Many local businesses and religious organizations offer fun social and cultural activities for the holidays—most are open to all; some are for seniors and, in some cases, their families. Events listed below are free, unless otherwise noted. Be sure to call ahead to confirm times, make reservations, if required, and inquire about handicapped accessibility if needed.

On Dec. 3, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Church of the Saviour will hold its annual Advent Festival, featuring fair-trade items and holiday greenery for sale, a silent auction, homemade donuts, a cookie walk, and live music. (2537 Lee Road, Cleveland Heights, 216-321-8880)

The 23rd annual Holiday CircleFest will be held in University Circle on Dec. 4. More than a dozen museums, gardens, galleries, churches and schools will open their doors to provide activities, music, food, fun and shopping, 1–5:30 p.m. Ice skating, ice-carving demonstrations and horse carriage rides will be available at the Rink at Wade Oval from noon to 7 p.m. (weather permitting). The festivities will conclude with a Winter Lights Lantern Procession at The Cleveland Museum of Art, 5:30–6 p.m. (10820 East Blvd., Cleveland, 216-791-3900)

McGregor will present three events this holiday season—a holiday jazz concert with soloist Abriel Dodson on Dec. 8 at 7 p.m. and Dec. 23 at 2:30 p.m., and a choir concert on Dec. 17 at 2:30 p.m. (14900 Private Drive, Cleveland, 216-851-8200)

The Cedar Fairmount shopping district will host a Pop-In-Pop-Out event on Dec. 8, 6–8 p.m. Appletree Books, Pavilion Home & Floral, and Ten Thousand Villages will all have guest artists and purveyors on site, selling their work, and refreshments will be served.

The Coventry Village Holiday Festival will take place on Dec. 10, from noon to 11 p.m., featuring live music, community caroling, kiddie karaoke, poets and storytellers, photos with Santa and Coventry Claus, holiday family portraits, showings of the movies “Home Alone” and “Gremlins” in the Centrum Theatre, and an Ugly Sweater Bar Crawl (for ages 21 and older). There will be free [meter] parking at Coventry Village’s parking garage, parking lots and street meters.

At 7 p.m. on Dec. 11 and 12, Nighttown will present its 11th annual Musical Theater Project production of “A Christmas Cabaret.” The show features live performances of well-known classics and hidden gems, as well as a few sing-alongs. Call 216-245-8687 for tickets ($31 to $35). (12387 Cedar Road, Cleveland Heights)

The Nature Center at Shaker Lakes will host the 116th annual Audubon Society Christmas Bird Count on Dec. 11, starting at 8:15 a.m. This is the longest-running citizen science survey in the world that provides critical data on bird population trends. Bird walks will be offered to help participants locate and identify resident winter birds. Free binocular rentals are available, with ID. No experience is necessary; registration is required. (2600 South Park Blvd., Shaker Heights, 216-321-5935)

The First Baptist Church of Greater Cleveland will present A Festival of Lessons and Carols on Dec. 18, 4–6 p.m., a Christmas Nativity Pageant with live animals on Dec. 24, 7–10 p.m., and a candlelight service on Dec. 24, 11 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. (3630 Fairmount Blvd., Shaker Heights, 216-932-7480)

The Cleveland Heights Senior Activity Center will host a Winter Centerpiece Workshop on Dec. 20 at 1 p.m. Fresh greens and other materials will be available, to make decorations suitable for any holiday. There is a $7.50 fee; registration is required. (1 Monticello Blvd., Cleveland Heights, 216-691-7377)

St. Ann Church will collect food for the Hunger Bank on Dec. 24, 5–6 p.m., and Dec. 25, noon to 2 p.m. (2175 Coventry Road, Cleveland Heights, 216-321-0024)

The Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage will hold a Can Can Food Drive and Festivities on Dec. 25, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Bring a canned-good donation and/or pay what you can toward museum admission. There will be a special film screening, a card-making activity to welcome new immigrants, and a craft activity for kids. All canned goods will be donated to the Semach Sedek Kosher Food Bank and Pantry, and the Greater Cleveland Food Bank. Walk-ins are welcome, but advance reservations are encouraged. (2929 Richmond Road, Beachwood, 216-593-0575)

The Stone Gardens Assisted Living Residence will hold its annual Rock for All Ages Chanukah concert with Noah Budin on Dec. 27, 7:30 p.m. (27090 Cedar Road, Beachwood, 216-292-0070)

The Maltz Museum will also host a Hanukkah candle lighting on Dec. 28, 5–6 p.m. Children of all ages and backgrounds are invited to this event, featuring singing, games, Hanukkah history, and a cookie reception. Registration required.

The Cleveland Heights Senior Activity Center will host its annual New Year’s party on Jan. 5, starting at noon, featuring a catered lunch and entertainment. Admission is $12; advance registration required.

