The Great Reconnection: The Joy of Shared Meals

In this episode, we interview community dining participants at Weits Cafe in Morris, Illinois. Participants shared heartwarming stories of friendship and well-being. Discover how these programs are transforming lives, one meal at a time! AgeGuide has a variety of innovative community dining and restaurant programs for older adults, where meals become moments of joy and connection.  

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SPEAKER_01 0:01

Hello, and welcome to The Age Guide, perspectives on the aging journey. We are here to be your personal guide and enhance your quality of life on the road ahead. Welcome to another episode of Age Guide's special podcast series celebrating our 50th anniversary. We're thrilled to have you join us for this milestone year. Our theme, The Great Reconnection, highlights the importance of social connections for older adults, fostering a sense of community and belonging. In today's episode, we're diving into the innovative world of community dining and restaurant programs designed specifically for older adults. These programs offer more than just a meal. They provide an opportunity for meaningful social interactions, new friendships, and a significant boost to overall well-being. We recently visited White's Cafe in Morris, Illinois, where we had the pleasure of speaking with participants who shared their experiences. From the joy of sharing delicious food to the sense of camaraderie that fills the air, the stories we heard truly underscore the positive impact of these programs. So sit back, relax, and join us as we explore how community dining and restaurant programs are enriching the lives of older adults one meal at a time. Let's listen in.

SPEAKER_07 1:35

So we are excited to be here in person with you today out in the community at White's Cafe in historic downtown Morris. This is a great location. I love it. And we've got some community members who like to dine here at this restaurant with us. Can you start by sharing what you like about coming to White's?

SPEAKER_04 1:56

We go to exercise classes or something like that, and we don't feel like going home and fixing something to eat.

SPEAKER_07 2:01

Right.

SPEAKER_04 2:02

And I know there's a lot of them that think this is just for the people that can't afford anything else, but it's not. That's right. And I keep telling people that because it's more for fun, and you save money, but on the other hand, you go out so many times that you end up spending it anyhow. That's true. It's a social thing. you know, enhancement.

SPEAKER_07 2:24

It's about that social connection. I'm so glad you said that because we're doing this podcast series right now on the great reconnection, we're calling it. Post COVID, people have had trouble getting back out and doing things with other people. And a lot of people feel kind of socially isolated. So we're trying to feature these programs and how they help people to connect.

SPEAKER_04 2:43

And a lot of times people are moving closer to their children or something. Right. And they don't have a lot of friends in the area. And that makes it really nice for them because they can get out and meet other people. that are their same age and have the same problems they have.

SPEAKER_07 2:57

That's a great place to meet other people. That's good to hear. I

SPEAKER_06 3:01

just like this restaurant because it has the common table. Over the years, many people have been alone, and they can come and sit and dine at this table and share their meals and not be alone.

SPEAKER_07 3:18

We're all sitting at a long table that sits, what do you think, 12 people maybe? and anyone can come here and sit at this table and then they're they're with a group yeah you're with friends that that's neat

SPEAKER_03 3:31

well i like the program real well uh i live by myself and uh it's a chance to get out and see people and uh have conversations and i like the program and and The meals are something we can afford. Excellent. And since I don't cook, I can boil water if I'm careful. But since I don't cook, I eat out a lot. And, boy, it adds up when you're eating out all the time. Yeah, it does. It could add up. And so this program is really a benefit to me. And it's just nice to get out and see people and eat. I like the Meals on Wheels really well. And so I'm going to be using it, I can tell you, as much as possible.

SPEAKER_02 4:20

Excellent. Thank you for sharing that. I love this program. The Great Plates program is awesome. It's the best deal in town. Best deal in town. Balanced meals. very very affordable um and it's social it's socializing in the same breath so you get your entertainment and you get your nutrition anyway this really is a great program and um i'm thrilled i will continue to enjoy the program as much as possible.

SPEAKER_07 5:02

Excellent. Thank you for sharing. It's always good to hear from people what's working and what's not. If

SPEAKER_02 5:08

we eat in, I will order a meal to go. So then the next day We can eat it then the next day. Oh, that's a good idea. Yeah. So I'm trying to encourage dad to do that also. Right. So he can

SPEAKER_07 5:21

have a meal to take home and then the next day he can eat that. Oh, that's a great idea. And they let you do that? Yes. And they pack it up for you? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. That's good to know too. Because I know we did an episode recently on home delivered meals and we went out with a home delivered meal driver and we got to tag along and see people getting their meals. And that's a great program for people who are stuck at home. But if you can get out, I know you'd rather have more options and you'd rather be out in your community eating, right? But I think a lot of people think of the nutrition program for older adults as being something that happens at a senior center or something that happens at a social service agency and they don't necessarily know that you can go out in your community and eat at a restaurant and we've got a number of sites here in Grundy County and we've got some other sites around our county so it's kind of a new and exciting thing. Do you think that it's really different to be able to come to a restaurant rather than what if you had to go to the senior center or to a social service agency to get your meal? What would you prefer or what do you think the difference would be?

