About Us

Lifelong Learning & the Arts

Lifelong Learning & the Arts helps older adults live their best life possible through access to creative, enriching opportunities that promote self-discovery and fulfillment.

decorative art

Creative, enriching opportunities are a regular part of life for the Lyngblomsten community, thanks in large part to our Lifelong Learning & the Arts Department. It works with residents, participants, staff, and outside professionals to design offerings that support creativity and lifelong learning for all our older adults, no matter their age or experience.

Multiple studies—including from the National Endowment for the Arts—have shown that people feel better physically, mentally, and emotionally when engaged in creative activities. Lifelong Learning & the Arts helps foster a community of learners and creators, providing them with enrichment and helping them form relationships in the community.

Some of the Activities Offered by Lifelong Learning & the Arts

Professional, working artists serve as instructors for our classes, offering a variety of culturally diverse opportunities throughout the year.

  • Visual arts (drawing, painting, ceramics, printmaking, weaving)
  • Writing (poetry, memoir)
  • Theater (storytelling)
  • Dance
  • Music (listening, singing, songwriting)
  • Nature-based programs, such as gardening

Other opportunities include:

  • Musical performances and concerts
  • Presentations on topics of interest, including visits from local authors and civic leaders
  • Outings to theater productions, the opera, art museums, historical sites, and other cultural destinations, such as the Minnesota Center for Book Arts and the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum

Nature-based Therapy

One of the many ways Lifelong Learning & the Arts enriches lives is through nature-based therapy. A registered horticultural therapist from the University of Minnesota helps develop and guide program activities that connect participants with the natural world. This covers everything from flower arranging and making tea blends to caring for garden beds at Lyngblomsten campuses and assembling ingredients for salad dressing and enjoying an al fresco meal. Participants in The Gathering, our group respite program for persons with memory loss, might taste and smell herbs and discuss favorite meals before crafting custom salt blends to take home and use. Senses are engaged in a variety of ways, and participants—many of whom spend most of their time indoors—get to enjoy an up close and personal interaction with the natural world.

Teaching Artist and Resident Watch as another Resident Paints Flowers with Acrylic Paint in the Studio

Opportunities are offered to residents at all three buildings on our Como Park campus, to residents at Lyngblomsten at Lino Lakes, and to participants in The Gathering. Given the varied needs and interests of those audiences, offerings are tailored to each participant group, whether it is those in secured memory care or independent living apartments. All our programming treats participants with dignity as adult learners and creators.

A sampling of art and activities from Lifelong Learning & the Arts

We are grateful for our partnerships with local art organizations such as MacPhail Center for Music, COMPAS, and the Minnesota Opera for their assistance in creating our programming.