Old’s Cool: Two-day festival in aid of Czechia’s senior citizens
This week sees the return of the annual Old’s Cool festival, put on by the non-profit organisation Elpida. Their mission is to change how people see old age, and to help the elderly continue to live life to the full.
Starting tomorrow at 4 pm, young and old alike can enjoy a programme of arts, crafts, music and quizzes, laid on by the charitable organisation Elpida. Taking their name from the Greek word for ‘hope’, the team behind Elpida help Czech senior citizens to enrich their lives though further education, entrepreneurship and social activities. Jan Bartoš, director of the Elpida centre, spoke to Radio Prague International about the organisation’s goals.
“Well, in general, Elpida has the main mission of changing society’s views about old age, changing how people perceive seniors. That’s our main goal. We achieve it through lots of different activities, like education or through our phone helpline, through singing [in choirs], through our coffee shop Stará škola, and so on. There are many different activities.”
Elpida has charmed Czechia with its many schemes, such as its ‘Socks from Grandma’ shop, where people can buy a range of socks hand-knitted by senior craftswomen. The socks are all individually designed and made from donated wool, and the money from the sale partly goes back to the original knitter herself, as well as helping to fund future Elpida activities.
The organisation was founded back in 2002, and since then has offered a free helpline for senior citizens in need of advice or help in an emergency. In 2007, Elpida launched its magazine, Vital, which is published three times a year and offers articles on a wide range of topics that will interest both old and young readers. It aims to demonstrate how senior citizens can make, and are making, the best of old age. Mr. Bartoš also mentioned other ways in which people can get involved with Elpida’s good work:
“They can join as a volunteer; we will be happy to welcome all varieties of professionals to give our seniors some lectures. They can come to our coffee shop, which is called ‘Old School’ (Stará škola), and have a beautiful cup of coffee and cake made by grandmas. The café is in Smíchov, Na Bělidle 34, which is where the Old’s Cool festival is also happening”.
Mr. Bartoš also talked about what visitors to the two-day festival can look forward to:
“I think it’s a beautiful and rich programme. It’s definitely for all ages. It’s not only for seniors, it’s also for young people, and that’s something we also like: natural situations where old and young people can meet, so that they can better understand each other. On Wednesday, we start at 4 pm. There will be lots of lectures, and people can see the artworks of our seniors. At 6 pm, we invite people to join our intergenerational quiz. Old people can meet young people, and young people can join the seniors’ groups. The evening will continue at 8 pm with music; we will have the DJ Vintage Cool doing a set. That’s very briefly the first day, and on Thursday we have a similar programme.”
Old's Cool runs from Wednesday 25th to Thursday 26th, starting at 4 pm on both days. Entrance is free and takes place at Na Bělidle 34 in the Smíchov district.
