“I walk about two miles to get here every day.”
The highlight of Antone Rezendes’ day is walking two miles to visit the people he considers family. The staff and students around North East ISD’s Community Learning Center (CLC) know him as Tony. He’s been taking classes through the Academy of Learning in Retirement (ALIR) program for the last four years.
“I believe in the adage of a sound mind equals a sound body,” said Rezendes. “So, I get my exercise walking down here and I get a chance to think and then I study and learn, so I get both tools the same day. You meet a lot of nice people and the courses are so stimulating.”
Tony describes the act of walking to his ALIR classes as therapeutic. And the classes themselves are stimulating, engaging and exciting. He’s taken courses on everything from classic films to business, literature, psychology and history.
Tony enjoys it so much he arrives early to help ALIR Facilitator Rhonda McRae set up.
“I like to come early. It’s like therapy for me. I help set up and read the paper. And Rhonda is so great. She keeps this place going and she’s good to everybody. She’s a very kind person.”
Tony is one of the many “ALIR-ians” who sing McRae’s praises. She’s head of the ALIR family and they take care of their own. That’s the very reason why Tony has a ride home each day when the Texas heat sets in.
“I used to walk home and now I get a ride because it’s too hot to walk,” said Rezendes. “That makes me feel accepted and like people care. Here, people talk to you. They help you. They say hi. You can’t beat it. They show you that you belong and you matter. There’s a lot of good people here. To come here and learn and interact with people – it’s the best.”
ALIR provides a variety of classes to its students who are 55 years old and older through fall, spring and summer semesters. Click here to learn more about the program.
