Grandparents are as precious as solid gold and we should cherish them. Mike Matthews started a project in 2012 called “The Grandma Stand.” The project aims to help those who have lost their grandmothers but might still need grandmotherly advice or a friendly ear.
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Mike bought a lemonade stand and set it up with a laptop, headphones, and a chair to connect his Grandma Eileen to his New York community. Anyone could stop and talk to Mike’s Grandma at the popup stand. Sadly, Eileen passed away in 2018 at the age of 102, and the project stalled.
The Grandma Stand project is back. Mike is asking strangers to nominate their grandmothers online. People also vote on a prompt or leading question to get the conversation going. After nominating her Grandma Flo, Janae Roberts said, “Everybody needs a Grandma. I’m willing to share mine.” As a retired teacher, Grandma Flo seemed to be right at home.
The prompt when Grandma Flo was in the hot seat was, “What experiences shape who you are?” The Grandma Stand has evolved slightly since the original concept. Currently, there is a rotation of six Grandmas. Three participate virtually, and three work the stand in person.
Mike uses Instagram to poll users for each week’s prompt and announces the location so people can find the Grandma Stand. Mike says the stand “motivates people to reach out to their own grandparents or elderly mentors they have in their lives and reminds us of the value of our senior citizens.”
The Grandma Stand has an image of Grandma Eileen. The purple color scheme makes the stand visible and easily recognizable. If you’d like to learn more, please follow them on Instagram.
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You can find the source of this story’s featured image here.
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