Bridging the gap between the youngest and oldest generations of the community continues to be a joy for a handful of agencies in Elizabethton.
Children and senior citizens joined together for the annual senior Christmas breakfast held at the City of Elizabethton Recreation Center.
Carter County Drug Prevention, Parks and Rec, the Elizabethton/Carter County Public Library and UT – Extension sponsored the event, which always proves to be a fun time for all according to CCDP Director Jilian Reece.
“Our kids are really excited to sit down with some people from an older generation,” Reece said. “Our seniors have so much wisdom to pass down to our children. It is always fun for everyone to come together to have breakfast, play games and interact with each other for the holidays.”
Seniors from the area joined with homeschoolers from the Tri-Cities School Playdate & Discussion to spend time with each other to prepare for the holiday season.
“Last year, Ashlee and I felt led to do something for the many seniors in our community that may be lonely or just looking for things to do during this holiday season and that event was so successful that we decided to host it again.”
UT – Extension provided the healthy snacks and other goodies for the attendees while the library and CCDP sponsored the crafts and activities at the event. Parks & Rec provided the space for the endeavor.
Another element to the event was the ability to spread awareness for discarding and locking up prescriptions for the holiday season as part of the Count It, Lock It, Drop It! Initiative.
“We also want to spend time today to help educate our seniors about the proper discarding of old medication and keeping other pill bottles out of reach of loved ones,” Reece said. “We felt this was a great time to share with families all coming together for the holidays.”
Thursday’s event is part of a series hosted by the four agencies to give back to the community.
“We are doing these monthly events to target homeschool children and other members of the community,” Reece said. “Our goal is to build a healthier community and have everyone come together, from all generations and demographics.”
Reece added that updates on future events will be posted on the Carter County Drug Prevention Coalition Facebook page online.
Individuals wanting to learn more about CCDP will have the opportunity Monday, Dec. 18, beginning at noon for the facility’s Christmas Open House in downtown Elizabethton. Residents are encouraged to stop by to learn about the different programs offered by CCDP while enjoying light refreshments.