The first night that I went to
Lyon Manor, I expected to have a much different experience than I did. When I heard the words ‘independent living
center’, I expected the residents to need much more assistance. I did not think that it would be so laid back
and I did not realize that the residents would be able to go and come as they
please. I did not expect to terribly
lose a game of chess against one resident.
I did not expect to laugh so hard that I cried. And I certainly did not expect to form a
friendship that I hold that close to my heart.
Every Tuesday I look forward to
going to Lyon Manor. I have a friend who
lives there named Joanne. She has a hard
exterior and is not usually very happy.
But this past year, she and I have become so close. Every week I bring a craft for the residents
and Eastern students to do together, whenever I ask Joanne to work with me on
one, she refuses because of her arthritis.
At Christmas time, I brought supplies so that the residents could make
cards for their families. This was one
of the few times that Joanne agreed to do the craft; she made me a card, with a
long poem about how much she loves me.
Joanne makes such an impact on my life; I cannot imagine my life without
her or any of the other residents at Lyon Manor.
Recently, I went to the Impact
conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
It is an annual conference about community engagement and social
justice. There I was inspired to find
more ways to make our time at Lyon Manor more engaging for the residents as
well as the volunteers. I plan to pair
up similar students and residents to create a one-on-one friendship. We will spend the first part of our time
there one-on-one with our friends and the second part as a whole group. I am hoping that this will make volunteers want
to return every week to spend time with their friends! During the fall 2013, we will be visiting Lyon
Manor on Wednesday evenings. If you are interested e-mail: gemmaj@my.easternct.edu.
-Guest Post: Jeannine, '15
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