belong to a great organization in Picayune,
Mississippi called the Greater Picayune Arts
Council. We affectionately refer to it as
GPAC. It was established to highlight and
share all areas of The Arts, i.e. sculpturing,
writing, dancing, ceramics, drama, Blacksmithing,
painting, carving, etc. The majority of these arts are indeed
'crafts'.
Most of the talented members of
our group are over fifty years old and
have the extra time needed to share the
crafting things we love to do most
with the younger generation behind us. And
the
children
enjoy
the
added attention.
As a group
GPAC sponsors
many activities for
children throughout
the year. And our
individual members also
participate in county activities.
GPAC president Donna
Aguilar said, "Activities like The Fall Fest and The Spring
Palooza require paper mache'
figures, decorated booths and
painted murals. Children and
seniors work hand-in-hand to
build the props and games
associated with the activities.
Kids learn and develop
dexterity and imagination."
Larry House, owner of
Dragons Watch Forge and
Foundry, remarked that he is
working with a young man
who first attended Forge
Day at The Arboretum
when he was ten. He is
now thirteen and is
masterfully developing his
metal firing skills.
Nancy Crowe of Creativity with Puppets says,
"Puppets have been around since the beginning of time
and are still a great source of creativity. The making and
interaction with the puppets offer the children pleasant
enrichment opportunities."
Writer and storyteller, Mary Beth Magee, of The Picayune
Writers Group, says "Every
reading is different with each
group. When I work with
prescholars they are happy to
get up and voice or portray
the characters in the story."
By this time of life seniors
have gathered loads of
experience. With their
own families grown
they still have the
need to flex their
parenting
skills.
Without
the
responsibility of core
discipline development,
they can concentrate on
creativity development through
crafting with kids. Thus crafts
bring them together.
Our crafts activities scheduling is always announced on
Facebook at Greater Picayune Arts Council.
I
By Lynne Adams Barzé
Illustrations by Freepik
32
SOUTHERN SENIOR MAGAZINE
| Winter 2016
Crafts Bring Seniors
& Kids Together
