Category Archives for People

‘The Age of Disruption Tour’ Comes to Cranston

Published in Woonsocket Call on May 8, 2016
By Herb Weiss

Internationally- acclaimed aging expert Dr. Bill Thomas and musical guest Nate Silas Richardson come to the Ocean State to offer an entertaining and highly disruptive exploration of aging at the Park Theatre, 848 Park Ave., Cranston, RI 02910 —from 2:30 to 4:30 PM and 7:00 to 8:30 PM on Thursday May 19, 2016, as part of The Age of Disruption Tour.

Dr. Thomas says that his message is quite simple – transitioning into later life should not be spent in “frenzied disharmony.” To play “life’s most dangerous game” successfully “we need to reimagine and create clear and satisfying purpose to how we spend the rest of our lives,” he adds.

The Beginning

Over 25 years ago, Thomas, a 31-year-old physician who was less than two years out of family residency, took a job as medical director of a nursing facility with 80 severely disabled residents. Ultimately the Harvard-trained physician would put together a program in the facility in Upper New York that advocated a shifting away from the institutional model of care to one that is person-directed. .

Thomas recalled, “The place was depressing, with old people parked in wheelchairs like frogs on a log, bored with nothing to do, just waiting for death to finally reach them. It was horrible.”

So the young physician made unthinkable changes to care plans. He persuaded the facility and staff to get two dogs, four cats, several hens and rabbits, and 100 parakeets, along with hundreds of plants, a vegetable and flower garden, and a day-care site for staffers’ kids. At the time, there were laws prohibiting animals in nursing homes. They went ahead anyway.

Thomas’s unorthodox methods had astounding results. Dr. Atal Gawande detailed the impact in his 2014 best-selling book Being Mortal. The residents started caring for the plants and animals, and this restored their spirits and their interest in doing things. Many started taking better care of themselves, venturing out of their rooms and eating and interacting with people again. Prescription drug use was reduced 50 percent, particularly for drugs utilized to reduce anxiety and agitation. Medication costs plummeted, and so did the death rate.

Meanwhile, New York and other states changed the law to allow animals in old age homes and facilities. At some facilities, trucks were hired to take away the accumulations of wheelchairs that were no longer being used.

In 1991, Thomas and his wife Judith Meyers-Thomas co-founded a non-profit called The Eden Alternative to share what they had learned in New York. Today, The Eden Alternatives’ primary mission has expanded to provide education and training to care providers working in home care, community-based care like adult day programs, meals on wheels, senior centers, and, retirement communities, assisted living and nursing homes. “More than 30,000 people worldwide have participated in Eden education including all 50 states and 13 countries. There are currently more than 200 organizations who are members of the Eden Alternative registry,” he says, noting that 13 countries have organizations active in the Eden Alternative movement.

“The idea that care is about helping someone to grow – not just treating illness or injury — touches people in a fundamental way,” Thomas says. Traditional approaches to care tend to focus solely on the human body, while The Eden Alternative philosophy seeks to improve well-being for the whole person. This includes having a sense of purpose and a voice and choice regarding our own care. In 1991,

Since 1991, Thomas’ paradigm shift in care philosophy, to reduce loneliness, helplessness and boredom, has truly become an international movement

On the Road

Thomas formally stepped down as President of The Eden Alternative board in 2014 but is still deeply connected to the movement, notes Kavan Peterson, director of Thomas’ latest project, the 2016 Age of Disruption Tour. For instance, Thomas keynoted the 8th Eden International Conference on May 2 in Little Rock, Arkansas, he says.

The Age of Disruption Tour features Thomas’ signature “non-fiction theater” performance called “Aging: Life’s Most Dangerous Game.” Dr. Thomas has performed in 65 cities in 28 states since 2014, says Peterson. “We’ve had just over 20,000 tickets sold,” he says, noting that the 2016 tour will go to 35 cities, including five stops in Canada and stopovers in the United Kingdom next December.

