“Creative, considerate, and cognitive. Those are three words we would use to describe Augustana Care’s partnership with Northern Clay Center’s ART@HAND program. Creative because the program allows older adults to create their own clay projects with the help of a teaching artist. Considerate because it allows members to express themselves in more artistic and non-verbal ways. And cognitive because it engages member’s abilities to design and build something new. Once a project is complete, it is fired, glazed, and returned to its creator in two weeks time.

The two sites partnering with the Northern Clay Center are Augustana Open Circle in Hopkins and Augustana Open Circle in Heritage Park. Both locations specialize in adult day services, helping people with changing physical, cognitive and/or social abilities to enjoy fulfilling lives.

“Partnering with Northern Clay has been extremely beneficial for our program and its members. Northern Clay has given us the opportunity to offer a unique creative experience to our members; one that engages them cognitively, creatively, and tactilely. For some participants, the clay projects provide an opportunity for self-expression when verbal communication is  more of a challenge,” says Mark Rosen, Augustana Open Circle’s program director. We are very grateful for this partnership with NCC and are very excited for what the future partnership holds.