By Lorrie DeFrank
For the seniors who support the Happy Hour Club, it’s about giving thanks year-round. “Almost every happy hour, someone has come up to me and said, ‘Thank you for doing this. I don’t know what I would be doing if it weren’t for Happy Hour Club’,” said Lina Ingraham, who started the group in 2009 and has kept it thriving.
Singles and married couples in their 60s to 90s gather three times a month around the Beaches to socialize with old and new friends. Always, it’s like walking into a Cheers bar.
Besides the camaraderie, benefits include healthier lifestyles and the satisfaction of helping others, especially this time of year. By getting together during the holidays, a lonesome time for many, seniors are likely improving their mental and physical health and adding years to their lives.
Numerous studies have linked socialization with longevity. They show that people with strong social networks have higher survival rates and lower risks of heart disease, strokes, depression and anxiety.
After recently reading an article in AARP: The Magazine about centenarians who credited their long lives to socializing, Ingraham emailed this excerpt to members: “Strong social connections are linked to a 50% greater chance of living longer. The bond between you and the people around you might be the ultimate key to aging well.”
Most of all, Happy Hour Club members are thankful for each other’s friendships.
“Since my husband passed away 20 years ago this has helped keep me more outgoing and building friendships,” said Debbie Luke, a regular who travels a good distance to attend.
“One of the important things about this organization is that it gets us older retired people out into social situations that are fun and relaxing,” agreed Dottie Cernik. “People who just sit home age a lot faster than we do in the Happy Hour Club.”
Cernik praised Ingraham for bringing people together, organizing each event and spending countless hours soliciting businesses to sponsor the club’s charity events.
“I’d be sitting at home alone, too, if it weren’t for the Happy Hour Club,” quipped Ingraham, who made cherished friends herself there.
“Lina is one of my best friends in Florida and I did not know her before Happy Hour Club,” said Cernik.
Although the Happy Hour Club is in no way associated with the former Martini Club that had disbanded several years earlier, Ingraham said its concept of getting people together is the same. “About six of us were sitting around and decided we could start our own club,” she said. “Also, in 2008 the economy was bad and my objective was to help the businesses at the Beaches that were struggling.”
Others played key roles in building the foundation but Ingraham took off to make it happen and she’s still going strong at 84.
“It was all word of mouth for the first few months,” said Ingraham, who maintains a database of nearly 150 current active members. Membership is free. “It’s not a meet-up group for relationships but sometimes that happens, too. They are the nicest people and that’s part of its success.”
Ingraham selects three places to meet each month and emails members the dates and locations. She spends many hours developing a rapport with restaurant owners and managers, coordinating schedules and communicating information. “I look for places that have good happy hour pricing and specials on the food and try to do every happy hour on Monday or Tuesday when business is slower,” she said.
“It’s part of our embedded social life,” said Berge Gregian, who with his wife Nancy has attended nearly every happy hour since the beginning unless they were out of town.
“It’s a safe place to meet new friends and go to a variety of restaurants in the Beaches area. Lina finds the newest and best places to go,” said Marcie Ryan. “She is my best friend. I would not have known her if it weren’t for Happy Hour Club.”
Ryan said she is thankful to be part of this group that brings people out of their shells to socialize and helps the less fortunate through its fundraisers.
Since 2011, members donated 4,186 pounds of food and $2,865 to Beaches Emergency Assistance Ministry. Last year, they raised $1,600 for Beaches Community Kitchen.
In addition to the happy hours, members gather to celebrate the club’s anniversaries and other special occasions. If there’s music, Charlie Sellers, at 95 the oldest member, entertains with his signature rendition of “New York, New York.”
“We’re out every night and Happy Hour Club is the one we find most comfortable and fun,” said Charlie’s wife Colette.
“I love this group,” Charlie said. “Hopefully, it will keep on going from season to season. To me it’s the laughter. That’s what life is all about.”
