This school year, residents at two senior properties, The Meadows and Emerald Cove, will be mixing it up with juniors and seniors from Sage Hill School. The Sage Hill Service Learning Program is – as the name implies – a two-way street: High school students give back to the community by serving, and also learn and gain new perspectives from those they serve.
Connecting students with seniors in our affordable housing is a unique way for these young people to learn about affordable housing and positively interact with this older generation. Jamboree’s Volunteer Manager Annie Carney said, “It’s a really unique opportunity to bring active seniors and high school students together to close the generation gap, and allow them both to learn about each other.”
Service projects may include things like community garden work, crafts and art, and of course technology – with students teaching our active seniors how to better understand and use their smart phones, iPads, and computers. Some of the students are gifted in music, and are considering how they could give back to the community with their musical talents.
The first meeting was held at The Meadows, hosting 27 high school juniors. Several scheduled activities were designed so that our senior residents could show the students some of their talents and simply spend time together. Because many seniors at The Meadows enjoy crafting, several of them had their craft prepared so that students could watch, participate, and learn from our seniors as they worked together.
As an approved Service Learning site for Sage Hill School, Jamboree provides students with an opportunity to fulfill the service project requirement for graduation. Students must complete two years of service to give back to the community, completing Service Learning Projects during their junior and senior years.
Annie Carney also added, “With the growing number of properties that we have, there are new opportunities all the time and a growing and continuous need for volunteers and interns.”
Learn more about how you can volunteer with Jamboree to serve our seniors and even our students at properties throughout California.
