Gathered around two round tables, the inaugural members of the Clifton Senior Friends' Center nibbled on sugar-free cookies after finishing their lunch, leisurely chatting among themselves.
"We try to come in and talk a little about what's going on in the papers, like Iraq or different articles people bring in," said Bonnie Davis, one of the two staff members at the center. "It's all very fluid."
Despite starting a few weeks late, the Senior Friends' Center has been operating out of the newly renovated Clifton Presbyterian Church since late February, opening twice a week for people who are socially isolated due to memory problems or physical limitations. It is a small group; Davis said she usually has 12 visitors on Wednesdays and 10 on Fridays, and many people will come in both days.
The group on Friday, March 30, had discovered early on that none of them were born in Northern Virginia. One member came from Germany, another woman from Jamaica, the rest from various points across the U.S.
"We're working on a huge Easter egg project right now," Davis said, filling more than 800 plastic eggs for the church's Easter egg hunt this week.
Earlier in the week, the group sat together with printed song sheets, singing a variety of music ranging from hymnals to songs popular in the 1940s and 1950s.
The center was a long time coming. Nearly two years of planning went into the creation of a nondenominational, communitywide center for seniors who wanted a chance to get out of the house a few times a week, Davis said.
So far, the relaxed nature of the program is a big hit.
"It's such a nice treat for me to get out," said Doris Martin, one of the members who would occasionally burst into song. "Both of my neighbors work during the day so I'm alone with my little dog. It's so nice to get out."
Taking a few moments to put his thoughts together, John Butler joked that his son signed him up for the center to "get me off his hands for a few hours." His wide smile showed no question that he was enjoying himself, however.
"We have a lot of fun here," Butler said, in a booming voice that belongs on radio broadcasts. "It's a nice group … it's worthwhile. The church couldn't have done this before the big expansion."
CLIFTON PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH originally planned to open the center on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays starting in early February, but a series of small setbacks and a smaller-than-expected sign-up pushed the center's opening back a few weeks. Eventually, Davis said, the Tuesday group will open, but for now, having about a dozen seniors works perfectly.
"The center was one of the driving factors in the church's expansion," she said. "Now, we have room to grow."
The group starts its day in the church's fellowship hall, followed by walks outside or small activities like singing together or, this week, filling Easter eggs. After lunch — everyone brings their own — the group plays trivia to bring the day to a close.
Friday's sunny, warm weather led the group outside for a short walk around the parking lot, with many of the members walking in pairs or small groups to help each other.
"When my husband had Alzheimer's, he always wanted to do something with other people," said Helen Vidovich, a volunteer at the center. "I think this is a really good idea, it helps the caretakers have some time to themselves but it's good for their loved ones to get out and keep active as long as possible."
Reinhold Krueger repositioned himself on a chair looking over the parking lot.
"I like everybody here," said Krueger, a soft German accent lingering in his voice. "My wife said I should go mingle with people and that's what I'm doing. I'm happy."
The group moved inside, taking the church's new elevator up to the second floor in shifts to tackle the mountain of multicolored plastic eggs for the rest of the afternoon.
"This is a really nice program," said Bob Collier, waiting for the elevator to descend. "It's a pleasure to come here."
Collier said he goes to physical therapy three times a week for his hips and knees, all of which have been replaced in the past few years. But coming to the center is a different kind of therapy.
"This place helps keep people active, they've done a nice job," he said.
Collier was especially happy Friday afternoon. He had brought a handful of trivia questions to share with the group, many of them trick questions about subjects such as what greenhouses are made of and where to bury the survivors of a plane crash.
THE CENTER IS providing a different kind of service than those run through Fairfax County, said Lynn Krueger, Reinhold's wife.
"We tried one of the Fairfax County centers last year under the premise that if he didn't like it, he didn't have to go," she said. "I saw about this program in December and thought he'd like it because it's more social."
Lynn Krueger said both she and her husband are thrilled with the Clifton Senior Friends Center so far.
"The people who volunteer here are so nice, you can't tell who's a volunteer and who participates," she said.
A lack of regimented agendas for daily activity seem to work well for the group, she observed, especially the long conversations about world events.
"There's a definite difference in him since he started coming here," Lynn Krueger said of her husband. "He comes home and will relate to me all the different things they did that day. He really enjoys it, and that makes me happy too."