![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/rice_crafts_01--1024x683.jpg\")
Carol Stanford, left, and Eric Shepherd smile as they talk and work on crafts at Trinity Terrace in Fort Worth on Dec. 7, 2025. (McKinnon Rice | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\nCarol Stanford, 81, and Eric Shepherd, 22, sat side by side, working on their snowman ornaments.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere are we supposed to put the head?\u201d Stanford asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not sure,\u201d Shepherd replied.<\/p>\n
The two continued chatting about their progress, figuring out the steps together.<\/p>\n
The ornaments were just one of the crafts they completed along with other Trinity Terrace residents and Texas Christian University students. Stanford has lived at the retirement community for eight years, and Shepherd is a TCU neuroscience senior.<\/p>\n
They come together for Crafts & Conversations, a regular gathering intended to form connections across generations.<\/p>\n
Carol Stanford, left, and Eric Shepherd smile as they talk and work on crafts at Trinity Terrace in Fort Worth on Dec. 7, 2025. (McKinnon Rice | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
TCU alumna Annemarie Thompson had the idea for the gathering during the pandemic.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy grandfather, he lived the end of his life in a nursing home, and he really struggled with loneliness,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The pandemic made it worse as strict isolation protocols were in place when COVID-19 shut down much of the world, she recalled. Thompson, now a medical student in San Antonio, knew she wanted to help those like her grandfather.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She contacted local nursing homes and retirement communities wanting to help. After an eager response from Trinity Terrace, students and residents began gathering virtually to craft together. Eventually, they started to meet in person.<\/p>\n
Over the years they have created Easter baskets, cloth pumpkins and small paintings of hearts.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/rice_crafts_02--1024x683.jpg\")
Trinity Terrace residents and Texas Christian University students made snowman ornaments together at Crafts & Conversations on Dec. 7, 2025. (McKinnon Rice | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
The group has grown since it began, said Stanford, who has taken part since the beginning. The visits also include a musical component, with students bringing instruments to play for the residents.<\/p>\n
During one particularly memorable meeting, the students requested that activities take place in Trinity Terrace\u2019s ballroom and that a piano be moved there. Soon came a musical surprise.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we\u2019re finishing our crafts, they all of a sudden got up, sat down with their instruments and played the Dvo\u0159\u00e1k concerto,\u201d Stanford recalled. \u201cI cried.\u201d<\/p>\n
The program brings joy to the lives of the students and residents, they said.<\/p>\n
Crafts & Conversations is a relaxing escape from college life for TCU child development senior Alyssa Schexnayder, who has been participating for three years and is one of the current coordinating students.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve made friends with a ton of people here,\u201d she said, describing the gatherings as calming. \u201cYou kind of forget about everything else that\u2019s going on, and you make a mess, and it\u2019s so fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/rice_crafts_03--1024x702.jpg\")
Lidia Paz-Baker, left, and Alyssa Schexnayder work on a snowman\u2019s head together at Crafts & Conversations at Trinity Terrace in Fort Worth on Dec. 7, 2025. (McKinnon Rice | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
Trinity Terrace resident Cheryl Brown, 72, does not have children or grandchildren. She said she enjoys spending time with the TCU students as her gateway to a younger generation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most fun is just hanging out with the kids,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd remembering what it was like to be a college student.\u201d<\/p>\n
Craft supplies for the program were previously funded by a community grant from TCU. However, Crafts & Conversations did not receive the grant again.<\/p>\n
Wanting the program to continue, the Trinity Terrace board of trustees stepped up to cover the cost. But even if they had not, the residents were willing to do it themselves, Schexnayder said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause the program had been going so long, and we all enjoyed it so much, Cheryl and everyone here kind of worked with us to get the funds to keep it going, so we\u2019re really grateful for that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/rice_crafts_04--1024x683.jpg\")
From left, Madeline Green, Lila Golden and Cheryl Brown work on crafts together at Trinity Terrace in Fort Worth on Dec. 7, 2025. (McKinnon Rice | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
When Schexnayder graduates in the spring, she will leave Crafts & Conversations behind \u2014 something she is sad about \u2014 but a new set of students is poised to take the lead next year.<\/p>\n
Thompson, for her part, is glad to see that the program is a lasting success.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just really cool to see that it\u2019s still going on and still strong,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m glad that TCU students are keeping it going.\u201d<\/p>\n
McKinnon Rice is the higher education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at mckinnon.rice@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Fort Worth Report partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage.<\/p>\n