Center offers programs, promotes fitness and sociality for better quality of life

On Wednesday, May 25 the Davis Senior Center (DSC) will participate in the 23rd annual National Senior Health and Fitness Day, celebrating the theme “improve yourself for a better self.” The event is celebrated nationwide by more than 100,000 people with the purpose of encouraging older Americans to stay healthy and fit by emphasizing the importance of physical activity.

“[The fitness walk] ends up giving visibility to people out in the community that senior citizens are active and they’re involved and that they’re a part of the community,” said Dana Welch, program coordinator at DSC.

Registration is open for people of all ages; it costs $5 and includes breakfast and a t-shirt.

Participants will begin with a quick warm-up at 8:45 a.m. before embarking on a one-mile walk with the Cal Aggie Marching Band.

A complimentary breakfast will be provided at the center followed by a talk from keynote speaker and local chef Julie Cross. Cross will share her knowledge about the best foods to help keep a healthy body.

According to the City of Davis, Davis is home to more than 11,000 adults who are over the age of 55. The DSC is dedicated to promoting a variety of programs that provide physical, mental and economic well-being for older adults and seniors. The center provides more than 80 services and programs, for free or at a low cost, to serve the community.

The DSC offers computer tutoring, fitness programs, watercolor painting classes, sing-along and dance sessions with live music and bingo games. Bingo takes place from noon to 3 p.m. every Thursday.

“I love going to Bingo, people are always friendly and it gives me something to do on Thursdays,” said Greg Morris.

Seniors can also participate in the Connections Cafe which takes place every first and third Monday of the month. Welch explains that seniors come with questions on how to create Facebook accounts or how to upload or send photos. She adds that it is often easier for young people to learn these skills. Residents receive assistance on how to operate computers and smartphones from volunteers, including UC Davis students.

“That’s one of the reasons it’s called Connections Cafe, it’s an opportunity for a senior to learn something from a young person and they make a connection,” Welch said.

The center offers 14 fitness classes ranging from aerobics and yoga to zumba and hula. Welch explains that these activities help build a community at DSC. She adds that these classes are a way for people socialize and connect outside their homes while also exercising.

“I take a walk every morning and it has really helped my legs, I don’t feel so much [foot] pain,” said Deborah Johnson, who visits the senior center once in awhile.

Although Johnson hasn’t taken a class at the center, she has heard how helpful they have been for many others.

“[The senior center strives to be] a place where you are welcome, a place where you find stimulating activities and a place where you can have some ownership,” Welch said.

These programs promote lifelong learning, encourage inclusiveness and provide support systems while also offering a fun social environment for seniors.

People with unique skills interested in volunteering or teaching a class can contact Dana Welch at dwelch@cityofdavis.org or call the center at (530) 757-5696.

Written By: CARLA ARANGO – city@theaggie.org

One injured at Yolo County Airport, circumstances still unknown

A hot air balloon mishap occurred at the Yolo County Airport on May 14 around 8:30 a.m. The Yolo County Sheriff’s Department (YCSD) is still investigating the accident, but not many details are known yet. The accident occurred on a commercial flight with the private ballooning company, Balloons Above the Valley, which uses the Yolo County Airport for balloon takeoffs and landings.

“They were loading the balloon for takeoff and a strong gust of wind knocked [the basket] over,” said Yolo County Deputy Sheriff Robert Harbaugh in a statement.

Fortunately, the YCSD reports only one woman was injured, although the circumstances of the injury are still being investigated.

“One person was transported to the hospital. That person’s current condition is unknown,” said Sergeant Matthew Davis of the YCSD in a statement.

Gusts of wind seem to be a relatively common cause of accidents involving hot air balloon travel. According to statistics gathered from the United States and the United Kingdom during the period of June 1985 to June 2009, weather accounts for 23 percent of hot air balloon accidents.

However, air balloon accidents are relatively uncommon and air balloon travel is relatively safe. The Federal Aviation Administration inspects the balloons used for commercial ventures after every 100 hours of flight time or at least once a year.

“People have been flying hot air balloons safely since 1783 to be exact, long before the Wright Brothers’ first successful powered flight in 1903,” said Australian air safety expert, Carl Holden, in a statement after a 2012 air balloon accident in New Zealand.