The tour came about when he heard AARP CEO JoAnn Jenkins in 2014 declare her intentions to launch a “disrupt aging” movement aimed at inspiring people to embrace their age and open their eyes to the possibilities and opportunities that come with aging, notes Thomas. “I had recently been dabbling in harnessing the power of the arts — theater, music, live performance — as a tool for social change. I launched the Age of Disruption Tour with the support of AARP to champion the concept of disrupting aging at the local grassroots level. The movement has grown and expanded from there,” he says.

The 2016 tour expanded to include an afternoon educational workshop called “Disrupt Dementia.”

The purpose of the workshop is to directly challenge the tragedy narrative people associate with Alzheimer’s disease and provide an educational experience that opens the audience’s eyes to the possibility of living well with memory loss, says Peterson. You will find the workshop highly theatrical as well– there is a film, a live music concert, and even the workshop section is designed to reach people in an emotional level. “This is an important element to the show to provide an immersive experience for the attendees to open their hearts in order to open their minds to new ways of thinking about aging, he adds.”

Peterson says the Age of Disruption Tour, whose local tour stop is sponsored by PACE and AARP, has had a positive impact on the audience. One attendee said, “It was elegant, warm, and exquisitely-produced. Every single detail. The love was palpable.” Another noted: “Dr. Thomas’ tour not only created a platform to have these inspired conversations, but brought together music, theatre, and play to remind [us] that living life to the fullest is an ageless concept.”

The tour has also had a lasting impact on communities, says Peterson. “In Portland Oregon, the city’s Age Friendly initiative organized a year-long public outreach campaign called “What are Old People For” based on Dr. Thomas’ book of the same name. In other cities the events have helped boost local coalitions ranging from supporting Age Friendly City movements, the Village to Village Network, and, the Eden Alternative movements, book clubs and consciousness raising groups, he notes.

A Good Fit for AARP Rhode Island

“AARP enjoys working with Bill Thomas, for many reasons. Chief among them is his innovative and entertaining approach to getting people to think differently about age and aging,” observed AARP Rhode Island State Director Kathleen Connell. “Age is something that happens to all of us. But Bill always finds new ways to inspire people to look at age through a different, more positive and affirmative lens. Society is stubbornly negative about aging, equating it with decline. It’s a notion so pervasive that people have come to believe it. Turning that around is what the tour is all about and it’s a good fit with that AARP is doing to disrupt aging,” Connell says.

“An expression that is getting traction is ‘own your age,” Connell added. “Essentially, it means that people should forget about assumptions and prejudices assigned to age. Turning 50 does not make you old. Turning 60 does not mean you’ve peaked. Turning 70 doesn’t make you anything. Owning your age is about you and the life you have chosen to live – not what people think of when they think of a number, she notes.

Ticket Information: $15 per show $30 for both https://drbillthomas.org/local/

Survival Story: Former Business Owner Overcomes Devastating Setbacks 

Published in Senior Digest, April 2016

If you are in pursuit of the American Dream, you probably weren’t given a roadmap that would guarantee a successful journey. Ask the average man or woman on the street today what immediate thoughts come to mind about owning your own business, and you’ll probably hear ‘being your own boss’, and ‘working your own hours’ that top the list of perceptions. But when opening your own business becomes the alternative to unemployment in your later years, as Donald, Russell, Jr. found out, it may not be what you expected or even planned. Like millions of middle-aged workers in the early 1990s, a severe economic downturn forced this Central Falls resident to make choices that ultimately would financially hit his pocketbook as he approached retirement.

Donald Russell had worked his way up from stock boy to manager at F.W. Woolworth Co., one of the areas original five-and-dime stores. During his 33 year career with this large big-box retail company, what was at the time the fourth largest retailer in the world operating over 5,000 stores, he eventually managed seven of the retail company’s stores, one located in Providence (at Westminster and Dorrance Streets), and the others in Massachusetts, Vermont and New York.

But everything changed in the late 1990’s, and this 117 year old company struggled to compete with the growing big discount stores. F.W. Woolworth filed for bankruptcy protection, and Russell, facing unemployment, had to quickly make major career decisions. He knew that, “at age 52, big box competitors don’t want you,” or if he was offered a position, the salary would be much lower than what he was used to. “I could not take less because I had to pay for my daughter’s college education,” he added.

