Samuel Sam of Westfield reads his response to a writing exercise posed by Janice Carduner, center, facilitator of a writing group at the Westfield Council on Aging as fellow participant Eunice Roche listens. (Photo by Carl E. Hartdegen)
WESTFIELD – The participants in a writing program at the Westfield Senior Center all have a variety of good reasons for participating in the twice monthly workshop but they all agree on one overriding reason – it’s fun.
A staffer at the city’s Council on Aging, Janice Carduner, started the program about a year ago.
“Everybody has a story to tell,” she said. “Seniors particularly have a story to tell – but they don’t always have a place to tell it” or an audience.
She said that she has participated in writing groups for years and said that when she started to organize a group at the senior center she found an enthusiastic response from a small but dedicated group of participants.
Eunice Roche, 92, said that she had participated in a writing group at the Jewish Community Center in Springfield for 20 years but said she had to stop when transportation became an issue.
“I missed it,” she said. “When I saw this group in the Pennysaver I called right away. And I love it.”
Roche said that she has filled several notebooks with her writing and even had a couple reprinted and bound.
“I think my family’s going to appreciate it when I’m gone” she said. She said that most of them have not yet read her work although one of her granddaughters has read it all.
Roche said that she has also put her writing to good use on four or five occasions when the pastor of her church, First United Methodist Church, allowed her to offer sermons which, she said, have been “kindly received.”
Roach said that she expects to continue with the group and said “when they build the new senior center it’ll be even easier.”
Mary Wyman, 71, is another charter member of the group and the retired school teacher said that she had been “looking for something to keep my mind active” and found the writing group to be an opportunity “to do something I liked without a lot of pressure.”
“Ultimately, I wanted it to be fun” she said. “It worked. I love it.”
Pat Abrum, at 68 the youngster in the group, is also the only published author, having been encouraged when she participated in a writing group at the Springfield Museums.
She said that her writing coach there, Janet Sadler, encouraged her to publish what she wrote after her husband died so she wrote and self-published a book, ‘The Journey of a New Widow, the First 12 Months.’
She said that the book “was cathartic, it helped me get through it” and said the book was written “for people going through the loss of a loved one.” Abrum said that readers have told her it that it helped them understand and adjust to their loss.
“Writing keeps my mind sharp, it makes me think” she said. “And it’s fun.”
The only man in the group, Samuel Sam, 70, is also a retired school teacher.
He said that he enjoys the writing but said he has no plans to publish anything.
“It’s just for fun, (to) keep those neurons going so I don’t calcify up there,” he said.
Carduner said “the group is for them’ and said that she will help them take it wherever they want it to go.
She did say that she would welcome more participants.
“The conversation is richer,” she said.
She said that she plans to offer them guidance about writing memoirs for their families but said that the direction the group takes is up the members.
She said that she will give them prompts and ideas to write about but said she doesn’t push them, trying instead only to give them an opportunity to get out “what should be expressed” for them.
“We haven’t written to a specific end point. I don’t know if we will, but that will be their choice,” Carduner said.
“I want them to have fun” she said.
