Senior Club

Since I remember I liked spending time with older people. I loved to stay at my grandma's in the countryside, helping to picking cherries and apples. In the evenings, we were sitting long hours on the stove and my grandma told me stories about ghosts and strange domestic creatures. In turn, my second grandparents from my dad side are typical townspeople. From them I've learned how to play chess and bridge. As I grew up, they took me to play cards with their friends. When I went to high school I became interested in Polish traditional music and oral history. I loved listening to long love or funeral songs, watching old photos or going to traditional dancing called potańcówka. My friends always joked that the best company for me are 60+ people. There is something about it. I'm definitely a person who likes to talk with older people and feel very compassionate in their company. Could it be my grandparents contribution?

A year ago, together with my friends from association we took part in the grant competition for NGO-s to run first Senior Club in ourtown. When the city hall announced the competition, for me it seemed obvious that we should try. None of us had experience working with older people. We usually did projects with children, youngsters or communities. In our proposal to run a Senior Club we have guided the principle - we want to establish a place that will be intergenerational and everyone will be treated equally, regardless of age. We have proposed a rather original project in which we wanted the seniors to contribute in the place. We did not mean to entertain seniors but create space for their own ideas. It worked and we got a grant to run the Senior Club.

The crowds came to the opening! Nobody expected so much interest. Our program of activities was very diverse and very interesting - from yoga classes to computer classes, art, choirs, dancing and walking tours. We have implemented a series of "community" activities, during which we discussed together how the club should work. Each of the classes was consulted with the beneficiaries. In the spring we started with a community garden run by seniors from the club and residents of the district. We took part in the All-Poland Senior Parade in Warsaw, which gathers senior clubs from all over Poland and is an opportunity to show that 60+ people have a voice, are important and can not be discriminated against because of their age.

We believed in it and thanks to our and the seniors energy we created an amazing place. We just gave them space and for ourselves the possibility to spend time with older people who have unremarkable stories, melodies and a sense of humor. We all speak for ourselves by name, no matter what age. At first it was not easy but after time it came naturally because each of us is equal and has the right to decide on the place.

I would like to recommend to everyone to spend time with old people. It teaches sensitivity and peace and you can learn a lot about the world, which slowly goes away. If you do not have any Senior Club in your area, it is enough to visit your grandparents more often, to take them for a walk or bike ride or just listen theirs stories from the past. 

https://www.facebook.com/suwalskiklubseniora/