There is a swirl of activity in the studio.  Christopher, age 4 1/2 looks around and assesses the situation:

“Hey, this is like an office where everybody works, only we do painting, drawing and play-doh!”

“When I grow up, I’m going to have a rainbow truck and it is going to be rainbowed.  And I will help save the day with my secret power!”

Gail Tarantino

Starting next Friday, the children in the after school program at Raphael House will have a pen pal relationship with their neighbors, the seniors at On Lok senior center. Raphael House and On Lok are located one block away from each other and as a way to strengthen a sense of community, we’re introducing the two groups. The seniors are working hard creating booklets about themselves, with kid-appropriate information (one gentleman asked if it would be ok to add “I like girls” to his booklet - after deliberation, he changed it to “I like hamburgers”), including photos or drawings of themselves. I will deliver the booklets to the kids next Friday, and will facilitate the response. Using collage, drawing, and writing, the kids will introduce themselves to the seniors and come up with a few questions they have about the seniors’ lives. In explaining this project to the kids last week, I asked “Does anyone know what a senior is?” I got several immediate, enthusiastic responses “They’re Grandma’s and Grandpa’s!”. We’re off to a good start! Check back in a week from Friday for updates…