One way to make a change is to get people laughing! This is what an acting troupe of seniors do…traveling and performing comedy as a way to educate their peers on senior scams. Based in southern California, Stop Senior Scams Action Program is comprised of a lively, humorous, youth-filled group even as their ages span from 65 to 96 years. They visit nursing homes, temples, churches, senior housing units and senior centers and put on their skits about IRS scams, sweet heart scams, financial and health care scams. They even have their own hit tune called “Just Hang Up!” – to the tune of “Don’t Hang Up” (a big hit 53 years ago). Options for skit material are endless as they can draw from their own personal experience.
This group’s vision of using humor and laughter to spread awareness and empower seniors reflects the same vision our Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) Thespians Society, which also uses funny skits to highlight fraud schemes, how to detect and report them, and ways to prevent them. See our fraud video page for our comedic skits on mail-order scams and new Medicare card scams. With so many alerts and scary news out there, having some comic relief and a good belly laugh are a welcomed and effective way to get one’s message across! 🙂
Below is a short video highlighting this traveling acting troupe and their “Just Hang Up!” hit!