A note to my readers: This will be my last Senior Scene column. I have enjoyed connecting with you over the last five and a half years, and appreciate all of your positive support and feedback. I wish each of you and your families much health and happiness. Happy holidays, and best wishes for a wonderful new year!

Click here to read the full article in The Heights Observer

As time goes on, lifestyles naturally change. Kids move out, we retire, we take on new hobbies, our income level and our health changes. It’s a good idea to occasionally reassess whether one’s current home is supporting one’s current lifestyle, or hindering it.

Many continue to live in their homes out of habit or nostalgia—it’s the home they bought when they got married, it’s where they raised their kids, it’s the place where they have lots of memories, and it’s where all of their personal possessions are kept.

As time passes, homeowners should ask themselves the following questions: Does taking care of your home leave you enough time to pursue your current hobbies and interests? Are you sure that your home will not need costly or complicated repairs in the future? Do you still use all of the rooms in your house on a regular basis? Is it still easy for you to go up and down stairs? Are you able to maintain your yard and clear snow by yourself? Is it convenient for you to visit family and friends from where you live now?

If you answered “no” to any of those questions, you may want to consider either modifying your home to make it safer and more convenient for you, or moving to a new home that better supports your current lifestyle.

The Home Repair Resource Center in Cleveland Heights (216-381-6100 ext. 22) offers free workshops for seniors who prefer to stay in their homes and “age-in-place.” The workshops teach homeowners how to make their own small repairs, advise them on hiring contractors for major repairs, and provide guidance on modifying a home.

If you think it might be time for you to move, a relocation specialist can help you make that decision and help you through the process. Lee-Ann Spacek, owner of North Coast Residential Relocation (216-513-6800), recently worked with a Cleveland Heights widow whose children live in another state. Spacek helped the woman clean out her possessions, sell her home, and purchase a smaller home that gave her more time for her hobbies and to visit her children.

As a moving coordinator and advocate, Spacek creates a schedule and to-do list, and connects homeowners with specialists who will list a home for sale, help clean out and organize a home, conduct an estate sale, make repairs and cosmetic improvements to get it ready to sell, and pack and move the homeowner to a new home. “As an advocate for seniors,” said Spacek, “I help manage and monitor the entire process from start to finish.”

Jim Ventura, a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Hunter Realty (440-227-4988), recently worked with a retired Cleveland Heights couple whose home was too big for them, and who were weary of cold winter weather. Ventura helped them downsize to a smaller house in a warmer state, and connected them with professionals who assisted them at every stage.

Ventura had to modify his own house after suffering a debilitating illness two years ago. He then became an aging-in-place specialist, and advises people how to make their homes safer, more comfortable and convenient.

Click here to read the full article in The Heights Observer

Bedbugs are small insects that feed on the blood of sleeping people and animals, and cause an itchy reaction. They travel on clothes to other rooms, and to places outside of the home. One can unknowingly pick up a bedbug at an infested location and bring it home, or they can be brought into one’s home on the clothing of people who visit.

Retirement is often the time when people look back on their lives and record their personal history, often in the form of a memoir. While these are useful tools for recording the things one has done during a lifetime, they don’t often reflect who the person was—his or her character.

Taking stock of one’s values and beliefs is an insightful way to define a person and, more importantly, why the person is that way. Writing an ethical will is a great way to do this. An ethical will is not a legal document. It is, instead, an informal document that one writes to bequeath to one’s family and friends the principles he or she holds dear.

Many people choose to share an ethical will with family and friends well before they die, as a tool for deeper understanding. Barry K. Baines, author of Ethical Wills: Putting Your Values on Paper, defines ethical wills as “a way to share your values, blessings, life’s lessons, hopes and dreams for the future, love, and forgiveness with your family, friends, and community.”

The Cleveland Heights Senior Activity Center (SAC) will hold an ethical will writing class beginning Sept. 30. This three-session class will teach the meaning of ethical wills, how to write one and what to include. The class is open to Cleveland Heights residents age 60 and older. For more information, call 216-691-7377.

The City of University Heights is a lecture that can help seniors take inventory of their current moral and ethical beliefs, as well as guide them in making positive changes, if necessary. Louise Prochaska, chair of the theology and philosophy department at Notre Dame College, will present a talk titled “Moral Character and Conscience, and How to Make a Good Moral Decision” on Aug. 4, 2–3 p.m., at University Heights City Hall.

Prochaska will explain how moral character and integrity are developed, and what defines good and evil actions. She will also explain why people have both virtues and vices, and how a person’s actions can affect not only that person, but also his or her family, friends and community.

Basic self-awareness of one’s values and beliefs can inspire positive changes in one’s character. Prochaska will explain how conscience is developed, and what happens when we choose not to follow it. “Your free choice determines whether or not you listen to your conscience,” she said. “We are free to choose, but we are not free from the consequences.”

Prochaska’s lecture is free and open to all seniors, whether they live in University Heights or not. For more information, call 216-932-7800.

Click here to read the full article in The Heights Observer.