On December 1, 2023, Lincoln South Rotary Club heard from Aubrey Paulsen on Tabitha’s Intergenerational Living Project.
Aubrey Paulsen opened with an overview of the continuum of care - thanking Lincoln South Rotary Club for our support, particularly with Meals on Wheel.
She provided a review of the idea of intergenerational living - why and how. Some of this information is from the Tabitha website.
It is called Sage Living - a strategy to bring older adults and students together for the purpose of creating social connections that improve lives.
Aubrey focused on WHY.
She shared data that indicated that adults with health issues are approximately 50% more likely to be lonely than those with strong physical health. She then shared a graph that showed how loneliness and isolation impact our physical health.
The prevalence of health issues for non-lonely adults vs. lonely adults is staggering. For example, 2% of non-lonely adults suffer from neurological disorders. But twice as many - 9% of lonely adults will suffer from neurological disorders. Substance use is 3 X higher in more prevalent in adults that experience loneliness.
What surprised Aubrey and many others was the prevalence of loneliness among youth. Of individuals between 18-24, 79% feel some degree of loneliness - nearly twice as many as older adults.. In seniors 66 and older, 41% feel some degree of loneliness.
Young people may have the ability to be flexible, but they do not have much experience which comes with age. With age comes wisdom. It is believed that working across generations can reduce divisions in our society and help us all better solve problems.
By creating the intergernational living community here is an intention to have different generations live near each others. The community includes common areas that facilitate communication between the generations. Ideally the neighbors are supportive of each other, gaining an understanding and respect for the different generations.
There are a number of models for intergenrational communities. The design at Tabitha - combining college students with older adults - is the first of its kind. Tabitha is proud to be the first to offer this model.
She showed renderings of the community. There are many different types of spaces for gathering. The community is designed for intergenerational experiences such as cooking and gardening. There will also be a variety of wellness options for all ages including a gym and technology driven experiences. And, there will be an electric car charging station.
From the website:
S²age is an intentional community where wisdom and knowledge are transferred across generations, and purposeful neighboring is the norm. Community by design, promoting Connection and Collaboration—long held Core Values of Tabitha.
Fulfilling the common needs of those 55+ and Students, in an uncommon manner, is the approach of this InterGen neighborhood. This type of community addresses three major challenges:
- Loneliness across generations
- Lack of moderately priced housing
- Shortage of healthcare workers
BIO
Aubrey Paulsen started her career at Tabitha in early 2018 supporting older adults in the Lincoln community as a Senior Living Advisor for Tabitha. In this role Aubrey assisted older adults and families as they consider the best options for their aging journey. Aubrey then took on the role of Manager, Senior Living Advisors in 2021 and was responsible for occupancy and census goals across four Tabitha senior living campuses. Recently, Aubrey transitioned to the role of S2age Intergenerational Living Director where she will lead all growth, occupancy and programming for this first-of-its-kind living community.
Aubrey lives in Lincoln with husband, Mike, sons Owen, 14, Christian, 12 and dogs, Carl and Gus.