During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pasadena Senior Center offers many free online activities via Zoom for adults 50 and older.
Online registration for Zoom activities is required. Everyone who registers for Zoom events will receive an email link for joining each activity online. Anyone who does not have wifi or an email address can call 626-795-4331 to receive a number to call to join Zoom events by phone.
Pasadena Senior Center membership and residency in Pasadena are not required.
Screening Mimis Film Discussion Club — Tuesdays, March 2 and 16, at 1:30 p.m. via Zoom. Diehard film fans are invited to watch an edgy and provocative movie the first and third Tuesday of every month, followed by a Zoom discussion. Participants are responsible for watching assigned films on their own in advance on free streaming services (in your browser’s search engine, type the name of the film followed by “streaming”). March 2: The thought-provoking dark comedy “Big Fan” starring Patton Oswalt and Michael Rapaport. March 16: The profoundly tender and deceptively simple “Wendy and Lucy” starring Michele Williams and a real dog named Lucy. Prior to registering for these Screening Mimis events, email mmeovary@aol.com to receive a list of questions about the films to prepare for the discussion and to be added to the mailing list for future Screening Mimis events. Then jump into the Zoom sessions to analyze, probe and critique the films. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Virtual Writers Club — Tuesdays, March 2 to 30, from 10 a.m. to Noon via Zoom. Join a group of people who like to write about experiences, real and imagined, and enjoy sharing their writings with others. The club is led by Sam Eisenstein, former instructor of English at Los Angeles Community College. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org or call 626-795-4331.
Food for Thought — Thursday, March 4, at 10 a.m. via Zoom. Learn how the right foods help your thinking processes and provide mental stimulation. Presented by Scan and Angeline Renfrow. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Cultural Thursday: Keni, Plein Air Artist — Thursday, March 4, at 2 p.m. via Zoom. Plein air is the act of painting landscapes outdoors in natural light. Meet local artist Keni, a man with a passion for plein air painting whose watercolors capture the life and texture of Southern California and whose works currently are on display at Vroman’s Book Store. After his presentation, there will be a Q and A with the audience. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Food Distribution Program — Friday, March 5, from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Low-income adults 60 and older receive one free box of food and couples receive two. Proof of income and California ID are required for first-time recipients. Each box includes foods that meet specific nutritional needs such as cheese, canned fruits and vegetables, dry milk and related dairy products, cereals and other grain products, and more. Boxes are heavy, so bring a pull-behind personal cart to the parking lot between the Pasadena Senior Center and the Metro Gold Line station. Masks and social distancing are required. To enroll in the program or for more information, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Food Distribution Programs, then LA Regional Food Bank or call 626-685-6732.
Ask the Athletes: Swimming — Monday, March 8, at 4 p.m. via Zoom. Ask the Athletes is a panel discussion and Q and A that focuses on a different sport every month. For March, the panel will consist of John Naber, four-time gold medal-winning Olympic champion, and Daniela Barnea, U.S. Masters swimming champion. The presentation will be moderated by Anne Warner Cribbs, Pan American Games gold medalist in swimming and president of the California Senior Games Association (CSGA). The panelists will discuss how to keep mentally and physically fit in swimming and in life. Presented by CSGA. This event is part of the Cynthia Rosedale Memorial Sports Talk Series. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Chair Yoga — Tuesday, March 9, at 10 a.m. via Zoom. Improve balance, strength and flexibility while sitting in a chair in this gentle and meditative class taught by Kathy Eastwood RN, a Huntington Hospital community outreach nurse and certified yoga instructor. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Safety Awareness — Thursday, March 11, at 10 a.m. via Zoom. The world can become more of a dangerous place the older you get. Learn how to minimize your chances of becoming a victim of crime. Presented by Officer Sarah Presley of the Pasadena Police Department. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Cultural Thursday: Meet Melanie Chartoff, Author of “Odd Woman Out” — Thursday, March 11, at 2 p.m. via Zoom. Comedian and performer Melanie Chartoff will be interviewed by Pasadena Senior Center Book Club chair Elizabeth Cochran, followed by an audience Q and A. In her new memoir “Odd Woman Out,” Chartoff muses on love, identity, art and more. Taking readers backstage on Broadway, behind the scenes on network television and inside her own complicated psyche, she reflects on her storied career with candid humor. