This holiday season, the Senior Adult Community Engagement (SACE) Project at Common Ground Health reached a new milestone in its annual Not Forgotten initiative—delivering more than 240 gift bags to older adults at six different nursing homes. What began three years ago as a small but powerful effort by senior volunteers has now grown into a multigenerational effort of compassion, connection and hope.
Since 2022, SACE volunteers have assembled and delivered Not Forgotten bags to older adults living in some of the Rochester area’s most under-resourced nursing homes. Many residents rely on Medicaid allowances and struggle to afford everyday necessities—basic items like socks, T-shirts, deodorant and toothbrushes.
“Social isolation continues to harm our older adults, especially those without close family or regular visitors,” said Phyllis Jackson, R.N., community wellness project manager and founder of SACE. “This project reminds them that they are not forgotten. A simple gesture can bring joy, love and hope back into a person’s life.”
That hope is needed now more than ever. Common Ground Health’s Spotlight: Social Isolation and the Benefits of Intergenerational Connection (2024) highlighted rising loneliness among older adults—an issue linked to worse health outcomes. In response, volunteers expanded their goal this year, aiming for 250 bags—up from 175 in 2024—and came remarkably close.
Youth join the effort
This year marked a promising new chapter: seven teens from the Rochester City School District’s Restorative H.U.B. program joined SACE volunteers to assemble and deliver the gift bags. The Restorative H.U.B.—which stands for healing, understanding, belonging—focuses on conflict resolution, mental health education and community building, helping students grow skills rooted in accountability and repair rather than punishment.
The collaboration was sparked by Jackson and Curtis Birthwright, a longtime RCSD educator and Healthi Kids Coalition member, now on special assignment with the Restorative H.U.B. Wanting his students to connect with and support their broader community, he enlisted the teens to take part.
The students created colorful holiday cards filled with warm messages, tucked them into each bag, worked side-by-side with senior volunteers to assemble the gifts and helped deliver them to residents.
Youth ages 4-16 years from Abundant Life Faith Ministry also assisted with inventorying new items, packing, and sorting with Faith & Healthy Lifestyle Coordinator Toshia Mitchell, and helped her deliver bags to one community.
For many of the youth, it was their first experience inside a nursing home.
A broad impact across the community
This year, more than 240 Not Forgotten gift bags were delivered to residents at six nursing homes—The Pearl Nursing Home, Wesley Gardens Rehabilitation and Nursing, Rochester Center, The Hurlbut, The Homestead (Rochester Presbyterian), and Cobb’s Hill Manor Nursing Home. Each received gift bags filled with warm clothing, personal-care essentials, soft blankets, stuffed animals and handmade holiday cards.
This year marked the project’s largest coordinated deliveries yet, ensuring that older adults across every partnered facility felt remembered and cared for during the holiday season.
Jackson said the nursing homes’ requests have increased, reflecting both growing need and the trust built between SACE volunteers and the facilities.
“These gifts, enabled by donations from the community, brighten older adults’ days, which may help improve their health,” said Jackson.
The start of something bigger
The Not Forgotten project—which delivers cards and gifts on other special occasions throughout the year—grows with the generosity of individuals, community groups and local partners who donate goods, contribute financially, or volunteer their time.
This year’s activities signaled the beginning of a more robust effort to pair teens and seniors for companionship and mentoring, building meaningful connections across generations. Jackson and the SACE team hope to expand the intergenerational component, deepen relationships with nursing homes and ensure even more older adults feel acknowledged and cared for, while teens benefit from their elders’ wisdom.
“We can be the antidote to isolation,” she said. “No one deserves to feel forgotten.”