{"id":95220,"date":"2025-12-15T13:27:07","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T13:27:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/95220\/"},"modified":"2025-12-15T13:27:07","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T13:27:07","slug":"a-place-for-seniors-to-make-friends-and-stay-active","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/95220\/","title":{"rendered":"A place for seniors to make friends and stay active"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Sally Burns celebrated a birthday recently. She had a nice party, ate some cake and opened 30 birthday cards.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s an expert at birthdays. She\u2019s had 105 of them.<\/p>\n

The year she was born, in 1920, was the first year women could vote. Babe Ruth was traded from the Boston Red Sox to the New York Yankees. America\u2019s top-selling car was the Model T Ford. And Prohibition was just getting started.<\/p>\n

Sally has kids. A son and a daughter. They are 74 and 75 years old. Her first job was working as a receptionist in 1938 for Franklin Roosevelt\u2019s housing department. She\u2019s traveled the world and seen a lot. What\u2019s the secret to living to 105?<\/p>\n

\"ClientClient Sally Burns, 105, talks during an interview at Live Oak Adult Day Services in San Jose, Calif., on Nov. 4, 2025. (Dai Sugano\/Bay Area News Group)\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cEat oatmeal and drink white wine every day,\u201d she said smiling. \u201cBut they won\u2019t let me have wine here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHere\u201d is Live Oak Adult Day Services<\/a>\u00a0in San Jose\u2019s Willow Glen neighborhood. Despite the rules against white wine, Sally said she loves to visit at least twice a week. The nonprofit center is a gathering place for senior citizens, many of whom are frail or have mild dementia, Parkinson\u2019s Disease or other challenges, to meet new friends and stay active.<\/p>\n

The center, which serves roughly 100 people ages 60 to 105 at four locations in Santa Clara County, operates five days a week, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., offering a wide range of activities, including dancing, art projects, breakfast and lunch, current events updates, games, visits from schoolchildren and other pursuits.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a community. They look out for each other,\u201d said Izumi Yaskawa, Live Oak\u2019s executive director. \u201cAt home, often their world is getting smaller. This is like a second family.\u201d<\/p>\n

The center, which charges $29 to $104 a day based on a person\u2019s ability to pay, also offers sons, daughters, spouses and other caregivers the opportunity to take a break.<\/p>\n

\"ClientClient Consuelo Villicana, center, smiles as Assistant Program Director Berenice Aguilar, left, entertains her with a joke at Live Oak Adult Day Services in San Jose, Calif., on Nov. 4, 2025. (Dai Sugano\/Bay Area News Group)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Astrid Arretz knows the value firsthand. The San Jose resident takes her father, Al Arretz, a 93-year-old retired nuclear engineer who was diagnosed with Alzheimer\u2019s, to Live Oak two or three times a week. He loves the food, the companionship and the music, she said, particularly when people come in and play the piano.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love being with my dad,\u201d she said. \u201cHe\u2019s fun. He\u2019s a happy-go-lucky guy. But it\u2019s a lot of work to get him up in the morning every day, to help him shower, dress him, pay the bills, provide meals, everything. I\u2019m his main caretaker. It\u2019s a lot. You need time during the week to rest your mind and to go to the store and get other things done. I\u2019ll say, \u2018Do you want to go to the club today to have lunch?\u2019 He always says yes. I know he\u2019s in a safe place, and I can rest during those hours. It\u2019s been a blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Live Oak opened in Los Gatos in 1983 as a program of the First United Methodist Church of Los Gatos. At first, there were only eight people, going twice a week.<\/p>\n

Over the years, it grew, became an independent nonprofit and branched out to Gilroy, San Jose and Cupertino. The Willow Glen facility is in a restored 1913 home designed by Frank Delos Wolfe, an associate of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright.<\/p>\n

Live Oak doesn\u2019t take drop-ins. Families are asked to contact the organization first to make an appointment so there are enough meals and staff to accommodate everyone, Yaskawa said.<\/p>\n

Many of the participants have mild to mid-level dementia. They can be forgetful, need help with daily activities like cooking meals or choosing clothes, and often move with canes or the help of wheelchairs. But they also recognize family members and the center staff. They talk to each other and enjoy the community.<\/p>\n

