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Kids n Grans |
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Kids n Grans |
| Home Overview Special Events Membership Programming Artists Senior Centers Board of Trustees |
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The day was hot and muggy; a typical D.C. summer day when you just want to sit in a swimming pool and sip on a cool margarita. But since I don’t have a swimming pool, and I don’t drink margaritas, I instead sat inside and felt terribly anxious about leading my first AFTA workshop that July morning in 1997. I was to collaborate on the Kids n’ Grans intergenerational program at Longbranch Community Center with AFTA Artist Ingrid Mongini. I wondered, How did I end up doing this? I thought I must have subconsciously made a U turn in my life, but actually, when I reflect upon my years as a performing and visual artist, it seems apparent that my deeper stirrings of a life of service never really were laid to rest. I was raised in the church, and although I have long since abandoned conventional religion, I was, in fact, a very religious child. I believe my feelings of compassion and caring for humanity is directly related to my religious upbringing. I had even contemplated becoming a missionary. In
my private practice in body psychotherapy, I came to discover I wanted to
infuse the arts in my work of service to others. This particular morning,
leading my first AFTA workshop, was the launching pad for this new
direction. Then I realized after having been self-employed for twenty
years I would be representing the philosophy of AFTA, for which I felt a
deep regard; I had become an employee! With this I felt some relief and
left for Longbranch with armloads of art supplies and a heart full of
excitement and joy. We
began the program by making name tags and photographing each participant
creating a Longbranch Community Center Tree; both the seniors and children
loved seeing the tree once their photographs were incorporated at its
center. Using music and instruments, name introductions were sung. I felt
instantly rewarded when I saw the seniors’ slumped shoulders morph into
erect postures. Smiles spread across generations of faces, and I felt
deeply gratified. I was reminded of how I loved to dance and sing for my
grandfather, who always seemed grouchy and unhappy; it would always cheer
him up. Only much later in my life did I understand that when my
grandfather “went away,” he was admitted to a mental hospital for what
was then called senile dementia. Because my father’s aging path became
similar to my grandfather’s, I now realize it was no accident that I
chose a new direction in my life. When I left Longbranch Community Center
after that first day, I was content realizing that my artistic and
personal experiences had aligned so well with AFTA’s mission. The
Kids n’ Grans program continued throughout that July in 1997, and
as it did my anxiety subsided. The seniors and children had an opportunity
to act in a story I had written called The
Magic Potion. Original costumes and a set were designed, and we
crafted a magic garden with flowers made from tissue-paper. As each senior
paired with a child, the relationship provided a certain closeness that
seemed otherwise missing in their lives; each week, the children would
come into the activity room at Longbranch looking for their senior friend. Bringing together the age of innocence and the age of wisdom is especially rewarding. The opportunity to provide an hour of artistic activity to seniors whose lives progressively become isolated and lonely continues to be a hallmark experience for me in my work for AFTA. In July 2002, Julia Burger led her sixth annual Kids n Grans program at
Longbranch Community Center with AFTA artist John Sausser. Julia Burger, AFTA Artist |