‘Knowledge,’ networking at Bella Vida
‘Knowledge is Power’ offers seniors a chance to network, learn new resources
A welcoming environment is that what the “Knowledge is Power: Aging with Dignity Symposium,” hosted by the Bella Vida senior center, provided Santa Clarita Valley seniors and families recently.
The purpose of the Sept. 21 event was to educate the community about diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, according to one of the organizers of the event.
Those at the event’s booths ranged from representatives for health insurance providers to officials with senior care providers like Home Instead.
The event’s been taking place for 20 years, serving the community, educating and providing support, according to Natalie Newton-Soto, care manager and health and wellness coordinator of the senior center.
The senior center provides daily activities like congregate meals, exercise classes, health and wellness classes, arts and crafts, and serves those who are homebound. In other words, elders who aren’t able to leave their homes due to illnesses or old age.
Newton-Soto walked around at the event assuring the seniors and families were having a great time and being taken well care of. Newton-Soto said she chose the position because her grandmother was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. After her grandmother’s diagnosis, she realized people don’t understand that time is so valuable to spend with loved ones.
“We don’t spend enough time with our grandparents and it really impacted me once I was in the field knowing these older adults,” Newton-Soto said. “They really appreciate you and they really like when you take the time out of your day to listen to their story.”
Diane Thrall, 50, attended the symposium in support of her mother, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2017, she said.
Thrall was looking online for a senior facility for her mother because she has a job that doesn’t allow her to be a full-time care provider. She found Bella Vida senior center and decided to make a visit. Her mother and Thrall loved how welcoming the environment is, they said.
“They were very welcoming and walked me through,” Thrall said. “They showed me what it would be like for her. She was with me and liked it.”
Thrall feels the senior center has been supportive walking her and her mother through as the disease progresses. They are being educated about the disease, but also preparing them on what’s to come as it advances.
“She’s able to get more support,” Thrall said, “she’s created friendships.”
Her mother enjoys going to the senior center so much that she tries to go as much as she can.
“It’s been really great to have a place where my mother can go to,” Thrall said. “She gets support other than my support and she’s with other people her age. She’s formed friendships.”