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Technology Tips for Caregivers — Friday, March 12, at 11 a.m. via Zoom. If you are like most family caregivers, you did not anticipate the responsibility you now face taking care of an aging parent, spouse or other person with Alzheimer’s. The good news is that you are not alone. Come to this virtual gathering of the Alzheimer’s Caregivers Support Group to learn more and share experiences. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Diabetes Support Group — Wednesdays, March 17 to June 16, at 1 p.m. via Zoom. Share your experiences with others living with diabetes and learn how to cope with this difficult illness. The Diabetes Support Group is a vital part of many people’s diabetes management and can have a significant, positive impact on their lives. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Planning for the Future: I Have Five Wishes — Thursday, March 18, at 10 a.m. via Zoom. Do you know what you want to have happen if you become seriously ill or pass away? Most people spend little or no time having a frank discussion about this with family members because they think the conversation will be too uncomfortable and difficult. Learn how filling out a simple form called an advance directive will help you communicate what you want. This will spare your family the uncertainty of trying to make decisions without knowing what your wishes are. Presented by Scan. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Cultural Thursday: Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day — Thursday, March 18, at 2 p.m. via Zoom. Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17! We’re going to extend that to one day later with a program that will celebrate all things Irish: music, poetry, food and, of course, drink! Events Director Annie Laskey, who has Irish roots on her father’s side, will host the program. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
MUSE/IQUE: From the Musicians’ Perspective — Wednesday, March 24, at 4 p.m. via Zoom. Join MUSE/IQUE artistic producer Heather Lipson-Bell and guest artists from the MUSE/IQUE in a Minute! (…or Two) program as they explore music from the musicians’ perspective. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
How Important Is Nutrition? — Thursday, March 25, at 10 a.m. via Zoom. The kind and amount of food you eat affects the way you feel and how your body works. Learn how good nutrition is the key to good physical and mental health, and how eating a balanced diet is an important part of good health for everyone. Presented by City of Hope. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
Virtual Book Club — Friday, March 26, at 1 p.m. via Zoom. This month’s selection is “City of Girls” by Elizabeth Gilbert. Read the book, then join the Zoom discussion. The author of “Eat, Pray, Love” returns to fiction with this love story told from the perspective of an older woman looking back on her youth in the 1940s when, at age 19 and a Vassar dropout, her parents send her to spend a summer with an offbeat-theater-owning aunt in New York City. There she is introduced to an entire cosmos of unconventional and charismatic characters. She becomes the theater’s seamstress and becomes somewhat promiscuous. She goes home to upstate New York and later, when she is more mature and responsible, returns to her aunt in the city. She strikes up a platonic friendship with a married man and they take walks all around the city for years. But when she makes a personal mistake that becomes a professional scandal, it turns her world upside down in ways that will take her years to fully understand. Ultimately it leads to a new recognition of the kind of life she now craves and the freedom to pursue it. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call 626-795-4331.
A Zoom Refresher — Wednesday, March 31, at 11 a.m. via Zoom. How often do you join a Zoom event? Whether for social interaction, work or education, Zoom has become one of the primary ways we are connecting with one another. Join Pete Matus, Pasadena Senior Center’s Zoom czar (AKA online classes and events coordinator), Lynn Mehl, professor of psychology and kinesiology at Occidental College, and Annie Laskey, the center’s special events director, as they share tips for using Zoom and answer questions about any pesky little issues some people experience when they join a Zoom event. To register, visit www.pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Events, Clubs and Lectures, then Online Events or call (626) 795-4331.
In addition to online classes and other activities, members and nonmembers are encouraged to visit the website regularly for COVID-19 updates for older adults and other timely information, a weekly blog, monthly magazine, ongoing activities throughout the year and more.
The center, at 85 E. Holly St., is an independent, donor-supported nonprofit organization that has served older adults for more than 60 years. Doors are open Mondays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. for social services and other critical services for older adults in need. Masks and social distancing are required.