Before the May 14 incident, Balloons Above the Valley had no reported accidents involving their air balloons in over 20 years. The company was also recently awarded the TripAdvisor 2015 Certificate of Excellence.

“[The company] had launched a few balloons and it was a breezy morning and the balloon that hurt the lady either became untethered or got loose in the wind, it was a pretty large basket and it went about 100 yards and I’m hearing that it struck her,” said Gary Pelfrey from the Aviation Advisory Committee for Yolo County Airport. “I’m not sure if there were people in the basket or not.”

Pelfrey explains that this is the type of incident that the committee will review in one of their quarterly meetings in order to better understand what safety measures need to be taken to prevent future accidents such as this one.

“We talk, you know, about best practices or should something be done or was this an accident, was it a pilot error,” Pelfrey said. “I think what we’re looking at typically is, is there a series of events that need to be changed.”

Written by: Samantha Solomon – city@theaggie.org

New Calico Cat sculpture being built next to Roy the Dog in Downtown Davis

John Natsoulas, local artist and owner of the John Natsoulas Art Gallery, located at 521 First St. in Downtown Davis, has helped create over 40 pieces of artwork across Davis and is an avid supporter of its art scene. Natsoulas is perhaps best known for helping create the Roy the Dog sculpture which is located outside the gallery, and is now embarking on an ambitious project to create a neighboring Calico Cat sculpture.

Natsoulas’ art projects are based around community building and are part of a larger project of creating the Davis Transmedia Art Walk, the world’s first interactive art walk. Each art piece has a chip inside it and, using Near Field Technology (NFC), visitors can watch videos about the construction of the art work by placing their phone near it.

Fusing art and technology, Natsoulas is passionate about making art more accessible and bringing it to a younger audience. His tactic seems to be working and his gallery has over 16,000 likes on Facebook, more than the Arboretum and the Davis Farmers Market. Natsoulas also points out that the Transmedia Art Walk has become one of Davis’ top attractions for visitors. The artist is also keen to involve the local community, and the Calico Cat will be no exception.

“What’s different about what we’re doing is that we invite anybody to come; we don’t care if you have any skill, no skill, on all of our art. On Saturday, we’ll have some high school kids, some college kids and they’ll come and they’ll help us and […] it’s not even close to being done. These are all projects that we did at no cost to anybody in the community, these [pieces are all] community projects that were done with our community [and] with our team,” Natsoulas said.

The concept for the sculpture came about as a tribute to Natsoulas’ mentor and Natsoulas has been happy to cover its costs due to its community building benefits.

“When you’re doing something organic, you just let it happen — you don’t say ‘I don’t want to do this,’ you say, ‘do it’ […] I had a father and a son, maybe 9 years old, they worked on a piece of [the cat] and they came back and they said ‘we did that’. It’s rewarding,” Natsoulas said.

Like all art, the Calico Cat and Roy the Dog sculptures are subjective and Dimitri Degtyarev, a first year computer science and engineering student at UC Davis, is not a fan of either.

“I think [the dog statue] looks stupid, I think it’s too colorful and kind of out of place. [The cat statue] is also not that good,” Degtyarev said.

However, many do not share Degtyarev’s opinion and Brie Cavalli, a visiting high school student from Napa High School, thinks that the sculptures add to Davis’ charm and she appreciates them.

“I think [building the cat] would be a good idea, I like cats and dogs and I think it would look cool there, [the sculpture] looks really nice,” Cavalli said.

While Natsoulas is extremely passionate about all the art projects that he embarks on, involving the local community is paramount to his vision. He feels that art has become too consumerist and he is intent in making sure that everyone is able to participate in the new creation.  

While Calico Cat remains under construction, it can be seen outside the John Natsoulas Gallery and to help with construction, visit the gallery Saturdays from 12:00-5:00 p.m. to help create the statue. To find out more about the Davis Transmedia Art Walk visit http://davisartwalk.com/ and for more information on the John Natsoulas Gallery visit http://natsoulas.com/.

Written by: Juno Bhardwaj-Shah — city@theaggie.org