MU Extension grant will bring together senior citizens and youth


Missouri University Garden Coordinator Larry Roberts, pictured far left, brought the “MU tiger van” to The Center in Gainesville filled with garden supplies for the new community garden. MU Educator Alicia Winrod, pictured center and The Center Manager Kaela Anderson helped Roberts unload the materials.

Nick Sanchez

What happens when a community’s senior citizens and young people are brought together to share what they know with each other? That’s exactly the question that will be answered by a set of new University of Missouri Extension - Ozark County programs that will occur over the next two years, thanks to a $150,000 grant from AmeriCorps. 

“We want to utilize seniors, age 55 and up, with our kids. So we can motivate the seniors to be active in the community and have a real life impact, likely a much larger impact than they know, on the next generation. They have so much life experience and have built up all of these life skills and knowledge that can really benefit young people,” Alicia Winrod of the Ozark County Extension office told the Times. “And our kids are so good with technology and can help teach seniors some of the more modern skills that they are more fluent in.”

Winrod says there are three main pieces to the grant program: a community garden, a technology station and learning program at The Center and a revived Ozark County 4H program. The grant is currently funded through the next two years; however, Winrod says the program is ongoing, and if it’s successful, she expects may be funded into the future. 

 

Community garden

The program’s community garden is being planned for planting this spring. The garden, which features raised beds to allow seniors with mobility issues to more easily participate without leaning over, will be located at The Center, to the south of the main building in an area that was formerly grown up with brush. Winrod said they’ve recently cleared the brush, and garden beds, water barrels, a tiller, fencing mulch and rock have been delivered to The Center. 

The community garden aims to pair knowledgable seniors with young people in the community to make the gardens grow and successfully harvest healthy food that will then be disseminated back into the community in various ways. 

“The community garden can benefit the community in so many ways: nutrition, wellness, working outside, seniors working with children and the list goes on. There’s so much you can do with a community garden. We’ll be able to add food to the senior center, into houses in the community and hopefully take some to the local food pantry. If we can get harvests going and engage community spirit, this can be such an amazing project,” Winrod said. 

The garden portion of the project also includes reviving garden beds at the Gainesville school campus that can be used by students and faculty there. 

 

Technology lab and learning program

The second part of the program is focused on allowing the young people in the community to share their knowledge and skill set working with technology.

“It’s harder, as we age, to use and learn new technology, and the world is transitioning online at a rapid pace. Seniors need to know how to use technology to access the things they need. Everything is online now: social security, their investments, bank statements, and for some seniors, it’s a real problem. So we aim to help break down that barrier with hands-on learning,” Winrod said.

The Extension office has approached Gainesville High School to help with the initial portion of the program, but Winrod says she hopes to incorporate other schools too in the future if they are interested.

“We’ve approached Gainesville’s National Honor Society, and they’ve agreed to take it on as a school project. We plan to get an Ipad, a couple cell phones and maybe a laptop to set up a technology center at The Center. Then, once everything is in place, the kids can come in and can teach the seniors how to use the devices for what they need it for,” Winrod said. “And if there are certain seniors who pick it up easily, they can then become instructors to other seniors.”

Winrod says the technology is scheduled to arrive in a couple weeks. 

“SeniorAge Area Agency on Aging is thrilled to hear the news that the MO Extension Office in Ozark County has been awarded the Americorp RSVP Grant,” said Meghan Haenel, district team lead for Eastern territory of SeniorAge. “These funds will go far to benefit both the county’s youth and senior populations. We are looking incredibly forward to growing the Senior Center’s current programs, as well as instituting new programs to bridge the generational gap between the two groups. Congratulations to all involved.”

 

Revived 4H program in Ozark County

The final component of the program is to increase Ozark County’s 4H program. 

Seniors will also be integrated into the 4H projects and curriculum, sharing knowledge and working with young people. 

“4H has been proven to keep kids more active in school, help them with life skills, have a higher rate of graduation, engage in community service... we hope to use 4H to motivate youth to do projects. There’s no limit to the curricula, kids can engage in everything from photography to showing animals - from robotics to basket weaving,” Winrod said. 

The project hopes to pair seniors in the area with various skills to work with the kids in the 4H group in their various areas of interest. Winrod said there is also the option of brining in MU specialists to teach certain skills.

With funds from the project, Nick Sanchez has been hired as a dedicated Ozark County 4H Youth Program Associate. His salary is paid for two years with the grant. 

“Many of you do not know me, as my wife and I have only been in Gainesville for a little over a year, but we’re both excited to get to know as many fellow Ozark Countians as possible and to get involved in the local community. I promise you will get to know me and see lots of me as we roll out 4H clubs,” Sanchez told the Times. “I say we, because the success of the 4H will highly depend on the community. My first goal is to start gathering 4H leaders, volunteers and youth members within the communities of Ozark County and learning about which of the 4H projects may interest you and your youth. If you are as excited as I am about 4H and the wonderful positive opportunities it provides, get ahold of me at the University of Missouri Ozark County Extension office at 417-679-3525.”

Ozark County Times

504 Third Steet
PO Box 188
Gainesville, MO 65655

Phone: (417) 679-4641
Fax: (417) 679-3423