Elder Voices Project
One of the focus areas in the Aging Well Whatcom Blueprint is Cultural Shift, acknowledging that “our community has an incomplete and often negatively biased vision of aging. Art is one way to shift cultural views.
The Elder Voices Project gathers poems and short prose from elders across Whatcom County to illustrate their diverse experiences and capture the vitality and wisdom in their stories about growing older. These writers celebrate aging without denying or obscuring its challenges.
The Elder Voices Project was led by Marie Eaton, Carla Shafer, and Angela Boyle.
The organizers held a series of writing workshops in person and via Zoom in 2024, then issued a call for submissions, and created an anthology with more than 60 authors. Contributors were recognized at a book launch reception in early 2025 and community readings are being held across Whatcom County.
Elder Voices reading at St. James
The Elder Voices project was funded by the Chuckanut Health Foundation.