Over eighty participants, friends and family joined together this week at a community celebration to mark the completion of the Tech, Tea and Tales program.
Over the past six weeks, Golden Plains Shire has been home to this exciting new program.
Tech, Tea and Tales aims to connect generations, provide meaningful employment for young jobseekers, and enables younger and older members of the Golden Plains Shire to meet and share knowledge and life experiences.
On Tuesday 18 April family and friends joined participants to celebrate the connections and friendships that had been formed through the program.
Sixteen young jobseekers had been employed as ‘Tech and Story Helpers’ for the Tech, Tea and Tales program, helping 32 older community members learn how to use technology.
The young people also recorded the life stories and experiences of older people and their video stories were screened during the event. The young and older participants highlighted the importance of creating opportunities for intergenerational connections.
“I feel like the older people are helping me just as much, if not more, than I am helping them in so many ways. It’s so heart-warming and wonderful forming real friendships with older people,” said a young ‘Tech and Story Helper’.
The program is an initiative of two Melbourne-based social enterprises, Lively and Humankind Enterprises who partnered with the Golden Plains Shire Council to deliver the program.
Sessions were hosted in multiple locations across the Shire, including Haddon Community Learning Centre, Meredith Community Centre, the Bannockburn Library and Estia Health in Bannockburn.
Golden Plains Shire Council looks forward to delivering further intergenerational initiatives in the future.