Reseda : Bridging the Gap at Hanukkah Fest

Hanukkah is coming early to the Jewish Home for the Aging in Reseda when “adopted grandchildren” from Los Encinos School visit to sing holiday songs and play games.

At the Jewish Home’s Grancell Village on Thursday, about 20 second- and third-graders will perform a play adapted from Nina Jaffe’s book, “In the Month of Kieslev--A Story of Hanukkah.” They will also share favorite holiday remembrances with the grandparents.

The Grancell chorus will sing “Hanukkah, Hanukkah,” “The Eight Days of Hanukkah,” “Spin Sevivon” and “Let There Be Peace on Earth.”

The idea of the holiday gathering is intergenerational learning, said Caryl Geiger, the home’s therapeutic activities coordinator.

“We want to have a relationship develop between one generation and another,” Geiger said. “The residents give their help and experience to the children and the children help the residents. It’s a real nice give-and-take.”

The holiday party is part of the larger “Adopt a Grandparent Program,” an 11-year-old activity in which students come to the Jewish home twice a month to play, tell jokes and plant flowers.

The program benefits the students, who work on social and communication skills and academics, and the grandparents, who welcome an attentive audience, Geiger said.