People talk about youth today in derogatory terms, so I’d like to highlight the contributions that some youth are making to the senior citizens of the Snoqualmie Valley.

Megan Maxwell and Erica Berg, on their own initiative, recently made a hotdog stand. They cooked and served hotdogs all day one Saturday and turned over the proceeds of several hundred dollars to the Adult Day Health program, which provides services at the Sno-Valley Senior Activity Center and also at the Mount Si Senior Center.

This program assists people who have had strokes and need physical therapy or who have dementia and need some memory exercises, as well as many others who can benefit from a structured program. Adult Day Health has proven benefits to the participants, but also provides some respite time for their family caregivers.

Megan and Erica volunteer in the program, assisting participants with activities throughout the year. So, when these young teens heard that the Day Health program was facing some financial challenges and needed donations, they strategized as to what they personally could do.

They weren’t the only ones. Elementary students Josh and Miles Denison made a lemonade stand and have been selling lemonade outside the Sno-Valley Senior Activity Center in Carnation every Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. They make the lemonade themselves fresh daily and turn every penny over to the Adult Day Health program for its operating expenses.

The participants were so touched by this that they began to make cookies and muffins to offer in addition to the lemonade. The boys and their friends bring in nearly $40 a week. They plan to keep on all summer. So come out and support them!

These kids have seen a need and acted to make a difference. They know and love the senior citizens and wanted to help this valuable program. We are all encouraged when we see the next generation have such a love for others and a heart for service.

So the staff and participants at the Sno-Valley Adult Day Health program thank Megan, Erika, Josh, Miles and their friends for their donations in time and money. If you wish to join in their efforts to pull this program out of deficit, contact Lisa Yeager at (425) 333-4152, or send a donation to Sno-Valley Seniors, P.O. Box 96, Carnation, WA 98014.

Lisa Yeager

Carnation