ACTIVITIES KEY AT THE WINDS.

Byline: BETTIE RENCORET Senior Columnist

LANCASTER - In the midst of new senior apartment developments in downtown Lancaster, the Silver Winds complex is a thriving center of activity.

It's a short walk to the Antelope Valley Senior Center and its daily lunches, holds its own art classes and offers minor health screenings.

At the recreation hall, they have kitchen facilities where they can have potlucks, private parties and bake sales. The clubhouse hosts auctions, craft sales and myriad games.

The bake sales, auctions and holiday craft sales provide funds to help support special events of the newly formed Silver Lining Club. The proceeds help pay for dance bands, catered meals, decorations and other necessities for tenant functions.

The group's first bake sale netted $160, considered terrific for an inaugural effort.

Resident Jack Beal is the driving force behind the club and serves as its first president.

Found playing dominoes one day recently with his wife, Jackie, and Audrey Lane, another tenant at the recreation hall, Beal exuded enthusiasm.

The major purpose of the club is to have fun, stay active and get to know and make friends of neighbors, Beal said.

``When you have friends nearby you don't have much trouble with negativity or feeling alone,'' he said. ``We laugh a lot here and the more we laugh the longer we'll live. Laughter keeps you healthy and young, you know. I'll tell you I'm in favor of that.''

At another table, tenants Christina Ybarra, Clara Vannoy, Ellorene Troost, Sylvia Wolf and Barbara McCool, were concentrating on a game of pokeno.

Nancy Doerfler played cards with her granddaughter, Cassidy, while Violet Langianese looked on. In the background, Pete Troost and Ruth Osbrink shot a game of pool.

Jeanie Smith is in the office on weekdays to manage things and help with problems. She shares space, in the rear of that converted apartment, with the Hair Styling Salon.

Cosmetologist Sharon Renaud offers full services, from haircuts for the men to shampoos and sets and perms for the women.

Smith, who has been working with seniors off and on for 30 years and has been a manager for 20, has been responsible for Silver Winds for just over a year, she said.

She knows her tenants on a first-name basis.

``Right now we have 124 in residence and a waiting list, especially for the two-bedroom units. On May 1 we'll have five more available but they're all singles,'' she said.

Ages, at the present time, range from 55 to 97 and rents are not based on income, she said.Some tenants are on government rent subsidies, but not many, she said.

``And we screen our applicants carefully, do background and credit checks. We want all our seniors to be safe and secure.''

Office hours are from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday at the complex 45180 Fern Ave., just south of Avenue I. The office is closed on weekends but there is a weekend manager to handle emergencies.

For more information, call [phone].

Menus for the week at the senior life nutrition sites in Lancaster and Palmdale have been announced. All meals include bread, margarine and coffee, tea or milk, for a suggested donation of $2.

Monday: Chili egg puff, chili beans, spinach, creamy coleslaw, apple.

Tuesday: Baked ziti, mixed vegetables, garden salad, vanilla ice cream.

Wednesday: Cranberry chicken, wild rice, green beans, carrot salad, Jell-O with fruit.

Thursday: Roast turkey sandwich, mashed potatoes, stewed tomatoes, tossed salad, cheesecake.

Friday: Fish fillet or barbecued pork sandwich, scalloped potatoes, corn nibblets, marinated salad, orange.

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