Spirit of Change - Winter 2008

I feel very fortunate to have found two inspiring stories about people living at the edges of life that shine a bright spotlight on what is possible in old age and while living with terminal illness. Young@Heart is an extraordinary, energetic and heart-warming chorus of elders, aged 73-93, led by founder and director Bob Cilman. Candace Hopkins is a beautiful, powerful and inspirational woman living with terminal cancer, whose “Beautiful You” seminars help women enrich their self-image and identity. Both stories provide inspirational models and truly deliver the message, “You’re alive until you’re not.”

Young@Heart: Spreading Aliveness

Through Community and Song

The seeds of the Young@Heart Chorus were planted in 1982 when founder and director Bob Cilman, 55, was running a meals program for elderly people. “I was running this place where elderly people came for meals and we made meals to deliver to people, and a woman named Judith Sharpe wanted me to get people together for a sing along.” Bob followed up on her suggestion, and initially, “it started out as nothing more than a way to pass time.”

As former Young@Heart member and now occasional guest member, Fred Knittle reflects, “One of the seniors attending the meals said she played the piano, and wanted a kind of karaoke thing after lunch. A Polish lady sang something that was off key, but it was music she grew up with. When she sang the song, she sounded like she meant it. And hearing an older woman singing a rock and roll song from Bob’s day really had an impact. She made the song sound so different. Bob got the idea of trying something new.”

Over the past 26 years, the seed has grown, transformed and flourished from a group that resided and performed in Northampton, MA to being “discovered” in Europe, as well as across the United States thanks to a wonderful documentary film released in 2008. When I first saw the movie, what I wrote was, “If you have any stereotypes about aging, time to throw them away. The life force in our bodies, minds, spirits, hearts and souls is timeless and ageless. The Young@Heart Chorus, whose members range in age from 73-93, exude a passion and spirit that, at times, can defy even death. The film offers an intimate look at the people, their stories and their journeys, woven in with a tapestry of community and song. Moments of laughter follow heartfelt tears, sprinkled with thoughtful reflections from Bob Cilman, the chorus’ visionary founder and musical director.”

In a culture enamored with perpetual youth, Young@Heart offers a rare
window into the “Golden Years” of life, sprinkled with mixed metaphors,
like elders singing Sonic Youth’s “Schizophrenia,” or the Ramone’s “I Want
to Be Sedated” and injecting new life and meaning into classic disco tunes
like, “I Will Survive” and “Staying Alive.”
I had read about Young@Heart in the Boston Globe several times before
the film was available. I was so personally touched by the film, I felt moved
to speak with Bob and some members of the Young@Heart Chorus to learn
more about their stories and their vision.
Bob Cilman reflects, “What’s great about Young@Heart is that we don’t
hide age. In this country, even the
m agazines that are supposed to
be about aging celebrate people
who are 50 and older.
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Founder and director of Young
Heart chorus, Bob Cilman.