The City’s Cyber-Seniors initiative partnered senior citizens with high school mentors who taught them how to use the Internet – especially social media tools – to stay connected to their family, friends, and the broader community. 

Sunrise adapted the service project model outlined in the award-winning documentary, “Cyber-Seniors,” for use with two specific populations – members of the Sunrise Senior Center, a municipal recreation facility that helps seniors maintain a healthy and independent lifestyle; and the Sunrise Leadership Academy (SLA) Class of 2016, a group of high-achieving public high school students. 

The City’s Senior Center members and SLA students worked together during monthly sessions over the course of the 2015-2016 academic year to share knowledge and grow friendships. Activities included hands-on help with the seniors’ laptops, tablets and smartphones; Skype sessions; collaboration on a photo timeline that emphasized the shared experiences of the seniors and the teens; and a walking tour of the City’s Cypress Preserve Park to teach the younger students the importance of “unplugging.” The initiative’s first phase culminated in April 2016 with a community screening of “Cyber-Seniors” alongside mini documentaries about the Sunrise project (see above and below).

For more information about Sunrise Cyber-Seniors, please call (954) 747-4661.