Russell credits “courses he took at Boston College” for teaching him valuable lessons on how to open a small business, and with knowledge in hand, he was ready to take that leap of faith and open his own business. . Russell decided to cash out his $80,000 pension (less penalties) and combined with a loan from U.S. Small Business Administration, he would have enough capital to open a small retail business.

Getting into the Pet Business

Russell spent time researching a market niche, searching for one that would not put him in direct competition with the chain store. He discovered that the pet business was not really sought after by “big box retailers” and at that time “there were only 30,000 pet stores throughout the country. Today the number has decreased to 6,000.” Now . Russell found his niche, and in 1997 opened his business “Dr. Doolittle’s Pets & More”, a small pet store in an East Providence shopping plaza. Though situated between two large Petco stores – one in Rumford, RI and the other in North Attleboro, MA., Russell did not view the large chain stores as competition, for he knew his prices were better. In 1997 when Russell opened his store, small business accounted for about 85 percent of the nation’s economy, he states, noting that today this percentage has dropped to 70 percent.

Business was strong when Dr. Doolittle’s first opened and for over 13 years, Russell employed seven full and part time employees. However, by 2004 “the economy began to take a dive” and juggling the monthly rent, utilities and employee salaries became difficult when his cash flow slowed. Russell began to loose money.
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By 2006 his revenue had dropped 30 percent from the previous year, and neighboring big stores located in the plaza, like Ocean State Job Lot, began to close. In an effort to trim expenses, Russell was able to renegotiate his rent to a lower amount, however “losing the Stop & Shop Supermarket in the next plaza, which was a main draw to the area, “was ultimately the straw that broke the camel’s back”.

Taking from Peter to Pay Paul

Like thousands of small business owners in the Ocean State, Russell had to juggle each month to meet his expenses, which included his RI sales tax. Choosing to pay his monthly sales tax or paying his employees salary was not an easy choice to make, but he could not pay both. “I chose to pay my employees” first, with the plan to make up my [delinquent] sales tax later” he stated, noting however, that the “economy put the brakes to that”. “I could not even borrow a dime even with an excellent credit rating of 750,” added Russell. The poor economy had forced banks to cut off credit to small businesses – period.

In 2009, the Rhode Island Department of Taxation came knocking on his door, and the now 65-year-old pet store owner was forced to close his business because he was in arrears on his payment of sales taxes. While his business was his sole-source of income, the forced closing of the business put him in a ‘catch 22’ situation – blocking any attempt to rescue his business and pay off the remaining sales tax owed, which had now grown to thousands of dollars. Rather than padlock the door, the State did allow him access to the store to feed and maintain the animals until other arrangements were made.

Two weeks after his closing, Russell hammered out an agreeable payment plan with the State of RI for back taxes, but the economy never recovered, and by September, 2010 the doors closed for the final time. In a valiant effort, Russell paid off $18,500 of the $20,000 owed before he closed, but two years later to his surprise, he was blocked from registering his car because of the remaining taxes (and penalties) still owed. A dispute as to the amount of sales taxes (plus penalties and interest) paid ultimately ended with the state’s tax agency backing off and allowing him to register his vehicle.

Russell’s forced closing and ultimately his bankruptcy caught the eye of both statewide and national media. Two radio talk shows and television coverage brought the news of his closure to the public. Even the nation’s most popular Web site, “The Drudge Report,” posted articles. Amazingly, he says that over 100 pages of blog posting were also generated, too.

Making Ends Meet

Today, Russell, 72, is collecting Social Security supplemented by a part-time job delivering pizzas. He notes that beneficiaries will not receive cost of living this year. Like millions of Social Security beneficiaries, Russell feels the impact of inflation. “There is no extra money to buy groceries after paying my rent and utilities,” he says. Local food pantries provide additional food and the Pawtucket-based Blackstone Valley Community Action Program pays for some of his heating bills.

Reflecting on the lay off in his fifties that led to the opening of his small business and ultimately its closing as he reached his mid-sixties because of an ailing economy, Russell admits he did not have a strategy for getting through the tough times in his later years.

