FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS   Sunday, January 29, 2012

Grant will help Miami Beach seniors

BY CHRISTINA MAYO Special to The Miami Herald

STAYING FIT: EnhanceFitness client Jose Solar works out at JCS’ Miami Beach Senior Center.

Jose Solar, 72, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease when he was very young. Each day is a challenge trying to gain strength in his body. He said his hands, legs and balance are affected, but now he has a new chance to feel better. The senior center he visits has just been awarded an $88,000 grant from Health Foundation of South Florida.

Jewish Community Services of South Florida (JCS) announced that the grant funds the Foundation’s Healthy Aging Regional Collaborative EnhanceFitness program at the Miami Beach Senior Center for 2012.

That is good news for Solar who has been benefitting from the program for the past year. “Thanks to the EnhanceFitness exercises, I have gained more balance, strength and flexibility.” And he added that the benefits are not only physical. “Before coming to the center I was all alone with no family. Now I feel I have people who care about me and that makes me feel better, inside and out,” he said.

For four years in a row, Health Foundation has provided funding to help JCS achieve its goal of improving the fitness and well-being of older adults. The program is operated through the agency’s Senior Adult Services Division. Through it, seniors are encouraged to increase their social involvement and take an active role in maintaining healthy aging.

For more information, contact JCS Access at 305-576-6550.