Lively Seniors Can Tolerate Children

* Re: “Dr. Helen on Sex, Love and Seniors,” Nov. 22:

It is wonderful that seniors can enjoy life. However, I am deeply concerned by the fact that some seniors, who have a lot of wisdom and experience to offer to the younger generation, have isolated themselves within the walls of retirement communities. This is detrimental to everybody.

I moved to Leisure World in Laguna Hills in 1995 to take care of my terminally ill mother. My husband and I lived there after my mother’s death until April 1998.

Unfortunately, every time a well-behaved grandchild visited us, a neighbor called the Leisure World security department and complained. We got very tired of security guards ringing our doorbell. Children are not welcome in retirement communities. We were forced to leave Leisure World if we wanted to have a relationship with our grandchildren.

Most seniors are good people, and we miss them. Many do volunteer work, deliver Meals on Wheels, take care of grandchildren, but the selfish and opinionated ones make all of us look very bad.

If seniors are capable of enjoying sex and many other activities, they are also capable of helping and enjoying their grandchildren, or at least let their neighbors enjoy their grandchildren. We live in a “normal” community now, and nobody complains about our grandchildren any more.

DARIE S. REINHARDT

Orange