BY GINNY RAUE
“I tell people I’m a professional good-time girl,” Millie Blazovic said. Yes, she’s speaking of her job, but no, it’s not what you may be thinking. Blazovic’s “good times” revolve around fish fries, art lessons and ice cream socials.
Blazovic, 51, was born in Paterson and raised in Totowa. She and Tom, her husband of 27 years, are Lake Hopatcong residents and the parents of three adult children. She commutes to West Milford to her job as the Bald Eagle Commons social director, a position she just happened upon.
“I was in personnel for a few years then I went into “retirement” to raise my kids for 18 years,” she said.
That “retirement” involved, among other things, a dozen years of service with parent-teacher organizations, managing her kid’s hockey teams and volunteering her time to Jefferson Township events. She was honing her organizational skills without realizing it.
By chance, Blazovic met an old acquaintance from her hockey days who mentioned the Bald Eagle job to her and suggested she look into it. She applied and got the job.
“I feel like it’s a perfect fit, I absolutely love my job,” she said.
For the past eight years, her days have been filled with planning activities for the residents of this adult community built into the picturesque landscape of West Milford. The recreational hub of the complex is the Mary Haase Grange Hall and its surrounds.
Most on-site events are held at the Grange, a facility that houses a game and billiards room, a media center, craft room, greenhouse and the Keeping Room, where most of the larger events are held.
Blazovic plans lunches and entertainments, holiday dinners, live performances, exercise classes, craft fairs, games, hikes, golf outings and overnight trips for the residents.
She is also responsible for social media communications and she publishes a monthly newsletter. She distributes educational information that is sent to the complex and she is a member of the Health Advisory Board for West Milford Township.
“I’ve been active in having West Milford police officers come in to give talks about identity theft and medication disposal, things that pertain to seniors, such as driving while on medications,” she said.
She spoke of the “Serendipity Singers,” a residential choral group who entertain locally and travel around for holiday shows. Sadly, she said, the recent death of their director, Mary Goldberg, has left the group with an uncertain future. Blazovic hopes they will go on.
Another group, the “Caring Crafters,” meets weekly to knit shawls and baby caps for cancer patients in area hospitals. To date, they have donated 1,300 shawls.
The residents of Bald Eagle Commons are made up of people from 55 (or 48 years of age if the co-resident is 55) to over 100 years old. Blazovic estimates the ratio of women to men is approximately 70/30 and that about 20 percent of the residents still work.
Such variations could pose a challenge for a social director but Blazovic does not find it so.
Working with seniors has taught Blazovic a few important life lessons and changed her outlook on aging.
“They’ve shown me that it’s not important to sweat the small stuff, that you just continue on, stay active," said Blazovic. "The ones that fare the best are the ones who are up, dressed and out every day to do something that keeps their minds active. And they love to laugh. From a baby’s belly laugh to a 100 year old’s laugh, it never gets old, laughing is our common thread.”
Seeing how the residents care for each other is encouraging. They are kind and considerate but once the crisis is past, it’s past.
“There’s a time to be ill, ‘We’re older and we all have aches and pains, but we are resilient,’ they say. Those who have that attitude are the ones who are truly living," she said. "That’s what this place is supposed to be, it’s meant for people who want to live their lives.”
And the “good time girl” is there to make sure they enjoy it to the hilt.
On her time off, Blazovic enjoys time with family, reading, camping and poking around flea markets in Pennsylvania. She loves to cook and does so often for a crowd, serving up lots of dishes reflecting her Greek heritage.
She submitted a recipe that is well-suited for brunch or dessert if you add some whipped cream or vanilla ice cream on the side.