Bonding over bocce ball

Nine-year-olds and seniors in their ’90s regularly bond over bocce in Tuxedo.

École Tuxedo Park and Extendicare Tuxedo Villa are marking a decade of Senior Buddies, a partnership that began to build intergenerational friendship and understanding in their neighbourhood.

“It’s opening (students’) eyes to different parts of being a human and humanity and the community that they live in,” said Diana Stahl, a school counsellor at the kindergarten-to-Grade 4 building in Winnipeg.

Stahl and her students made the 350-metre trek to the long-term care home on Thursday for their final visit of the school year.

For resident Cecilia Torey, it was an opportunity to exercise and show off the athletic skills she honed while playing volleyball and softball when she was younger.

Torey said she plays bocce on a daily basis, but she isn’t typically cheered on by smiling children.

“Kids are so beautiful and smart, even though they don’t know it,” the senior said. “And they are silly.”

Throughout the school year, the “buddies” have competed in shuffleboard and sung karaoke — a crowd pleaser during which many students discovered Sweet Caroline for the first time — this year. Elementary schoolers have dropped off art and cards for their elderly neighbours.

The school counsellor said the ultimate goal is to help students develop empathy, compassion and respect for others, regardless of their age and circumstances.

On the other end of the spectrum, École Tuxedo Park regularly hosts newborns via Roots of Empathy, a program that pairs new parents and elementary classrooms so students can watch a baby grow and learn about caregiving, sharing and inclusion in the process.

Extendicare’s John Mikula said Senior Buddies has fostered “a mutually beneficial relationship” over the last 10 years.

“For the residents, there’s a lot of joy, meaningfulness, a reduction in social isolation,” Mikula said, adding that elementary students make new connections and learn about aging.

“Dementia” wasn’t a part of 10-year-old Melania’s vocabulary before she started Grade 4.

Extendicare staff paid her class a visit in the fall to explain what kids could expect as participants in the Senior Buddies program. Many of the seniors who live at the 213-bed facility have a formal diagnosis of a disease that affects their memory.

“It might be hard for them to remember things, but they do remember how they feel and the good feelings,” Melania said, reflecting on her newfound understanding of dementia.

It’s a special experience to meet and play with new people and make them laugh, she added.

Another Grade 4 student, Matthew echoed those comments. The nine-year-old said participating in monthly outings to the assisted-living facility has helped him better understand his grandfather, who has dementia.

“They’re so surprised when they learn about all the jobs we’ve had and how many jobs are out there. We have artists and engineers,” said Michelle Savage, who has been living at the care home for two years.

Savage held various roles in the fast-food industry and other sectors that she said often kept her busy trying to make ends meet to raise her three children.

Now that she no longer juggles work and caregiving duties, she can fully appreciate just how joyful it is to be around kids and hear them chatter and giggle, she said.

Savage said she hopes that by being exposed to older people with different personalities and life experiences, all of the Grade 4 students become considerate adults who value seniors’ contributions.

“A lot of people look down on us and treat us like kids,” she said. “We’re not useless. We can still enjoy things and laugh and have a good time.”

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca