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Cooking Classes Are a Hit With Caregiving Men
By
Daniel Dullum
Spectrum staff writer
Because men in their 60s and older grew up in a generation where
cooking was
usually considered the wife’s job, the Area 4 Agency on Aging thought a
cooking class for caregiving men would be a good idea.
Judging by the response, they guessed right. It didn’t take long for the
class to exceed its maximum enrollment.
“We’ve had 68 men call and ask about it. We weren’t ready for
that,” said Lila Shelton, the A4AA nutritionalist who is coordinating the
class. “They say they can do soup and sandwiches, but not much else!”
Shelton will teach the two-hour sessions over five consecutive weeks, beginning
Feb. 23. The class is sponsored by A4AA with funding from the National Family
Caregiver Support Program and is limited to caregivers age 60 and older who live
in Sacramento County.
“One of the classes is at a local grocery store, so they can learn how
to read labels, and a corporate dietician from Raley’s will lead that tour,” Shelton
said. “The other classes will be real low-key, where they’ll learn
plans for simple well-balanced meals, or attractive meals, that they can prepare
in 20 minutes to a half-hour.
“The men will work on it, then they’ll break off into groups and
prepare the five components of the meal. Then, they get to eat it while I clean
up!” she added. “I’m hoping the men will use this opportunity
to talk a lot, especially the men whose wives have Alzheimer’s. For them
to be able to sit with other people in a similar situation would be a great way
to find some camaraderie.”
With the number of inquiries, Shelton said three primary classifications of men
emerged.
“There are some who are taking care of their wives, parents, or grandchildren;
another group that is very interested simply live by themselves — their
wives are in nursing homes or have died. …Then, we have a huge group of
men who are interested in cooking because they like to!” Shelton said. “Unfortunately,
this funding isn’t for the last two groups, so I’m hoping that later
on, we can do some more classes for those people. But I don’t know if the
funding will be there.”
Shelton said 16 or 17 people out of the 68 who registered will take part in the
class.
“I would have preferred 10 in the class,” she said. “Even 12
is pressing it a little bit, because of the number of work stations and everything.
The logistics of it won’t allow for a huge class. Hopefully, we can do
another class for that same group of men, because I don’t think they’ll
all be able to get in.”
In the meantime, Shelton is asking applicants to leave their contact information
to build a waiting list.
“As we go through, I’ll count them up and talk with the executive
director about possible funding to see if we can do other classes. I’m
not trying to discourage anybody,” she said. “We’re just trying
to let them know that they probably won’t get into the February classes.”
With the healthy response, Shelton is encouraged about the possibility of future
cooking classs for caregivers.
“I think there’s a tremendous need out there. Some of the wives called
for their husbands,” Shelton said, laughing. “I think they’re
tired of cooking!”
For more information about the cooking class for caregiving men, call Area 4
Agency on Aging at (916) 486-1876.
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