Hello to the Renfrew-Collingwood community! My name is Mya Stanton, and I’ve been involved with Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH) for two years. I originally joined as a summer work-learn student employee, and I currently volunteer with the social prescribing (SP) program, which bridges health and social services for seniors and older adults.
This January, as part of a UBC class, I took on an additional project: organizing a seniors’ coffee social and discussion on isolation and aging. I noticed many seniors I work with had few opportunities to stay connected, so I wanted to create a space for interaction, while also exploring what can make socializing so difficult. We hosted four events across Feb. 11 and 25, and March 11 and 24, with the final session in Mandarin, thanks to SP coordinator Jenny Shen’s support, sharing my questions with her Chinese senior peer support group.
The events brought together about eight seniors across all four sessions. While that might seem small, I found that having fewer participants was actually well-suited to the goals of the project. At our most well-attended session, one senior barely spoke about himself, but when he attended a smaller session later on, he opened up much more. I realized soon that focusing too much on turnout numbers could actually isolate the target demographic, so I am glad it stayed more intimate.
A personal highlight of attending the events myself was the intergenerational connections I made. As a university student, I don’t often get the chance to engage with people outside my own age group. I found I had a lot of common interests (animals were a big one!) and I learned how much I take for granted generational references being understood–like when I mentioned Marvel movies and the participants were not sure what I was talking about. It was a bit of a humorous learning moment that reminded me to be mindful of different backgrounds in conversation.
For anyone looking to plan similar events, here are a few key takeaways from my experience:
- Smaller, more intimate settings work well. More isolated seniors may be hesitant to speak in large groups, so keep in mind who your audience is, and consider asking what attendance is preferred.
- Language accessibility matters. As an English-only speaker, I initially overlooked how this might exclude a large part of the community. I’m incredibly grateful that Jenny could support the final session in Mandarin.
- Have a flexible structure. Discussion prompts helped keep things flowing when conversations slowed down, but some of the best moments came from just letting discussions unfold naturally.
- Sustained events are important. A single event is great, but recurring programming allows participants to build relationships and have something reliable to look forward to. However, there are challenges with keeping attendance consistent with smaller groups.
Overall, I’m so glad I got to be part of this project. As someone interested in working in the community after I graduate, this experience was insightful. If you’re thinking of planning seniors’ social events, I highly recommend not only considering what I have to say, but also consulting seniors directly, asking what an ideal social event looks like to them. There’s so much to learn from other generations–the connections I have made at CNH are ones I cherish!
For more information on programs for seniors and older adults at CNH, visit cnh.bc.ca/seniors.
