Iowa City checking in!

Iowa City- checking in!

We are having a blast in Iowa City. For the past two days we have worked with the Johnson County Senior Center here in Columbia. It is an amazing facility that is subsidized by the taxes of the different counties in and around Iowa City. Anyone 50 and older can join, but many come low SES backgrounds. During these two days our group has split in half to do meals on wheels while the other half helps out in the cafeteria during lunch.

During reflection one of our participants brought up that it was interesting because they were seeing first-hand how people deal with losing control of their bodies or minds and trying to maintain autonomy and self-determination. The center gives them a sense of community and a way to stay involved.

Some other things that were brought up included how as a society we need to become more comfortable with death. We need to make plans for it so it doesn't become a burden to our families. Our group talked a lot about who takes care of the older generation in the Western world, with mainly women caring for elderly parents while also caring for their own kids. 

The discussion also included topics like: elder abuse, scams, loneliness, the rising STI rates in nursing homes, and the sandwich generation taking care of kids and parents.

Outside of our service, our group has bonded over famous burger places, cupcakes, fancy dinners (yeah, mostly all we do in Iowa is eat!).. oh, and an awesome large sloth named Rusty who is going to win us the ASB scavenger hunt big time. :-)

Tomorrow we begin the next and final leg of our service at Habitat for Humanity as well as the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge! We can't wait to see how that goes.