Commonwealth Senior Living and Eversound Host Largest Senior Silent Disco
November 15, 2018
BOSTON, MA–Eversound recently partnered with Commonwealth Senior Living to host a silent disco event for its residents. The event took place October 30 in Norfolk, Virginia, and had the theme of “Dancing Through the Decades.” With nearly 200 attendees from six different assisted living locations, including residents, staff, family, and community members, it could likely be the largest senior silent disco to date. Watch the fun here.
To “Dance Through the Decades,” each senior living community was assigned a decade starting from the 1920s through the 1970s. Residents and staff wore costumes from their designated decade, and top hits from each decade were played from famous artists including Johnny Cash, Elvis and the Bee Gees.
In addition to being a fun-filled evening, the main purpose of the event was to raise awareness about hearing loss and social isolation—two increasingly prevalent conditions among the older population and senior living communities specifically.
With Eversound’s group wireless hearing technology even residents with profound hearing loss were able to hear, communicate, participate and enjoy themselves at the event. However, Eversound was designed for much more than silent discos and musical programming. The wireless headsets link to a transmitter, which can connect with any audio source, including a microphone, television or music player.
At Commonwealth in particular, Eversound is used for many other regular activities and serves several purposes. It can be used during guided bus tours in order to hear more clearly, during physical therapy appointments to effectively communicate and take part in care plans, and of course to help residents enjoy their favorite songs from their younger days.
“Ultimately our goal is to end social isolation,” said Alyssa Gagliardi, Eversound’s director of community engagement.
Hearing loss is a natural part of the aging process, but when left unaddressed, it can lead to mental decline, social isolation and depression.
“While hearing aids can be helpful, they’re often overly expensive, easy to lose and challenging to operate for users who lack manual dexterity. We believe that beautiful, easy-to-use audio products can be the answer, and our team is excited to deliver high fidelity sound to large audience members for less than the cost of one premium hearing aid,” said Jake Reisch, CEO and co-founder of Eversound.
Eversound’s easy to use, wireless headphone group listening system product is specifically designed for the ergonomic, auditory and aesthetic needs of older adult users. Helping audience members hear clearly during movies, presentations and group events has improved their quality of life and increased participation and engagement.
“The dramatic improvement that comes from giving the gift of enhanced engagement through Eversound is incredible for everyone—staff, residents, and loved ones alike,” added Alex Wilson, director of resident impact for Eversound. “The results are automatic, which immediately increases the morale of both the staff and residents significantly. With the 65+ population nearly doubling by 2050, we’re excited to be expanding installations with several of the largest senior living chains in the country.”
Commonwealth Senior Living is a Charlottesville-based company founded in 2002 which operates 21 senior living communities throughout Virginia. It introduced Eversound to all of its communities last year. All of its communities also offer the Sweet Memories program for Alzheimer’s disease and dementia care. Commonwealth’s long-term goals include smart growth through acquisition, custom renovations and creative hiring.