Olympics Kick Off In...Cherry Hill?
By David Madden
CHERRY HILL, NJ (CBS) -- Okay. The Olympic Games may be half a world away in Rio, but that didn't stop residents of a South Jersey senior citizen home from getting into the spirit of the competition.
Several of the more than 100 residents at the Spring Hills assisted living facility took part in their own opening ceremonies and a few games, like volleyball (with a balloon) and a bean bag toss. Medals were handed out at the end.
Staffer Amanda Gautier put the program together.
"We want our residents to be as active as possible in all the current events that are going on as well as in their daily lives," Gautier told KYW Newsradio. " We want them to participate, have fun and cheer on team USA."
Gerry Proia was one of two residents called upon to carry the Olympic flame. Relax. We're talking paper mache here. It took a couple minutes to convince her to take part. But once she got the hang of it, there was no stopping her.
"I feel like I'm almost there," she said. Prioa said her favorite event was the swimming competition, though she never did that herself. "Well, I'm not a swimmer," she said, "But I'd love to be."
They have a large screen TV set up in the theatre that'll have the Olympics on over the next two weeks. But how many will watch is an open question. After all, these people do have a regular routine that's not easy to break.
