Written by Roxanne Popowich; High School Program Coordinator
Archbishop Jordan High School/Chartwell Country Cottage Partnership
I always like to chat with the seniors who come early to the common room before the students arrive and one of the seniors at the last visit was expressing some concern about participating in LG because of some memory loss, she was forgetting who her students were. I reassured her that as soon as she saw them come in and started speaking with them it would come back to her. She was hesitant about doing the craft I had planned and again I reassured her that she didn’t have to do anything she didn’t want to and that the students would be helping her. At the end of the visit I made a point to ask her how she enjoyed it and she said, “It wasn’t long enough!” 🙂
I noticed another senior at the end of the same visit was looking at me with a concerned look on her face when I announced that it was time to go so I went and asked if there was something wrong. She looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, “Yes, I’m not ready to go. It’s like I have my kids back.” Well, I instantly teared up and gave her a hug! She clung to me for about a full minute. I finally said, Ok enough you’re gonna make me cry! Then we both laughed! That just made my day!!
Some students have also told me how much they’re enjoying the program this year. I happened to see one of the moms at an after-school function and I asked how her daughter was enjoying LG. She stated that her daughter comes home every Tues from Linking and can’t stop talking about how much she likes her senior and how funny he is. She also liked the activities.
These visits are making a difference in their lives and in mine as well. They are one of the highlights of my week!
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