Are activities offered on-site, and do I have to take part in them?

This is the first article in our Senior Living Lifestyle series.

Activities are offered at all Avinity Campuses. At WestRidge, Scandia Shores and Mainstreet Village there are Life Enrichment Directors. The sole job of these folks is to orchestrate and lead community life in the best way possible. They create all the opportunities for living a fruitful life in our community. They create activity calendars with daily things to do for all residents. Activities are the best way for those who dwell in our communities to get to know one another. Our communities aren’t just apartment complexes, they are homes for our large families that live in them.

I am the Housing Director at Riverwood Village, and I help orchestrate all the activities. I prepare the calendar and lead some of the activities, but the true way in which Riverwood Village thrives is by our residents coming together to make a fun and loving environment. I have fantastic volunteers who arrange game days, potlucks, movie nights, and so much more.

So, the answer is yes, we offer many on site activities that everyone is encouraged to partake in.

However, we also understand that not everyone is a “social butterfly.” Some residents are home bodies, and that is more than okay. We encourage everyone to live in their home in whatever way pleases them the most.

There are many benefits of joining in with activities offered, for example:

Social expansion - The opportunity to build new relationships.

One of many reasons that people choose to move to senior living communities is for the opportunities of a new life. As we age, relationships fade, friendships fade, our children grow busy in life, etc. The ability to be with those who are experiencing the same is unmatched anywhere else.

Keeping Active - Our life enrichment programs offer a wide variety of ways to stay active: exercise classes, outings, games, or just generally getting out and about.

The best way to manage aging is by staying active. This helps manage chronic disease, maintain strong bones and much more. But the most important thing is that active living will prolong independence.

Cognitive Health - Our life enrichment programs offer many different options to benefit cognitive longevity. (i.e., Bingo, puzzles, religious services)

Preserving our cognitive health in retirement is one of the most important things we can to do sustain the best possible quality of life.

Here is a good article with some more information about the benefits of life enrichment: https://www.caringplaces.com/programs/life-enrichment/

For more information about Avinity, feel free to contact us at 612.861.2799 or [email protected]. 

Join us tomorrow for “I like to cook for myself.  Is that something I can continue doing?”

Author:

Jordan Thompson
Housing Director of Riverwood Village
Cambridge, MN 55008

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