Please join the Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society for a lecture from Nancy Angus, founder of Age BIG and co-coordinator of the Places and Faces project. This will be an in-person event that is free to view. The lecture will be broadcast live via ZOOM for those who cannot attend in person and recorded and posted to the Museum’s YouTube at a later date.

Click here to view the webinar

DESCRIPTION:

Join Nancy Angus, founder of Age BIG and co-coordinator of the PLACES & FACES project as we share its stories. Learn more about the concept of placemaking and hear how our storytellers, all 65 years or better, captured their stories digitally (in videos composed of photos and voice-overs), as audio recordings and as written accounts.

PLACES & FACES asked storytellers to recognize a place or places that fostered a sense of connection and belonging to their community, outside of their home. With senior centres and other facilities closed during the pandemic, we heard many stories about how older adults engaged in placemaking to overcome barriers to social connection. This project demonstrated how resilient and creative people can be in making those connections.

Placemaking is often concerned with planning, designing, and managing public spaces in ways “that promote people’s health, happiness, and well-being.” Emerging research is now focusing on placemaking as a way that people “transform physical spaces into socially relevant and meaningful places.” PLACES & FACES has gathered some of the stories that highlight how older adults in Thunder Bay are actively creating and negotiating their sense of place as they age.

Join Nancy and our storytellers as we celebrate their stories and learn from their experiences. Through stories such as these, we hope to inspire others, young and old alike, to find or create their own places. In doing so, they can help others who are physically isolated or feeling lonely to find connections that matter as well.

Free Museum Admission during the event. Refreshments will be available.