When high school meets assisted living

At an assisted living community in Fairfax County, Virginia, a group of high school students is using manicures for something much bigger than nail polish.

🎀 The teens are part of GlamourGals, a nonprofit organization that aims to reduce social isolation among older adults by creating spaces for conversation and connection with volunteer teenagers. The beauty element helps break the ice, but it’s never the whole point.

“Painting nails isn’t what I’m mainly interested in,” said one chapter president Zahra Nikzad, 16. “It’s the conversation. I want to understand their experience. I want to listen.”

• Nikzad started her local GlamourGals club while missing her grandmother, who lives in Afghanistan. Regular FaceTime calls made her think about seniors who don’t have family nearby, or anyone consistently checking in.

Connection in action… During a recent visit, students rotated through common rooms and memory-care units, chatting as they painted nails and set out crafts. Some residents shared life advice with the teens, while others told stories that looped back decades, debated favorite school subjects, or joked through a card game once the polish dried.

The students rarely checked their phones. The residents noticed.

That focus is intentional. GlamourGals trains teen volunteers to lead with listening and empathy—skills that don’t always come naturally to their age group, but matter deeply to seniors who spend much of their time around the same faces.

• With 150+ chapters around the country, the GlamourGals have helped hundreds of thousands of seniors since the org's founding in 2000.

As one resident put simply, after a hug goodbye: “It’s nice just to be with young people.” For GlamourGals, that goal matters more than nail polish.