May 15 Senior Village Performance
Georgie Hourigan, Secretary, Sonoran Singers
What a wonderful opportunity to perform for SaddleBrooke friends and family at the MountainView ballroom. Sonoran Singers followed an amazing trombone quartet named the Four Decades. Their leader is Mark Lamers, and the others are Dennis Page, Tom Herrera, and Karl Fettenauer.
It was an entertaining afternoon with a full ballroom. The Sonoran Singers sang their hearts out, with our wonderful director Cora Peters leading us in song. Cora honored two previous directors who were in the audience. Sue Robisch had been director for more than 10 years until she moved away, but she is now back in SaddleBrooke. Janie Grinstead had followed Sue until she also moved away and returned. Sally Horn was also introduced. She is our director emeritus and founder some 21 years ago. The chorus performed 14 popular songs, one being “God Bless America” with a salute and thank you to the veterans in the audience.
Senior Village Men’s Social Hour
Senior Village hosts a Men’s Social Hour for members on the fourth Monday of every month. The gentlemen meet on the east patio at the MountainView Bar & Grill from 4 to 6 p.m. Each person may order refreshments at their own expense.
Mark your calendar for June 26 to visit the next event. It is a casual, relaxing time to meet new people and enjoy conversation.
Free Music Matinee
Senior Village invites all SaddleBrooke residents to an afternoon of lovely music in the Sonoran Room at MountainView. This music matinee will be held on June 19 from 2 to 4 p.m. and will feature two groups whose musical talent is sure to entertain and relax.
Dulce, a brass quartet of three trumpets and a trombone, sets the pace with classical waltzes, marches, Civil War music, modern Broadway favorites, and more.
Voices of the Desert is a small vocal group of SaddleBrooke women who love to sing and share their music with others. Under the direction of the dedicated Sue Robish, the group continually challenges itself to perfect its craft as they share inspirational, showtunes, and popular selections by well-known composers.
Summers at SaddleBrooke may be quieter than the active SaddleBrooke winters, but the Senior Village Matinees continue every month. On July 18, Red Dirt Crossing performs in the MountainView Ballroom East. This five-member group plays Americana/Folk material by artists such as Alison Krause and AJ Lee and features a mandolin, bass, and guitars, complete with lead vocals and vocal harmonies.
In August, JoAnn Wilbour returns with classics and favorites. JoAnn has organized the monthly matinees for SaddleBrooke and frequently performed last year. Be ready to sing, because JoAnn loves nothing more than audience participation. August also marks the return of the Catalina Chorale with Randall Dighton on the guitar. Mark your calendars for Aug. 21 from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Sonoran Room at MountainView.
How Senior Village Helps with Loneliness
Drivers for Going My Way make new friends when they take Village members to appointments.
“It’s a beautiful day in SaddleBrooke.” Those words greeted callers for years when we called the office while looking at model homes and building houses here. Over time, the message has changed, but that beautiful day still beckons. It’s a new adventure. What to do? Golf? Volunteer? Take classes? Travel? Go to concerts? Learn a new hobby? Exercise? Join a club? Meet new people? Play pickleball? The future is open with possibilities.
So, here we all are in SaddleBrooke. The sun is out, we are retired, websites and emails are jam-packed with activities and entertainment. We are surrounded by neighbors. There are support groups. There’s a club for everything.
Could there really be loneliness and depression here? Studies reveal that depression is a major health problem. New research suggests that 20% of depression among older adults could be prevented by eliminating loneliness. Retirement, even in SaddleBrooke, is no guarantee that loneliness or depression will not touch us. Our human need for connection and belonging remains, even while our lifestyles change. While we all experience occasional loneliness and sadness, debilitating loneliness and constant depression are not a natural part of aging.
Loneliness and poor social connections are as bad for health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day and worse than obesity, according to research by Julianne Holt-Lunstad, Ph.D., professor of psychology and neuroscience at Brigham Young University. This is hard to believe, yet it is certainly thought-provoking.
We often read that what’s good for the body is good for the mind. If you take a fitness class or walk with a neighbor, you’ll have the benefit of activity and companionship. You don’t have to run a marathon or climb a mountain. You don’t have to excel. Just move. You’ll feel better and meet new people.
Senior Village volunteers noticed people in SaddleBrooke who were lonely and isolated. These caring volunteers brought ideas to Senior Village to develop opportunities for more social involvement.
One Senior Village volunteer came up with the idea of music matinees. She now schedules volunteer performances every month. SaddleBrooke is filled with musical talent, and the musicians enjoy sharing their talent. These matinees are all free! It’s a relaxing afternoon among other music lovers.
The Friendly Contact team is a favorite for Senior Village members. Volunteers look forward to those visits or phone calls, because they enjoy talking with people. In fact, many Senior Village teams have a social component. Volunteers on the Transportation team find that they enjoy getting to know members while driving to an appointment. One volunteer commented, “It’s like making a new friend that I might never have met otherwise.”
Village members are invited to celebrate their birthdays at a party with other members sharing a birthday month. The Men’s Social Hour meets on the fourth Monday of the month at MountainView for good conversation.
There is optimism on the horizon. An exciting new study on cognition shows promising results for study participants who learned three simple new skills. SaddleBrooke and Senior Village offer a perfect setting to try the theory for yourself. Learn three new things simultaneously in a three-month period. Senior Village is busy creating opportunities to nurture connection with others during our active adult lives here in SaddleBrooke. Maybe one of your new things may involve Senior Village. We can make it a beautiful day in SaddleBrooke.