the elderly | InCity Times

By Rosalie Tirella

… has been cooking the Thanksgiving dinners for Catholic Charities holiday meals for the elderly/disabled FOR ALMOST 15 YEARS?

That’s right! THOUSANDS OF MEALS! HUNDREDS OF HOURS OF FOOD PREP – HARD WORK AND HUSTLE IN THE HOT BROADWAY KITCHEN … FOR MORE THAN 15 YEARS. FOR FREE. VOLUNTEERING for Worcester. And Billy shuns the spotlight! Doesn’t want the recognition – just wants plenty of elbow room in the Broadway kitchen to prepare the hundreds of turkey meals for Worcester seniors, while his waitresses and cooks do the other work – serving the Broadway customers who come to this Worcester culinary landmark on 100 Water St. for the sweet ambiance as much as the amazing breakfasts, bottomless cups of coffee and homemade baked mac and cheese.

Billy is for family, church, friendship, silly jokes, smiles, bantering with customers, rescuing dogs …

Jett loves visiting the Broadway where the waitresses sneak him strips of bacon when Rosalie isn’t looking!

… talking city politics with city pols!, giving the poor kids sitting at his counter big $2.50 homemade Broadway ice cream cones for a buck cuz that’s what the kids put down on his counter, while twirling around on those red vinyl Broadway seats and chatting Billy up. Everyone is smiling and laughing … Billy especially!

BILLY IS THE BEST! He is the best of what Worcester once stood for and still stands for in many quarters. Not the fake gentrifiers who use social media to catapult themselves into a kind of fake prominence with their mostly fake friends … and cheat along the way, ever so skillfully. They’re an affront to the Green Island that so many of us remember and love – the Green Island that was all about authenticity, modesty, being so good, so true outside the limelight for your neighborhood, for your city, for your husband or wife, for your kids. You just did a good thing. Period.

Thanksgiving time the Broadway is for remembering Worcester’s poor, Worcester’s forgotten – frail old folks who won’t be able to cook their own Thanksgiving feast and may not be going out to celebrate with family – or even have family with whom to break holiday bread.

Every year Billy and his family fill the gap! They get the call from the Bishop, and Billy and the wonderful Broadway folks step up and volunteer.

The Broadway is located at 100 Water St., Worcester!

Every year about this time, if you walk into the Broadway, you’ll see Billy and his wife Betsy and their staff (most of them with the Broadway for years) running all around the big yet cozy kitchen pulling scores of basted and baked turkeys out of huge shiny silver ovens, with long doors, carving the turkeys up, spooning mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and veggies into the aluminum trays that scores of Elder Services of Worcester County volunteers will deliver to Worcester seniors. And the seniors get gravy … and dessert! Billy is focused, running up the tile floor to fetch a huge pot, a helper is stirring the gravy, big ladles and spoons are dipped into big pots and pans, the prep table in the center of the kitchen is overflowing with all things good and tasty … the place smells like heaven. After all, it’s the Bishop who provides the birds! But Billy provides everything else: the sides, the cooking, the work (all those pots, pans and utensils to wash!) Most of all, BEST OF ALL … THE LOVE.

Thanks, Billy!

By Deb Young

Having a pet is usually a rite of childhood. Children enjoy the companionship offered by animals.

But did you know, that not only can pets be a source of warm, fuzzy entertainment, but they can offer several developmental benefits to children as well? A child’s physical, social, emotional and cognitive development can all be encouraged by interaction with the family pet. For children especially, pets can be wonderful social facilitators: children are more prone to approach and interact with another child who is playing with a pet.
In this way, a pet can be the bridge between a less socially outgoing child and other potential playmates.

When children grow up with pets in homes they have less risk of developing common allergies and asthma.

Childhood pets offer security and stability. Nearly 70% of children confide in their pets, confident their secrets will not be betrayed.

Because of the special bond that often develops between pet and child, pets can sometimes fill the role of comforter. Since the relationship is non-judgmental from the pet’s perspective, a hurting child might be more willing to initially trust a pet than a person.

And kids with pets get outside more – to go for walks, run and play – and enjoy all the associated health benefits.

It is a misunderstood fact that pets teach children responsibility. Parents teach responsibility, and pets just make a good vehicle for learning.

Pets provide a natural gateway into the animal kingdom – love for one’s pet as a child often translates into an adult belief that the relationship between humans and animals is one of mutual support.

I am sure you’ve probably noticed that when you pet a soft, warm cat or play fetch with a dog whose tail won’t stop wagging, you relax and your heart feels a little warmer. This is not just for the young. In fact, pets may help elderly owners live longer, healthier, and more enjoyable lives.

Animals help seniors become more active, cope better with stress, and have better overall health. Studies show that elderly pet owners had significantly lower blood pressure overall than their contemporaries without pets.

Many nursing homes have taken this information to heart. For years, organizations have been bringing vaccinated, groomed, and behavior-tested animals into hospitals, hospices, nursing homes and assisted living homes to give seniors a chance to pet and play with them. The residents get to have some therapeutic physical contact and a fun activity to break up their day. More recently, some resident homes have even begun letting animals live in the home full-time.

But before you encourage an older person to adopt a pet, consider whether you could take care of the animal if its owner is no longer able to. Often, if seniors reach the point where they have to leave their homes and move into nursing homes or assisted-living facilities, they also have to give up their pets.

The number of nursing homes and other types of housing for the elderly that will accept animals is growing, but the vast majorities still don’t allow pets. Seniors can plan ahead and find a pet-friendly nursing facility, just in case they need to use it someday.

Once that commitment has been made, however, and an appropriate pet has been found, the joys and benefits of the pet relationship will last for many years to come.

Pets need love, companionship and attention – no different than the rest of us. What they give in return is immeasurable!