When people get together to discuss issues and create art, the result can often be inspiring. That was the basis for Project Inspire, a collaborative project involving older adults from United Active Living, the United Way, LINKAges and the Calgary Chinese Elderly Citizens’ Association.
For the past year, the project combined discussions on matters that affect older adults – ageism, health and isolation – with the creation of artworks that reflected their thoughts.
For the participants, it opened discussion on a variety of sensitive subjects while bringing them together as new friends. “It’s a very worthwhile project,” said United Active Living resident Betty Earle. “It brings the different cultures together in a way that encourages friendship.”
The idea for the project was sparked by a donation by the Kanovsky Family Foundation to United Way of Calgary and Area. A six-week pilot project was developed that focused on ageism and how it affects older adults. The project was so successful, three more six-week projects were developed that expanded into discussions around health, spirituality and wellness, which were reflected in the art the participants produced.
“This project created opportunities for social inclusion,” said Alicia Lewis, LINKAges. “For our seniors in the East Village, social isolation is a concern, so seeing them so involved and interested in meeting others, and making friends with those in a different culture has been very important. It would be great to see this type of project expand to include other communities and other cultural aspects such as music and theatre.”
Social isolation can affect anyone, and Project Inspire provided an opportunity to connect with others. In fact, connections and friendship were two of biggest benefits for those taking part.
“What really impressed me about the project was that there was always something new to learn, both from our perspective as facilitators, and by the participants who learned from each other and by trying their hands a creating art, even though painting and drawing may have been new to them,” said Chantel Traub, creative facilitator, United Active Living.
For the participants, strangers became friends who opened up to each other with respect.”The most incredible thing came from being asked a question at the start of each session, and the people just relaxed with each other, the barriers came down,” said Frank MacLeod, who lives in the East Village. “There was no criticism of anyone’s point of view. Everyone was so respectful.” Chantel agreed. “There was no criticism or judgement despite the differences in culture, and the different educational backgrounds and life experiences. Just a simple respect for the different points of view.”
United’s creative facilitators who are also professional artists introduced a variety of creative elements to the participants. They encouraged them to express their thoughts through paint and paper. Creative expression is a cornerstone of the activities within United communities. Providing opportunities for participants to engage in a variety of stimulating creative workshops led by United’s practicing artists formed the framework of the project.
Wendell Yu and others from the Calgary Chinese Elderly Citizen’s Association were keen participants, who hosted one of the sessions and were quick to accept their new friends. “The project made me so happy!” he said.
Chinese interpreter Louise Lee, who participated in the project said that increased socialization was an important result from the sessions. “They encouraged each other, and gained confidence to express themselves through art, which some of them hadn’t done since school.”
“This project was all about making connections with others, and sharing their experiences with each other,” said Maddison Klein, creative facilitator, United Active Living. “It truly was inspiring to see the energy that everyone brought to the table and the relationships that developed.”
Artwork from the latest Project Inspire session was displayed at C-Space in Marda Loop. The results have been so inspiring that there are now discussions about how to expand the program, either to other communities or to other generations.
“The intergenerational aspect would be a really good thing,” said Frank. “The different ages think very differently. People think about things differently based on their life experiences, so having a program like that would be very interesting.”
“Even though we spoke different languages, we found that it wasn’t a barrier to being friends. Today, I was given hugs from the people I met in the program from the Chinese community. That was great. That’s what friendship is all about,” said Betty.
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“As organizations catering to aging populations, we all realized that we must consider the real impact of discrimination and exclusion of seniors in our society, because like social isolation, ageism is also a strong barrier to older adults’ participation in society,” said Nicole.
The first session on May 2 dealt with the theme of productivity and creativity in later life. “Unfortunately, many of us believe that we are only productive as long as we’re employed or that creativity is only for the young,” said Nicole. “In the session we asked participants if they’ve ever been told they’re too old for something, and questions who gets to decide what behaviour is appropriate for us as we age. Through group discussions, we hope to challenge these preconceptions.”
We began by asking staff to brainstorm as many terms as they could think of to describe older adults and people with dementia. Not surprisingly, many of the terms identified were negative in nature. The group then discussed how language had affected them in their lives. Those in attendance shared the hurtful impact of being teased for their complexion, cultural heritage or their quiet disposition.
Staff creatively reframed the commonly used stereotype of having a ‘senior moment’ to ‘soul searching’ and the behavioural term ‘challenging’ to ‘being a leader’.
“I think none of us wants to think of aging as being a period of decline and isolation, and really it shouldn’t be,” said Dianne McDermid, quality coordinator, United Active Living. “The only reason that it is in many cases is because we put people in a situation where we don’t provide what they need to grow and learn.”
Residents Tim and Lil Tyler find life at United to be stimulating. “I think it’s more important to keep doing what you have been doing, instead of give it up. The important thing as you grow old is not to give up and retreat but charge into life. Keep at it. My own family looks on me and Lil as examples of how to grow old. We don’t retreat. We’re still interesting to talk to about events. We’re still active,” said Tim.
“There’s a sense that everybody knows you’re a person, and not just a person with needs but a person who has something to give, and I think that is very important,” added Lil.
