Young people help senior citizens and children delight people living in retirement homes. Connecting generations brings young and old into contact with each other. This benefits both sides – and society, as three examples show.
Two young people paint the walls in Hoefelmayrpark with the janitor. The residents look on eagerly. This is possible because the BRK house cooperates with KJF Soziale Angebote Allgäu. “We are neighbors,” says Bernhard Zwick, Head of Training and Vocational Training at Haus St. Georg. Only separated by a green area, the idea of working together is obvious. So Zwick sits down with BRK facility manager Sven Jöckertitz to develop joint projects.
Realistic training
Since then, some of the 70 young people with rehabilitation or support needs have been regular guests at the retirement home. “We have managed to network our social space,” says Zwick happily. The 16 to 25-year-olds, who are completing an apprenticeship at his home, regularly assist the senior citizens. „Whether as painters, gardeners, housekeepers, carers or hairdressers. Last but not least, we can help senior living with our apprenticeships. And provide realistic training,” says the educator.
For example, the care trainees provide housekeeping support in day care and with personal hygiene for the elderly. The trainee hairdressers offer haircuts including a pick-up service. “We also support the senior citizens‘ homes with manual activities,” says Zwick. For example, the trainees assist the janitor with his tasks and paint walls together.
A zest for life and a breath of fresh air
The young people’s support is a welcome change for the senior citizens. The residents are also allowed to visit the young people’s home and help out in the workshop. A natural way of connecting generations. Zwick says he has found the young people, who are cognitively impaired or have mental health issues, to be calmer and more empathetic when working directly with the senior citizens. “In turn, the young people bring a zest for life and a breath of fresh air to our residents,” adds Jöckertitz.
Change of scene. Senior citizens‘ hands scurry over tablets, the occasional quiet giggle can be heard. And again and again an “Aha!”. Two dozen old and young people are sitting in the seminar room in Attendorn in the district of Olpe (NRW). There are one or two senior citizens and one young person at each of several tables. Together they look at small screens. The atmosphere in the room is relaxed, but still focused. Because knowledge is being imparted here. In this case, however, it is not adults who are teaching young people, but the other way around.
Digital in old age
In the „Digital im Alter“ project, young people teach older people how to use cell phones and tablets. There are now several initiatives like this in Germany. Bridging the gap between young and old and connecting the generation is the aim of the youth parliament and seniors‘ council in Attendorn. The idea behind is to teach senior citizens how to use technical devices safely. To this end, the pensioners practise on rental tablets provided by the Digital Opportunities Foundation. And the young people volunteer to help.
At the end of the course, both sides are delighted with the exchange. After all, seminars of this kind are not just about apps and computers. They are about intergenerational discussions. Sometimes it is also about reflecting on one’s own actions. For example, when senior citizens talk about what life used to be like without cell phones. And young people ask themselves how intensively they use social media – and whether this is healthy.
But it’s not just young people who can enrich the lives of senior citizens. In Neuendettelsau (Ansbach district), children whirl wildly through the residential park for senior citizens. There is great anticipation as the little ones want to sing a birthday greeting to a resident. Grandma Erna is celebrating her 90th. In addition to the children from the Bunte Oase daycare center, there are lots of guests. There is coffee and cake. As the little ones sing and pray with the guests, the whole house is reverently quiet.
Connecting generations – Imitation expressly encouraged
When children visit senior citizens, it is only superficially about singing, playing and celebrating. Projects like the one run by Diakoneo in Neuendettelsau have a deeper meaning. After all, many supposed grandmas and grandpas in care homes lack contact with their grandchildren in real life. They sometimes live far away or don’t even exist. The number of single households in Germany has been rising for years. In old age, these people are often without a family connection. And the same applies to children, because even if grandparents live far away, there is often hardly any contact with the older generation. The lack of exchange is also a social problem. Because if this is missing, the understanding for the respective living environment of the other generation shrinks. The initiators of the respective projects and cooperations are exemplary in ensuring that this does not happen. Connecting generations is important for all of us and imitation expressly encouraged, says one of them.
