Every Friday morning, a group of older adults — along with Riley, a charming service dog — gathers around a table at a local coffee shop. For about a year, they have been meeting weekly, sharing stories about their backgrounds, careers, interests, hobbies and passions.

They have built a trust that fosters open and spontaneous conversations filled with laughter and compassion.

“We can open up here and then bring that into the rest of our lives,” said Ed Leo, the group’s resident jokester and the only male in the group.

For Leo and the others, the weekly meetings provide a healthy outlet to build friendships, talk with one another and even to heal. The group members first met through UCHealth’s “CircleTalk” series, a program that encourages health and wellness, emotional support and personal growth in older adults.

Why CircleTalk?

Since 1989, UCHealth’s Aspen Club has offered health-related programs and services in northern Colorado to individuals ages 50 and older. Classes are free or donation-based and aim to help older adults age healthfully and independently.

When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, more people, especially older adults, experienced devastating isolation.

By the summer of 2020, 56% of older adults reported feeling socially isolated, a significant increase from 27% in 2018. Social isolation and loneliness are directly linked to adverse health outcomes, including high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, stroke, cognitive decline and behavioral health issues like depression.

“We had a strong engagement with older adults post-pandemic,” said JoAnn Herkenhoff, manager for UCHealth Community Health Improvement, which oversees the Aspen Club. “Some craved reconnection, but we noticed that others were missing and needed to regain comfort in having conversations that were lost during the pandemic.”

The Aspen Club sought to bring older adults out of isolation and back into society. In 2022, with help from a UCHealth Northern Colorado Foundation WISH grant, Aspen Club managers introduced CircleTalk.

What is CircleTalk?

CircleTalk is an evidence-based, relationship-centered program that facilitates structured conversations through a fun, unique and non-repetitive curriculum. Its goal is to foster new meaningful connections and inspire older adults to share their experiences and ideas.

The program spans eight weeks. Groups of four to 12 participants meet for one hour each week. Participants first participate in mindfulness exercises to focus on the present moment and then spend time reminiscing and sharing conversation about a specific topic — a poem, a short story or a quote. The conversations inspire participants to share experiences and get to know one another, said Kat Laws, CircleTalk’s facilitator and a health educator for UCHealth’s Aspen Club.

“We know that engaging with others is an important part of leading a long and healthy life,” she said.

Leo and the others, including 79-year-old Jennie Russell, wholeheartedly agree.

“What I love about this group is that our discussions trigger me to use my mind. Just watching basketball games will not cut it,” Russell said.

The program establishes the roots, and participants continue to grow and benefit

Russell is a retired teacher who taught school for 40 years and still believes in learning. She’s also passionate about sports, and Riley, her service dog, aids Russell in navigating a neurological condition affecting much of her body.

In 2015, she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s (later identified as a misdiagnosis), so she sought specific classes through the Aspen Club that would help her with her disease. But the pandemic changed her trajectory.

“As a Parkinson’s patient, I was more susceptible to COVID, so I didn’t want to go out,” Russell said. “I didn’t want to be involved in stuff like that. I was scared. In a word, I was afraid. And I’m still afraid. When I go to the grocery store, I still wear a mask and don’t do large groups anymore.”

Leo also felt isolated during the pandemic, though he and Russell vowed to build social connections, and the Aspen Club was there to support them.

Leo and Russell joined the CircleTalk series, and a handful of others also signed up for the class. More than a year later, the former CircleTalk group still meets weekly at their “spot” to talk and share, just as they did when they first started.

“Consistent with Aspen Club’s mission to empower members to build intrinsic motivation, the group is now drawing on the strengths that they learned in CircleTalk to continue to deepen the connections and support one another,” Herkenhoff said.

Initially, each participant would bring a new topic to discuss, but as time passed, they realized they no longer needed a structured agenda to spark meaningful conversations.

“During our discussions, many memories come back that I’ve forgotten about,” said Caren Everett, a former music teacher and one of the few members who grew up in Fort Collins.

Russell suggested to Everett that having people to talk to is perhaps helping her with memory. There is some truth to that, according to one study that examined how being socially active helps keep the brain healthy in older adults. Researchers found that people who spend more time with friends and family and in social activities had better brain structures in areas important for thinking and memory. The study suggested that staying socially engaged may help protect against memory problems and diseases like dementia as people age.

Another member, Louise Rand, said CircleTalk has given her a sense of community.

“I’m more outgoing here,” she said. “I’ve shared things here that I haven’t shared with anyone.”

The group members trust that their weekly meetings are a safe and nonjudgmental place to meet and talk.

“That’s something you lose when you age,” Russell said. “But I know if I woke up in the middle of the night and needed something, I could call on any of these people.”

The group grows stronger each time it meets. Bonds have formed, and meaningful connections have been made that are essential for a healthy and fulfilling life. They are grateful for each other.

As Leo said, “This group is part of my wellness.”