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Bilingual International Assistant Services

Providing Interpretation and Social Services in the St. Louis Are for over 12 years

Home > Events > Macklind International Senior Center Opens
Macklind International Senior Center Opens

Macklind International Senior Center Opens

March 23, 2014 By Jason Baker

Macklind International Opens Doors

City’s First Multicultural Senior Center Welcomes Its First Groups

GRAND OPENING OCTOBER 23, 2013, 2PM – 7PM

1329 Macklind Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110

St. Louis, August 15, 2013 – For more than one decade, Bi-Lingual International Assistant Services (BIAS) has faithfully served elderly immigrants and refugees living in the St. Louis region with a variety of socialization and naturalization services.  This month, BIAS opened a fully functional international senior center in south St. Louis.  This is a defining moment in the agency’s evolution as it serves the needs of this important population.  On August 15, the center provided support for the first time to a group of Albanian seniors.  The group – organized by BIAS case worker Emiranda Gace – came for fellowship, benefits assistance, recreation, health education, and a nutritious meal.  What makes this center stand out from others is the nature of the culturally appropriate service provided – right down to the native Albanian meal served.  The BIAS senior center is intended to provide basic supports, but in a comfortable and familiar environment that will improve the experience of seniors as well as their ability to live independently in the community.  To that end, BIAS built a complete kitchen, trained Vietnamese, Bosnian, Nepalese/Bhutanese, Albanian, and Russian cooks, and will be able to serve high-quality, authentic, culturally specific cuisine to the seniors that attend.  Additional groups, including Latino and Chinese, are planned for the near future.

“People need a place where they can feel at home,” says BIAS Co-founder and President Julia Ostropolsky, LCSW, “where they can socialize and maintain their cultural identity while also learning about the new culture and the new country they call their own.  We have the ability to pair culturally specific senior groups with same-culture, same-language, US-trained professionals to help seniors adjust to American culture and maintain their independence while doing so.”

Thanks in part to the generous funding provided by the St. Louis Area Agency on Aging (SLAAA), BIAS was able to rent a 15-seat bus to help bring seniors to the center, many of whom would not otherwise have any means of transportation.

Older adults who participate in senior center programs can learn to manage and delay the onset of chronic disease.  They also experience measurable improvements in their physical, social, spiritual, emotional, mental, and economic well-being.  Senior Centers are especially important for aging refugees and immigrants due to the tendency to experience heightened isolation and suffering from previous war trauma and loss, which can exacerbate significant health-related concerns.

“We are going to bring people together and foster independence.  Part of the mission of the Macklind International Senior Center is to help seniors maintain the dignity of self-determination for as long as possible.  Our agency is able to address many of the needs that these seniors have, and now we have a beautiful, new location to serve them in.”

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Filed Under: Events Tagged With: Aging, Culture, Elderly, Immigrants, Julia Ostropolsky, Macklind International, Macklind International Senior Center, Missouri, Out, Refugee, Seniors, St. Louis

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Bilingual International Assistant Services

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We are very pleased to announce that our trauma-focused counseling program for migrant and refugee youth, Project Safe Space, has been renewed for Core Cycle Funding by the St. Louis County Children's Service Fund (CSF) through 2026. Safe Space was created as a pilot project in the Ritenour School District with the support of CSF and we're proud to continue our work together for St. Louis County families. #stlcsf ... See MoreSee Less
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Bilingual International Assistant Services is at Tower Grove Park Sons of Rest Pavilion.

3 weeks ago

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This past weekend, we held our Annual Senior Center Picnic in Tower Grove Park. Over 150 seniors attended with their families. They sang karaoke, learned Tai Chi, played games, ate great food, but most of all, they connected with one another!Bilingual's Macklind International Senior Center is a place for seniors from four different cultures to gather and find community- the 2023 picnic was no exception! Thank you to all of our volunteers and staff for making this possible. We're already looking forward to next year and what karaoke songs it will bring! Thanks to our sponsors and funders for helping make this event possible: St. Louis Area Agency on Aging, St. Louis City Senior Fund, Missouri CLAIM, Steve's Hot Dogs, Arber Café and Dad's Cookie Company! ... See MoreSee Less
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