After quitting her insurance job to follow her passion for the arts, Gail Sharbaan has been dedicating her time and talents to a program that allows seniors to freely express themselves through arts and crafts.

“It was labor of love,” said Sharbaan.

For the past five years, Sharbaan volunteered her free time with the Bronx Council on the Arts creating art workshops at libraries and community centers. Now, as a recipient of the Seniors Partnering with Artists Citywide (SPARC) grant, she is currently working with a group of seniors at the Sister Annunciata Bethel Senior Center in the Bedford Park area, fostering their artistic abilities.

“I applied for the grant because I wanted to live my passion for a little while,” said Sharbaan.

Every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., she and her assistant, Denise Shelley, who has helped Sharbaan with previous events, joyfully go to the center where they plan several arts and crafts activities for the seniors.

At first, Sharbaan and Shelley worked on handmade face masks with the seniors. They allowed seniors to personally decorate the masks and recorded the creative process. The film was made into an 18-minute-long documentary consisting of several conversations between the seniors while they are engaging in art projects. The documentary was screened at an art exhibit and open house that took place on April 26.

Sharbaan has put together many workshops for the seniors, including designing handmade jewelry, decorating floral vases and making handbags out of recycled magazines. The seniors sit next to each other, laughing, talking and even singing, while participating in the various activities.

“When people are creating, they become happier; they relive their life and become more social,” Sharbaan says. “They talk, listen, look and pay attention to their neighbor.”

SPARC is a community arts engagement program that allows seniors with a passion for the arts to participate in various arts and crafts activities. Senior centers across the five boroughs are currently participating in the program. SPARC offers selected artists the chance to work in senior centers in any of the boroughs and the opportunity to receive a stipend for the creation and delivery of the arts programming. The Bronx Council on the Arts is the administrating organization for all eight Bronx locations.

SPARC is a collaboration between the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the Department for the Aging and the city’s five local arts boards, one from each borough. The program was developed as part of Age-Friendly NYC, a citywide effort to make the city enjoyable for seniors.

Artists were selected through a competitive application process last fall. The SPARC grant requires between 40 and 60 hours with seniors. Each senior center hosts individual programs and events where the participating seniors are involved with art projects and other cultural programs.

Ellen Pollan is the deputy director of the Bronx SPARC program, auditing the performances and ensuring that all the artists meet their standards.

“It’s amazing to watch people work together in such a great environment,” said Pollan. “It’s reaffirming and nurturing for the seniors, artists and also the public.”

Anna Tonna, an opera singer, travels to the Riverdale Senior Services Center every Friday to bring the art of music into the lives of her SPARC-participating seniors. They have discussions about old-time music and reminisce on the memories each song brings.

Tonna coordinates musical concerts for the seniors and takes their recommendations into consideration when programming. “I have never done anything like this before,” said Tonna. “More than anything, I’m listening and taking notes. I learn a lot from them.”

As the first year of the program comes to an end, The Bronx Council on the Arts plans to continue with SPARC next year.

“The benefit of the artists is that they’re doing what they love to do,” Pollan says, “and the lives of the seniors are enriched.”

Editors Note: For more information on SPARC, call the Bronx Council on the Arts, (718) 931-9500 ext. 24. This article appears in the May 17-30 print edition of the Norwood News.