PROGRAM NEWS
Yoga
PCAS’s Virtual Yoga class offers stretching, strengthening, and fun.
Every Wednesday at 3:15 PM, Mamie Guidera along with PCAS yogis meet on Zoom in a 75-minute virtual yoga class. Charlie Parker, a physical therapy student and avid PCAS volunteer, adds strengthening exercises to the mix.
PCAS members enjoying an online yoga class
Mamie, a certified yoga instructor, guides her students through a series of poses, including a standing series, a sitting series, a wall series, and mat work.
“Our class is very social,” Mamie told us in a recent interview, “and it’s the only yoga class I know of where you can bring your dog.”
The Zoom platform allows Mamie to modify poses as needed and offer corrections for students. These virtual classes replace the in-person classes that were held in Lloyd Hall before the pandemic.
John DeAngelo has been an active PCAS member for over 20 years and member of the yoga program since it converted into a virtual program during the pandemic. As a regular at the Wednesday session, John says, “the virtual yoga program with PCAS provides me with the opportunity to participate in yoga, and it allows me to adapt the poses to my specific needs and abilities in a comfortable setting. Mamie is great at suggesting ways to do the poses in an alternative way, and I like the benefits of increased flexibility and relaxation of the mind. It's a great class.”
Peggy Seelaus, a PCAS member since 2009, and a member of PCAS’s yoga program since the start, shares her enthusiasm with everyone she meets. When asked to share her experience, Peggy said “I really look forward to the virtual yoga class with Mamie every Wednesday afternoon. Because of doing yoga, I am more relaxed and flexible. I have had stiff muscles that have loosened up after doing yoga and I feel so much better. Please continue the virtual yoga, PCAS, I really love it.”
If you are interested in joining a class that is fun, challenging, and relaxing at the same time, contact Judy Morrison for more information.
(Contributor: Irene McKnight)
Birding
PCAS’s newest program will appeal to people who enjoy the beauty of nature.
After almost a year of planning, the Birding Group held their first of seven outings in February of 2021. In a recent article about the program in Grid Philadelphia, author Bernard Brown noted, “the group met at the John James Audubon Center in Audubon, Montgomery County. Though there’s nothing remarkable about birders getting together at the Audubon museum, the former home of America’s most famous birder, what was remarkable was what they were celebrating the launch of a more accessible kind of group.”
Birding outing at Stoneleigh, Villanova, October 2021
PCAS member Katie Samson’s interest in the hobby became the genesis for creating the new group. Katie reached out to several organizations including PCAS about starting an adapted birding program. PCAS leadership quickly agreed that such a program would be a fitting addition, and worked with Katie to launch it.
Diane Allison, a close friend of one of PCAS' long-time members, was recruited last year to help lead the outings. Diane now leads the PCAS birding program and brings a wealth of knowledge from her 40 years of birding experience. She has also been the compiler for the Central Bucks Christmas Bird Count and the Spring Migration Count for over 20 years. Her interest in birding has taken her across the United States and abroad.
This hobby allows people to observe birds using binoculars or the naked eye in addition to listening for their calls and songs.
Our expert guides will help you identify birds through their unique size, shape, color and song, make birding an educational activity that everyone can enjoy, including those having visual impairments. All that is needed to participate is enthusiasm to learn and be out in nature.
Our birding program takes place on accessible trails, so people with any mobility needs can enjoy the outdoors and learn more about the birds in our area.
So what does the future hold for this new program? Leader Diane Allison says, “I want it to go wherever the participants want it to go. I am here to try and help folks learn about birds and their identification, and to help them learn the healing powers of nature.”
If you are interested in participating, contact Judy Morrison to register and for more information.
(Contributor: Craig Rittase)
PCAS PEOPLE - Volunteer SPOTLIGHT
Andrew Skobac
Climbing Program Leader
Andrew Skobac with his dog Apollo
As an avid climber for most of his life, Andrew Skobac has always felt strongly about sharing his passion for climbing. He brought that passion and years of experience with him when he started volunteering with our climbing program in 2016.
Whether climbing with friends or guiding trips for his university’s recreation center, Andrew wants others to be able to share in this unique experience.
He formerly worked for Catalyst Sports, a nonprofit similar to PCAS, offering “adventure sports” opportunities for people with disabilities.
He also became a volunteer for Paradox Sports, focused exclusively on adaptive climbing. Their program is based on the premise that since climbing equipment is so specialized and tailored to each user, everyone who climbs must “adapt”. Andrew shares this view, adding that all climbers have their own strategies and it doesn’t matter if you’re a world class climber or it’s your first adaptive climb, everyone is in it together.
PCAS members at indoor climbing
Currently working for Kinetic Prosthetics, Andrew learned about PCAS when his company sponsored the Cinco De Mayo Benefit Bike Ride. He became a PCAS volunteer, and eventually started a monthly climbing night at The Gravity Vault in Radnor, before adding another location in Philadelphia at the Cliffs at Callowhill in September.
“It’s great to see the climbing community rally to be more inclusive,” Andrew says, and the volunteers have come out in force! With reduced attendance due to the pandemic, he’s had to turn volunteers away. “They’re so excited to help. It’s something people love and they want to share it.”
One of the best parts of the adaptive program is seeing the athletes succeed, whether it’s their first climb or they have been doing it for a while.
He pointed out that it’s a real community and many times people come for the socializing as much as for the opportunity to climb.
Andrew shared a powerful experience from one of their first climbs at The Cliffs. A woman in a power chair came into the gym to watch her husband exercise, but Andrew reached out to her and invited her to see what was going on in the program. As she came in, someone else in a wheelchair was climbing. Until then, she hadn't known that adaptive climbing was possible. As Andrew told us, “Representation matters! Accessibility matters!”, and this random occurrence was another positive change to perceptions.
Working in an adaptive world is very rewarding for Andrew and he encourages everyone to give climbing a try. He is particularly appreciative of all the volunteers who help with the program, and everyone at The Gravity Vault Radnor, and The Cliffs at Callowhill. “They make PCAS's adaptive climbing program possible,” he tells us, but Andrew plays a pretty big role in that himself. Thank for all you do, Andrew!
(Contributor: Andrea Pampaloni)
