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Each week, we'll be highlighting a program from our resource, Staying Connected While Staying Apart: Intergenerational Programs and the COVID-19 Pandemic. Next up is The Northland Foundation.

Based in Minnesota, the Northland Foundation sponsored eleven AGE to age community gardens in 2020, bringing together nearly 200 young people and older volunteers. People felt a little safer outdoors, and the gardens were large enough or in separated plots so people could be there at the same time and maintain a safe distance. The harvested produce benefited the volunteer gardeners and was shared with local assisted living and care facilities and food banks. Learn more.

Got something cool you tried that was successful? Why not tweet your cool intergenerational ideas to #cooligideas. You can also post them to our Intergenerational Connections Facebook Group. We want to highlight innovative age-optimized programs and practices through our blog, social media and weekly e-newsletter! Share the inspiration.

Patrick, or Gay Uncle Patrick (GUP, for short), has always loved his niece, Maisie, and nephew, Grant. That is, he loves spending time with them when they come out to Palm Springs for weeklong visits, or when he heads home to Connecticut for the holidays. But in terms of caretaking and relating to two children, no matter how adorable, Patrick is honestly a bit out of his league. So when tragedy strikes and Maisie and Grant lose their mother and Patrick’s brother has a health crisis of his own, Patrick finds himself suddenly taking on the role of primary guardian. Quickly realizing that parenting—even if temporary—isn’t solved with treats and jokes, Patrick’s eyes are opened to a new sense of responsibility, and the realization that, sometimes, even being larger than life means you’re unfailingly human. Learn more.

Culture United highlights films, books, music, and TV shows with an intergenerational theme. Do you have any suggestions? Share them with us, and we'll share in the weeks and months to come. We welcome responses or reactions. We'll possibly feature them on our blog. See disclaimer.

A Seat at the Table: Piloting Continuous Learning to Engage Fathers and Parental Relatives in Child Welfare. This new report from Mathematica and the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation in the Administration for Children and Families highlights a methodology by the Fathers and Continuous Learning (FCL) in Child Welfare project. This method known as the Breakthrough Series Collaborative (BSC) was tested to improve placement stability and permanency outcomes for children by engaging their fathers and paternal relatives. Learn more.

New Intergenerational Resources. This latest set of free resources, developed by Generations United with support from the RRF Foundation for Aging, aims to strengthen and expand intergenerational programs. The new publications—Making the Case for Intergenerational Programs, Fact Sheet: Intergenerational Programs Benefit Everyone, and Staying Connected While Staying Apart: Intergenerational Programs & the COVID-19 Pandemic—support the growing field of practice by increasing the knowledge and skills of people working to connect and support older adults, children, and youth. Learn more.

Sharing Our Space: A Toolkit for Developing and Enhancing Intergenerational Shared Sites is designed for individuals and organizations interested in creating an intergenerational shared site or enhancing services at their current site. Divided into 10 sections, the toolkit details every step of the development and operation process, from initial planning to sustaining long-term shared site programs. Each section includes effective practices, challenges, tips, examples, and concrete tools gathered from researchers and practitioners from across the field, organized towards the goal of assisting readers in planning and implementing high-quality shared sites. Learn more.

Federal Funding Opportunities for Intergenerational Shared Sites Chart is designed to share some federal funding sources that include—or could include—support for intergenerational shared sites. Learn more.

Generations United's 2020 State of Grandfamilies Report—Facing a Pandemic: Grandfamilies Living Together During COVID-19 and Thriving Beyond. Grandfamily caregivers are the first line of defense for children during the pandemic, having stepped in when parents cannot raise them for many reasons, including cases where children's parents have died from the COVID-19 virus. Download the full report, watch Senator Sherrod Brown's award acceptance speech, and listen to stories of grandfamilies impacted by COVID-19. Learn more.

Staying Healthy Across Generations: Vaccines are Essential for All Ages. Generations United's new infographic illustrates that vaccines aren't just for kids-they protect all generations- especially in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Staying up to date on vaccines for the flu, pneumonia and whooping cough is important to protect both older adults and children. Check it out.