior Center would like to shine the light on one of our more hands on classes: Ceramics. They are glad to welcome back their instructor, Barbara Bradley. She is able to teach anyone, from novice to advance. Students are encouraged to work at their own pace, as some pieces take longer to work on, and each student may work more on a piece than another. The class does a monthly project, but some students have particular pieces they want to work on and are encouraged to do so. Work is generally done on site, (including firing), but many students take things home to work on over the week (sanding, prep-work, painting, etc.). In fact, Barbara also works at home pouring molds, and getting items cleaned up and ready for students that just want to paint and fire. Barbara first became interested in Ceramics in 1960, yet it wasn’t until 1993 that she became certified to teach by Duncan & Gare, which took 8 weeks. Since then she has taught in several places including a home shop, and at the Orange Show for the Ceramic Doll Show. She is not only a teacher, she’s also a student. She is always learning new techniques, and took a course at the Ceramic Art Institute. It was a tough course with only half of the class passing (including Barbara). So if this sounds like something you’d be interested in stop by the game room on Wednesdays from 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. and for only $1 per class, come play in the mud.
