By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
More sidewalks and more athletic fields. Encouraging more girls to play sports. Increasing the number of apartments that are affordable to low- and moderate-income senior citizens. Making the Lawrence Shopping Center more senior-friendly.
Those were among the needs identified by nearly 60 Lawrence Township residents at the Lawrence Township Community Foundation’s “community conversation” at The Lawrenceville School Saturday morning.
The focus of the morning-long “conversation” was centered on the issues of health, recreation and wellness, what those needs are for township residents — from toddlers to senior citizens — and ultimately, how to meet their needs.
Janet Heroux of the New Jersey Department of Health set the stage for the conversation. She praised Lawrence Township for its network of trails and walking paths. The self-described “obesity expert” at the state agency, she works on helping to develop policies to improve health.
While everyone knows that not smoking cigarettes, eating fruits and vegetables and being physically active is key to good health, “that doesn’t mean the culture supports it,” she said. That’s why officials needed to implement policies that discourage tobacco use — from creating smoke-free zones in or around buildings to banning the sale of tobacco to children under 18 years old.
“Tobacco use is a single behavior. Staying healthy is multiple behaviors,” Ms. Heroux said.
“What you are doing today is evidence-based,” she told the attendees. “Except for your gray hair, you look slim and trim. I am here to tell you that physical activity is the elixir of life, and the research supports it.”
The benefits of physical activity include maintaining a healthy weight, reducing the risk of heart disease and diabetes, and a reduction in the likelihood of developing breast cancer, colon cancer and lung cancer, she said.
Children also need to be physically active, Ms. Heroux said. Research has shown that physically active children are more attentive in class. They need about 60 minutes of physical activity or exercise every day, which can be split into small segments.
Ms. Heroux encouraged the adults to aim for at least 150 minutes of physical activity every week. It can be split into 10-minute sessions, if 30 minutes is too much for one session, she said. It should include aerobic exercise, such as walking, jogging or riding a bicycle, and muscle-strengthening activities.
After Ms. Heroux led them in some stretching exercises, they split up into smaller groups that discussed Youth and Adult Sports, Community Wellness, Biking and Walking Trails, Families with Young Children, Senior Friendly Town and Living with Physical Challenges.
After about an hour, the groups reconvened and reported on their discussions.
The Living with Physical Challenges group recommended increasing public awareness of chronic conditions such as multiple sclerosis. It is possible for those with physical challenges to exercise. Yoga is one activity, and swimming is another. For those who can walk — maybe using a walker — it is important for sidewalks and paths to have smooth and level surfaces.
For Families with Young Children, the recommendations include finding more methods to get the information out to the community — whether it is social media or fliers — and making it available in the foreign languages that many residents speak, such as Polish. The group talked about the need for summer camp programs, and even informal “drop-in” programs.
Communication also figured in the Biking and Walking Trails group. One suggestion was to make special activities, such as last summer’s “full moon” hike and bike event at Mercer Meadows Park, more widely known, possibly by coordinating with the township Recreation Department. Bicycle or walking clubs could be formed, and a “master plan” could be created for walking and biking trails.
The Youth and Adult Sports group identified the need for more athletic fields, plus storage areas for athletic equipment. A 10-year “master plan” would be advisable to avoid responding in emergency mode. Girls should be encouraged to participate in sports. Finding ways to bridge the gap between youth sports and high school sports — to entice young athletes to continue in high school sports — is a priority.
The Community Wellness group talked about how to connect people with resources, such as mental health resources. Wellness also encompasses spiritual well-being. A club could be formed for dog-walkers, to go along with improvements to the dog park at Village Park.
To make Lawrence a “Senior Friendly Town,” the group recommended making improvements to the Lawrence Shopping Center that might include benches where seniors could rest.The shopping center is next door to the Lawrence Plaza senior citizens apartment building. on Princeton Pike.
Additional affordable housing for low- and moderate-income seniors was suggested.Increasing the awareness of in-home services to seniors who are “shut in” their homes was mentioned.
For more information about the Lawrence Township Community Foundation, visit www.ltcfnj.org.
