Mr. Fredrickson's friendship with Russel in the Disney movie Up saved his life. We are hoping to foster this same type of friendship. 

OUR STORY

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Here is a quote from our chapter leader, Payton Danosky, as she describes her experience starting the Washington chapter of LHA:
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​"In February 2021, I was asked in an English class what I felt was the biggest social issue in our community. This moment was truly eye opening. It wasn't until I read an article explaining that obesity and substance abuse have mortality rates comparable to the mortality rate of senior isolation that I understood the true extent of this problem.

With the COVID pandemic, seniors were often sequestered to their rooms and isolated from any interpersonal interactions. Seniors were facing the difficulties of two pandemics at once. Not only are senior's at an increased risk for loneliness, but so are youth today.

This realization reminded me of an unbreakable bond I formed with my neighbor, Mr. Brandt. He became like a grandfather figure to me and I became his "little Buddy". Even though we are not blood-related, we both benefit from this relationship. This made me realize that the mentorship and joy I feel meeting with Mr. Brandt could be spread to others through the formation of intergenerational friendships. I started researching and found the organization LHA with this exact goal, and that is when I made the decision to get involved.

Since this realization, I have established a leadership team with three other motivated and passionate youth. We have recruited volunteers, started working with five care facilities within the state of Washington, and hosted a variety of meetings establishing friendships between youth and seniors that will last a lifetime. I like to think that these connections save the lives of both seniors and youth."

How LHA Works: 

Since our organization was founded at the beginning of the pandemic, we started by hosting virtual meetings. However, we are open to in-person meetings in the future depending on COVID protocols. Another factor that influences whether in-person meetings are feasible is the location of the facility to our volunteers. Overall, our main goal is to provide the most comfortable environment for our seniors and volunteers. For virtual meetings we use a variety of platforms with the most popular being FaceTime, Zoom, and Skype. We host two types of meetings: one-on-one meetings and group meetings. We also donate seasonal crafts to facilities. Possible crafts range from cards to holiday decorations. 

Activities We Offer:

Our organization uses art as a stepping stone because we have found that a common interest allows two people to connect easier. However, this does not mean you have to be artistic to participate. We use the term art loosely as there are many branches of art. The opportunities for these meetings are endless. Once meetings begin the youth and the senior will discover similarities and their friendship will build upon those. The activities listed here are activities that we have done previously. We are open to suggestions. Overall, our organization is extremely flexible and we are willing to adjust these meetings to fit your schedule, needs, and wants the best way we can.

One-on-one meetings: 

• ​sharing stories
• talking about life
• playing games (charades, trivia, board games, puzzles, etc.)
• painting or drawing together/ lessons
• knitting or crocheting together/ lessons
• embroidering together/ embroidery lessons
• sharing cooking/ baking recipes
• reading books/ discussing books 
• sharing or taking photos/ discussing photography 
• listening to music together/ playing music together
• crafting together

Group meetings:

• holiday parties
• painting or drawing lessons
• ​cooking shows
• game show trivia (Family Feud, Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune, multiple choice trivia, etc.)
• crocheting lessons
• embroidery lessons
• language lessons (Spanish, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Polish)
• book clubs
• concerts
• craft tutorials 

Check out our parent organization's website:
​https://www.liftingheartswiththearts.org 

Lifting Hearts with the Arts is a 501(c)(3) organization: ​Donations and gifts are tax-deductible to the full extent under IRS regulations