Purple purpose: For those in need of connection, this seat in LS is a perfect spot
On a recent sunny Saturday morning at the Downtown Lee’s Summit Farmers Market, a small crowd mingled shoulder-to-shoulder surrounded by the first fruits and vegetables of numerous growers’ labor.
Among them sat a group of individuals looking for a more face-to-face connection with others in the community. They were some of the first to participate in the Purple Bench Project.
Built by local business Fossil Forge, the purple bench will be stationed at various locations around the city in the coming weeks in hopes of drawing residents interested in simple conversation about experiences both ordinary and extraordinary.
The project was initiated by John Beaudoin and funded by the HMF Foundation, a family foundation bearing the initials of three of his grandparents. The nonprofit is partnering with Downtown Lee’s Summit Main Street and Addington Place, a local retirement community, to pair older residents with those who sit down next to them for a conversation.
Beaudoin and his girlfriend, Hilary Graves, organized the project in 2019 based on one in downtown Wichita. They were derailed by the pandemic for several years but were ultimately undeterred.
Addington Place Community Relations Coordinator Dena Ruehter said people were lined up waiting for their turn to talk the very first time the bench was set up. That session demonstrated that even a short chat could reveal potent memories, details and the essence of a life story.
For one woman, it was a life spent living in the northeast area of Kansas City. For another woman, who had lived in Germany, it was the sound of Hitler’s screaming voice
“They (older people) kind of tend to get lost in the shuffle,” Ruehter said, “and they have so much to offer. They’ve seen so much.”
At the market, Molly Lang sat beside Clyde Foreman, who had worked as a meat cutter in Springfield for more than 40 years. Foreman, also a musician and an artist, met his wife, Betty, at a church service where he was playing the piano. Foreman and Lang talked about their families and pets, among other topics, and Foreman shared his billfold photos with her.
“I just love talking to people,” Lang said. “I think this program is so cool. It’s such a good idea. I think people really want to talk.”
Robert McMurry said the market was a fun place to be and a good opportunity to meet people.
“Everybody and their brother is here,” he said. McMurry was an electrician in the Kansas City area for 60 years. “I’ve got a lot of stories,” he said.
And that’s exactly what Beaudoin had in mind.
“This project is really about storytelling,” Beaudoin said. “This project is about loneliness and in-person communication, something we kind of need to reboot.”
The bench will appear in various other locations in downtown Lee’s Summit through the summer and into fall. Additional information about the project can be found here.
