Our age-friendly activity at Casa was a success! We were a bit worried at first, as many of our attendees ended up arriving late due to other activities and scheduling conflicts. However, once more late-comers arrived, all in all we had fair attendance.
When many of the groups were introducing their findings regarding their NAPs, it was interesting to watch the elders’ reactions to what was discovered and learned. From my understanding, many of the residents at Casa have not had much experience with venturing outside of La Jolla. Although Casa can provide the means of transit for exploring greater San Diego, there must be sufficient interest as while as time and resources management to make field trips possible, causing many of these events to be more occasional rather than regular. After hearing about the vibrant community and art spaces in Barrio Logan (my group, yay!), it seemed like there was greater interest in exploring the more South areas of San Diego as well. Considering the demographics of La Jolla and specifically Casa de Manana, it is important for people to be engaged with the communities that they otherwise would not normally be predisposed to interact with. In the more recent past, Barrio Logan was plagued with street violence and gang activity, making it a community in San Diego that most people living in centers like Casa would try to avoid. To this day, Barrio Logan’s name is tainted by this history. I feel like I have played a part in properly informing the elders about Casa about the development of Barrio Logan into the politically active, vibrant community it is today. From this alone, I was inspired to try to promote intergenerational tours in the future, where UCSD USP students could bring residents of Casa into communities that they are studying, and show the residents the hypotheses and evidences of their research in the respective communities that they are studying.
During the brainstorm on the ideal age-friendly cities, the residents that we were speaking with, Dorothy and Margerite, were inspired by their struggles and challenges living in La Jolla. Both ladies expressed a heightened interest in more opportunities for interaction amongst people of all ages. There are many older people living in La Jolla, and unfortunately for many, the only interaction these people experience is amongst people their own ages. Within La Jolla, there is a shortage of families which presents the main issue we see in the population, the fact that there are few young people. With so many schools and universities in the greater San Diego area, there really is no valid excuse for not interacting and participating in intergenerational activities with the seniors at Casa de Manana and other senior living communities. There are wealths of knowledge embedded in every population and we can all learn more from each other. The ladies suggested tutoring on school subjects for college students from seniors, combined classes on things such as health and current events, and generally more opportunities for time-passing together.
All of the elders had such lovely things to say about the students as we were reflecting and finishing up the activity. It was so nice to hear that we as a group were inspiring to the elders. It is interesting too, because I think of them as inspiring! This just goes to show that we know far less than we think we do about others and we need to take time to listen and engage in order to benefit and enrich each other.
When many of the groups were introducing their findings regarding their NAPs, it was interesting to watch the elders’ reactions to what was discovered and learned. From my understanding, many of the residents at Casa have not had much experience with venturing outside of La Jolla. Although Casa can provide the means of transit for exploring greater San Diego, there must be sufficient interest as while as time and resources management to make field trips possible, causing many of these events to be more occasional rather than regular. After hearing about the vibrant community and art spaces in Barrio Logan (my group, yay!), it seemed like there was greater interest in exploring the more South areas of San Diego as well. Considering the demographics of La Jolla and specifically Casa de Manana, it is important for people to be engaged with the communities that they otherwise would not normally be predisposed to interact with. In the more recent past, Barrio Logan was plagued with street violence and gang activity, making it a community in San Diego that most people living in centers like Casa would try to avoid. To this day, Barrio Logan’s name is tainted by this history. I feel like I have played a part in properly informing the elders about Casa about the development of Barrio Logan into the politically active, vibrant community it is today. From this alone, I was inspired to try to promote intergenerational tours in the future, where UCSD USP students could bring residents of Casa into communities that they are studying, and show the residents the hypotheses and evidences of their research in the respective communities that they are studying.
During the brainstorm on the ideal age-friendly cities, the residents that we were speaking with, Dorothy and Margerite, were inspired by their struggles and challenges living in La Jolla. Both ladies expressed a heightened interest in more opportunities for interaction amongst people of all ages. There are many older people living in La Jolla, and unfortunately for many, the only interaction these people experience is amongst people their own ages. Within La Jolla, there is a shortage of families which presents the main issue we see in the population, the fact that there are few young people. With so many schools and universities in the greater San Diego area, there really is no valid excuse for not interacting and participating in intergenerational activities with the seniors at Casa de Manana and other senior living communities. There are wealths of knowledge embedded in every population and we can all learn more from each other. The ladies suggested tutoring on school subjects for college students from seniors, combined classes on things such as health and current events, and generally more opportunities for time-passing together.
All of the elders had such lovely things to say about the students as we were reflecting and finishing up the activity. It was so nice to hear that we as a group were inspiring to the elders. It is interesting too, because I think of them as inspiring! This just goes to show that we know far less than we think we do about others and we need to take time to listen and engage in order to benefit and enrich each other.