Harry Ainlay students explore legacy of Edmonton’s seniors in exhibit

Students and seniors took part in performances, storytelling and an exhibition featuring portraits made by students to kick off Seniors Week.

Intergenerational Day and the start of Seniors’ Week in Alberta were marked by people of all ages in Edmonton on Monday.

City hall hosted a number of seniors organizations, a choir and an exhibit created by seniors and high school students of Harry Ainlay High School called “Dressed in Legacies.”

Students were paired with a senior from Pleasantview Place, who they’d visit about twice a month to visit.

“To chat about life. And we’d decorate the seniors’ home and do a bunch of activities like that, volunteer after school,” explained one Grade 11 student, Anna Baldwin.

“We got to learn from her experiences and she got to give us some wisdom,” peer Alexis Chow added.

They called it an opportunity for “two groups of people that don’t really get to hang out” to build community.

The stories shared were then turned into an exhibit which first opened at Southgate Centre last month.

“We need a day to draw some attention to the fact that seniors have contributed to our communities for their entire careers. They are still contributors: they are great volunteers, seniors play such an important role in our communities. And so we’re trying to make Edmonton more age friendly,” Sheila Hallett, executive director of the Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council, told CTV News Edmonton.

She said the exhibit is an opportunity to “understand the difference between the age groups and how we all contribute to making Edmonton a great city.”

“Dressed in Legacies” will remain at city hall for the duration of Seniors’ Week.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Evan Klippenstein