News

The Nifty Fifties
Tue, Jan 8 2008

Things change as people get older. They retire; they explore new activities; they prefer different things to when they were younger.

We now have a changing expectation that this will be the same for people with disabilities.

EW Tipping Foundation recently ran a pilot project called Just Lifestyle, exploring lifestyle choices and more age-appropriate activities for older people with disabilities on the Mornington Peninsula.

One of the project’s success stories has been the Nifty Fifties, a social club launched at Frankston and Rosebud.

The Nifty Fifties meet every week, attracting people from across the Peninsula to enjoy a range of activities. The biggest drawcard, however, is meeting new people and making new friends.

“The social club is really good,” said Dixie. “I meet people from other places all the time. We do lots of drawing and paintings, and the workers always help me with new things; they hang up my pictures in the hall!”

“The Nifty Fifties has been a runaway success,” said Project Officer David Williams. “People are discovering all sorts of activities they can enjoy together. It’s also been great to link together the community and its varied members. We have volunteers, we have support from other groups and organisations – it’s fantastic.”