Connecting the generations at the Center for Adult Life Enrichment

Woodmere Middle School students and seniors find common ground

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Woodmere Middle School students learned what their lives would have been like if they grew up on the in the 1940s and ’50s, as members of Center for Adult Life Enrichment in Hewlett shared their stories in an intergenerational gathering on May 22.

Woodmere’s student council, which consists of sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders sat in a circle with local seniors who recounted what life was like when they were the students ages. Microphones revolved around the room as students asked questions and the seniors regaled the audience with story after story.

Claire Ganzfried, the vice president of CALE’s advisory council, began by asking, “How many of you don’t have your own phone?” Not a single hand was raised. She then went on to explain to the stunned students that her family didn’t have a landline until she was 11.

The discussion continued, covering topics that ranged from the movies that the seniors saw to the student’s after-school activities. While it was obvious that a lot had changed both sides found they also had a lot in common.

“My favorite foods?” Said Dave Schrager, one of the seniors, “The same as you guys, pizza and Chinese food, that stuff.”

After a few more questions the students received bingo cards and were tasked with speaking to the seniors and finding those whose experiences matched those on the cards to get BINGO.

As the students did that, Kara Fusco, one of the student council supervisors, explained what the goal is for this field trip: “The kids were really excited because they don’t always have a chance to interact with the older members [of the community] so this gave us a chance to get out and get to know them. They were really interested in comparing their lives then to now.”

CALE member Esther Bogen expressed a mutual sentiment. “The only children in our lives, if we have them, are our grandchildren, and they come around maybe once a month,” she said. “Here we find ourselves in a world of young people and it’s just a great thing to communicate with them and to kind of get a feeling of what they’re about.”

Georgiana Wolfson, CALE’s executive director, holds programs like this because these connections are important to the community. “We believe that the intergenerational programs really connect the older person to the younger person,” she said. “Many of the students need community service hours and this is an accessible site and the students are able to help the seniors with their phones and emails so it’s been a wonderful experience.” CALE is on the Hewlett High School campus.

CALE seeks to provide activities for adults who are 55 or older. A common thread among the members is how bored they would be without these programs that range from discussions such as this to fitness and painting classes.

Wolfson extended an invitation to nonmembers. “Please stop in, come in we’ll give you a tour,” she said. “The most important thing is for you to be involved with the center so you can meet new friends.”