On a chilly fall afternoon in Far Rockaway, Queens, Deborah Otts, 75, parked her wheelchair in front of her computer monitor, clicked on a virtual music class and entered with a burst of energy. “Hi, Beverly! Hi, Janice!” she said, before naming every other member of the class. Once the class began, two musicians played guitar and sang a mix of songs, including some by Ms. Otts’s favorite artist, Neil Diamond. She swayed in her chair and announced, “Music is good for the soul.”
State opens virtual senior center statewide
Older New Yorkers now have free access to a virtual hub designed to fight loneliness and keep them socially connected.
NYSOFA and Selfhelp Community Services Announce Free Access to Vi… December 15, 2025 | 11:01 AM ET Learn more about NYSOFA and Selfhelp Community Services Announce Free Access to Virtual Senior Center (VSC) for New Yorkers 60+ in Effort to Address…
The New York State Office for the Aging (NYSOFA) and Selfhelp Community Services today announced the availability of free access to Selfhelp’s Virtual Senior Center (VSC) for any individual age 60 and older in New York State.
The VSC (Virtual Senior Center) is a vibrant community of teachers, innovators, and learners combating social isolation in older adults through technology. Discover ways to be more CONNECTED at any age.
Sound investments in education yield big returns. Education can transform individual lives, lifting people out of poverty and setting their families on a more prosperous course within a single generation. Education also has societal benefits, improving public health and boosting economic growth.
Live with Greg | Discover the VIRTUAL Senior Center
The VSC (Virtual Senior Center) is a vibrant community of teachers, innovators, and learners combating social isolation in older adults through technology. Discover ways to be more CONNECTED at any age.
Holocaust Survivors From the Former Soviet Union
In November 1942, the Nazi territories stretched across Europe from France to Russia, including much of the Soviet Union.
PHI launches initiative to create universal direct care workforce model
Dozens of Holocaust survivors gather for a ‘coffeehouse’ to honor past and share survival stories
More than 50 Holocaust survivors from the Five Towns and other parts of Nassau County gathered at the Five Towns Premier Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Woodmere on Oct. 29 for a “coffeehouse” get-together.
Opinion: Becoming a witness changed me forever
One day after school I walked into an office building in midtown Manhattan feeling a mix of nervousness and excitement. I was there to meet other high school students and older adults at the nonprofit Selfhelp Community Services. I heard about Selfhelp’s Witness Theater program from my sister so I knew that the older adults we would be working with are not ordinary New Yorkers – they are all Holocaust survivors.
UPDATE Riverdale: Coffee House Event Held for Holocaust Survivors at Hebrew Institute
Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81) and Councilman Eric Dinowitz (C.D. 11), both of whom broadly represent the northwest Bronx, joined attendees and officials from Selfhelp Community Services on Thursday, Sept. 18, when the organization hosted its latest “Coffee House” event at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, part of an event series dedicated to Holocaust survivors.
