Senior stories by Cogir: Carol and Larry

Transcript

Dave: Carol, Larry. 

Larry: Hello. Hello. How are you, Dave? 

Dave: I am great. How are you?

Larry: It’s fine. Couldn’t be better. Couldn’t be better. 

Dave: And you are in Denver, Colorado. Correct? 

Larry: Yes, sir. Right. 

Dave: Harvard Square, a Cogir community in Denver, Colorado. Snow up there?

Larry: No. No. Not in the mountains, but not here in the town. No. Yeah.

Carol: It’s just gray. Cool. 

Dave: Well, you can probably see behind me, it’s also gray, Carol. We’re in Arizona, but today is unusual. It’s a gray, cloudy, rainy day, and we’re babies. We’re not like you in Denver to where you’re used to cold weather. We’re babies down here. Now, Larry, you’re from Texas. Is that right? 

Larry: Yes, sir. I was born 07/11/1933. So I tell people my birthday is 07/11. That way, they can remember me. And, in San Angelo, Texas, it’s four Southwest corner of Texas, not close to Marfa and Eagle Pass down in that area. And, born in 1933. And in 1950, the family moved from San Angelo to Dallas, Texas, and I’ve been kinda sitting around Dallas ever since then. 

Dave: So, Larry, what you’re telling me is you’re a Cowboys fan living in Denver. 

Larry: Yes, sir. That’s right. You got that right. 

Dave: And Carol, how does that sit with you? 

Carol: It’s okay. I watch all the games with him. So Okay.

Dave: And, Carol, you’re from North Carolina? 

Carol: Yes. I’m from Chapel Hill, which is the home of University of North Carolina. 

Dave: Alright. So, Carol and Larry, tell me how you guys met because there’s a Cogir community story here.

Carol: We were eating dinner, I think, or else we were in the gathering room. A whole bunch of us sitting there. And, I’ve been there several months and all of a sudden I hear everybody kind of turning and going, oh, you know, and there they said, here comes Larry’s home. And I’m like, oh, I think I need to know this guy. It’s like everybody loves him. Everybody loves him because he’s so kind and sweet and loving and caring. 

Larry: I paid her to say that. 

Carol: Anyway, so we started talking to each other and having meals together and pretty soon we’re watching TV together. And I don’t know. We just Yeah. Had football games. 

Larry: Kinda started hanging out together. 

Carol: Yeah. We did.

Larry: My story is that, we would see each other in a hallway going back and forth to the dining room, and we’d speak. Hello. How are you? How are you? And one day, we’d stop following up, trying on a conversation, and just kind of mushroom from there. And, we started seeing each other, and we decided that we were not gonna tell anybody that we liked each other because you don’t have rumors flying. You know? And, we were gonna keep that a secret that we liked each other, and that lasted about one day. 

Dave: Yeah. Larry, how can you keep a secret in a close knit community? Carol, that that’s a challenge. Right? 

Larry: You tell me. Yeah. I don’t know how. So, anyway, I’ve enjoyed knowing her every minute of every minute of the day. Well, I really have. Enjoyed each other’s company and with your companion. We said companionship. Just being together. You know? 

Dave: That’s wonderful. I love hearing about that. And, Larry, you mentioned that you and Carol would kinda see each other passing and hello. How are you? Which one, Carol, which one was the first of you to acknowledge that it might be something more than just a passing greeting? 

Larry: I don’t know. 

Carol: I don’t know that either. 

Larry: We just were when I saw we were in front of her in front of her door, and we were talking. It’s going back. She’s going back to her room, and we’re just talking. And we got in front of her door, and instead of stopping her going, we just continued to stand there and talk for a while. And they can’t remember now about what we’re talking about what we did. And finally, we decided to separate, and so she went her way. And I went mine, and we’ve kinda picked up on that and been doing it ever since then. Every day, every day since then. Yeah. 

Dave: And I understand that both of you are very active at Harvard Square. Larry, is it correct that you run activities? 

Larry: Yes, sir. I’m the ambassador of the TV disc. We have a group here that entertains, and we’d like to greet new residents so they come in and let them know who we are, why we’re here, why we’re here. And, you know, on their birthdays, we like to take them a birthday card, sing happy birthday to them. There’s a group of us, five, six people, and we try to get together. We can always get together, but we do that on their birthdays every day. And I’m a part of that committee. So, it is a fun thing to do. It’s a fun thing to do. 

Dave: I love that. Are you also in charge of the – is it RummeyCub? Is that it? 

Larry: Rummikub. Based on rummy. But, no, I’m not in charge of anything. But we just get together, like, every day and every evening, and we play this game. It’s played with those tiles, you know, like the domino tiles. And, it’s a lot of fun. It’s fun being to play. 

Carol: Yes. It is. And he taught me how to play. 

Dave: And, Carol, I know I know that you’re also active at Harvard Square, Cogir. You have the, you handle prayers. Correct? 

