NEWS

UWSP students help tell seniors' life stories

Keith Uhlig
USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point student Brittany Falk, left, talks to Jean Hamm for a multi-generational writing project at Hamm's home in Stevens Point on Nov. 12, 2015. The writing project is connecting students with senior citizens to write about their life stories.

STEVENS POINT — When she was offered an opportunity to work with a college student who would write her life story, 97-year-old Jean Hamm relished the chance.

Hamm is a bright, lively and active woman who still lives on her own. She thought the project would give her something new to do.

"All my friends are dead, of course," Hamm said, chuckling a bit. "So the chance to meet Brittany and have something going on appealed to me."

Brittany Falk is a 23-year-old communication major at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. She was linked up with Hamm through an English independent study course called Life Stories Legacy. Life Stories Legacy is a course based on a simple concept: Students meet with older people and write their biographies. The end project is a writing piece about the senior's life that typically is about 30 pages long, printed on high quality paper and includes photos taken through the years.

The work is organized by Lynn Ludwig, an assistant professor of English who joined the UW-Stevens Point faculty more than five years ago. Ludwig first started linking students and senior citizens for writing projects before that, when she was part of the faculty at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota. She found that the connections made between people of different generations while working together on a writing project were profound and deep. Both the students and the seniors learned and grew through their work together, and Ludwig often hears from both sides of the equation years after the books are printed.

The partnership and friendship that has grown between Hamm and Falk is no exception.

"I think it's fascinating, the life that Jean has had," Falk said. "I think it's a way for me to develop my skills as a writer ... but in a way that I can connect with someone else, learn a lot about someone else's experiences in life. I've actually come to know that Jean and I are lot more similar than I would have ever imagined."

Hamm said the process has led her to think closely about her past and sometimes see it from a new perspective.

"It has made me analyze my life, too," Hamm said. "And I've been surprised by some of the thoughts that have come to me. ... Brittany asked if I had a happy childhood, and I hadn't thought of it, and I didn't. I think it was because I preferred my grandparents to my parents."

The process for Hamm started when her daughter, Mary Grossnickle, 64, of Knowlton read about Life Stories Legacy somewhere, she can't quite remember where. Ludwig often pitches the project in front of community groups, in fliers and at senior care facilities. For Grossnickle, the project sounded as if it would be a good fit for Hamm.

"She's led such an interesting life. She such an interesting person," Grossnickle said. "And we've heard the stories, but this will put them all down and preserve them."

Grossnickle sees the final product as something that will be valued for generations.

That puts a fair amount of pressure on Falk, and she's aware of it. But she's working closely with Hamm, reading her rough drafts as she progresses. Hamm makes minor corrections, but likes what Falk has done so far.

That's good because Hamm will be giving Falk her grade in the course.

Hamm laughs at the thought. "It's an A-plus," she said.

Keith Uhlig can be reached at 715-845-0651 or at keith.uhlig@gannettwisconsin.com. Find him on Facebook or on Twitter as@UhligK.

Learn more

To find out details about participating in the Life Stories Legacy, email Lynn Ludwig at lludwig@uwsp.edu.