By Thea Jarvis

Sixteen thoughtful children from the Village of St. Joseph are preparing holiday gifts for some of their favorite friends, residents of the Highview Nursing Home in southwest Atlanta.

Handmade ornaments, crafted during art classes at the Village school, will be presented as Christmas surprises to the elderly residents, who have become especially important in the children's lives.

The friendships developed earlier this year, when Sister Rebecca Campbell, CSJ, director of the Village and school principal, suggested to the children that they visit the nursing home as a Lenten project.

"The program was so effective and pleased both the elderly and the children so much that they decided to continue it," said Sister Teresa Termini, CSJ, project director of the archdiocesan Services to the Elderly program, who lives at the Village and served as an administrator there for seven years.

Every Friday afternoon, the same two classes of intermediate level students fill the Village van and take off for Highview with their teachers, Sister Rebecca and Mrs. Bruce Burch.

Their reception is always the same. Because they have limited their weekly visits to one floor of the 400-resident home, strong ties have been established.

"They throw their arms around each other," said Sister Teresa, in an unabashed exchange of affection and caring.

Both the elderly and the children benefit. The Village of St. Joseph is a treatment center and a day school for emotionally disturbed children. The give-and-take of a "grandparental" relationship is enriching and life-giving for the children.

In addition to the elderly residents who look forward to the children's visits, there are also several handicapped teenagers staying at Highview who anxiously await their weekly arrival.

For all, the friendships are genuine, the smiles are real, the spirit is seasonal -- and lasts all year long.