Carol: I have a women’s prayer group. Yes. We just got started, last, I guess it was in the fall, and it’s going very well. Yeah. 

Dave: And, Carol, you’re from Bible Country. I mean, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Carol: After that, I moved in with my husband. My brand new husband, I moved to Chicago, and we lived there about eight years. And then we moved to Ohio, Central Ohio where he was from. He was from Akron. 

Larry: That’s where she got her degree in divinity. Yeah. She’s a message. She’s an ordained minister. And she has a prayer group. And, also, she has an art class meets once a week with arts and crafts. And she directs that. So she stays busy. I mean, busy all the time.

Dave: Has she ever made you anything in art class, Larry? 

Larry: She has tried once to get me to go that night. I don’t– I don’t do art. 

Carol: No. He doesn’t do art.  He’s a cowboy. 

Dave: And Larry, I can still hear the Texas accent. And you really but I can’t hear the North Carolina accent from Carol. 

Carol: Well, that’s all those years in Chicago and Ohio. Yeah. 

Dave: And can we touch on that, Carol? Because you mentioned that you lived in Chicago Eight Years and, previously, married, of course. Both of you were previously married for over fifty years. Is that correct? 

Larry: Fifty two. 

Carol: Fifty five.

Dave: Yeah. See. But that’s what I love about communities, Cogir communities, is you meet nice people that have a lot in common, and you enjoy life. You’re living the best life, and you’re enjoying it. 

Larry: I do enjoy life. I sure do. I like for people to be happy. I like to make people happy. And I try to make people happy. And I’m always saying cute stuff, you know, funny stuff, things like that.

Carol: Yes. He is. 

Larry: Just so I want them to feel at ease, so much meanness in the world today. So many sad people. So many, unhappy things. And I think it’s time that we just stopped all that. 

Dave: Boy, Larry, it sounds to me like you’ve been hanging out with an ordained minister. 

Larry: Yep. Yeah.

Carol: I always like that or something. Like I am. Right. 

Dave: And, Carol, you have two sons, Mark and Brian? 

Carol: I do.

Dave: Yes. Yeah. Alright. Do they ever get a chance to come visit in Colorado? 

Carol: Not very seldom, but enough. My son, Brian, lives in Aurora, and my son, Mark, lives in Tokyo. And he’s–

Dave: not an easy weekend trip. Oh, 

Carol: Not easy, he was just here as a matter of fact. Helped him a whole bunch of things. But they are getting ready to move to Rome because she is employed by the New York Times, and she’s the bureau chief right now in Tokyo. But she’ll be switching over to Rome as the bureau chief. 

Dave: Wow. What an interesting job. And, Larry, you have two daughters. Is that correct? 

Larry: Yes, sir. That’s right. Yes. One of them right here in Denver. One in Texas. And, that’s why I’m here. The one who lives here, she has an apartment, a one room apartment, so there’s not room for us to be together. But I want to spend time up here with her. So she came over here to Harvest Square to stethoscope it out, and she told me she liked it. She thought I would like it, and why don’t why don’t I give it a try? I said, okay. Never going on four years ago now. 

Dave: Oh, I love that. Because I was gonna ask why Denver. And, Carol, for you, is it because of your son in Aurora? 

Carol: Basically. But I really wanted a change of scene because Ohio is very cold, snowy, and wet. And I wanted to find a place that was more amenable to going out and about and doing things. And I love it here. I love the people here. I love the management here. They do a lot of things for us and keep us busy. And, we also keep ourselves busy. Yeah. We have so many friends here. It’s just amazing. 

Dave: Harvard Square has a terrific staff. If by chance, you see Kayla today, would you give her my best?

Carol: Yes. I will. She’s here because she’s, I guess. She’s right here. 

Larry: She’s right here with us now. She’s great. 

Dave: Well, we love Kayla, and she helped coordinate this, and we really appreciate Kayla. So thank you so much. Oh, there’s Kayla. Hi, Kayla.

Kayla: Hi. Hello, Dave. Nice to meet you. 

Dave: Thank you. Nice to meet you. So, Larry and Carol, you’ve been so generous. Can I ask you a couple of bird questions? 

Larry: Hey. Yeah. You can ask. I don’t think you get an answer, but you can ask. 

Dave: Do you like the same music? 

Dave: Not really. What do you like, Larry? What music?

Larry: I’m more country than western. 

Dave: Of course. You’re Dallas. You’re Dallas, Texas. Of course. You’re George Strait. You’re George Jones. You’re Texas. 

Larry: And she’s more of the lofty music. You know?

Carol: Smooth jazz. I like that’s my favorite. Smooth jazz. 

Dave: Do you like what’s called yacht rock? The love songs in the seventies?

Carol: Oh, yes. Oh, yes. 

Carol: But I enjoy our happy hour here. We have a great happy hour. 

Larry: We sure do. And I want to keep that going. Just keep that happy hour going. Yeah. We won’t, we won’t change you on those. Yeah.