SPEAKER_04 6:28

For one thing, sometimes you want to go out with your family and they're not in a senior aid program. So this way you can go out, use your coupon, so they don't feel like they have to buy mom her meal. And then they can also eat at the same place and eat with you. you.

SPEAKER_07 6:44

That's wonderful. So it's even got an intergenerational aspect to it. You can take your family, you could take somebody who's maybe not on the program and meet them for lunch, right? Oh, that's excellent. Well, I know coming just off of the COVID,

SPEAKER_06 6:59

it was better when you can control your environment. Oh, that's true too. When you weren't in the big group.

SPEAKER_07 7:05

That's true too. You have your own space in the restaurant if you want it. You can kind of separate yourself a little bit and feel a little bit more secure.

SPEAKER_06 7:13

And the just getting out too out in the community and getting out yeah and it used to be you know that eating out at a restaurant you just maybe couldn't afford that right so this is making that affordable that's wonderful

SPEAKER_07 7:29

yeah because when you're on a fixed income as a number of you have said it's expensive to go out to eat all the time

SPEAKER_06 7:35

and we're keeping our restaurants in business as well too because a lot of them struggled with covid as well that's so true

SPEAKER_07 7:43

that's so true so You're supporting local businesses as

SPEAKER_03 7:46

well. Probably, I have to go get checked every year now for my driver's license.

SPEAKER_07 7:52

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 7:52

And one of these years, they're going to cut me off, I know. Hopefully not too soon. So, you know, when they do, then I've got problems. Not really, I've got help here. My son and his wife live close. Yeah, but transportation is

SPEAKER_07 8:10

tricky, right? Yeah. They're going to have to...

SPEAKER_03 8:13

Bring me meal or I'll get, maybe they'll have a bus or something I can

SPEAKER_07 8:17

get on it. We've got some resources for you, I think. So we'll hear from Patty Strahan, the nutrition

SPEAKER_05 8:24

director. Right, with Community Nutrition Network. We do have a partnership with Grundy Transit here in town. And they just need to mention that they're going to one of our meals. And the bus provided there's availability because, you know, doctor's appointments and that type of thing take first precedent. But if there's availability, then the bus will pick them up, bring them either to the senior center if they want to be part of that, or they'll bring them to a dining site, one of our dining sites. And then they can eat, and then the bus will pick them up and bring them back. But they're really great partners. It's a great program to work with. So it's an option for people. And you mentioned the home-delivered meals for people. We have those meals available as frozen. So if people tell us they would like to try those, they just need to let us know. And they can actually come get a couple to try them out to see if they like them. You know, we have special days where the office is open and available for people to come in and replenish their meals on their cards. So on those days, we have a couple people who come, and they've tried out the meals, and so they get... several of them to take home so that they have something just in case so that's an option for you sir as well these are the same meals that our home delivered participants use they are made by the same caterer in Batavia they're locally made fresh flash frozen immediately from when they're made and so you're getting them within you know at the most within a week of when they were frozen so

SPEAKER_07 10:04

it's got all of your nutritional needs, one third of your nutritional needs for the day as an older adult.

SPEAKER_05 10:10

And it's an availability. It's another option.

SPEAKER_07 10:12

Yeah. That's something to think about, especially in winter when it's really cold and you don't feel like going out. How about popping a meal in the microwave, right? That's made really healthy for you. It's nutritious. Exactly. Although it seems like the restaurants that have been participating, we've got really good feedback that they just really enjoy this. They love having more people coming in the restaurant and they really see it as an opportunity to give back to the community. a bit as well. So it's a win-win for everybody, it sounds like. An excellent opportunity. And I don't want to downplay the value of the senior centers either because that's another great opportunity for people and people who go there anyway to do things like bingo or the games or the activities, the seasonal festivities and things like that. They can get a meal, a hot meal there too, and that's very valuable. But I like the new options that are provided to you with the restaurant and the And like you said, Patty, that's kind of opening up the door for people to realize, oh, there's all kinds of nutrition options for me, and I can try out some different things. And hopefully the word is getting out there to people in the community down here that this is a great option and a great way to meet other people and get together. And I imagine when you come in, this place gets pretty busy during the day if you come for lunch, right, or at dinnertime. Does it get pretty busy in here? Do you sometimes have to wait for a table? No, that hasn't been a problem. Okay. That's good. That's good. And when it's crowded and busy in here, do you get a chance to kind of walk around and talk to people and see different friends and run into people when

SPEAKER_04 11:47

you're here? I usually see the same people from one restaurant to another that are in the program.

SPEAKER_07 11:51

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 11:51

Yeah. That gives you a little bit of a wider field to learn to know people.

SPEAKER_07 11:55

Yeah. But you had mentioned that sometimes you'll bring your family along or that kind of thing. So I bet the nice thing is that you see people from all walks of life here. Yes. So during the day, there's probably some business people who come in here to have lunch. Families come in here for dinner as well, right? So you can run into anybody from the community in here, which is a nice thing.

