Life begins after 50 at clubs for senior citizens
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
Growing old does not necessarily lead to feeling lonely and abandoned. Senior citizens can still enjoy their lives by joining numerous activities such as dancing, bridge and even karaoke.
"I want to prove that being old is not always related to waiting for death as many people presume," 60-year-old Henny Subrata told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday, speaking enthusiastically about her activities at Paguyuban Dhamar Wulan, an organization for people over 50.
The association was established eight years ago. It is one of 63 organizations for elderly citizens in the country. Based in Sentul, Bogor regency, the club has scheduled a number of programs for September, which include dance courses, Chinese language course, karaoke, bridge and a bazaar.
According to Henny, dance courses are the most popular program among wulans -- a name for the elderly that the members go by. She said that many of the members were invited to dance in various gatherings.
"However, I think the main objective for the senior citizens who join this organization is to be happy in their old age. It is clear from their enthusiasm in joining the dance courses," she said.
The association has branches in Bogor, Cirebon, Bandung, Semarang, Surabaya, Malang, Kediri, Sukabumi, Manado, Makassar, Purwokerto and Yogyakarta. In Jakarta it has two branches.
To become a member of the association, one must pay an annual fee of Rp 120,000 (US$13) in Jakarta. The fee is cheaper in other cities, at Rp 75,000 per year.
Many of the members are former high-ranking officials, company executives and businesspeople.
Besides courses, the association members also occasionally travel to tourist resorts at home or abroad.
The association has regular meetings for the courses at its Rp 1 billion base camp in Sentul. To accommodate more activities, the association has allocated Rp 2.5 billion for the construction of a second building and a swimming pool.
The money is generated from the annual fees, sponsorship and donations.
Speaking about the two branches in Jakarta, Reinhard Wowiling, a staff member at Dhamar Wulan Foundation secretariat, said that a group of 20 people would be enough to establish a new branch of the association. Currently there are two branches in East Jakarta and West Jakarta.
Henny, who is also secretary of the East Jakarta branch, said the branch tries to make activities among the members more effective and efficient.
"Since we have an East Jakarta branch, we can organize various courses here. More people will join the courses because they are not far from their homes. That also brings closer ties," she added.