Letters connect 12-year-old Dagmar with her 78-year-old pen pal

A letter-writing project at Hindsholmskolen, a school in the village of Dalby north of Kerteminde, is pairing pupils with older people in their neighbourhood. DR reports that 12-year-old Dagmar Ebbesen Krogh has begun writing to 78-year-old Jessie Juncker-Jensen.

The pupils in the school’s sixth grade had never written a proper letter before. Dagmar and her classmate Filuka Asferg Lange say they enjoy reading the handwritten messages and thinking about what to write in reply.

“It’s fun to hear what it was like when they were children and young people. And it feels a bit more special than just getting a text message,” Filuka said.

Dagmar’s first letter to Jessie tells her about her family and a school cooking camp. Jessie lives about 200 metres from the school and is looking forward to hearing about the children’s lives and interests. She said she finds it enjoyable and interesting to get a glimpse into the thoughts of a 12-year-old.

The whole class is taking part in the pen-pal project. Pupils who have not been matched with an older person from the municipality have written to a grandparent or someone else they know from an older generation. A small red postbox in the classroom collects the letters; Nina Aagaard Skov, a prevention adviser for Kerteminde Municipality, delivers them to the older residents.

Skov came up with the idea of connecting generations through letters. The municipality received funding from a pool at the Ministry of Elderly Affairs intended to create communities, and some of it is being used for the project.

Jessie has lived in the United States, on Ærø and, for many years, on Hindsholm. She has written many letters during her life and says she is keen to learn what Dagmar and the other children spend their days doing.