An innovative arts program that brought youth and seniors together has earned the City of New Westminster an award.
The city has won a provincial Award of Excellence from the B.C. Recreation and Parks Association for its Heart 2 Art program.
The program brought together youth and seniors to foster their creativity and learn from one another.
One senior and one youth were teamed up with a professional artist to create intergenerational art workshops in five selected areas: spoken word, theatre, mosaic, digital photography and variety.
They then presented those workshops to intergenerational groups.
A press release from the B.C. Recreation and Parks Association notes that the program demonstrated "unprecedented success" in bringing youth and seniors together in a recreation-based experience that enriched the lives of everyone involved. It also notes it demonstrated excellence in program design and has great potential to be adapted to other communities.
"The Heart 2 Art Project is creating a better understanding between seniors and youth in New Westminster," said Suzanne Alllard Strutt, the association's CEO. "This small but important program is helping build an enriched, more interwoven community through art."
Local youth and seniors gave the program the thumbs-up in a previous interview with The Record.
"I loved the experience," said Meagan Schlee-Bedard, a 17-year-old Douglas College student who served as the youth leader for spoken word. She had nothing but good things to say about working with senior leader Margo Prentice and the senior participants. "I learned so much from them, and somehow they managed to learn from me."
Maddie Clarkson, who was the youth leader for variety - which incorporated song, dance and acting - agreed.
"I found it really inspiring," she said. "It shocked me a bit how much I really learned. I was teaching them, but it was like they were teaching me at the same time. It just exceeded all of my expectations."
For more on the awards, see www.bcrpa.bc.ca.
