Generations This Week

What do cherry blossoms and our conference in Hawai'i have in common? They both connect us to Japanese culture. Join us for Intergenerational Action on a Global Scale, July 21-24, to connect with practitioners from over 10 countries and share ideas and resources that will impact your work and your community. Our conference kicks off with an opening reception, 5pm on Weds., July 22, at the Ala Moana Hotel-Honolulu. Learn more

The MacArthur Foundation's Webcast

Join the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Tues., April 21, 1pm-4:30pm, for a webcast on policy recommendations on topics such as intergenerational solidarity aimed at enhancing our aging society. To join the webcast, contact Coleen Herbert at [email protected].

Dr. Bill Thomas' Age of Disruption Tour

If there's one thing that our friend Dr. Bill Thomas wants to make clear, it's this: " the transition into our elder years should not be filled with frenzied disharmony." He's taking that message on the road to a city near you with his 30-day Age of Disruption Tour. Blending myth and science, music and visuals, Dr. Thomas' evening performance, "Aging: Life's Most Dangerous Game," shows audiences how to approach aging with the skill and enthusiasm it requires. Learn more

Call for Papers

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy - Deadline: Sept. 1!

The editors of GrandFamilies invite authors to submit manuscripts that examine new or emerging theoretical conceptualization or applications, practice methodologies, program evaluation, and policy perspectives. International works that expand global knowledge and understanding about custodial grandparents are encouraged to submit. Learn more

April is Financial Literacy Month!

Are you a retired professional with sound financial advice to pass on to young people in your family or neighborhood? Enhancing Your Retirement: Helping Ensure the Financial Success of Youth is a guide designed to help you teach young people how to use their money to meet important goals. For example, "There are many ideas you can use to teach a young person the idea of exchange," according to the publication's section "Principles of Exchange." "Doing exchange projects teaches job skills, including how to organize; the importance of doing what you promise; being on time; being creative; and the importance of follow-through." Learn more

A Huge Thanks to Our Members and Supporters

Generations United thanks our renewing members, Under One Roof, Inc. and University of Colorado Colorado Springs. Merci. Danke. Arigato. Asante. Gracias. Thank you. You can also honor a friend or loved one with a Tribute Gift. Donate to help us unleash the potential of an "age-amped" society.

New Report: Family Caregivers Who Lose Their Jobs Due to Caring for Loved Ones Are Unlikely to Get Unemployment Insurance

Access to Unemployment Insurance Benefits for Family Caregivers, produced jointly by the AARP Public Policy Institute, Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), and National Employment Law Project (NELP), is a comprehensive 51-state overview of how unemployment insurance rules apply to those who are forced to quit their jobs, or who are fired, when they undertake caregiving responsibilities for spouses, older relatives, or other family members requiring caregiving assistance. Learn more

(Photo courtesy of Generations Incorporated) A Generations Incorporated volunteer with her mentee.

#FearlessElder

This week's Fearless Elder spotlight is brought to you by Generations Incorporated. During the snow storm that slammed some parts of Massachusetts with a record nine feet of snow, Generations Incorporated's older adults volunteers braved the icy mounds and slick sidewalks to make it to their after school programs and school locations in Boston and Revere. One site team leader didn't let failed public transportation stop her. She walked a mile round trip in the freezing weather to get to and from her King School site in Roxbury when her train was not running. Have a #FearlessElder story? Send it to Alan King , Generations United's communications specialist, and tweet at us, too. We'll possibly share them in a future issue of Generations This Week , on our Together Blog and through our social media.

Clearing up the confusion about Medicare
Understanding the complexities of Medicare can be really difficult. It's important to have a reliable resource as you navigate the process to get the coverage you need. That's why The Oasis Institute partnered with the National Council On Aging to offer My Medicare Matters, a free educational service. Now help is just a click away. Learn more

Click the image to enlarge

Deadline Extended for Generations United's 2015 Photography Contest - New Deadline: May 15!

This year's theme is "Generations Unleashed Equal Value Unleashed." Photographs must depict youth and older community members engaging in activities that smash the silos that separate the generations and release the energy that comes from uniting them. The photographs should illustrate the contest's theme with creativity and insight. The Photography Contest is open to both amateur and professional photographers of all ages. Learn more

The Deadline is Two Weeks Away!

Become a Program of Distinction

Think your intergenerational program has what it takes to be among an elite group that's effectively connecting generations? Then we want to hear from you. Every year, we recognize outstanding intergenerational programs through the Program of Distinction designation. This designation, developed and launched in 2010 with support from the New York Life Foundation, serves as the U.S. benchmark for intergenerational programs and is based on the criteria that underpin the effectiveness of any intergenerational program. The deadline to apply is May 1 . Contact Emily Duda with any questions. Learn more ( Read how the designation helped past designees .)

