Author, Photographer Friedman to Speak About Supercentenarians

Jerry Friedman, photographer, author and expert on supercentenarians, will speak about "Elder Enlightenment" at 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 22 at the Bone Student Center Old Main Room. A reception will precede the presentation at 4 p.m.

The presentation is the 2010 national speaker event for the Expanding Teaching Nursing Home Project at Mennonite College of Nursing at Illinois State University. The event is free, but registration is required and those interested should contact Charlene Aaron at (309) 438-7116.

Friedman has spent the past seven years on a landmark project to introduce the world to the 60 oldest people on earth. He has become the leading expert on supercentenarians, people who have lived 110 years or more.

An award-winning photographer, Friedman worked with worldwide advertising agencies on print, magazine, and television. When an experience at a senior care center brought him face-to-face with the disenfranchisement of the elderly population, Friedman turned his eye to his camera. His work provides an unprecedented look at the hearts, minds, and spirits of these persons, and in the process, uncovers remarkable insights into health and the aging process.

He has since released his book Earth's Elders: The Wisdom of the World's Oldest People and created the nonprofit Earth's Elders Foundation. The organization's mission is to improve the quality of life of the elderly, to teach children to recognize the wisdom and value of the elderly as essential parts of our families and our society, and to improve the health of our communities through intergenerational tolerance and communication.

Friedman has also partnered with the prestigious Bank Street College of Education to create a curriculum that has been implemented in elementary and high school classrooms in the New York area. The intergenerational activities of the lessons, homes, and schools become living libraries for learning and communication among the generations.