UTown @UBC Baby Senior Sing-Along brings seniors, parents and preschool children together, in an intergenerational sing-along
“Kids are so precious” says Nan Dagan. She is singing loudly to “Itsy Bitsy Spider,” smiling at a dozen children joining the chorus from a mat in front of her wheelchair. “We have children, grandchildren and great grandchildren in Ontario, but none out here.”
Nan and her husband Jay live in Tapestry, an independent living facility in Wesbrook Village at UBC. Every second Wednesday for three years now, the elderly couple have been coming to UTown @UBC Baby Senior Sing-along, an inter-generational sing-along that brings together babies, parents and seniors.
Research shows that interactions between infants and seniors encourage infant development and socialization, decrease caregiver stress and stimulate seniors. Everyone benefits from the singing and playing, and the snacks and chats that follow.
Creating Family
UTown @UBC Baby Senior Sing-along is the brainchild of Jessie Clasen, who lives in Hawthorn Place with her young family. Though she moved to Vancouver in 2002 to do her PhD at UBC, where her husband is a research technician, Clasen has no family here. After her second child, Jack, was born, she wanted him and his sister Isabella to have more contact with the older generation. So, she approached Tapestry, who supported the idea right away, and then applied for a UTown@UBC Community Grant to make it happen.
Clasen says the whole experience has been amazing.
“Jack and I have made some great friends through the program, from seniors who have been coming since it started to other moms and their children. We are so grateful for the support of Tapestry and UTown. They say it takes a village to raise children; to me, this program is part of creating that family.”
Josie Wichrowski agrees; she has been coming since her daughter Victoria was just starting to crawl. Wichrowski lives in Kits but loves the UBC community and comes here a lot, to visit the pool and friends. “I know lots of moms and other people who live here,” she says. “I’ve been coming to the sing-along all spring and can’t wait to come back in the fall. It’s a real lifeline.”
The Happiest Part of My Week
“It’s the happiest part of my week, well, every second week,” says Lee Ann Steyns, who helps organize the get-togethers and leads the singing. “A lot of families feel a little isolated, it’s a great way to build community. I love that about UBC.”
Steyns marvels at the positive energy the young children bring, even to the many seniors who don’t participate.
“I chat with them, they reminisce about their children or grandchildren, many of whom are just too busy, or too far away. They really like us being there, like hearing the singing and seeing us as they go by, I get a real satisfaction in knowing that. The kids spill out and want to touch the flowers, you see strollers next to the walkers, it’s so fulfilling.”
Back at Tapestry, Steyns is leading the toddlers in a rousing version of “The More We Get Together.” Nan and Jay Dagan are singing along, big smiles on their faces.
UTown @UBC Baby Senior Sing-along is one of a number of UTown @UBC community programs administered by UBC Campus and Community Planning’s Community Development unit in collaboration with the University Neighbourhoods Association.
UTown @UBC hosts a number of programs throughout the year that help build community with UBC’s youngest members. Be sure to check out Kids Takeover UBC (held on a Sunday in February) and Kids Fit (a regular 6-week program for 7 to 12-year-olds).