If Dr. Tom McDermott of Roswell has a motto, it’s this: “Keep moving.”
It’s the maxim that has always propelled the 89-year-old former public health dentist through life’s events — retirement, the death of his spouse, and various moves, including this last one into a senior residential community where he inspires neighbors to follow his lead and wring the most out of life.
McDermott lives independently in an apartment at St. George Village, a senior-living life-care retirement community that includes assisted living and memory care units. Every day, there are multiple fitness classes, card games, field trips and other activities available to residents, McDermott said.
It’s as if you never had to leave the residential enclave. But McDermott would have none of that.
“My attitude was always, ‘I’m not going to let St. George Village beat me. I’m going to beat them.’ I’m not going to give up my other activities, all the things I did before,” he said.
So instead of giving up what he loved to do, he expanded his interests and included his St. George neighbors.
Jean Pastore, St. George Village resident service manager, calls McDermott a “ball of energy.” Since moving in, he has started a snorkeling class in the indoor pool, a bocce ball group and a residential band. He also leads the St. George Village choral group and is head of the in-house wellness committee.
"He's very youthful, just a great guy," Pastore said. McDermott was among 20 other older Georgians recognized by the Georgia Institute on Aging and LeadingAge Georgia with the 2017 Profiles of Positive Aging award. A gala was held in their honor in November.
St. George Village nominated McDermott because of his “zest for life and compassion for his fellow seniors.”
McDermott and his wife, Suzanne, put a down payment on a St. George unit more than a decade ago, thinking ahead to a day they might need to settle down. In 2008, Suzanne passed away as the couple was celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.
McDermott decided to move to St. George because he wanted to continue living independently and not have to one day live with one of his children. He has four grown children and eight grandchildren.
A lot of elders move into retirement communities because their adult kids want them there. Many move from other areas of the country and say goodbye to their friends and a lifestyle they were used to.
“They come in kind of depressed,” McDermott said.
“My goal is to get folks here doing something. I tell them, ‘Don’t come here and stay here,’ ” McDermott said. “When new people move in I tell them you’ve got to keep your outside activities going.”
McDermott’s main hobby has always been music. McDermott plays the Irish fiddle on open session Tuesday nights at Meehan’s Irish Pub in Sandy Springs, and he plays the violin with Suwanee’s Main Street Symphony.
At St. George, he’s busy as choral director of The Villagers. He’s currently planning the group’s big production, “Your Hit Parade,” with Top 40 hits from the 1940s and ’50s. Being a singer and a director are new activities for him. McDermott also got together other residents who liked music and played instruments and formed an in-house group called the Band-aids.
McDermott started several fitness activities at St. George Village. He talked management into buying snorkeling equipment for the indoor pool, and drummed up enthusiasm for bocce ball. Soon, residents will have an official bocce ball court and McDermott has been talking with other senior groups in the area about forming a league. He’s also planning regular fishing activities for the campus pond.
“My goal is to keep moving and keep everyone else moving, too.”
SAGE ADVICE FOR SENIORS MOVING INTO A LIFE-CARE COMMUNITY
• Make new friends but don’t give up your old ones. Dr. Tom McDermott has regular lunch dates at restaurants with a group of friends he has known for years.
• Don’t give up activities you’ve always loved. McDermott continues to play with an Irish fiddle group in Sandy Springs, and with a symphony in Suwanee. He also brought his skills and love for music into the community, joining and leading a choral group and forming a band for residents.
• Try new activities. McDermott noticed that the indoor pool was rarely used, so he started snorkeling and coaxed others to give the fitness activity a try. He also started an in-house band, and convinced those who couldn’t sing or play an instrument that they could still participate. He gave them kazoos.
• Let others know who you are. Many seniors are too modest to talk about their past achievements, such as a fabulous career or military heroics. McDermott encourages his neighbors to tell their stories, and he wants to write them down so others can celebrate their accomplishments.
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