Gabby Castellanos, left, and Skye Baseman {Courtesy}
It all started last summer as an idea for Marjory Stoneman Douglas best friends and juniors Gabriella “Gabby” Castellanos and Skye Baseman.
According to Solenny Cortes, Gabby’s mom, the two friends decided to start a program with the goal of bringing joy to area seniors and, at the same time, serving as a huge steppingstone as they set their sights on future healthcare-related careers.
“We both have a passion for helping people,” Skye said. “We both want to do something health-related. I wanted to help the community.”
Their idea came to fruition, and they have initiated a program in which they visit three senior residences on Saturdays, interact with and lead seniors in games. Many of those seniors suffer from memory disorders.
“Basically, we came up with games for the elderly; games involving cognitive reasoning,” Gabby said, adding that these are regular games that have been researched for their psychological benefits.
Thus far, the two 16-year-old Parkland residents have taken their programs to Aston Gardens in Parkland, HarborChase in Coral Springs, and YourLife Memory Care in Coconut Creek.
And how does knowing they’re providing valuable assistance to these seniors make the girls feel?
“It just feels so fulfilling helping my community and learning about these people,” Skye said.
Gabby said at the very beginning, when they first began their visits, the residents were unfamiliar with them, but that has changed. “Now we go weekly to each home, and we did notice they are much more open to us.”
Plus, “They are happy and even remember our names,” Gabby adds. “They tell us, ‘we love to see young faces here.’”
It’s not just Gabby and Skye volunteering at these facilities. The girls have enlisted the support of the MSD Key Club and members of the National Honor Society to work with the seniors under their tutelage as well.
Cortes says this is a wonderful experience for the youngsters as the seniors enjoy participating in these activities with the kids, and in turn, the kids are having fun and feeling good about helping others.
“Me, as a mom, can’t be prouder of my daughter,” she said. “The hard work that both of the girls have done, and are putting into this project, amazes me.”
Allyson Katz, the activities director at Aston Gardens, is impressed with what the young volunteers are doing for the residents. “The seniors actually love them,” she said. “In addition to playing and leading the seniors in game playing, the teens will talk to them to break the ice.”
Music Bingo, one of the fun mind games the teen volunteers play with the senior residents.
As for her own future plans, Gabby said she’s very focused on psychology and on health care. And by working with seniors, some of whom have memory problems, “I’m learning to be patient.”
Her bestie, Skye, agrees with the part about learning to be patient. “I have an interest in forensics and social work,” she said. “I’ve learned to accommodate to their needs.”
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