Preschool Buddies Program an Intergenerational Success Story
This graduation season brought a special ceremony to Holly Creek, attended by several residents referred to as “grandfriends.” On May 4, 2026, 12 preschool students from Our Father Lutheran School – a ten-minute walk from Holly Creek – came to the community to be honored for taking the next step to kindergarten.
Holly Creek embraces and encourages intergenerational activities – pairing residents with children and students of all ages. Past examples include Pinewood Derby cars built by residents alongside Cub Scouts, a pen pal program with 2nd-grade students in Highlands Ranch, and high school volunteers from Cherry Creek High School who assisted residents with technology issues.
The Preschool Buddies program was conceived by April Hager, Holly Creek’s Director of Community Life.
“We’re always looking for new intergenerational opportunities, so a couple of years ago, I contacted Our Father Lutheran preschool teacher Claire Peavler to see if they were interested in having their students visit, interact with, and learn from our residents,” said April. The answer was a resounding “Yes!”
The Preschool Buddies program developed soon thereafter, and multiple preschool students who were paired up with their new grandfriend put together puzzles, played with Legos, built towers out of marshmallows, read, sang, and danced. When preschool is in session, students and the their teachers visit Holly Creek monthly.
“We first visited Holly Creek in December 2024, where our student put on a Christmas program for residents,” said teacher Clair Peavler. “It was a huge success!”
Peavler has taught at Our Father Lutheran School for 16 years and talked about how her students benefit from visits with their grandfriends.
“It’s important for the students to meet and create friendships with people outside of their bubble,” said Peavler. “For me, it warms my heart to see genuine friendships being built – the more we visit, the deeper the friendships develop.”
Two grandfriends who attended the graduation ceremony were Jim and Tammy Sherman, members of Our Father Lutheran Church, and both have a background in education.
“I taught third grade at Byrant-Webster Elementary School in Denver and Jim was an administrator at the University of Colorado in Boulder for 30 years,” said Tammy.
According to Tammy, several of the Holly Creek grandfriends are former teachers. “You can take the teacher out of the classroom, but you can’t take the classroom out of the teacher,” Tammy added.
Betty and Ken Detwiler, who also attended the preschool buddies’ graduation, mentioned that many of their fellow friends are in that “in-between” phase where their grandchildren are now adults and great-grandchildren are still on the horizon.
“As a former preschool teacher, I miss interacting with this age, where the children are so curious and eager to learn, but also sweethearts,” said Betty. “Thanks to the preschool buddies’ program, I’m able to enjoy their company every month during the school year.”
At the graduation ceremony, each grandfriend signed their buddy’s graduation certificate; the children then sang songs and were gifted erasable tablets. One of the kids exclaimed, “My brother has one of these!”
With the semester wrapped up, the Preschool Buddies program will take a summer break, but will be back in full gear with the start of the fall semester. All the grandfriends look forward to meeting their new buddy, including Pat VanBramer.
“This program is open to any interested resident, I love interacting with these little people and cherish the time we spend with them,” said Pat.
