When you ask Katie Penta to talk about the activities and events she manages for residents in independent living at Freedom Village of Bradenton, she quickly and proudly says that “Freedom Village is like a cruise ship that never leaves port!”
“Just like a cruise ship, we have multiple activities for our residents to enjoy every day,” said Katie. “We like to offer a mix of social activities, educational seminars, and fitness and exercise programs so that we have something for everyone. We also have many clubs that are run by the residents themselves that are quite popular.”
It’s really no wonder that Katie models the resident activities and programming at Freedom Village after what is common on a cruise ship. After all, she spent five years working in the cruise ship industry, organizing daily activities and onshore excursions to keep passengers entertained while on vacation.
In her role as the Community Life Services Director for Independent Living, Katie recognizes that the people who participate in activities and events her office develops are not on vacation. Rather, the Freedom Village community is their home, and they have chosen to live here and seek out different ways to stay active, engage with others, and thrive in their golden years.
According to many health experts, wellness is comprised of six to eight mutually co-dependent dimensions: physical, emotional, social, spiritual, intellectual, environmental, occupational, and financial. If any one of these dimensions is neglected over time, it will adversely affect one’s health and quality of life.
February is National Senior Independence Month, making this the perfect time for seniors to reflect on how they are doing in these distinct areas. If there are areas that are indeed being neglected, perhaps being part of a retirement community is the remedy.
“Many seniors struggle with loneliness and are not active at all, and this can impact a person’s physical, emotional and social well-being,” said Katie. “We have a lot of residents who moved here because they want to have an active social life, they want to have friends to eat meals with, go to the theatre with, someone to go with them on adventures. So we take a holistic approach in developing programming for residents that helps them stay active.”
Freedom Village offers a robust fitness and exercise program to keep residents moving that includes a morning walking group, a circuit training class on fitness equipment, chair yoga and chair Pilates, dancing classes, a balance class, aqua arthritis classes, water aerobics, and pool volleyball.
Other popular on-campus activities include movies on the big screen in the auditorium, Happy Hours, musical performances every Friday night, weekly Shabbat, Bible studies, and pop-up themed food events such as Italian night and casino night.
“We love to partner with our dining services team to put on special themed events,” Katie said. “In addition to all we do on campus, our residents also love the local excursions to restaurants, theaters and museums, as well as shopping trips and breakfast at Holmes Beach.
The crown jewels of Katie’s efforts to promote an active lifestyle are the 20-plus “Wish of a Lifetime” experiences that she has helped Freedom Village complete.
As AARP’s charitable affiliate, Wish of a Lifetime grants life-changing wishes to older adults and inspires people to redefine aging in America. (Any adult over the age of 65 can submit a wish request at wishofalifetime.org)
For example, a 98-year-old Freedom Village resident took her first flying lesson, while another man in his ‘80s went hang gliding. A 93-year-old woman received her first tattoo, while another resident took a ride on the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Zamboni ice-cleaning vehicle. Katie even parachuted with a resident just last month!
To learn more about Freedom Village and the active lifestyle residents in independent living enjoy, call 941-798-8122. To learn more about upcoming educational events, please visit www.fvbradenton/events/.
FEBRUARY EVENTS
Moving and Right Sizing Made Easy
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7TH
11:30 am – 1:30 pm
ROUNDTABLE Q&A WITH FREEDOM VILLAGE LEADERSHIP TEAM
Thursday, FEBRuary 9th
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
VALENTINE’S DAY LUNCHEON
Tuesday, FEBRuary 14th
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
ESTATE PLANNING: HOW TO PREPARE FOR THE UNKNOWN AND PROTECT YOUR ASSETS
Thursday, FEBRuary 16th
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
FRIENDSHIP LUNCH TABLE FOR WIDOWS, WIDOWERS, SINGLES
Tuesday, FEBRuary 28th
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
If you prefer not to wait for one of our events, please call our community today and we’ll be happy to have you visit our campus to learn more about designing your ideal retirement at Freedom Village of Bradenton.
Freedom Villages of Bradenton
www.fvbradenton.com
6406 21st Avenue West, Bradenton, FL 34209