Thelma and Louise definitely look older and wiser.
The whole experience with an extraterrestrial most definitely aged 10-year-old Elliott.
Maria â from âThe Sound of Musicâ â is more great-grandma than the perky, just- kicked-out-of-the-convent governess.
And, thatâs the point.
The iconic film posters in the Casa Classics 2017 Calendar feature 20 senior citizens â ages 69 to 97 â duded up in costumes to recreate oldies like 1939âs âThe Wizard of Ozâ to more modern movies such as âIndiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark.â
Giving E.T. a lift is Vincent Barone, 97, who is a distinct change from the movieâs 10-year-old Elliot.
The $15 calendar is a fundraiser for the Green Valley Senior Lunch Program at the Casa Community Center at La Posada. While the program is federally funded â itâs available to area residents over 60 with a suggested $3 donation â the Casa program is supplemented with parties, day trips and other activities.
âSocialization is every bit as important,â said Casa Community Center Director Ellen March, who added that the program serves 35-45 seniors a day, most of whom live alone and enjoy the chance to get out and visit.
In previous years, Casa held ice cream socials and even a mystery tea party to cover the costs of the extras. But when March heard about a similar calendar done in Europe, she loved the idea. She reached out to Sahuarita film and TV instructor Derek Marshall. It was an easy sell.
Marshallâs students already collaborate with Casa Community Services on a program called Story Keeping at Casa that has students filming seniors sharing stories about their lives. His teaching assistant, Victoria Felix, now a freshman at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, provided the photo-editing expertise and handled the bulk of the photo shoots, which mostly took place over the summer.
âDoing the whole pictures and editing them and hearing the backstories brought me joy,â Felix, 18, said in a phone interview. âThey loved doing it. ... It was great.â
Folly McDivitt, 77, and Nini Andrews, 93, get down for a road trip as Thelma and Louise.
When the initial call went out for models, no one volunteered, March said. But after learning a little more about the project, people decided they were ready for their closeups.
âOnce we put wigs on them, it was amazing,â said Casa Community Services development specialist Regina Ford, also an actress and director who styled the models. She dipped into her own extensive costume collection for the photos. âThey really got into it.â
Of course, it wasnât all smooth sailing. A minor wardrobe malfunction plagued July.
âKeeping the coconut shells on was tough,â Ford said of John Platzâs âSouth Pacificâ ensemble that included a too-small bra along with a grass skirt and plastic flower leis.
And 77-year-old Siony Villanueva, who played Mary Poppins, was mighty disappointed the penguins dancing along with her were to be edited in later.
Freddie Freemanâs exaggerated scream in Alfred Hitchcockâs âThe Birdsâ ranked as Marshallâs favorite, and Freeman reported that her family â seven kids and âabout 70 great-grandchildrenâ â thought the photo was hilarious, even though she is not such a fan of the flick.
âI didnât like the movie,â Freeman, 87, said.
Not the case for the series that Joe Leon, 85, represented. Mr. April likes every one of the Indiana Jones movies, and along with slapping on a fedora and wearing a touch of makeup, he did a little extra prep for his shoot.
âI usually take a bath once a month,â cracked Leon, as he waited for lunch one day at the community center. âI took a shower for this.â
Joe Leon, 85, dons a fedora for his appearance as explorer extraordinaire Indiana Jones.
Where to buy it
Casa Classics 2017 Calendar is available at these Green Valley locations:
âĸ Posada Java, 665 S. Park Centre Ave., Green Valley
âĸ Community Connect in the Continental Shopping Plaza, 250 W. Continental Road
âĸ Green Valley Sahuarita Chamber of Commerce, 275 W. Continental Road, #123



