Karis Rooney
John Carroll University
Senior Citizen Resources, Inc.
Spring 2016
“Not only was I able to confirm my long-term goals, but I have been able to meet many dedicated people who share my passion for connecting with and serving the older adult community.”

I completed my semester’s work at a local agency called Senior Citizen Resources, Inc. (SCR). The agency is located in the Old Brooklyn neighborhood, right outside the city of Cleveland. SCR is a community-based senior center that provides a variety of resources to older adults to help them live independently for as long as possible. Services like transportation, social services, home-delivered meals, congregate meals and social activities are provided to seniors at low costs.
My focus this semester was primarily on SCR’s annual Senior Olympics event. Every year, SCR collaborates with community partners to schedule, plan and host a local Senior Olympics. Both regular and seated games are played, and seniors can choose to compete in any and every event they choose. Other than being a fun event, the Olympics encourages physically active lifestyles and healthy, successful aging. Physical activity in older adulthood is just one of many steps older adults can take to remain independent in their communities, so the Olympics is just one of many activities encouraging Old Brooklyn’s seniors to remain physically active and healthy.
I mainly worked on the administrative side of the Olympics. A few of the issues I encountered were related to information flow, unfamiliarity with the event and communication with community partners/volunteers to help make our event a success. Despite communication difficulties and busy schedules, I was able to learn a lot about the Old Brooklyn neighborhood through the partnerships and support provided by local partners. One of my main goals with both my internship and participation in the Ohio Scholars in Aging program was to determine if the aging field is a setting I would like to focus my long-term career goals around. Not only was I able to confirm my long-term goals, but I have been able to meet many dedicated people who share my passion for connecting with and serving the older adult community.

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