Singing Yiddish songs for seniors in Florida accompanied by a 99-year-old violin player

Last week I had so much fun singing and telling jokes for a group of seniors in a home near Fort Lauderdale, Florida. They have a Yiddish group that meets once a week and I offered to do a one hour show. They were fantastic, filled with good humor and spirit. The gentleman who played the violin along with my singing is 99 years old and sharp as anything. I sang mostly Yiddish songs which are classics, as well as a song in Russian and a song in Italian. This was for the few Italian and Russian speakers in the audience.

Entertaining old people runs in my family. My father, also a rabbi, goes every Friday afternoon to a seniors’ home to play his trumpet. It’s a win-win situation. He’s happy to play his trumpet, the family is happy that he is not playing the trumpet in the house, and the old people love to hear him play.

The faculty of music seems to be the last thing that disappears from a person’s mind. A person with Alzheimer’s and dementia may not remember much or recognize something but will join in to sing a song of their youth.

Please G-d I hope to have more opportunities to sing for older people and make them smile.