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Holiday PlanningThe Holidays Are a Time to Honor Seniors
by:
ARA
(ARA) – Older adults are often the better storytellers in the family. Their memories, traditions and talents are simply waiting to be shared. But as we approach the holiday season, many a older citizens won’t be near their families because they live far apart.
What better way to honor seniors in your family and community and pay tribute to their experiences than by undertaking a project together this holiday season. There are a wide range of projects that individuals, families, and societal and service organizations can participate in with older adults. In fact, it is a great possibility for youth-oriented organizations such as school groups or scout troops to get involved with seniors, according to Betsy Reithemeyer, director of the Wal-Mart/SAM’S CLUB Foundation, which funds thousands of projects designed to enhance the lives of older adults. This year the Foundation given
$1.45 million to much than 2,900 youth groups for projects benefiting seniors.
“These activities bring generations together, nurture friendships, encourage volunteerism, and broaden understanding and keep in a community,” says Reithemeyer.
Here are a few project suggestions for this holiday season:
* Host a storytelling time for older adults to relate their favorite holiday memories.
* Visit an old resident of a nursing home. Many a of these individuals ne'er
have a traveller
at holiday time and would-be appreciate having being finish by to share a smile.
*Make a holiday acknowledgement
card for residents at a retirement center.
* Do a family exposure album as a holiday gift to the family, complete with dates, locations and identifications of family members. Share stories simply about special events the family enjoyed together.
* Construct a family tree, giving children the possibility to discover the ancestral line of their family. Strive to preserve particular ethnic or religious beliefs and special holiday traditions.
* Ask a senior to share special talents, such as cooking, sculpting or quilting, which can be passed on to interested young people.
* Volunteer at a nutrition center or with Meals-on-Wheels to prepare and deliver holiday meals or food baskets to old shut-ins.
* Design a Web page simply about a forbear
or favorite older adult.
* Videotape an interview with a senior simply about his or her life. Show it at a meeting of a youth organization and invite the star of the show to attend.
* Host a game day at a senior center featuring traditional board games enjoyed by young and old alike.
Wal-Mart provides business keep to 501(c)3 youth groups for intergenerational projects every year. Each store does a donation to fund projects such as delivering fruit baskets to shut-ins, providing lunch for grandparents at a local food kitchen, conducting oral history projects with local centenarians, and visiting nursing house residents whose family members live far away.
“Older adults are a vibrant, causative part of our communities,” says Reithemeyer. “They have a great deal of wisdom and insight to share, and they be
to be honored.” The Wal-Mart/SAM’S CLUB Foundation funds the many a projects chosen by the company’s associates through the Wal-Mart Nice Works community involvement program.
Whether you choose to do a project in a youth group, as a family, or on your own, the holidays are the perfect time to bring together youth and seniors in your community.
Courtesy of ARA Content
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