“I just coped,” says Russell. The former business owner has a strong opinion on opening a small business in Rhode Island. “Never,” he says. .

Gerritt is Green with Commitment

Published in Senior Digest on January 2016

 

Some people ease into retirement, traveling to exotic locales, catching up with friends at the neighborhood supermarket, or fixing up the homestead, long put off because of time constraints.  Not so for 62-year-old Greg Gerritt, who still sees many years of work ahead of him to make Rhode Island economically sustainable through protecting the environment and advocating for the poor and downtrodden.

 

When Gerritt was 14 years old, he remembers reading a book on endangered species. At that young age, he would intuitively know that environmental advocacy would become his life’s mission. Three years later he would create the first Earth Day celebration at his high school in Teaneck, N.J. Later he would relocate to Maine to attend college, ultimately receiving his bachelor’s degree in anthropology in 1974 from the University of Maine. With degree in hand, the college graduate hitch hiked across the country before returning to Maine.

 

As a self-taught carpenter, Gerritt was able to make a living on his 10 acres of land. He offered low-cost work to seniors. During his 25 years in Maine, he worked to create a sustainable economy by growing a garden and putting up solar panels on his house along with creating an organic homestead.

 

Gerritt and his wife, Kathleen Rourke, met in 1991 through a personal ad placed in “The Maine Times.” The couple got married at Town Hall in Industry, Maine, and would later relocate to Rhode Island to be close to Kathleen’s family.

His passion for protecting the environment is “on and off the clock,” notes Gerritt. During the day, the Providence resident works as an administrator for the Environment Council of Rhode Island and leads the nonprofit group’s Rhode Island Compost Initiative. In 2012, he received a Merit Award from the Environmental Protection Agency Region I for advancing the cause of compost in the state.

 

Gerritt gives countless hours of his work off time to environmental causes. As the founder of Friends of the Moshassuck, he promotes using sound ecological principles to enhance the community. He even took his environmental advocacy into the political sphere, where he helped to found the Green Party of the United States and ran for mayor of Providence as a Green Party candidate in 2002. He admits, “There’s just no way to distinguish where my time goes because everything I do is interconnected.”

 

Through his love for the environment, Gerritt has learned to shoot videos and has become an expert on amphibians in the North Burial Ground in Providence. He has shot countless hours of video showing the development, feeding habits and behavior of fowler toads,” he says.

However, Gerritt may be better known in the Ocean State for establishing the “Buy Nothing Day Winter Coat Exchange” in 1997. According to Gerritt, the idea of giving substance to an already existing “Buy Nothing Day” created by consumer advocates came out of a meeting at the Rochambeau Library in Providence. The initiative had to be “better than a protest,” with the goal of helping the poor, he says.

 

Gerritt estimates that in its first year, more than 250 coats were given away at the site of the GTECH building. “We just put a piece of plastic on the ground to keep the coats dry, and people game to get their coats,” he remembers. The second year the half day event was relocated. “It was so symbolic placing it between the Statehouse and the newly built Providence Mall. You have “big government” and “large corporations” with the poor in between,” he says.

Gerritt has announced his retirement from the very successful coat giveaway initiative held the day after Thanksgiving. Thousands of coats were given to needy Rhode Islanders at 10 sites throughout the state, he says.

 

It was the perfect time to leave, notes Gerritt. “It’s grown big enough and should not depend on just me to keep it going. It’s time to pass it on to another person when it’s thriving,” he says.

In Rhode Island for more than 20 years, Gerritt has published two books and scores of articles in newspapers, magazines and on his blog, www.prosperityforri.com. He writes to advocate for a sustainable economy, social justice and protecting the environment, and he does not expect to retire in the near future from his job or other volunteer efforts.

 

“The work never ends,” he said, noting that there always will be a need for advocates. “I will actually continue my work until I can’t physically do it,” he added.

Looking back at his life as an environmental and social advocate Gerritt has some insight to pass on to those who will listen. “Do what you want to do. Look to see if you are doing what really brings you joy and makes the world a better place to be in. That’s what you should be doing,” he said.