Lidio Baldeon, 73, is president of Mona’s Club, a new group for immigrant seniors that meets monthly in the food court at Metrotown. The club is named after the group’s ESL teacher, Mona Donovan. They gather to keep themselves company and practise English. They also hope to organize more events and celebrate each other’s birthdays.
Can you tell me a bit about your group? What’s it for?
My group is for socializing, because we are seniors, you know. We have a family, we have sons, grandsons, but this new generation, they want to go out themselves, you know, so we stay home alone, and we want to socialize. We talk about many issues.
Can you tell me about yourself? Who are you?
I am from Peru. South America, Peru, and I was a soccer player. I organized soccer clubs, and I was involved in the political party in Peru. I was very active. My job was newspaper reporter, but in Spanish.
Why did you come to Canada?
I came to Canada because Peru is always difficult to live. Too much violence, too much fighting, too much robbery. Here is quiet, and the kids can go to school free. … Right now, I do lots of volunteering - in Burnaby Neighbourhood House and MOSAIC - because I want to give back everything Canada gave me.
Is this a common issue that seniors are isolated when they come to Canada?
Most seniors are Asian, Chinese. They come in sponsored by the family. … Almost everybody is educated people. Someone was teacher, someone was engineer, but in their country, you know?
What do you like about this new group?
I like everybody because, we were in the English conversation class. We know each other around two or three years. Mona was the volunteer and teach us English. That way we make friendship. We started talking: ‘What did you do Saturday? Nothing.’ The family, they don’t get involved very much with the seniors sometimes.
Does the group help with loneliness?
Yes, that way we want to make it a club. We can go to the park, we can do a potluck or something. Summer is coming, we can go somewhere. There are many places close to here we can go.
Interested in joining the group? Email Mona Donovan at [email protected].
