Intergenerational Inspiration
I learned at an early age that older people were fun to hang out with. When I was ten, I wanted to play golf at my local public course but there were no other girls to form a league. No one  even suggested that I should play with the junior boys; instead, I was taken under the wing of the Senior Ladies' League. Each week, the organizers would pair me up with a group of the Senior Ladies and I would play nine holes with them. I gradually got to know these ladies as we walked up and down the fairways for the next few years. They taught me many practical things that I hadn't learned golfing with my brothers and uncles, such as never drink from a hose on a golf course, always wear an outfit with plenty of pockets, and that it's usually more productive to hit the ball short and straight rather than far and wide. Their willingness to include me as an equal also taught me that I was a person of worth during a time when I felt pretty much invisible.  When I think about the power for good that the Senior Ladies' League had in my life, it makes me wonder how the story would change for bullied kids, struggling single mothers, marginalized newcomers and other lost souls, if they had the benefit of a relationship with an older friend.
And that relationship would improve the quality of life of the older person too. Proof can be found in an intergenerational immersion experiment called The Meadows School Project. A teacher in Vernon, BC moved her elementary classroom into an assisted living facility and invited the residents to join in.  | |
Participants in the Meadows School Project
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The seniors reported feeling "renewed interest in life, energizingexperiences, stimulation of age old memories, and a new found sense of purpose in relationships with the younger generation." I wonder if I brightened any lives in the Senior Ladies' League...it's very possible. They certainly brightened mine. Find out more about the Meadows School Project here.
Don't Miss this Event!
Café Scientifique Tuesday, November 6, 2012 at 6:30PM Maple Room of the Strathcona Hotel Sticky Wicket Hosted by the UVIC Centre on Aging Denise Cloutier, PhD, will speak on "Pathways between Home and Institutional Care: Exploring Care Transitions for Older Loved Ones". She will focus on what we currently know about care transitions, how families can better prepare themselves, and what we need to consider in order to improve our health care system and the quality of life of our older loved ones. | 
