The Adopt A Grandparent Program is a group that was started by Mathew Gallegos, a student of Delta Opportunity School. This group goes to Willow Tree of Delta and visits with some of the elderly residents there.

Max Coe enjoys spending time with Mathew Gallegos, the a Delta Opportunity School student and founder of the Adopt A Grandparent Program which now includes students from Delta Middle School and Delta High School.

They are paired up with an elderly resident and that is the grandparent that they call their own. Some of the other things they do with their grandparent include having parties and participating with them in special events such as the Delta Parade of Lights Christmas parade in December. Some of the kids went back to see their grandparents over the Christmas break. That shows how much these kids love and care about their grandparents.

The Delta Middle School College For Every Student group heard about the program at one of their CFES meetings. Tammy Shelton, the advisor of the DMS group, contacted DOS and said they had 30 kids from the DMS CFES group that wanted to participate in the Adopt A Grandparent Program. Mathew worked with Mrs. Shelton to make this happen and DMS students began visiting adopted grandparents in January.

Since then we have expanded and have begun to visit residents at Horizons Care Center in Eckert. Judy Romero, Horizons’ activity director, had this to say: “I think that the students of Delta Opportunity School are wonderful, thoughtful, and generous individuals and I thank them for all the hard work they have done for the residents of Willow Tree and now Horizons.”

The program continues to expand, and now has students from Delta High School on board as well. This program is really a win-win situation for everyone. Mathew Gallegos, the founder of the DOS Adopt A Grandparent, says, “It is a program for kids of all ages and I hope that after I’m gone this program will continue to grow and flourish with happiness.”

By Mathew Gallegos

Delta Opportunity School