Seniors Pair Up with Students on the Dance Floor

Seniors and students enjoyed spending time together at an afternoon of music and dancing during the annual Spring Fling at Holy Trinity Diocesan High School. Differences in years melted away as the older and younger folks filled the dance floor in the middle of the school cafeteria for group dances such as the Electric Slide, the Macarena as well as a promenade with intergenerational pairings.

DJ Willy Sacco said senior dancers favor songs from their heyday, including Runaround Sue and The Wanderer and hits by Bobby Darin and Frank Sinatra, including “New York, New York,” which closed the show. “I play a whole mix,” Sacco said.

Members from three Catholic Charities of Long Island senior community centers in Wantagh, Oceanside, and West Hempstead traveled to the Hicksville campus for the March 27 event. They enjoyed a late lunch with carrot cake for dessert, conversing with each other and their new friends.

Auxiliary Bishop Robert Coyle and Catholic Charities CEO Michael E. Smith engaged in a friendly chat. Kim Parbst, director of senior services for CCLI, encouraged members to take part in a raffle.

Francesca Piarulli and Josephine Myers are active seniors and friends who enjoy dancing and the many activities at the Wantagh center. Francesca is a master crafter who fashioned some of the centerpieces for the occasion. Josephine is an avid dancer who always signs up “anytime they have something like this.” Both enjoyed speaking with Holy Trinity sophomore Gabriella Guichard, who was assisting at the Spring Fling for the first time. As she gets older, the seniors Gabriella met advised her “to cherish the little things in life.”

“They said they wished they had someone to go home to,” explained Gabriella, who said the remark made her appreciate returning home each day to her parents. Holy Trinity promotes many opportunities for community service, said Gabriella, who also helps when eighth-graders come to visit the school. She was joined at the dance by many fellow students. “At Trinity, everybody knows everyone,” she said. “No one is a stranger here.”

Off to the side of the dance floor, Jane Ascuncion shared thoughts as she watched her husband Romeo dance. Knee surgery prevented her from dancing.  “It’s our first time coming here,” she said. “It’s a good idea to intermingle with the younger set.” She and her husband both enjoy their experiences at the Wantagh Senior Center, directed by Lisa Pagliaro. Romeo particularly enjoys playing the bongos in the member chorus. “He loves that,” said Jane, who noted that membership in the center has helped her to open up and share experiences with others.