Generations United’s 2020 Year in Review
This year, change rocked our lives like never before. Older adults and those with compromised immune systems were urged to isolate themselves from young people, which was impossible in some grandfamilies and multigenerational households.
Programs that served young and old together either paused operations or went virtual. These all happened as racial tensions bubbled over with the murder of George Floyd, the latest face added to an all too disturbing mosaic of individuals coldly killed because of the color of their skin. These actions also sparked intergenerational discussions and action in families and communities.
Generations United adapted and pivoted to intensify our work to connect generations, combat isolation, add our voices to the demand for equitable access to resources for people of all ages, and keep grandfamilies safe.
Here are a few highlights from 2020:
- Establishing the Grandfamilies COVID-19 Response Fund, which distributed laptops and grants to grandfamilies and nonprofits that serve them totaling nearly $110,000. We also elevated the unique needs of grandfamilies amplified by the pandemic by releasing our 2020 State of Grandfamilies report, Facing a Pandemic: Families Living Together During COVID-19 and Thriving Beyond, which includes solutions to connect grandfamilies to critical supports during this crisis.
- Facilitating the National Collaborative on Intergenerational Home Sharing to share best practices during COVID-19 and prepare to scale these models in the future.
- Elevating and strengthening Native American and African American grandfamilies to improve culturally-appropriate supports and services for both groups. We released two toolkits — American Indian & Alaska Native Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Cultural Identity and African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture — that offer resources and tips to child welfare agencies, other government agencies and nonprofit organizations, so they can better serve both groups.
- Producing a guide on intergenerational programs and physical distancing and hosting a series of highly successful Zoom conversations that engaged from 120 to 210 participants each.
- Virtual Convening of our racial equity initiative, supported by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, where over 20 members of Generations United’s GRAND Voice Network participated in the three-day virtual convening on Zoom.
- Developing a new toolkit on intergenerational shared sites and working on updates to our benefits of intergenerational programs fact sheet and making the case for intergenerational programs guidebook. Those resources are coming in early 2021.
- Producing a new infographic on how young and old can stay safe during COVID-19 pandemic, encouraging all ages to stay up to date on vaccines for the flu, pneumonia, and whooping cough.
Thank you for believing in the importance of connecting generations.
We wish you a wonderful healthy new year.
