Phyllis

"I'm the happiest person alive," exclaims Phyllis. She attributes her sense of contentment to her loving family and her life at Golda Meir House. "I lived in an apartment in Connecticut that was 'dullesville.' There was no way to become connected to anyone else in that building," explains Phyllis. "To live at Golda, on the other hand, is a blessing."

Phyllis, who is in her mid-90s, describes this decade as a time in her life when she is blossoming. "I don't dwell on my losses. Everything that is important to me fits in my apartment. My daughter lives nearby but I don't call her at a drop of the hat. I couldn't survive if I didn't live on my own."

At Golda, Phyllis has developed a link to her neighbors and to her community by participating in JCHE's Generations Together program. She has been involved in three intergenerational programs simultaneously, developing relationships with fourth grade students from Dorchester's Lucy Stone school, fourth and fifth grade students from Boston's Jewish Community Day School, and teenagers from Haifa, Israel. "All these children are so smart -- and so special. We learn from one another."