Appreciating the Golden Years

Chandice Commeree doesn’t know exactly what job she’ll have when she graduates in May, but she does know what she’ll be doing.  Chandice is one of three, among her graduating cohort of 181 students, who have an emphasis in aging—a choice that, for her, felt like a no-brainer.  “Social work is all about making a difference and feeling like you’re helping other people,” she said.  “And there’s not a population where you’re going to feel that more often than with older adults, because they tell you all the time.”

This has been especially true with one of the clients she worked with this semester in her Neighbors Helping Neighbors practicum placement.  Overall, Chandice feels like what she’s done with “Mary” (not her real name) has been fairly simple.  “The main thing I’ve done is teach her that she deserves to feel happy—that there are small adjustments she can make so that her life is more positive,” she explained.  But despite the apparent simplicity of Chandice’s suggestions, they have made a huge difference for Mary.  Even during the short time Chandice has worked with this client, she’s seen an improvement in Mary’s memory, cognition, family relationships, and general attitude toward life.  During one of their meetings, Mary told Chandice, “For the first time in my life, there is someone who actually wants to listen to me.  This is going to be the best time of my life.  I just know it.” 

People often tell Chandice how amazing they think she is because the work she’s doing must be so hard.  But that’s not how she feels about it.  “Working with substance misuse, working with neglected kids, working with abuse—working with that kind of emotional weight—that’s hard.  Working with someone who’s older and needs help connecting to services … that isn’t hard.”  She continued, “I’m special because a lot of people don’t choose this work, but I’m not really that special.” 

For Chandice, what she’s gained from working with aging adults has been incredible.  “I feel like society doesn’t teach people, especially younger adults, how to appreciate and live and work with older adults.  They have so much to share that people just don’t care about—their stories are so profound and they have so much wisdom.”  She grinned, “My clients have impacted me as much as I’ve impacted them.  Hearing their stories, seeing their tenacity, has given me new perspective on my life.”

In addition to working with the older adult community, Chandice would like to engage in advocacy efforts that bridge that gap between older and younger adults, to be a part of fostering more intergenerational connectivity.  “There’s so much to gain working with older adults,” she said.  “It’s smart and it’s rewarding; people just don’t think about it.”