On a recent visit, staff members led stretching exercises with a dozen men and women seated in chairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cOK, put your right arm behind your back like this,\u201d said Shannel Rodriguez, a program specialist. \u201cDo a nice stretch for 10, 9, 8, 7, 6 \u2026 and shake it off. Now switch hands. Good! Now we\u2019re nice and loose to do art!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SeniorsSeniors take part in a physical exercise session at Live Oak Adult Day Services in San Jose, Calif., on Nov. 4, 2025. (Dai Sugano\/Bay Area News Group)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Out came big sheets of white paper.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to make trees today,\u201d said Berenice Aguilar, assistant program director. \u201cPut your hand on the paper. Trace around your fingers. Those are going to be the branches. Then we\u2019re going to glue leaves on by tearing up this red, orange and brown paper.\u201d<\/p>\n

She turned on a CD player, and the Beach Boys \u201cLittle Deuce Coupe\u201d filled the room. Under the table, half the people tapped their toes. At one point, one elderly man got up to dance. A woman rose to join him, as the rest grinned from ear to ear.<\/p>\n

One new feature is a 4-foot robot. The Stanford Robotics Center brings the yellow social robot, named Miroki, in for social visits. It plays music, speaks 99 languages and leads games. Live Oak is asking Wish Book readers to contribute $20,000 to bring the robot around more frequently and expand its software to help the seniors engage even more. On this day, trivia was the choice.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat movie had the line \u2018There\u2019s no place like home\u2019?\u201d the robot asked the group.<\/p>\n

\u201cWizard of Oz!\u201d one man offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cGreat,\u201d it said. \u201cHow about \u2018Go ahead, make my day.’\u201d<\/p>\n

There was a pause.<\/p>\n

\u201cClint Eastwood!\u201d another man said.<\/p>\n

\u201cVery close,\u201d the robot replied. \u201cThe actor is Clint Eastwood. The movie is \u2018Dirty Harry.’\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOne more. How about \u2018I\u2019m going to make him an offer he can\u2019t refuse\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Godfather!\u201d multiple people said.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight!\u201d the robot said, lighting up.<\/p>\n

\"ClientMarieta Chapman, right, talks to “Miroki,” a social companion robot brought in to interact with clients at Live Oak Adult Day Services in San Jose, Calif., on Nov. 4, 2025. (Dai Sugano\/Bay Area News Group)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Off to the side, James\u00a0Duran, 65, said he worked for years at Mineta San Jose International Airport refueling airplanes. But a brain aneurysm limited his speech and left him walking with a cane.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I wasn\u2019t here, I would be at home watching TV,\u201d he said. \u201cBut this is better. I have friends here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Duran\u00a0said he enjoys games at the center, particularly bingo, and said the food is great. His favorite is menudo. Despite the challenges he\u2019s faced, he\u2019s thankful.<\/p>\n

\u201cI won\u2019t ever work again,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I\u2019m happy to be alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Families and staff members at Live Oak said that when elderly people become frail or are diagnosed with dementia, the length of time they are able to remain living at home often depends on how active and involved they can be.<\/p>\n

Even at 105, Sally lives with her family in San Jose. She goes to church and meets new people every week. Live Oak is among the highlights of her week, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very well-organized,\u201d she said. \u201cBeautiful people help us all the time. Everyone is so clever. I put the pictures we paint on my refrigerator at home, and I send them to my son to put on his refrigerator. We have dancers come. We have a musical day on Mondays. The people who work here pay close attention to all of our needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said she intends to keep coming for a long time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope I make it to 110,\u201d Sally said. \u201cGod put me here to be friendly and to help people.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

ABOUT WISH BOOK<\/p>\n

Wish Book is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization operated by The Mercury News. Since 1983, Wish Book has been producing series of stories during the holiday season that highlight the wishes of those in need and invite readers to help fulfill them.<\/p>\n

WISH<\/p>\n

Live Oak Adult Day Services<\/a> is seeking donations to help pay for the use of the robot more frequently and to expand its software, providing up to 100 seniors with mild to moderate dementia a unique social opportunity. Goal: $20,000.<\/p>\n

HOW TO GIVE<\/p>\n

Donate at wishbook.mercurynews.com\/donate <\/a>or mail in this form.<\/a><\/p>\n

ONLINE EXTRA<\/p>\n

Read other Wish Book stories, view photos and video at wishbook.mercurynews.com.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sally Burns celebrated a birthday recently. She had a nice party, ate some cake and opened 30 birthday…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":95221,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[381,2476,52345,88,90,89,52346],"class_list":["post-95220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-jose","tag-aging","tag-dementia","tag-live-oak-adult-day-services","tag-san-jose","tag-san-jose-headlines","tag-san-jose-news","tag-senior-centers-near-me"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=95220"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95220\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/95221"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=95220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=95220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=95220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}