Greenacres Students Donate Gifts to PS1 and Visit the Hebrew Home

Greenacres students learned the pleasure of giving this week when fifth graders from the school delivered 820 gifts to their sister school, PS1 in the Bronx. The entire Greenacres community collected over 700 age and gender specific gifts and Hitchcock Church donated 87 more for kids attending the Pre-K program. On Wednesday December 12 the gifts were loaded onto a school bus and taken to the Bronx by representatives from the Greenacres fifth grade and Principal Gerry Young.

Pictures below by Sarah Schuman

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Visit to the Hebrew Home

On December 7th, sixty-five third graders from the Greenacres School experienced a different kind of learning...outside of the classroom and at the Hebrew Home at Riverdale as they interviewed residents about growing up, their school and life experiences as a child. Although no textbooks were involved, there was a lot of knowledge being shared.

Greenacres students asked over a dozen questions about growing up – from "What types of games did you play?" to "What did you want to be when you grew up?" The students learned first-hand about life in the 1920's and 1930's. Though the school curriculum has changed and kids spend their free time differently than the residents of the Hebrew Home there were also many connections and similar interests. One resident told a student about her love for gadgets, remembering her first recording device. His response? "That's cool!"

"The Hebrew Home at Riverdale's inter-generational programs have been an important part of our community outreach since 1997," said Connee Kaufman, Director of Volunteer Services and Cultural Enrichment. "We have seen these quality interactions between the generations have a lasting impact on both."

Following the students' interviews, they toured the Hebrew Home at Riverdale, had lunch and asked Daniel Reingold, President and CEO of the Hebrew Home, a Scarsdale resident and Greenacres alum, many questions about the facility, working with older people, and volunteering. He shared details about the Hebrew Home's response to Hurricane Sandy and intake of over 300 displaced and evacuated older adults. Mr. Reingold told the students that he is hoping some of them will consider a career in caring for older people. The connections formed at this program are a great way to bring the two generations together.