Dave: You know, I’ll tell you something. I think every happy hour is good after the first drink. I’m good. So when you’re at happy hour, what’s your drink? Larry, what’s your drink?

Larry: Well, actually, it’s Coca Cola. 

Dave: Okay. And Carol? 

Carol: Well, I don’t know whatever they’re serving. 

Dave: Okay. Larry, she’s easy to hang out with. Right? 

Larry: Yes. She is. Right.

Dave: Alright. Okay. So when you guys watch a movie at Harvard Square, what do you watch? Do you have the same taste? 

Larry: More or less, we do now. Every once in a while, we’ll watch a a, series. You know, like, right now, the clown, that’s Queen Elizabeth. Her ring and so forth. That’s what they’re playing now. And we watch an episode of that every night. You know? And, while back, we watched Designated Survivor. You know, you may not know that. 

Dave: Oh, no. I do know that. Absolutely. 

Larry: We watched, we watched those kind well, those kind of series we watch. And, sometime we’ll find a comment we like to watch. But, most time, it’s a documentary. 

Dave: So I have a suggestion for both of you guys. Okay? Larry, being from Texas, on Paramount plus, have you watched Landman about the oil business? 

Larry: No. 

Dave: Okay. So there’s a recommendation for you, Landman. It’s a little rough on the edges, but it’s really good. I think you’ll love it being from Texas. Okay? 

Larry: It’s based on fact or just a made up story?

Dave: It’s based loosely on fact. It’s written by Taylor Sheridan that does Yellowstone, and it’s more about the Odessa, Midland area. And, of course, then Dallas is where the business hubs are, but it’s about oil and it’s a drama, but it’s based loosely on fact. I’d love to get your impressions out of being from Texas, but give that one a shot. Okay? And, Carol, for you, my son and I watch The Chosen. Have you seen The Chosen? 

Carol: No. No. Yes.

Dave: Carol, I promise you’ll love it. You will love it. 

Carol: Thank you. Okay. Yeah.

Larry: Well, I wish I had one for you, but I don’t I guess well, I tell you what. You have boots. 

Dave: I do have a pair of boots. 

Larry: How about jeans? 

Dave: I have jeans. I love jeans. 

Larry: How about 10 gallon hat? 

Dave: I do not have a 10 gallon hat. 

Larry: Get you one. You come up for a Sheaenne, Wyoming every summer, Frontier Days. You know? And then and that wakes you into being an official cowboy after that. 

Dave: Yeah. I love that, Larry. And Carol did give me a good recommendation because after this interview, I’m gonna go to happy hour and drink anything I want.

Larry: Yeah. That’s right. That’s right. They cut her off after six drinks. 

Dave: No wonder you love her. That’s awesome. 

Larry: It’s just a time to be sociable. You know? It’s really socializing with people. They dance a little bit and sing a little bit. You know? Just have a good time. 

Dave: Have you taught Carol how to two step? 

Larry: She taught me, I think. 

Dave: Oh, okay.

Larry: My interest now is line dance because when I grew up, we didn’t do that. And now I’m kinda into it. So I wanna try to find a group here to learn how to do that. We’ll do it together. 

Dave: Well, Larry, I’m jealous because I’m not coordinated enough to line dance or square dance. Carol, I can do the maypole. 

Carol: Oh, yes. That’s a good one.

Dave: Yeah. I can do the hokey pokey, Carol? 

Carol: If you don’t get dizzy, you can do that. Hey. Yeah.

Dave: You two are extremely cute. 

Carol: Well, thank you. Thank you. And you’re wonderful. And I wanna say I love Harvard Square.

Larry: Yeah. Me too. 

Carol: It’s the best place I have been. And believe me, I’ve been in two other, different, places that I left because it was either too boring or they didn’t have what I needed. And I came here just after one interview, and I absolutely love it. I love the people. I love the staff. Everybody’s good. 

Dave: I love that. And you two definitely do not need a place that’s boring. You belong at Cogir because you have some life to you, and I love that. So– 

Carol: Thank you so much. 

Dave: Thanks again, and you take care. You’re glad to you. 

Larry: Glad to have met you. Kind of met you anyway. Talk to you. Right? 

Carol: We’ll have to come out for happy hour. Yeah.

Larry: If you’re ever back this way, I know you’re in Arizona right now. If you’re back this way, just drop in and say hello. We’ll we’ll we’ll let you in. You know? 

Dave: Well, if somebody shows up in a 10 gallon hat asking for Larry and Carol, you’ll know it’s me. Okay?

Summary

Larry and Carol live at Harvard Square by Cogir in Denver, Colorado, where they met and quickly formed a close bond through shared meals, conversations, and activities. Both were previously married for over 50 years and found a new connection with each other at Harvard Square.

Larry is actively involved in welcoming new residents and serves on the birthday committee. Carol leads a women’s prayer group and an arts and crafts class. They enjoy playing games like Rummikub, watching shows together, and participating in community events.

Their story reflects the meaningful friendships, support, and active lifestyle that residents enjoy at Harvard Square.