Interns give and gain valuable experience in
AGE to age and assisted living communities

Once again, the incredible power of bringing together people across the age spectrum proves its value! Over the summer, 20 college interns brought their energy and ideas to work among older adults and youth in 11 communities. The results were nothing short of magical.

From June through August, college students returning home from schools in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and California participated in paid experiential learning with Northland Foundation AGE to age initiative communities and the three Northland Village assisted living sites. They spent more than 4,400 hours digging deeply into community engagement and intergenerational programming.

“Older residents have so much life knowledge to give to younger people, and children can shed light on any situation ... I only wish I’d had the AGE to age program when I lived in Aitkin.” —Mikayla Michaletz, AGE to age intern in Aitkin

The exciting efforts involving summer interns included interviewing seniors in the community for a history video celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Cloquet Middle and High Schools; supervising young students to provide free technical assistance with social media, email, cell phones and laptop to older adults; working on a cross-generational community garden; organizing a two-day Native American Family Camp experience, and many others.

The three interns working in Northland Village locations of McGregor and Hoyt Lakes assisted the Health & Wellness Coordinators with many unique projects such as planning community outreach events, implementing an exercise and falls prevention program, and even making blankets to donate for families in need.

All of the interns participated in the June leadership training and the August reflection and celebration event. Many attended the AGE to age Summit in June, as well, to learn even more about multi-generational efforts happening in northeastern Minnesota.

“Our region is aging faster than ever, faster than most other areas of the state,” said Tony Sertich, Northland Foundation president, “so expanding knowledge about connecting with older adults is not only beneficial in the short-term but will, we hope, inspire more young people to nurture relationships with seniors in the future as caregivers, volunteers, or just caring community members.”

Support for the intern program was generously provided by the Otto Bremer Foundation, the Lloyd K. Johnson Foundation, and the Northland Foundation’s Rural Aging Initiative.