Gretchen Veihl, Director of Philanthropy of ElderHelp

“Nobody believes I have a problem with my knees,” smiles, Edna. “I totally forget about pain when I’m doing Zumba, and I think I’m motivating a lot of other people to try it. I figure my knee will hurt whether I’m sitting or moving, so I might as well move! I tell people, ‘C’mon, if I can do it, you can too.’”

Edna attends the Zumba class held every Tuesday at Mission Cove, a North County housing complex offering affordable senior housing. ElderHelp volunteer, Christy, hosts these Zumba classes.

“Dance has always been a passion of mine,” Christy states. “Zumba is such a fun way to stay healthy, and the class just brings a sense of community to these seniors.”

Edna moved from Los Angeles to Oceanside to be closer to her daughter.

“When I first moved here it was kind of sad,” Edna shares. “It was the beginning of COVID and nobody would be out walking. Now with all of the activities ElderHelp brings, it’s like I’ve been brought back to life.”

Edna is also grateful for the other services coordinated by ElderHelp—deliveries from the food bank and help applying for benefits. “Sometimes when you’re older, you feel lost, like what are you going to do now? You give us hope, and it feels good. Thank you for thinking about us.” Enda stated.

As a Community Housing Works partner, ElderHelp provides an on-site social worker to assist residents with advocacy, food insecurity, and healthy living.

“Every day’s a different day here,” shares Eric, a Housing Coordinator for ElderHelp. “Sometimes people swing by for a quick hello, and sometimes they need help with more serious issues like transportation or medical benefits. Anything that can raise the quality of their life is what I’m here to do.”

ElderHelp’s mission is to provide personalized services that help seniors live independently with dignity in their own homes. For more information, please visit www.elderhelpofsandiego.org