FULLERTON : Mixer Helps Find Senior Roommates

Helen Lauff, 51, had been looking for a roommate but was running out of hope.

So when she headed for the door of the county-sponsored Senior Shared Housing Mixer at the Senior Multi-Service Center in Fullerton, she was prepared for defeat. But once inside, Lauff mingled with some of the three dozen members of the Fullerton, Placentia and El Modena branches of the county Senior Shared Housing Program, which helped coordinate Thursday’s event. And there Lauff met a woman, Dorothy Beadles, who had a room to rent in her Fullerton home and was interested in talking with Lauff.

“If you’d like to call, we could get together,” Beadles said as the two discussed such basics as pets (neither wanted them) and smoking (agreeable to both).

The two swapped phone numbers and agreed to meet Saturday.

Roberto Melendez, director of the Senior Shared Housing Program, said the program helps make about 1,000 roommate matches each year.

Finding a suitable roommate takes time, so the seniors were encouraged to approach the situation carefully, said Liz Sackman, a housing counselor at the mixer.

Sackman compared roommates’ relationships to marriages and gave the seniors tips for finding the right partner, such as writing contracts, checking references and even spending trial weekends together.

Many seniors’ only sources of income are from retirement and Social Security--for a total of about $600 a month--and are not enough for a nice apartment and other living expenses.

“It’s too expensive for myself,” said Lauff, who has been a housekeeper for two years after living more than a year on the streets. Her income, she said, “just barely covers it.”

But for some of those seeking a roommate, money is not the issue. Companionship, assistance and security take priority.

“I’m not doing it for the money,” said a woman who was hoping to find someone to rent a room for $300 a month in her Anaheim home. Asked to be called Cecilia, the frail, silver-haired women said sometimes she eats cereal for dinner and would like someone to help her cook meals and keep up the housekeeping and gardening.

“I need someone to help me a little bit, and I need some companionship.”