Bridging the Generation Gap

Back in Houston over 20 years ago, I was the lead teacher for a group of 7th graders in a weekly Bible study class at a large suburban church. This group had around 60-70 students per week in attendance and they were divided into smaller groups for discussion. Each of these groups was called a share group.

I wanted to have something tangible that the students could do in service to others in the church. We decided to have an “Adopt-a-Granny” ministry. Each group would be assigned a widow in the church to care for. They were to each call or write their Granny each week and then once per month the whole share group, usually 10-12 students and their adult leaders, were to do something with Granny.

This worked better than I could have ever hoped for.

The kids loved talking on the phone to someone who would listen, affirm and encourage them in all their pursuits. They loved having a grown up who was interested in their story and interests. Most of the students were going through the turmoil of their teen years and needed someone to accept them and their feelings without judgment.

On the other hand, the Grannies loved getting an additional dozen phone calls per week from their new family members. When I too would call each Granny each week, they would fairly glow over the phone talking about their “kids”.

For the monthly outing, they might go to prepare a meal at their Granny’s home, but usually they picked her up and took her somewhere. The Grannies would mark their date on the calendar and look forward to it with much anticipation. They would get dressed to the nines, tell their friends about the outing before and afterwards.

Next blog will talk about an unforgettable Christmas.