Story-telling program receives grant funds

A story-telling program that joins retirement village residents with local children has received funds through a poker machine tax grants scheme.

Peninsula Village has received funding from Ettalong Diggers Memorial Club to purchase an electronic whiteboard to support its project with Umina Kids Club.

The non-profit aged care organisation has had a longstanding partnership with the Umina Kids Club, located in Nowack Ave, Umina, according to Peninsula Village chief executive officer Mr Shane Neaves.

"For almost 10 years residents from Peninsula Village have visited the local Umina Kids Club with the purpose to provide an intergenerational relationship between the local young children and our knowledgeable residents.

"Recently through this partnership, we have commenced a special project called The Storytelling Program that aims to reignite that traditional love of sharing stories with younger generations," Mr Neaves said.

"People of all ages love stories, especially children and it seems it is becoming a lost art in this day and age," he said.

"Storytelling is an activity that develops the imagination and creative thinking and listening to stories also helps children to develop an idea of accepted behaviours.

"Our residents have many stories to tell from a life full of memories.

"Many of our residents, for a variety of medical reasons, have short-term memory loss but are able to effortlessly recall people, places and events from their past, " explained Mr Neaves.

He said the Storytelling Program had become a much-loved part of both the Umina Kids Club and Peninsula Villages social calendar.

Mr Neaves said the Village saw the value in purchasing an electronic whiteboard for the childcare centre to allow these visits to be enhanced through the use of new technology.

"Many residents have led active, social lives but now have health issues that deprive them of their independence.

"Through storytelling, the residents discover that there are things they can still do instead of focusing on what they have lost and this is proving valuable for both residents and the pre-school children."

Peninsula Village recently presented the Umina Kids Club with this new equipment and, with one storytelling visit now completed with the new board, it is already proving to be a perfect addition to the partnership, he said.

"After just one session with the new electronic whiteboard, we can already see that this project will extend to the children now teaching the residents about new technology and how this can be used to enhance the storytelling process," Mr Neaves said.

Media release, 22 Nov 2016

Katey Small, Brilliant Logic