The joy of sharing

One of the great joys of life is seeing young people interact with older people and that’s exactly what is happening at Elmslie House in Wanaka.

Activities Coordinator, Gilly Pugh, knew there would be benefits all around by bringing school children to Elmslie to share some time with residents.

“I approached Te Kura O Take Kārara and Holy Family schools, inviting the children to share school projects, sing, dance, play games and read out loud to Elmslie residents,” says Gilly.

“The purpose is to foster a relationship between our youth and older people in our community. Reading to them is one way to create a connection and the programme aligns with our wider philosophy of bringing our community into Elmslie House.”

Children from both schools have visited and 10 children (aged between 7-11 years) and a teacher from Te Kura O Take Kārara visit at least once a week.

“The feedback from schools and residents alike has been really positive. The children volunteer to come along and the residents really love it. We began with two children sharing with one resident, and this has now changed to one-on-one.”

“Teachers, children and residents all agree that it is a very wholesome and heart-warming activity with great positives for everyone and we are looking forward to continuing this programme in 2024.”