Culture United

30 Lessons for Living: Tried and True Advice from the Wisest Americans

After a chance encounter with an extraordinary ninety year-old woman, renowned gerontologist Dr. Karl Pillemer began to wonder what older people know about life that the rest of us don't. His quest led him to interview more than one thousand Americans over the age of sixty-five to seek their advice on all the big issues - children, marriage, money, career, aging. Their stories of love, loss, and hope in the face of struggle often surprised him with their uncompromising honesty and clarity about what matters most. And he found himself consistently hearing advice that pointed to these thirty lessons for living. Here he weaves their personal recollections of lives well lived into a timeless book filled with the hard-won advice these older Americans pass on to young people. Learn more

Do you know of any films, books, music and TV shows with an intergenerational theme? Share them with us and we'll share in the weeks and months to come. Disclaimer: Inclusion in this section is not an endorsement from Generations United. Rather, it is a way of showing the multiplying impact when the arts and pop culture are age-advantaged.

Arizona Education Association - Retired's IMPACT Intergenerational Mentoring Program

This week's cool idea is the Arizona Education Association - Retired's IMPACT Intergenerational Mentoring Program, an intergenerational partnership that allows retired educators to mentor young teachers. Generations United and The Intergenerational Center at Temple University worked with the National Education Association - Retired to launch this initiative. We're happy to see that it's thriving. T weet your cool intergenerational ideas to #cooligideas . You can also p ost 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 . Learn more about the AEA-Retired's IMPACT Intergenerational Mentoring Program.

Spend Your Summer With Us!

Generations United is looking for exceptional individuals for summer internships in Washington, DC. Our internships provide opportunities to build research skills, become involved with advocacy training and engage in an active intergenerational network. See additional details and qualifications. If you are passionate about building a better world for people of all ages, contact Emily Duda at [email protected] or 202-777-0113.

Think Intergenerational - Funding Opportunities

James Irvine Foundation - Exploring Engagement Fund. The purpose of this program is to support arts organizations with innovative ideas and a readiness to take bold steps that will engage new and diverse populations. Proposed projects must represent an experiment intended to increase arts engagement in a new or deepened way. Projects can be brand new, or take a different approach with an existing project or practice. Deadline: December 28, 2015. Learn more

Brimstone Award for Applied Storytelling. The National Storytelling Network supports applied storytelling projects that aim to increase understanding of the ways storytelling can promote change in individuals and communities. Funding is intended to support innovative, service oriented projects that are based in a community or organization and are somewhat replicable. Membership to the National Storytelling Network required. Deadline: April 30, 2015. Learn more

Teens Teach Tech Grant. VolunteerNation is awarding several grants of $250 as part of their "Teens Teaching Tech," a workshop series designed to provide older adults with one-on-one support with new technology to help foster and cultivate intergenerational relationships. The applicant must be part of a school-based club or homeschool community organization in the U.S. Deadline: May 15, 2015 at 11:59pm ET. Learn more

Family Literacy. Awards ranging from $200 to $10,000 will be awarded to organizations that support family literacy. The program focuses on fostering and promoting the development and expansion of new and existing literacy and educational programs, breaking the intergenerational cycle of illiteracy. Deadline: Rolling. Learn more

Generations United encourages you to submit intergenerational projects. If you have - or know of - any intergenerational funding opportunities, please send them to Alan King at [email protected]

Great Resources

Resources

Model Family Foster Home Licensing Standards, Under One Roof

and Connecting Generations

These resources are available for the shipping and handling price - Model Family Foster Home Licensing Standards - $4.50, Under One Roof - $4.50, Connecting Generations - $5.50. Order your copies today!

Events

Conferences

Intergenerational Action on a Global Scale. Generations United, Seagull Schools, International Consortium of Intergenerational Programmes (ICIP), UNA-Hawaii and JANCA. Honolulu, HI. July 21-24, 2015. Learn more

2015 Joint International Conference: Global Communities Coming Together. Aged and Community Services Australia and IAHSA. Perth, Australia. August 31 - September 4, 2015. Learn more

Quote

"Our American story, for generations, is of a people who seek to move forward. A people who look at a mountain and worry not about the tough climb ahead, but dream about the view from the summit." ~Bill Owens

Your Feedback Invited!

We want Generations This Week to be a real resource for you. Please send us any national news on intergenerational issues in addition to upcoming conferences, funding opportunities, reports and webinars. Local and state events can be shared in our Facebook group. Please also let us know how we can improve! My email is [email protected]. I'd love to hear from you!

Best,

Alan King

Communications Specialist

Generations United

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