The Situation
Nursing homes and assisted living facilities have been disproportionately affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in the state of Florida. According to a recent New York Times article there have been a total of 5,576 diagnosed cases of the virus in senior living facilities and 714 deaths. In fact, senior living facilities have seen 42% of all fatalities caused by the virus in the state. This has a caused an atmosphere of fear and isolation amongst the population living in the facilities. The situation has been been compounded by the fact senior living centers have implemented strict rules against visitation. This has prevented the residents from seeing their families and loved ones in person. Due to these circumstances many senior citizens who are living in adult living facilities are feeling isolated, afraid and lonely.
How we can Help
The Nassau County 4-H County Council members have implemented the 4-H Hearts & Hands to Seniors program to address and hopefully ameliorate this difficult situation. The 4-H Hands & Hearts to Seniors campaign is a program where 4-H youth from the ages of 8 to 17 compose hand-written personal letters to seniors living in adult living facilities. They also create small works of art , such as water color paintings, craft jewelry, photographs, pen and ink drawings, acrylic paintings, or collages on paper. These small works of art and personal letters are then mailed to the seniors.
Please join Nassau County 4-H County Council for a Zoom social on June 4th at 5 p.m. During this live event we will be writing letters to seniors, making art, socializing and snacking. Fun will be had by all!
Send an email to Nassau4h@gmail.com for your invitation.
To receive your invitation to the Social on June, 4th, please email: Nassau4h@gmail.com
Results
The aim is to have the 4-H youth share their stories about hobbies, 4-H club and camp experiences and their interests for the future with the seniors. The hope is that many seniors will write back and share interesting information about their own lives and personal histories with young people who may have never communicated on this level with a senior citizen. Through this letter writing and art making campaign Nassau County 4-H youth seek to improve the lives of seniors who are living in assisted living facilities while also opening a dialogue with an older generation of Americans who have diverse and interesting histories they might like to share with interested youth.
Learn About the 4-H Hands & Hearts to Seniors Social on June 4th
A Message from County Council President, Madison:
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