Aging Well Writing Contest Brings Generations Together
Kevin Brown, from left, Cat Donnelly, Bob Garnett and Matthew Goldberg were honored at a reception Dec. 5 for the winners of the Aging Well Writing Contest open to University of Arkansas students, faculty and staff members. Garnett and his wife, Louise, gave a gift to the Office for Studies on Aging to fund the contest.
Residents of Butterfield Trail Village in Fayetteville visited the University of Arkansas on Tuesday to hear the winning entries in a writing contest on the subject of aging well.
The authors - two UA students and a staff member - read their work at a reception at University House. The idea for the second annual Aging Well Writing Contest sponsored by the Office for Studies on Aging came from Butterfield Trail resident Bob Garnett, who with his wife, Louise, made contributions to the office to finance the first contest last year and again this year. It is open to students, faculty and staff members, and any form of creative writing may be entered. The office received 20 entries this year, including poetry, haiku, a one-act play and short stories.
In response to the graying of America, the College of Education and Health Professions collaborated with the UA Graduate School to establish the Office for Studies on Aging in 1999. The office promotes interdisciplinary research and gerontology education on the UA campus while working with groups in the community to enhance the quality of life for older adults. Professors Barbara Shadden and Ro DiBrezzo co-direct the office.
The Garnetts' gift, made to honor the memory of a close friend, William C. Edwards, enabled the office to award prizes of $1,000, $500 and $250 for first, second and third places, respectively. Bob Garnett also helped arrange for the retirement community to bring the residents to University House by bus to enjoy the contest's culmination.
Organizers believe the contest offers a way for society to take a direct and uncompromising look at the reality of aging and the value that the process can add to people's lives.
"The Aging Well Writing Contest is particularly special because everyone's concept of what aging well means is totally unique," Shadden said. "It gives us new insight into this life process we are all going through. Even the youngest of our writers seems to understand that aging isn't necessarily something that starts happening at 65."
Kevin Brown, a student in the creative writing program, won first prize with his story that described a boxer accepting the fact that his fighting career is over. With this realization, the boxer hoped to reunite with his wife and daughter in "Standing Eight" as he faced this major transition in his life.
Matthew Goldberg, also a student in the creative writing program, took second prize with three vignettes, "Hand, Evenness, Great Falls." These three glimpses of family life illustrated the effects age has on relationships.
Cat Donnelly, an administrative assistant in the office of First Year Experience, won third place with a poem titled "I Imagine Growing Old With You." Six stanzas told the story of a couple facing the man's debilitating disease and its affect on their family. Donnelly said her husband suffers from multiple sclerosis, and the poem was her way of looking at what her future might be.
Reed Greenwood, dean of the College of Education and Health Professions, served as emcee for the event. He held up the residents from Butterfield Trail Village as examples for others.
"The people in this room are models for us to live well," he said.
Following the readings, many of the residents sought out the authors to congratulate them and shake their hands.
Shadden and DiBrezzo have a history of involvement with Butterfield Trail Village as well as the Schmeiding Center for Senior Health and Education in Springdale. With Garnett's assistance, they have conducted seminars and classes and delivered lectures around the region on aging issues. The office also is involved in a project to teach health-care providers working with seniors how to incorporate exercise programs into their services.
The office also conducts research on issues people face as they age. A study now under way is examining the effect stress has on the health of people who are caring for older adults.
Melissa Powers, a Distinguished Doctoral Fellow, coordinated the writing contest as part of her work as program coordinator for the office. Powers explained that the office's focus is not solely on the elderly, but on helping people at all stages of the aging process.
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Contact:
Heidi Stambuck, director of communications
College of Education and Health Professions
(479) 575-3138, stambuck@uark.edu