Editor’s Note: This story was originally printed Age-Friendly Minnesota newsletter. View original story.
Through the community leadership of West Central Initiative Board member and Grant County Early Childhood Initiative Coordinator Kari Kreft, West Central Area School students are making meaningful connections with area senior citizens.
Thanks to an Age-Friendly Minnesota Grant and additional support from the Community Healthcare Auxiliary, the Region 4 South Mental Health Consortium, and a Thrivent Action Plan Grant, students in West Central Area Schools (ISD 2342) have been visiting four area senior living facilities in Grant and Douglas Counties. The intergenerational activities build connections between youth and older adults.
Students from several different grade levels get to visit Hoffman Senior Living, Maplewood Manor, the Barrett Care Center, and the Hoffman Senior Center on a weekly basis. Students completed fifteen visits during the months of October and November.
The smiles were plentiful, and both residents and students benefited from the visits and shared memories.
Highlights so far this year include sharing West Central Area history through yearbooks and community anniversary journals, creating Stuff-N-Fluff animals, playing board games, playing Bingo, making crafts, decorating cookies, trick or treating, packing boxes for Operation Christmas, and decorating for Christmas.
West Central Area Schools is a great example of what can be done with an Age-Friendly Minnesota Community Grant. A new round of Age-Friendly Minnesota Community Grants is scheduled to be announced in January 2024. If you are interested in developing a project that enhances the quality of life of older Minnesotans in your community, reach out to West Central Initiative Community Engagement Specialist Rick Schara. West Central Initiative is a Technical Assistance Provider for Age-Friendly Minnesota
