Atria Residents Exercise the Brain, Body with Dance

Dance instructors Judy Simon and Andrey Savenko turned up the music, gave a quick demonstration of a waltz and began helping residents at Atria Senior Living at Briarcliff Manor to shake off the rust and shake it up with a Ballroom Dance class Tuesday evening.

Part of the residence's "Engage Your Brain" program, the classes were designed to help residents improve cognition by keeping both the brain and body healthy and active according to the center's Engage Life Director Ryan Linehan.

Linehan joined Simon and Savenko in dancing with several resident women, as others chose to watch from their chairs, shaking their heads and pointing to a knee or a hip when encouraged to join in, but smiling just the same as they took in the class and listened to the music.