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Pure Imagination
By Nell Newton
A teacher of art therapies and proponent of play in everyday life, Adam’s home reflects his philosophies and experiences.
Many of you already know Adam
Blatner. If you don’t, you’re
missing out on the fun! He’s
quite a character who walks his talk
about keeping imagination alive even
as we grow older.
Adam is a retired psychiatrist who is an
alumnus of the University of California
San Francisco School of Medicine. He
performed his residency at Stanford
University School of Medicine and served
as a child and adult psychiatrist for three Charlie Brown.” As Adam recalled, “One
years in the US Air Force. In addition to
decades in practice, he was an Associate
Professor of Psychiatry at the University
of Louisville School of Medicine.
Adam and his wife Allee relocated to
Austin in 1994 to help her mother, who
will be a centenarian in 2016. They
40 | SUNRAYS NOVEMBER 2015
PHOTO BY JAIME CALDER
PHOTOS BY BURTON ANES
moved to Sun City in 1997, just a year “Sun City is a unique opportunity
after it opened, and say they “feel blessed for adults to rediscover and cultivate
to be a part of this amazing community.” dormant interests that got put on
In the early days they organized song the back burner during the intense
fests in the ballroom to help people get years of work and child rearing,” says
to know one another in a fun way. They Adam. “Y’all are breaking the mold
joined the Sun City Singers, Square of stereotypes of the elderly and that’s
and Round Dance Clubs, and Adam great.” Breaking out of the cultural
was one of the Founders of the Senior clichés of older people is near and dear
University in Georgetown. He was a to his heart.
regular in many Sun City Follies and
played Linus in “You’re a Good Man Adam and Allee taught creative arts
therapies for over 30 years. They’ve
of the early maxims cultivated by the written a book and several articles
on their method, and continue to
ÀUVW&$$GPLQLVWUDWRUZDV¶,I\RX·YH occasionally present workshops at
got an interest and we don’t have a club professional conferences. Adam
for it—start one yourself!’” He and Allee specialized and has written books on
a psychodrama, a therapeutic method
ÀQGLWH[FLWLQJWRVHHWKHGLYHUVLW\DQG often used in psychiatry. “Psychiatry
extent of how that invitation has grown.
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