Helping Veterans Connect with Students
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the lack of direct contact with friends and loved ones was hard on older veterans staying in the community living center units (CLC) at the Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center in Augusta, Georgia.
Prior to graduating in May with a Bachelor of Science in Recreation and Tourism Management, Kylee Colby (‘21) had an internship at the center. She could see the veterans were having a difficult time. So, she came up with an idea to help.
“I’m a military kid,” said Colby. “And I was lucky enough to get to work with veterans as a recreational therapist for my internship. As part of it, I had to create a program that could be implemented with the veterans. Because of the COVID-19 restrictions, there was a lot of social isolation happening with this specific population. It was very apparent that these veterans were struggling, not being able to spend time with friends and family.”
THE IDEA OF PORTAL PALS
Colby came up with the idea of “Portal Pals,” a play on the term “pen pals.” Colby’s program connected Georgia Southern students with individual veterans for weekly chats using Facebook Portal devices connected to large TVs in the CLC units.
“I saw the need to give the veterans a social outlet,” explained Colby. “And by connecting students with these veterans, they were able to talk with someone to help reduce that social isolation feeling that they were having. I was easily able to find Georgia Southern students who were interested in participating.”
INVOLVING STUDENTS
Danielle Berryhill, another recreation and tourism student who will complete her degree in August, was interested in participating.
“I was extremely excited to get involved because I wanted to give back to the veterans,” said Berryhill who chats with an Army veteran. “At first it felt stilted, but now it just feels like a friendship more than an awkward conversation. We just talk about everything. Just having the conversation and hearing about the stories that he’s experienced while serving. It’s just nice to be able to give back to him because he has given up a lot.”
“A common diagnosis of the veterans is Alzheimer’s disease or dementia,” said Colby. “Social isolation has a detrimental effect on that population. These calls have helped with that.”
“I’ve never been someone who imagined myself working with older adults,” said student volunteer Lauren Kress. “My veteran has dementia. I was kind of afraid to do this, thinking that I would feel really sad for him. But at the end of the call he’d say ‘thanks for talking with me.’ He gets so excited just for this weekly call. So, it’s made me excited to call him every week, too.”
The veterans aren’t the only population that has benefitted from Portal Pals.
“It also benefits the students because they’ve gotten great exposure to the population of not only veterans, but the older adult population,” said Colby. “And so this can be helpful for their future endeavors as far as finding jobs and having some things to talk about in interviews. It also counts as volunteer time going toward their degree.”
SLOWING COGNITIVE DECLINE
Colby says the project had several objectives.
“We wanted to reduce the social isolation of the veterans, facilitate intergenerational learning between the veteran and the student, provide enjoyment to reduce the apathy or depressive symptoms and provide time for the veterans to reminisce. Reminiscing is a part of the cognitive stimulation that helps them not decline cognitively as quickly. Their memories from the past are easier for them to remember than more present memories.”
As the facilitator of the program, Colby’s role included observing the calls and jumping in if she saw a problem developing. She also gained valuable experience documenting the process and the results. She said documenting everything was crucial.
“One of our things we like to say is if you don’t write it down, it didn’t happen,” said Colby.
Colby was amazed by the positive effects of the program on both the veterans and the student volunteers.
“I continuously received text messages from the students that were involved in the program thanking me for the opportunity. They really enjoyed talking to their veterans every week. And they had great experiences. Through the calls, you could just see the veterans and students smiling throughout it. “
FUTURE FOR PORTAL PALS
Colby now has a job as a recreational therapist with Lighthouse Care Center of Augusta. Even though she is no longer there as an intern, the VA plans to continue her program.
“The VA therapists saw the benefits and want to continue Portal Pals,” said Colby. “They have taken it over for me because they’ve enjoyed it, and they think that it’s very beneficial to the veterans.”
And when asked what she personally got out of the program, Colby quickly has an answer.
“Growing up as a military brat, I felt as if I was serving my community because I didn’t have a hometown,” explains Colby. “So my community is my hometown. And it’s been really special to be part of it.” — Liz Walker
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