Intergenerational

Partners compiled a collection of best practices of traditional community institutions incorporating health and wellness into their agenda and programming to improve community health. The best practices focus on improving the health of at least one of three constituencies: distressed communities, at-risk youth, and the vulnerable elderly.

Examples of institutions include arts and culture organizations, botanical gardens, community development corporations (CDCs), faith-based organizations, libraries, museums, public markets, and zoos.

Click here to download Creating the Healthy Community - Using All Assets: Institutions as Fulcrums of Change

The U.S. Armed Forces Retirement Home in Washington, D.C., commonly referred to as the ‘Soldiers’ Home,’ is one of the country’s oldest veterans’ retirement homes and certainly one of the most beautiful. Located on a 273-acre campus in Northwest D.C., the Home’s green pastures and tranquil lakes sit in stark contrast to the developed neighborhoods of the surrounding community. Since the home opened in 1851, the retirement community has been home to thousands of retired elderly and disabled veterans in the Washington area.

Project Phoenix is an intergenerational program based in Wellend, Ontario, just outside of Niagara, run jointly by the nonprofits Seniors for Youth Niagara and Youth Resources Niagara. The program aims to close the gap between seniors and youth for the purpose of improving the community by giving senior volunteers a chance to interact and share their knowledge and experience with at-risk youth in the area.

As the baby-boomer population all reach the age of retirement, many older individuals are going to be forced into assisted living facilities.  This article featured on PlaceMakers by Ben Brown highlights the ElderSpirit Community in Abingdon, VA, which on a relatively small budget, has created a community for older individuals that emphasizes people, skills, and needs.

"Among the Big Issues awaiting communities after we shake off the post-recession blues is what to do about demography. Particularly the part about America’s aging population.

The first-borns among the 76-million-strong Baby Boomer generation reached 65 in 2011. And over the next three decades, the geezer slice of the population pie will swell to 20 percent, compared to a little more than 13 percent in 2010. Take a look at the chart below, compiled from Census projections and pulled from the informative Alliance for Aging site.

That’s more than 88 million folks 65-plus, with the fastest growing cohorts the “oldest-old” segments of 80-plus.

I have a special interest in this topic, given that I’m among those leading-edge Boomers who have reconfigured commerce and culture to suit our tastes over the last half-century. It’s been a great run.

By now, just about everybody not invited to our long-running generational fiesta is tired of indulging Boomer fantasies. Sorry. Since we’re still running lots of stuff and still hoarding most of America’s financial assets, there’s more to come. Currently, we’re in the middle of one of our periodic – and probably our last – reality denial exercises. This is the one where we’re pretending Big Pharma, robots, electric cars and Dr. Oz will extend our playtime into infinity. You know, “60 is the new 40.” Unlike previous Boomer reality ducks, however, this one is going to be tough to buy or lie our way out of....."

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photo credit Dances for A Variable Population

Dancers dressed in vibrant red move across The High Line, an elevated historic rail line turned public park in Manhattan’s West Side, enticing passersby to stop and look at the beautiful performance. Half of the dancers seem to be young, fit, and professionally trained. The other half move more slowly, some dancing in place, and some sitting. In fact, they are all older adults.

Dance artist Naomi Goldberg Haas founded and directs Dances For A Variable Population (DVP), a dance company whose goal is to erase the borders between dancers and audience through its unique choreography and dance company, comprising adults 24 to 82 years of age.  Haas enjoys site-specific dance performances, which place the audience and dancers of all ages in the same space. She says, “[In these] new conceptions of shared space, we celebrate how dance can be a vehicle for wellness and expression for seniors, persons with disabilities, youth, and regular folk; how dance can change from an ‘under-exposed’ art form in a community to become an active tool for community participation, enthusiasm, and social interaction.”