A program at the Bailey House residential care centre next to Ridge Meadows Hospital is helping to reconnect generations of Maple Ridge residents.
Jade Tomlinson is the recreational therapist for Baillie House and is hoping to relaunch the seniors home’s popular Music with Seniors and Babies program this month.
The program brings mothers and their newborns into the seniors home, allowing them to interact with the seniors who live there.
“It’s an excellent way for babies, mothers and seniors to benefit from interacting,” said Tomlinson. “It provides an opportunity to see both ends of the life spectrum, what children can bring to the elderly and what seniors can bring to the young.”
Tomlinson is looking for new moms with babies under 12 months of age that are comfortable in a residential care setting to participate in the program.
“A lot of seniors don’t have access to young children, and many children don’t have grandparents because they live in other parts of the country,” she said. “It benefits everybody. The children really bring out the best in the seniors. It brings such joy to their lives and helps them stay younger.”
Tomlinson is hoping to run the program every Tuesday from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. The program includes songs, rhymes, games, quiet time and goodbye songs. The program is free of charge to participants, however, advanced registration is required.
• For more information and to register for the Music with Seniors and Babies program, contact Tomlinson at 604-476-7888 (Ext. 2587).