By LOIS KINDLE
Want to learn to better communicate with others, be more comfortable expressing yourself and improve your socialization skills?
Gannon University and the United Methodist Church of Sun City Center have partnered to host a new social group for older adults called Boost Your Communication. It’s a free, six-week program designed to enhance the communication, memory and social skills of older adults to be held every Thursday, starting June 6 through July 25.
Facilitated by Rita Lenhardt DHSc, assistant professor of Gannon University’s Speech-Language Pathology Department, and hosted by Victoria Sorensen, United Methodist Church of Sun City Center’s director of ministry, this enriching summer program will take place at the church’s Creason Hall, 1971 Haverford Ave.
“Research has shown that these types of groups have a positive impact on communication skills and well-being,” Lenhardt said. “We will be focusing on issues with talking, reading, listening and writing, as related to aging or cognitive decline, decision-making and memory. One cannot work without the other.”
“The groups also help to avert loneliness,” Sorensen added. “Limited communication skills cause some people to withdraw.
I see great potential in this to get people out of their homes.”
Participants have two options. They can sign up for either the two-hour morning sessions, starting at 9:30 a.m., or the two-hour afternoon sessions at 1:30 p.m. All that’s required is a commitment to attend all six sessions and the ability to physically engage for two hours. Transportation isn’t available for this study group, but spouses are welcome.
The program will feature both individual and group discussions, skill practice and educational presentations in a confidential, casual, safe and stress-free environment. Light snacks will be provided.
LOIS KINDLE PHOTO
Rita Lenhardt, left, assistant professor of Gannon University’s Speech-Language Pathology Department, and Victoria Sorensen, director of ministry at the United Methodist Church of Sun City Center, invite area seniors to join a free, enriching summer (June and July) social group on boosting communication skills. To register, call 813-634-2539.
Registered, licensed speech pathologists and Gannon University graduate students will be involved in the program.
Registration is required. Call the church office Sunday between 8:30 a.m. and noon or Monday through Thursday between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. at 813-634-2539 or register online at https://tinyurl.com/5y22kbjw/.
If you have program-specific questions, you can also email Lenhardt at tbi@gannon.edu/.
About the facilitator
Originally from Hungary, Rita Lenhardt moved with her family to Canada when she was 14 years old. She earned an undergraduate degree in sociology and a master’s degree in education and communication disorders from the University of Toronto in 2001 and then spent 15 years as a clinician, working with individuals with traumatic brain injuries.
Her next educational pursuit was to go after a doctor in health science degree with a specialization in global health, which she earned from Nova Southeastern University in Davie, FL. She worked a couple of years as an instructor at the college before heading to Granada to work as a faculty developer at St. George’s University. When the COVID pandemic hit the island in 2021, she moved back to the states and joined Gannon University.
Lenhardt is married and has two children, ages 6 and 8.
She recently partnered with Sorenson to share her expertise on communication with area residents and make community connections.
“[The social groups are] a collaborative effort to meet a need in the community and benefit [the education] of my students,” Lenhardt said, adding she intends to continue them in the near future.
“Our hope is that people who participate in these groups will either come back or spread the good news with others to encourage them to join,” she said.
