“I’m looking for a hookup,” Deadpandany Rios said.
Rios was sitting at a round folding table decorated with neon heart centerpieces for Valentine’s Day. In the background, the senior was approaching Whitney Houston’s “I want to dance with someone.”
“I’m kidding!” Rios, 71, started laughing.
From left, Danny Rios, Yvonne Mallett and Haruhiko Noyama dance together during the Valentine’s Day celebration at the Los Angeles LGBT Center.
(Juliana Yamada/Los Angeles Times)
It was a Valentine’s Day dance for the elderly, located in Central Hollywood location at the Los Angeles LGBT Center. In the far corner of the room, arts and crafts were laid out to make Valentine’s Day. The dancing heart adorned the windows of the hall.
But for many attendees, the party wasn’t about the loaded expectations surrounding the holidays, but less about opportunities for community connection.
“I love being around people,” Rios said. “Life is too short. I’m forced to go and get someone!”
Carmelita Gabriel, 77, a regular on the dance floor and frequently commutes from the Alhambra to attend centre events.
“I wasn’t at home alone, I met a lot of people here,” she said. “I’ve been so happy ever since I joined this centre.”
“The first thing that seniors say is facing is isolation,” said Micropes, an activity manager for senior services at LGBT centers.
“So the spaces and communities we can provide are the essence of our work,” he said.
Center Farah Javidi will speak to Rec Assistant Megha Kamra and Rec Assistant Megha Kamra as he enjoys his Valentine’s Day celebration at the Pan Pacific Senior Activity Center in Los Angeles.
(Juliana Yamada/Los Angeles Times)
The Pan Pacific Senior Activity Centre, 10 minutes away in the Fairfax area, also hosted a Valentine’s Day celebration. The center celebrated its reopening anniversary after being closed for four years during the pandemic. Monica Benamin, director of recreational facilities, provided a way for Valentine’s Day events (centred around cardmaking) to bring people back.
“It’s a good time to get the card and make someone else happy,” said Joan Ryder, 82, a regular at the center. The rider wore a bright pink heart necklace with crochet. Her dog, Budgie Siegel, wore a sweatsuit with the word “lovers.”
Riders usually send Valentine themed collages each year to dear friends and loved ones, but this year, after the recent death of her sister, she decided to do something different.
Leslie Lambalen makes cards for her daughter during her Valentine’s Day celebration at the Pan Pacific Senior Activity Centre.
(Juliana Yamada/Los Angeles Times)
“When they said they were going to write a letter, I knew my mother and my sister were special,” she said. Rider planned to write all the “latest” cards to his sister, then framed them for himself.
Ryder said the community she found at the center was essential to her well-being. It is an emotion echoed by many elderly people.
“I have a friend who laughs when I say I’m going to a senior center,” Lloyd Wilkie, 69, said. He doesn’t care about his rib cage, he cherishes the connections he has made. People worthy of attention. ”
Nuyama in the center dances among friends during Valentine’s Day celebrations at the Los Angeles LGBT Center.
(Juliana Yamada/Los Angeles Times)
Wilky shed tears as he explained that he had proposed to his wife on Valentine’s Day. The senior center offered him a relationship after her death, he said.
“I thought I’d sneak in and go out and do my thing, but on the way I met these people,” he said. “I can jump out here and get a smile from someone. I can play with someone. I can’t imagine what it would be like.”
Back at the LGBT Center, volunteer tap dancing teacher Lauren Peterson (66) surprised the crowd with her battle in the sky.
For Peterson, Valentine’s Day has always felt it was “manufactured,” but she said the community she experienced at the Center said more than made up for it.
“When you’re in a relationship, there’s a little more pressure to step up and do something,” she says, “When you have a little kid, you do something fun for them And that puts less pressure on you.”
“Now, that’s just an excuse for a pressureless party.”
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