QUESTION: Each spring the Goebel Center has had a Community Garage Sale. Do you know when it is scheduled for this year?
ANSWER: You can mark your calendar for Sunday April 8th. As usual it will be from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm at the Goebel Adult Community Center, 1385 E. Janss Road in Thousand Oaks
But currently the Goebel Center is looking for vendors for this event. If you or someone you know is tired of looking at an overfilled garage and no space to hold their own garage sale this is a great opportunity.
The center is currently taking applications for vendor spaces. The cost is $30 per space and tables are available for rent at $5 per table with a limit of one table per space.
You can pick up an application at Goebel’s front desk and for more information call (805) 381-2744.
###
QUESTION: Several members of my family are suggesting it is time for me to start thinking about moving into a senior facility. I feel I am fine in my own home. What can I do to make them realize I am okay where I am?
ANSWER: This is a complicated question as there are almost always good points and bad points on both sides of it.
It is a well known fact that most seniors want to remain in their home as they age – and many do successfully. However there are others who need the services of a senior environment.
First consider your health. Do you have any physical or mental conditions that prevent you from caring for yourself?
Next let’s look at your home. It is senior friendly – one or two stories. If it is a two story home is there a bedroom, or a room that could become a bedroom, and a full bathroom on the first floor. If not could the stairway be modified so you could access the second floor area?
Then evaluate your support network. If you would need some type of help who would be available to provide that help. That assistance might come from a friend or relative who knows you well and willing to be on call. To be fully covered you would need at least two possibly three people that you could call on in an emergency.
Also check out the services available in your community. What services are available to assist with meals, chores around the house, personal care and transportation. While checking out these services make sure you determine what, if any, the cost would be.
Transportation is a big item. What are your options if you can no longer drive your car? Again determine what transportation services serve your needs and when and where they operate and what is the cost?
Do you still socialize? Do you go to church or the senior center? Do you have lunch with friends or do you spend a lot of time home alone? Do you eat most of your meals alone? Isolation is one of the biggest problems that seniors face and one reason to consider a senior facility.
These are just a few items to consider and should be discussed with those who are concerned about you. Also listen to their thoughts on each of these issues as sometimes others see things differently about us then we see about ourselves.
###
HAPPENINGS:
SATURDAY – March 24 – 6:00 pm – Poetry at the Carnegie – “The Jackson Wheeler Series” – at Carnegie Art Museum, 424 South “S” Street in Oxnard. Tickets are $5.00 – members are free.
MONDAY/TUESDAY – March 26 and 27 – 1:00 to 5:00 pm – AARP Smart Driver Course – Full Course – at Simi Valley Senior Center, 3900 Avenida Simi in Simi Valley – $15 for AARP members; $20 for non-members.
TUESDAY – March 27 – 4:00 to 5:30 pm – Seminar – “Medications and the Aging Brain” – at Senior Concerns Day Care Center, 401 Hodencamp Road in Thousand Oaks. For reservations call (805) 497-0189.
WEDNESDAY –March 28 – 1:30 to 3:00 pm – Diabetes Class by Livingston Nurses Association – at Goebel Adult Community Center, 1385 E. Janss Road in Thousand Oaks. No reservations required – just drop in.
THURSDAY – March 29 – 1:30 to 3:00 pm – Seminar – “Questions You Should Ask Before Hiring an In-Home Care Agency” – at Simi Valley Senior Center, 3900 Avenida Simi in Simi Valley. Reservations can be made at (805) 583-6363.
###
Betty Berry is a senior advocate for Senior Concerns. The advocates are located at the Goebel Adult Community Center, 1385 E. Janss Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91362 or call (805) 495-6250 or e-mail bberry@seniorconceerns.org (please include your telephone number.) You are invited to submit questions on senior issues.
###
