STUDENT CLOSE-UP

Bridging Generations

Note: The MU Office of Service Learning formally integrates community service into student instruction and learning. In the 2001-02 academic year, 10 percent of MU undergraduates, or 1,981, enrolled in 85 service-learning courses. The students worked with 150 community agencies and organizations, serving more than 100,000 hours.

Karli Echterling was recently awarded the MU 2003 Excellence in Community Leadership Award. Echterling, a pre-med junior majoring in biological sciences, received this award for her outstanding service to the community. As part of a Service-Learning Independent Study course, she developed Gotcha LIFE (Lasting Intergenerational Fellowship Experience) in partnership with Gentry Middle School students and residents of South Hampton Place nursing home in Columbia, Mo.

Anne-Marie Foley, director of the MU Office of Service Learning, nominated Echterling because of her leadership, professionalism and creativity in researching and developing LIFE.

While Echterling was a student in the Honors College Community Involvement Program (HCCIP) during Spring 2002, Foley was “floored” by the breadth of her service experience, including hundreds of hours working with children with cancer, the Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, and Boys and Girls Clubs. Echterling continued her service at Columbia Health Care and Rehabilitation and Big Brothers/Big Sisters as part of the HCCIP course. At the end of that experience she submitted a proposal for an advanced service-learning project in which at-risk youth would be paired with caring older adults to enrich their own lives while providing companionship and friendship for the elderly. Echterling spent a semester researching national and statewide intergenerational programs while planning every detail of the LIFE program.

The LIFE program was officially launched in January and has been a great success for both students and the residents at South Hampton.

“When I began developing the program last year, I did a lot of research on current intergenerational programs throughout the United States and Europe,” Echterling says. “The majority of these programs are based solely on the volunteer portion of interacting with senior citizens. However, I designed the LIFE Program with the intent that the students would also learn about the specific physical, psychological and sociological aspects of aging. I realized that this would be a more challenging component of an intergenerational program, but have been amazed by the reception of the students. The students are anxious to learn, ask questions, and search deeper than I ever expected. It has provided me with an excellent insight into how I can adapt the program for a wide range of school-age children.”

When asked what she thought the Gentry students have learned from the senior citizens Echterling says, “I believe that one of the most important lessons is that while they are generations apart, there are countless similarities in the hopes and interests of both age groups. The students have been surprised to have met senior citizens who are sports fans, enjoy being active, or are even past teachers of their favorite subjects. This realization provides the students and senior citizens with a connection and an opportunity to bridge the intergenerational gap that currently exists in our society.”

Echterling says that one of the most rewarding aspects of the program has been watching how students have developed and matured. She has been "amazed" by the compassion the students and seniors have for each other. Photo by Nan Povinelli

Echterling also believes that the most rewarding aspect of the program has been watching how the students have developed and matured throughout their participation in LIFE. Before their first visit, most of the students had little interaction with senior citizens, and as a result, were shy and apprehensive. However, after several visits to the nursing home, the students had a new sense of confidence and energy when entering the room.

“It is a wonderful feeling to know that because of this program, these students are able to expand and enhance their understanding of an all-too unfamiliar generation,” Echterling says. “I have been thrilled by the compassion with which the students and senior citizens have welcomed each other into their lives. It has been great for the students to hear not only the pains of war and loss that the senior may have experienced, but equally important, to understand the joys and satisfaction that can come from reflecting on a long-lived life. This combination of emotions allows the student to view the senior as a meaningful individual who is worthy of time, interest and respect.”

Foley is amazed by Karli’s maturity and ability to create a lasting and effective service model that will positively affect the lives of youth and senior citizens for years to come. “And she did all of this while maintaining a 4.0 GPA and preparing for medical school as a Conley Scholar,” Foley says.

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Last Update: July 2, 2009