Popular crafts program reaps many rewards for senior citizens

Popular crafts program reaps many rewards for senior citizens

By Patti Carpenter

Donna Capellen was originally hired in September as the receptionist at North Big Horn Senior Citizens Center. It wasn’t long before her talent for arts and crafts shone through and she began coordinating the center’s crafts program as part of her job. Capellen’s experience as a former librarian at the Lovell Branch Library and art assistant at My Studio in Lovell made helping senior citizens connect with their creative side a natural fit for her.

Her first assignment, in December, was a big one -- to complete 15 days of crafts leading up to the Christmas holiday. Capellen kept seniors entertained with a wide variety of tasks from “diamond art” and “zentangles” to bottle cap magnets and Christmas stocking stuffers for shut-ins. The sessions, held throughout the month of December, had excellent attendance and stimulated a growing interest in future projects. Capellen is more than pleased with her new duties.

“I’m loving it actually,” said Capellen. “We’re having a lot of fun.”

Capellen said the craft sessions have many benefits for senior citizens.

“It’s a great social activity for seniors,” she said. “It also keeps the brain active. Since the sessions are held right after lunch is served, it encourages people to have lunch here, as well.”

She noted that the Christmas sessions also had the side benefit of creating handmade items that could be gifted later and provided “a little extra love during the holiday season for those who needed it.”

As seniors age, they often find themselves living alone, making loneliness one of the biggest challenges facing senior citizens today. According to a study conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2020, 27 percent of U.S. adults age 60 and older were living alone. In addition to loneliness, the isolation of living alone does present other challenges like the inability to get services and the inability to get proper nutrition. The crafts program is one of the many programs at the center designed to help senior citizens overcome these challenges.

The next craft session is scheduled, and 16 seniors have already signed up. The session is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 29, at 1 p.m. The project is to paint an iridescent acrylic background on an 8 x 10 canvas and to apply an animal silhouette to the foreground. Capellen said participants can choose their own colors and also choose from a selection of animals to use as the silhouette. 

The on-going craft sessions will take place on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, starting at 1 p.m. Each session is free to senior citizens. No art background is required. Most of the materials used are donated to the center. Many of the sessions center around a major holiday, helping seniors combat some of the loneliest days of the year. 

“The projects are very simple ones that everyone can do,” said Capellen. “And, we encourage people to make each project their own creation and to just have fun with it.”