SACO — There is an effort afoot to make Saco a pleasant place to age. And some members of the younger generation are putting their talents to use to help publicize the efforts.
Saco became an AARP age-friendly community in 2016. The designation is given to municipalities that have committed to actively working toward becoming a great place to live for people of all ages. Through guidance from AARP, the program works to advance efforts to allow people to continue to live comfortably in their community as they age. It also encourages seniors to take a more active role in their community.
An Age Friendly Steering Committee has met regularly since the effort started and has received input from the community through a public meeting and survey. After identifying areas of need in the community, the committee is working to create programs and reach out to the community.
To assist with promotion, last year the group looked to Thornton Academy students in teacher Lori Smith’s layout and design class. Students designed logos and Reece Saunder’s design was the winner.
Committee members Jean Saunders — no relation to Reece — and Don Sharland were impressed with Reece Saunder’s design, which shows the bridge entering Saco over the Saco River, a mill building, seagulls and pine trees, and thought it fit nicely with the group’s mission “A community for a lifetime.”
Reece Saunders said he wanted to create a graphic that best represented Saco and showed some important aspects of the city. “I worked really hard on the project,” said the student. “I was very humbled and glad mine was picked.”
This wasn’t the first project Reece has worked on. He also designed postcards for a Halloween open house at the middle school, and a poster for Mary’s Walk. Saunders said he enjoys graphic design, as it is a way to be creative while using computer skills, and he plans to pursue his interest in college.
“He’s very talented,” said Smith. Smith said Saunders’ drawing background has come in handy, as he’s able to create a graphic to clearly portray the message he’s trying to convey. She said Saunders is not afraid to take on challenges and does not take shortcuts when working on a project.
Smith said projects like the one for the Age Friendly Steering Committee give students “real world” experience working with clients. A few years ago, one of her students created a logo for a Buy Local campaign.
— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or [email protected].
Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.
We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.
We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.
You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.
Show less