SPEAKER_06 12:14

This restaurant also sometimes has musical arrangements that come in and you'll see a sign that says, you know. There'll be some live music. Yeah, live music. And so that brings a lot of people too.

SPEAKER_07 12:28

Great. I appreciate all of you sharing this with us. I love how the menu is kind of a vintage retro menu, and it's got all kinds of good stuff on it. And you guys have a special menu that you can choose off of, right? Okay, so here we've got things like chicken, parmesan, Polish sausage, quesadillas, a turkey dinner, the spaghetti and meatball. What's everybody's favorite meal?

SPEAKER_04 12:54

Like I said, here they have a very good breakfast menu and we usually eat breakfast here.

SPEAKER_07 12:58

Oh you can even do breakfast?

SPEAKER_04 12:59

Yes we do breakfast here after we do our

SPEAKER_07 13:02

yoga. I love breakfast. Breakfast is fun. What's your favorite sir?

SPEAKER_03 13:08

Here my favorite would probably be the turkey dinner. Okay. Because I stock up on those Spaghetti and meatballs.

SPEAKER_07 13:18

Okay, so you've got lots of that.

SPEAKER_03 13:20

Yeah, I get those

SPEAKER_07 13:21

frozen. Yeah, you've got those at home, so it's nice to have a hot turkey dinner, right?

SPEAKER_02 13:26

My favorite meal is the fried chicken dinner. Ooh. Yeah, that's very good. They do a good fried chicken. Very good, very good. Yeah, and I believe the mashed potatoes are fresh. Oh, yum. Somebody's

SPEAKER_07 13:40

peeling those things and getting them all out there for you. Yum. Okay. good so something for everybody it sounds like

SPEAKER_05 13:49

well and I have to say that this crew right here that you're talking with they take great advantage of the program you know it's lovely to have all of this out and available but it doesn't really mean anything if people don't take part in the program and this crew right here are huge advocates for our program so I want to thank you guys for coming here to talk to them about it because because you know we've had people on for many many many years prior to when we were doing this particular version of our dining

SPEAKER_07 14:19

program so they've stuck it stuck it out

SPEAKER_05 14:21

right and they've helped make it so successful and with it they're bringing along friends and neighbors and yeah people from outside the county so that's a good part of why it's become so successful

SPEAKER_07 14:33

very successful because of all of you thank you so much and thanks for sharing what you like about it

SPEAKER_04 14:38

and the ones that are in charge are really good to work with so we appreciate them too very much

SPEAKER_07 14:44

yes thank you Thank you. But sounds like you guys are advocates for this and you're spreading the word and getting more people because I think the more people that hear about this, the bigger it's going to be able to grow and then you'll continue to get more options. And we talk about this kind of thing all the time. I'm in charge of advocacy at Age Guide and we talk to our legislators. We were just in Washington, D.C. on the hill visiting legislators and we told them about this great new restaurant program that we're doing and how much people like it and why it's valuable so you know they're listening to these things too and they want to know what you want and what works for you and congress has been very supportive of nutrition for older adults there's some other things that are harder to get funding for but everybody wants to support older adults to have good nutrition so this is a popular program and so i think there's some some opportunities to continue to grow these kinds of things and we'll continue to to partner with patty and her group and look forward to seeing what comes next

SPEAKER_01 15:47

Thank you so much for listening. Before we go, we have a quick word from Age Guide featuring the Medicare Minute. Hello and welcome to your Medicare Minute. We are here with Val Guzman, our Benefit Access Specialist here at Age Guide. On this episode, we have a question from Archie in McHenry. He asked,

SPEAKER_00 16:23

Certain Medicare plans offer a wide range of benefits that are meant to improve your lives, but also keep you as healthy as possible. The first important piece to know is that not all people with Medicare have these benefits, but if you do, there's a lot that you may not know about. The most common extra benefits are things like dental, vision, and hearing coverage that let you see a dentist or help you get new glasses. Your plan could also offer things like credits to purchase over-the-counter items such as vitamins or over-the-counter medicine. Your plan may offer transportation benefits to help you get to your doctor's appointments or even deliver meals after a hospital stay. Most importantly, your Medicare plan will have staff that can help you navigate all of these benefits that you're entitled to. So you get everything that you need.

SPEAKER_01 17:32

Thank you for listening to The Age Guide, Perspectives on the Aging Journey. We hope you learned something new on this podcast because we all have a stake in promoting a high quality of life for people on their aging journey. Age Guide coordinates and administers many services for older adults in Northeastern Illinois. We serve DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties. Our specially trained professionals are available to answer questions and connect you with local service providers and resources. If you are interested in these services or want to learn more, go to our website at hguide.org. Call our offices at 630-293-5990. Please follow our podcasts so when we post our monthly podcast, you are notified on your streaming account. Thank you, and we will see you next time on The Age Guide, Perspectives on the Aging Journey.