Slining retires as director of Norway Senior Center
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By SUZANNE KILLIAN
For The Daily News
NORWAY -- Susan Slining, after a career that spanned more than 20 years, has retired as the director of the Norway Senior Center effective Dec. 31.
She is proud of her career and cites growing up in a small town and the lessons learned from her parents as teaching her the values of empathy and caring for neighbors.
"Growing up in Manistique provided me with all of the benefits of small-town living, where knowing and caring about your neighbors is simply how life is lived," Slining said. "And both my grandparents and parents set an example of helping our neighbors and giving back to the community."
Slining's career is an extension of how she was raised. "I am very proud of the many accomplishments my board, staff and I have achieved during my tenure with the Norway Senior Center," she said. "I am grateful for getting to know all of the seniors. I enjoyed it all -- it never felt like work."
Advocacy, especially for the senior population, is in Slining's blood and comes as naturally to her as the air she breathes. Her advocacy for the seniors at the Norway Center began the moment she stepped up into the building. She realized immediately that there was a problem with both entries that made it difficult for seniors to enter. She worked with Carey Contracting to replace the concrete step with a gentler slope for easier access.
She did not stop there, as other changes were made to the center, which originally was the Rialto movie theater. Under her leadership, she had grab bars added to restrooms and removed the hydraulic mechanisms on the doors that made it nearly impossible for seniors in wheelchairs to independently use the facilities. She also had windows installed in the dining room, which had been naturally dark given its past historical function. Funds for the windows came from the Curtis J. Bracket Trust, which proved to be a very generous benefactor for the center over the years.
She also soon became aware of how much smoking was a natural part of the card playing that took place after the noon meal and pushed for a smoke-free environment.
The Norway center is an important source for nutritious meals for the senior population. When it was open six days a week, it prepared and served more than 30,000 meals in one year. Later budget cuts limited the center's ability to serve meals to its current four-day schedule. About half the meals are delivered to homes, while the other half are eaten at the center.
In addition to healthy meals, the center grew to provide other services important to senior health. Low-impact exercise classes took place with the help of a visiting occupational therapist from the Oscar G. Johnson VA Medical Center. When the therapist no longer came to the center, approximately 25 to 30 seniors met on their own to continue the routine.
A regular "Eat Healthy -- Stay Fit" class was provided to encourage healthy eating while growing older. Regular flu shot clinics also were offered at the center, with help from the health department initially and then Walgreens. Blood pressure clinics were added along with ceramics and craft classes, and card playing remained popular, along with the fellowship it encouraged.
Under Slining's leadership, the Norway Senior Center became so much more than a place for the senior population to go for reduced-price noon meals. It became a valued and supportive member of the Norway community and, in so doing, helped the senior population stay involved in community life.
"Seniors do not stop living once they attain a certain age, and they need more than food to sustain their vitality; they need a purpose," Slining explained. "Having their center play a meaningful role in their community gave them that purpose and helped them to see they could still help to make a positive impact on the lives of their neighbors."
Schoolchildren came to the center to do arts and crafts projects with the seniors. A "Senior Couple" became part of the annual Leif Erickson Day celebration. The center sponsored a float in the Leif Erickson parade and provided a sloppy Joe lunch as part of the annual celebration, along with regular craft and bake sales and pasty sales. The center even took pasties to the workers who were building the Knights Kingdom playground. That same pasty crew conducted a sale specifically to raise funds for the Almost Home Animal Shelter when it was being built. The center participated in the celebrated Norway Easter Egg Hunt by cleaning the thousands of plastic Easter eggs that were needed. And they began a recycling program that continues to this day.
Consequently, the Norway Senior Center has received tremendous community support as well. Many families whose loved ones have been positively affected by the center community have bequeathed funds at the time of their death, Slining said.
Slining's own advocacy extends beyond the center. She became personally involved in Norway's efforts to provide affordable housing for the senior population and helped to establish the Norway Area Non-Profit Housing Authority. Under its leadership, a high quality, 20-unit federally subsidized apartment complex was constructed that is income-based.
COVID-19, however, has changed everything at the center, Slining noted.
"Our seniors miss everything about the center. Loneliness and isolation are real issues in this population," she said. "Add a pandemic to the typical challenges of aging in a rural area, and it has become more challenging to find solutions for our seniors."
Committed to the continuation of at least the meal program, Slining and her staff set about finding a way to deliver healthy meals safely. New stringent cleaning protocols were implemented, along with the preparation of boxed "to go" meals. In the interests of social distancing, curbside pick-up was instituted, with almost 7,000 curbside meals picked up since the pandemic began, Slining said.
Slining's work for seniors extended beyond the local area. She was well-known in Lansing for her participation in Senior Power Day, when she lobbied on the steps of the state Capitol building to lower prescription drug prices.
She is a self-described "activist at heart" and remembers when she traveled to Lansing to speak to legislators about the renewal of funds for the Dickinson-Iron Community Services Agency, or DICSA. At the time, $140,000 was in jeopardy that was used to cover meals, transportation and in-home services.
As Slining described it, "I get in a lot of trouble while making 'good trouble.'" But she is quick to credit the many politicians who have supported senior issues and the center's objectives. Among them were David Anthony, Doug Bovin (who always brought Sayklley's candy for staff), Bob Davis and Bart Stupak. Stupak was extremely helpful in getting legislation passed to increase U.S. Department of Agriculture funding by 3 cents per meal. "That doesn't sound like much, but it quickly adds up over time," Slining said. She, in turn, was recognized by state politicians for her advocacy on behalf of the senior population.
Slining attended Northern Michigan University from 1965 through 1969 and accumulated a "ton of credits" but because she could never decide on a major, she did not attain an official degree. She was always interested in environmental issues and learned the meaning of activism throughout the '60s. She met her husband at NMU; they lived in Manistique and started a family. Slining has lived in Norway since 1986, with a home on Hamilton Lakes. Her career in human services began at Northpointe Behavioral Healthcare System that same year when she was hired as a training instructor for developmentally disabled adults. In 1989, at age 39, she started at DICSA and eventually made her way to the Norway Senior Center.
Her staff and board gave her a retirement dinner to share the many great memories they had of times at the center.
Her plans for retirement include many outdoor activities -- both recreational and maintenance on her property -- and spending more time with her two daughters, four grandsons and one granddaughter and her 1-year-old great-grandson. She has friends in New Mexico and Colorado she plans to visit as soon as it is safe to do so. She also plans to revisit favorite places across the Upper Peninsula and to catch up on her reading. She is an avid gardener.
Two things are certain: she will be up early every morning, and she will never be bored.
"Life is good," Slining said. "I plan to enjoy this time called retirement. I have no regrets. A career in human services was the best for me, and the rewards have been many. I will remain forever grateful for the love and support I received from so many and for all the wonderful seniors I have met and was able to help along life's journey. It's been a rewarding time in my life. And as I see the same values of helping and caring for others reflected in my children and grandchildren, I am proud of the legacy I will eventually leave behind."