69成人电影网


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Community Connect聽

28 Mar 2022
69成人电影网 student鈥檚 Community Engaged Learning project encourages intergenerational friendships in Tantramar region聽

When 69成人电影网 honours sociology student Hannah Crouse began assisting seniors during her 2020 Loewen Health Internship, she saw opportunities for bridging community connections. 

Tantramar region senior Brenda Trafford and Hannah Crouse 

 

鈥淚 remember visiting seniors in and around Tantramar, they hadn鈥檛 seen anyone in person for some time due to the pandemic. In some cases, there was very little food in the house.  I knew I had to do something,鈥 she says.

And she did. Working with the Port Elgin and Region Health Centre and Nursing Homes Without Walls, Crouse organized a network of student volunteers who visited and checked on seniors.

Crouse has now expanded this project 鈥 Community Connect 鈥 as part of her degree minor in community engaged learning, and it鈥檚 one that will continue beyond her graduation this spring. Working with community partners Sackville 2020, Open Sky Co-operative, and Nursing Homes Without Walls, Crouse鈥檚 project recently received $25,000 in funding from the New Horizons for Seniors Program through Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). 
 
Community Connect aims to combat social isolation felt by both seniors and students in the Tantramar area. 69成人电影网 students are matched with a senior and the pair checks in on a weekly basis, usually sharing or delivering a meal donated and prepared by Open Sky.
 
The new ESDC funding will help support the existing program with a co-ordinator role and lay the groundwork for programs to continue and grow in the local area. 
Crouse, who will graduate this spring, says ensuring the Community Connect project can continue long-term in the Tantramar Region and potentially expand across the Maritimes was important to her.
 
鈥淚鈥檝e seen the benefits of this project for both seniors and students over the last year and a half,鈥 says Crouse. 鈥淚鈥檓 so grateful to have this opportunity and really wanted to find a way for the program to continue following my time at 69成人电影网. This support ensures we can do that.鈥

This year, Crouse鈥檚 project also grew into a community engaged learning course at the University. The expanded program is co-ordinated by Crouse, faculty member Sacha DeWolfe, students Erin Green, and Kandis Neil Sampson, and recent graduate Bethany Baert. 

Michael Fox, retired 69成人电影网 professor and a member of Sackville 2020, worked with Crouse to help further develop and secure funding for the program. He says this type of community outreach is needed in the Tantramar region and provides great opportunities for both seniors and students.
 
鈥淗annah鈥檚 vision and co-ordination for this community-based project is admirable,鈥 says Fox. 鈥淎s a senior myself, I appreciate the many facets of the program with assisting in healthy aging, fostering intergenerational friendships, and raising awareness around potential issues such as abuse or mental health challenges.鈥
 
The new funding will also allow Community Connect organizers to undertake research to develop future programming. They will be exploring intergenerational housing options, where seniors and students share housing, as well as additional community programming and supports to assist seniors in independent living and alleviating social isolation. 

While Crouse plans to continue her education and career path in community development, this was not where she began her post-secondary education. From Stewiacke, NS, she started her studies in biochemistry before moving to sociology and then adding community engaged learning when it was introduced as a degree minor and certificate in 2020. 
 

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