Photo: Chaiel Schaffel/WBZ NewsRadio
METHUEN, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Students at Methuen High School visit the Senior Center every week as a part of the adopt-a-grandparent program, which brings together people from opposite ends of the age spectrum to connect with each other.
Jeffrey Bellistri, an English teacher who has been running the club for over two decades, described how the program brings people together. “I think it breaks down stereotypes. It breaks down misconceptions about people that belong to different groups other than us, and in this case, it just happens to be about age.”
The club helps both groups realize “what people have in common, and I think it’s a lot of the human things like kindness and compassion. We like to laugh, we like to have a good time, and we like to take care of each other,” he added.
The club has been going on since his first year teaching in Methuen over 20 years ago.
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The students meet at the Methuen Senior Center every Wednesday.
“I always had the idea that they were more serious, but the seniors here are hilarious,” shared one student.
Another student described one of the seniors at the center. “She’s amazing, she’s a very amazing person… She’s very engaged with us and really wants to learn about our generation.”
One of the seniors who participates in the program shared her appreciation for the high school students. “They’re the most polite, wonderful kids ever. We learn from them so much, even though they learn from us. And we have a ball every week.”
The adopt-a-grandparent program plans to hold a 25th anniversary reunion in 2027.
WBZ NewsRadio's Chaiel Schaffel (@CSchaffelWBZ) reports.
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