Event Recap: 55 Kip Center and DOJO Penpal Exchange

By Jennifer Ersalesi

Photo Credit: Dana Monaghan

55 Kip Center is a senior activity center located on Kip Ave in Rutherford. Within the Kip Center, there are a variety of activities available to Kip Center members, such as exercise, nutrition and technology classes, guest speaker presentations, entertainment, art and creative writing classes, etc.

Students from The DOJO, a martial arts school on Park Ave, and Kip Center seniors from the Creative writing group began exchanging letters about 5 months ago. This idea came from Vanvian Hoo Conway and her son Ming, a student at the DOJO.

On May 18, the Kip Center hosted a "meet and greet". Cathy Baviello, Kip Center Assistant Director, organized this event so that DOJO students and Kip Center seniors could meet their pen pals. “The meet and greet was a successful event and the penpals exchanged addresses and will continue to write. Activities such as this provide unique opportunities for our Kip Center seniors to interact with younger members of the community.”

Photo credit: Dana Monaghan