20 I NEWS I November 1, 20<strong>23</strong> WEST NEWSMAGAZINE It may surprise you to learn that “normal” aging alone does not lead to loss of independence and additional health issues. With normal aging you can expect a small decline of about 3% each year. Even though you will experience declines each year, they are not enough to make significant changes to your daily life. So what actually causes loss of independence and increased health issues as you age? Inactivity, illness and injury, otherwise known as the Triple Whammy of Aging, is the cause. Each of these factors can have a significant effect on your aging path. The good news is there are things you can do to better manage each. Over the last 18 years, I’ve worked with hundreds of clients who’ve experienced “accelerated” aging due to: inactivity, illness and injury. It’s amazing to witness their transformations as they slowly add more activity into their daily lives and become healthier. Unfortunately not enough people are out there sharing the true benefits and the importance of staying physically active and prioritizing exercise to the aging population. DEFYING TIME: YOUR ULTIMATE GUIDE TO EVERLASTING YOUTH! BY: DR. BETH TEMPLIN, PT, DPT, GCS GERIATRIC PHYSICAL THERAPIST Too many people believe the changes they are experiencing are just a normal part of the aging process, when in reality they are experiencing "accelerated" aging. It’s why I’ve put together my Free Guide “How To Avoid the Triple Whammy of Aging”. Inside you'll learn: The difference between normal and accelerated aging. The negative impact of inactivity, illness and injury. The positive impact of physical activity on aging. How much physical activity you actually need. AND much more! This guide is available to you absolutely FREE of charge! To claim your copy, simply call our office at (314) 939-1377 or go online to our website at www.housefitstl.com/healthy-agingjourney to download the guide directly to your computer. This FREE Guide will allow you to better understand how to avoid accelerated aging and stay active and independent! 3809 Lemay Ferry Rd. Saint Louis, MO 63125 (314) 939-1377 info@housefitstl.com HouseFit www.housefitstl.com By TRACEY BRUCE MERS Goodwill has opened a new attended donation center, Donation X-Press, in Ellisville. Located at 32 Clarkson Road, it is the first in a series of convenient, attended donation centers planned for St. Louis County that will handle donations to Goodwill more efficiently and put those resources to work. The 2,000-square-foot building is not a retail store but is solely dedicated to collecting donations. Its purpose is to make charitable giving more accessible in the St. Louis area. “By opening a new Donation X-Press, we not only provide a more streamlined donation experience but also relieve the pressure on some of our busier store locations,” said Mark Arens, president and CEO of MERS Goodwill. “Most importantly, this initiative reduces waiting times for donors while contributing to our mission and supporting our various employment and training programs.” Those employment and training programs are at the heart of MERS Goodwill and its purpose, said Mark Kahrs, executive vice president of MERS Goodwill said. Kahrs began working for MERS Goodwill more than 20 years ago in the Goodwill store in Manchester. “I guess, back then, I thought what most people think – that the store was there to provide items at a reasonable price for those who may need them, and that’s great. But it is a secondary benefit, not the primary role. Really, what we are doing is taking the money earned and putting it back in the community to get people jobs and get them back on their feet. “Whether they have barriers with a physical disability, a mental disability or an injury that maybe prevent them from getting to work or has caused them to change from the work they were doing, we work with them. We are like headhunters for the common man, we have a network of job developers that hook somebody’s passion and dreams into a job that fits for that person, and then help them to get the training to do that.” @WESTNEWSMAG WESTNEWSMAGAZINE.COM MERS Goodwill opens new Donation X-Press in Ellisville The new Donation X-Press is located at 32 Clarkson Road. Goodwill is also tackling another barrier to succes – inadequate education. “There are half a million Missourians that have never finished high school and are over 21 years old. We have now opened our sixth high school in the state,” Kahrs said. “This is free high school for anyone over the age of 21 to come back to class. It’s not like getting a GED. We have professional teachers, retired from public or private schools, who want to continue in that kind of work, who work with adults who are wanting to get that education, whether they feel like they need that for forward progress in their career or a way to get into trade school or get into college, or are people who found themselves in a life situation and just feel like it’s important to them to finish because they never did.” “I have to say the stories that are so impactful are around that education piece. It’s watching parents go back to school because they have kids that are in middle school or high school and threatening to quit, saying, ‘Well, you didn’t finish.’ And now they can take that excuse away from their kids. There are just miracles there every term.” He said achieving both the education and the job make a difference in people’s lives. “People that are proud of their accomplishments always achieve more,” he said. “There are adults who are working hard to do this at a different stage in life. I think the confidence on that end is so big. And on the job piece, it is the same thing. Going to a place and giving your effort and seeing the fruits of their labor gives people so much more confidence to tackle whatever else might be in their life.” “That’s the joy we find in doing what we do,” Kahrs said. Kahrs said that MERS Goodwill is glad to have the new attended donation center and he always looks forward to working with the community to provide opportunities for people. The center’s operating hours are from 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m., daily and attendants will issue tax receipts to donors. Donations given to the center in Ellisville will likely make their way to rural Goodwill stores where donations are fewer. Annually serving more than <strong>11</strong>,000 individuals, MERS Goodwill, a nonprofit organization, operates in 46 locations serving 93 counties in the bi-state area. For more information about MERS Goodwill or to find a Goodwill donation center near you, call (314) 241-3464 or visit mersgoodwill.org.
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