Our Elderly

        (The following is an article taken from the February 19, 1997 issue of the Santa Clara University's Student Newspaper, 'The Bronco Buzz.')
        Connecting to our past

        By Erin Paullus
        TSC Writer
        February 15, 1996

        The children may be our future, but we have to remember that the elderly are our past. They hold the key to our history, our heritage, and well ... knowledge through experience. Sometimes, in the rush to save the children, we forget to honor the elderly. One of SCCAP's programs, Senior Connection, is centered around how students can have a positive effect on the elderly. The program matches students up with senior citizens who need some extra attention. There are two different branches of the program: one which places students with senior citizens who are just a little lonely and need someone to brighten their day, and the other program which matches students with an elderly person with some form of dementia (most likely either due to Alzheimer's Disease or a stroke). Two independent agencies provide the "senior connection" which SCCAP then provides to students. These agencies are Catholic Charities which deal with seniors who need companionship and Family Caregiver Alliance which specializes in finding caregivers for the elderly with dementia. Companionship and care The two programs differ mostly in their goals. The objective of the Catholic Charities program is to provide a lonely senior citizen with a student companion. The goal of the Family Caregiver Alliance is to relieve the primary caregiver (a spouse or other family member who is caring for the senior citizen with dementia) from their duties, so that they can get out of the house for a few hours. This year the Senior Connection is headed by Michelle Tiegs, who has had both previous experience with SCCAP and with the elderly. Tiegs worked at a retirement home for three years during high school, and believes that is part of the reason she was chosen to head Senior Connection this year. Tiegs stressed the vast knowledge that senior citizens have, and that it is amazing how much they have seen in a lifetime. Currently, Tiegs is matched up with her own elderly counterpart. "When I first went to meet her, she was very closed off and didn't want help from me," Tiegs said. "I turned the tables on her and told her that she was there to help me. By the end of the afternoon she was hugging me and smiling, telling me how much fun we were going to have." There are several activities that the elderly and their student companions can participate in together. Arts and crafts such as painting, knitting and working with clay are all activities which can be shared by the students and the elderly. Sometimes activities aren't necessary, and merely having a pleasant conversation or sitting outside in the sunlight can provide the excitement and joy that is needed in senior citizens' lives. Plentiful rewards The Senior Connection allows for students to learn from their elders, while alleviating the loneliness of aging. There is only a two hour per week commitment involved with Senior Connection and students can choose to be matched up with a senior citizen who is "normal" or has a form of dementia. Tiegs assures students that they should make the choice on their comfort level. The rewards of working with the elderly are plentiful. "You gain patience and caring," Tiegs said. The Senior Connection is a win-win situation for all involved; the students gain knowledge about the past, while the senior citizens gain insight into the future. In the end, both parties gain a lifelong friendship. Opportunities to participate in the Senior Connection are always available, just ask for Michelle Tiegs in the SCCAP office.

        Roxie Climbs Up On Her Soapbox
        There are exceptions to every rule and certain groups of Seniors have made an exception to my rule that our oldest citizens have more than earned our respect. One such exception can be found in Sun City, Arizona where, a few years back, the seniors decided to declare their town independant thereby exempting them from paying school taxes... since no person under the age of 55 can live in Sun City for more than a couple of weeks it's unlikely there will ever be any students there. The problem with this attitude is that, with their refusal to pay school taxes, the local community college, Peoria College, was forced to close down. I wonder who these Seniors thought paid their way through school? Every generation pays for the one following it and if all our adults who have either never been parents or who are no longer parents of school-aged children decided they no longer had to pay taxes, we would have to close all our schools. When we pay school taxes we aren't paying for the children in school today... we're re-paying the 'loan' for our own education.
        As I stated at the beginning... these are the exceptions and I will not dwell on them any longer. I just needed to get that off my chest!

        What does God say about the treatment of Senior Citizens?
        (More coming soon)



        Administration on Aging
        Fraud Against the Elderly
        (with links to other services for our Seniors)

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        Roxie

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