As a member of the Northwest Singles Social Club (NWSSC), Claudia Weintraub knows one of the secrets to long life — and no, it’s not green juice or yoga class.
“A long-running Harvard study found that the best predictor of health and well-being for people in their 80s was not high cholesterol or blood pressure or anything, but it was having friendships and relationships with other people,” Weintraub said. “And that’s what we’re all about.”
NWSSC is founded on the tenet that “one of the secrets to long life is having fun” — and its roughly 80 members take that ethos seriously. The social club hosts events ranging from happy hours to trail walks, theater outings, games, seasonal parties and even the occasional karaoke session. Members celebrate holidays and birthdays, and some even vacation together.
“Almost every day of the month, we have something going on,” said NWSSC President Merna Nelson. “Some days we have two things. So it’s pick and choose … and it’s member driven.”
NWSSC began in the ‘70s as a Parents Without Partners chapter, but as members aged, that mission began to shift.
Today, there are just two criteria to join: Members must be 55-plus and single, divorced or widowed. Nelson said folks come to NWSSC from a variety of professional backgrounds: artists, lawyers, teachers, writers, caring professionals and stay-at-home parents. Many are also Bellingham transplants.
Nelson, for example, is a former children’s attorney and court magistrate. Weintraub is a former real estate agent from the East Coast; she moved to Bellingham in 2019 and now handles NWSSC’s communications. NWSSC’s hospitality person, Andree Wallis, worked as a nurse practitioner in California before moving to Bellingham in 2021.
“[NWSSC] has absolutely changed my life, because there is such a divergent population in this group … and people are very open to doing different things,” Wallis added.
Case in point: Wallis recalled a “magic moment” at a NWSSC picnic, when one member taught the whole group how to belly dance. (“She’s just this wonderfully energetic and enthusiastic person, and you wouldn’t dare not do it with her!” Wallis added.)
And while the group’s purpose is community-building, not romance, Nelson said relationships do happen on occasion. Wallis still considers herself single and was “not interested in dating at all” when she joined the group. But then she met a gentleman (and fellow NWSSC member) who changed her mind — and after a while, Wallis decided she might give dating a try after all.
Nelson said some NWSSC connections have resulted in marriages. And while all active NWSSC members are single, the “old guard” — previous members who are now married — are welcomed back on special occasions.
But even platonic relationships are a major social determinant of health, especially as people age. The World Health Organization estimates that one in four older adults experience loneliness and isolation. To quote psychologist Robert Waldinger, director of the aforementioned Harvard study: “Loneliness kills. It’s as powerful as smoking or alcoholism.”
This sentiment rings true for Weintraub, who noted that “if you’re in your 70s … you don’t go out and do something on your own.”
“You don’t go to a club, you don’t go out to breakfast,” she continued. “You don’t go out to dinner on your own. If you have family, you might do a little of that … but going to musical events or to plays and stuff like that, I would not do any of that stuff. I’d be sitting at home watching television or reading a book.”
NWSSC, however, equips seniors with an established social group.
“We’ve seen a lot of people ‘come out,’ if you will, in terms of being more active and more social,” Nelson said. “Maybe they came in quietly, but they’ve really brightened up.”
The benefits of such a group go beyond parties and game nights: If a member gets sick or needs transportation, for example, they have a community to rely on. As NWSSC’s hospitality person, Wallis even sends members cards when they fall ill.
“I consider several members good, good friends that I could call on for anything,” she said. “And conversely, they can call me.”
Curious about joining NWSSC? Nelson’s advice is simple: Drop by for Saturday coffee. The group meets at 10 a.m. weekly in the Bellingham Cruise Terminal (though the meetup is BYOC — bring your own coffee). Non-members are encouraged to stop in, mingle and find out firsthand if NWSSC is a fit.
“We have a lot of different personalities, but it meshes pretty well because there’s so many activities and they’re so varied,” Nelson said. “Whatever you’d like, you’ll find others that want to do the same.”
Info: nwssc.org.
Cocoa Laney is CDN’s lifestyle editor; reach her at cocoalaney@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 128.
