Volunteer: Mary Maufas, age 64

What she does: OASIS trained peer facilitator in ExerStart, Living a Healthy Life and discussion group facilitator at Halls Ferry Manor and Dunn Road Manor in North St. Louis County.

“We usually have anywhere from four to 50 people, that I share with them different subjects of the month,” Maufas said.

Living a Healthy Life is her favorite class, because she gets to share with senior residents some ways to manage chronic conditions while showing them how to help themselves live better, live longer, healthier and with less pain.

“That’s the biggest part – how they can relax so they don’t have to have pain as they live and how they can also become more sociable, eat better, exercising and living a healthier life,” Maufas said.

For $5, Maufas said members get 2.5 hours of training for six weeks.

“We are teaching them how they can take care of themselves. How they can lower their blood pressure by breathing properly – how they can ease pain by redirecting their thoughts – very serious things that they can do something simple. Usually, after about three weeks, we start seeing a change; four weeks they start making a change. That’s part of the course. We give them assignments every week and they get an action plan every week. It’s all about lifting them up and making them realize that life can be better and they can make it better themselves.”

Maufas describes the array of enriching options provided by the OASIS program “like a bouquet – better life and new discoveries. I just love it!”

Volunteer: Larman Williams, 74

What he does: OASIS ExerStart teacher at St. Andrews Apartments in Jennings Mo. and a retired physical education teacher.

Williams teaches two 30-minute classes per week.

“Most of our participants are in the 80’s, some are in wheelchairs and most of them are active and one way they keep active is by coming to our ExerStart program,” he said. “We work on strength, flexibility and aerobics.”

The age-appropriate exercises allow participants to work according to their ability.

“The exercises we have are all for older adults. We do leg bends and we do arm strengthening. We don’t do push ups,” Williams said. They do work out by doing sit ups, just not in the traditional way.

“We lean back and hold our hands over our chair and we come up from the stomach. When I was doing them, we got on the floor. That’s quite different.”

Working with OASIS is helping volunteers and participants alike.

“I am a social-type person. Without this program, it would be difficult for me to have the quality of association with people that I socialize with, and that’s an intriguing and gratifying point for me,” Williams said. “By doing it with other people, that gives me incentive and encouragement.”

There are nearly 100,000 members of OASIS in the St. Louis region, including Illinois and St. Charles County. Members have access to a broad range of classes in the arts, humanities, health, technology, volunteering and more. Membership is free and is open to persons age 50 and up.

For more information call (314) 539-4556 or visit online at www.oasisnet.org.