Shared Moments at Day Care Aid the Young and Elderly

One-year-old Hannah finds everything in her world exciting and new, whether it’s stacking blocks, playing peek-a-boo with grown-ups or crumpling tissue paper in her tiny hands.

Nora, 92, looks back over a long life filled with memories, as she rests in her wheelchair at a senior center.

Yet, the energetic toddler and the elderly woman gain from their shared experiences at ONEgeneration Daycare, an innovative intergenerational day-care program in Van Nuys.

Hannah and Nora are among nearly 200 preschoolers and seniors with stroke-related dementia or Alzheimer’s who take part in the daily program at the center, which is designed to promote cognitive and social skills for both groups.

“Our name, ONEgeneration, really says it all,” Executive Director Donna Deutchman said. “By promoting healthy aging and encouraging successful early childhood development ... the fabric of our entire community is strengthened.”

The program is expected to be replicated next year in Isla Vista in Santa Barbara County, Deutchman said.

The Los Angeles Times Holiday Fund was launched to help nonprofit programs such as ONEgeneration Daycare, which received a $15,000 grant to provide child-care programs for indigent women entering the workforce.

The campaign raises money for nonprofits in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties.

In a preschool room at ONEgeneration Daycare, Hannah sucked her fingers as she sat on Nora’s lap. The two watched as toddlers, teachers and seniors glued colored tissue paper onto paper plates while singing songs.

Somewhat timid about joining the other toddlers as they scamper around the classroom, Hannah finds a measure of security with Nora, whom she met last year in an infants’ program, said Judy Hamilton, child-care program director.

In addition to its intergenerational day-care program, the ONEgeneration center offers numerous other activities through its Senior Enrichment Center, said Jeb Baird, the agency’s director of marketing.

Among the classes offered, Baird said, are English as a second language, computer literacy, fine arts, needlework, ballroom dancing, tai chi, Braille and several health and social support groups. Other activities include trips to local theaters, casinos and museums booked through the agency’s travel office as well as excursions organized by outside travel agents to Las Vegas, San Antonio, Branson, Mo., Lake Havasu, Ariz., and cruises along the Pacific Coast and Panama Canal.

ONEgeneration’s outreach programs help meet the needs of seniors unable to make it to the agency’s Victory Boulevard campus, Baird said. Through its SHARE Project, needy seniors receive food baskets, toiletries, bathrobes, slippers, stationery and other personal items.

Another program, ONEgeneration Care Management, provides support services for seniors who are homebound, diabetic or recovering from a stroke, Baird said.

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