With her unfailing vitality, Mrs. Chipkin had raised five children, started three small businesses, and worked for the Board of Education for ten years. When she retired at seventy-two, she was a grandmother to ten and a great-grandmother to four, but was still not ready to retire from life.

“In Selfhelp, I found a second family to give my expertise to,” she says. “I feel that I am doing something that I love and not wasting my life sitting and watching television all day. My health has improved, and I will live the rest of my life happy that I made this move.”

Selfhelp’s six senior centers bring together older New Yorkers with a broad array of interests, talents, and physical capacities. Some join in discussions of current events; some take classes in English as a second language, computers, ballroom dance, or art. They can have a hot lunch, join clubs, exercise, attend lectures, go on outings, or organize special events. As of this year, they can even enroll in a Queens College continuing education course offered at our Benjamin Rosenthal Center.

This diverse programming is just one aspect of Selfhelp’s comprehensive response to a senior population that now spans four decades and requires varying levels of service. In their sixties, seniors may need assistance completing benefit applications or finding volunteer projects. (A recent Selfhelp initiative aimed at this younger group has been the creation of a prototype wellness center, which seeks to preserve the physical and mental well-being of mature adults through yoga, massage, and nutrition classes during extended evening hours.) As they enter their seventies, they may need help with household chores or personal care. Later, as they reach their eighties and nineties, they may require more comprehensive services, including home care or financial management assistance.

Building on six decades of experience, Selfhelp also provides services to over 2,000 residents of six Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities in Manhattan and Queens. These men and women rely on Selfhelp’s network of case management, enrichment activities, and personal assistance to preserve their independence and remain in their community of choice.

Limited incomes mean that Selfhelp’s clients need our nutritional lunches and affordable housing; growing old in New York makes the need for human connection just as urgent. For Mrs. Chipkin and thousands of others, Selfhelp provides a constant community in a transient world.

Selfhelp’s six senior centers offer innovative programs and services that strive to address the changing needs and interests of nearly 8,000 men and women. Many find a second home at our centers as they join friends for activities and nutritious meals and discover new outlets for their talents and energy.Their participation adds enjoyment and activity to their lives and helps them remain actively engaged in community life.