Page 92 - Senior Link Magazine Winter 2023 - Online Magazine
P. 92
HONORING SENIORS
Where
Are You in
Your Community
by Jane Bromley
Inspiration
aybe there’s no “I” in “team,” but This issue of Senior Link is celebrating that
there’s a “U” in “community.” precious aspect of all our lives. The section
MAn 80-year-old Harvard study on the thriving community of Slaton is
has recently proven that embracing a fitting example of the value of being
community helps us live longer and be actively invested in your city or town.
happier.¹ The stories about the Bednarz, Heinrich,
Kitten, and Schilling families confirm the
Community is a big deal, maybe even importance of staying connected, and
bigger than we thought. their lifespans seem to support the theory.
A group of researchers at BYU studied The Texas Tech Alumni Association’s
tens of thousands of middle-aged people slogan, “You're One of Us,” invites
over seven years and monitored every former students of all ages to be part
aspect of their lifestyle—diet, exercise, of the worldwide community of Red
marital status, whether they smoked Raiders. Lubbock Christian is known for
or drank, etc. They found that the lifelong loyalty to the Chaparrals, and
greatest predictor of longevity is social the two presidents on the cover have
interaction. And they found it was demonstrated that community means
even more beneficial if it went beyond something even bigger than the two
just relationships with family and close prestigious universities they represent.
friends. According to the report, being No matter where we attended high school
an active part of a community was the or college or served in the military, we
strongest predictor of length of life— undoubtedly formed relationships that
almost three times as important as regular draw us to reunions (or at least Facebook
exercise! friendships.)
1 https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2017/04/over-nearly-80-years-harvard-study
92 Lubbock Senior Link
