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For the past year, volunteer residents from St. Anne’s Retirement Community in West Hempfield Township have been making monthly visits to Schreiber Pediatric’s Circle of Friends Academy in Lancaster to spend time with the preschool children.
Christina Kalyan, director of Circle of Friends, introduced the program about a year ago.
“There are a lot of families that don’t have a grandparent figure in their life,” Kalyan said. “And I wanted to offer (the seniors) a chance to get up and move around and do something that might add a little more meaning to their lives.”
Joe Finger and Grayson Pavlichko have developed a special bond during their time together at Circle of Friends. Pavlichko is more than happy to sit on Finger’s lap and just hang out.
And Finger’s gruff exterior crumbles away when he talks about his young friend.
“When we see each other and I leave, he makes me cry,” Finger said.