1. Young Man Helps the Elderly Stay Fit by Giving Them Boxing Lessons–And the Results Are Pure Gold
A 21-year-old is helping the elderly in senior homes stay fit with his boxing lessons that elevate focus and fun.
When he was just 17, Bailey-Greetham Clark was asked to speak at a day center for adults with educational needs. After this experience, Bailey realized that people from vulnerable groups do not have the same access to sport and fitness as others—so he started a wellbeing company called ‘Be Great Fitness’.
He now travels around Lincolnshire, England, making fitness and sports accessible to schools, hospitals, community centers and senior care homes. Especially during COVID-19 lockdowns, the youth from Grimsby realized that these groups needed help pretty quickly.
“Coming out of the pandemic, we thought it was essential to bring fitness to them, especially, to spread some joy and cheer.
“Sport and exercise cheer people up, we make jokes and have a laugh with everyone, and we make their day better.”
2. Grad Student Trades Piano Performances for Housing at Senior Facility–Melting the Age Divide and Making Friends
A university concert pianist has made an unlikely nest for herself while she continues her studies: an old age home.
While Beth Christensen studies piano at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory, she doesn’t have a dorm on campus, and instead lodges at Claridge Court, a senior living facility in the nearby town of Prairie Village.
Placed there in July 2023 as a student-in-residence by a partnership between the home and the Conservatory, Christensen says that the experience has been special, and that many of the residents are more than just friendly faces she sees while plunking out a bit of jazz or classical music, they’ve become true friends.
“It’s really fun to have a relationship with your audience as a performer,” Christensen told the university press. “In the beginning, I wouldn’t do anything too out of the ordinary—I would bring a vocalist sometimes, or I would play classical music.”
“As I got more comfortable, I would try new things and play more recent music. Sometimes people wouldn’t like it, and they let me know. Others love to see where the future of music is going. It’s fun to be able to ask what kind of music people want to hear and work it into my repertoire.”
In exchange for her stay at the home, she is encouraged to immerse herself in the community as much as possible in addition to the routine performances, for which she may also bring in other musicians from the Conservatory.
3. Dirty Dancing, Back to the Future and E.T. Voted Best 80s Films: Poll Reveals Top 40 Movies From Big-Hair Days
A poll of 2,000 adults found 43 percent believing that filmmaking has never been as good as it was in the 1980s— the era of big hair and leg warmers.
Dirty Dancing, Back to the Future, and E.T. were named the best 80s movies of the decade, according to the survey.
And there’s some cultural heft behind their top choices. The 1987 classic Dirty Dancingstarring Patrick Swayze, for instance, won 12 awards after its release, including an Academy Award for Best Original Song, (I’ve Had) The Time Of My Life.
Who were named the most iconic 80s stars? Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tom Hanks, and Tom Cruise.
