Elders Share the Arts to Close After 40 Years

Elders Share the Arts (ESTA), a Brooklyn based organization that pioneered the field of creative aging, will be closing after a 40-year history. The organization will pass on its successful programs—including Pearls of Wisdom, History Alive, Legacy Arts, and the ESTA training unit—to established partners in the field. The National Guild partnered with Susan Perlstein, founder of ESTA, to deliver training to our members as part of the MetLife Creative Aging program.

ESTA has made a number of vital contributions to the field of arts education. According to the board of trustees, among ESTA’s significant milestones are:

  • Providing dynamic arts programs for seniors in NYC neighborhood centers, such as History Alive!, Legacy Arts, and the Pearls of Wisdom, ignite creative expression, establish elders' role as bearers of culture, and  establish pathways that deepen seniors’ connections to their communities;
  • Being a key research partner in Dr. Gene Cohen’s landmark study, “Creativity and Aging” in 2001 which inspired and led ESTA to launch the National Center for Creative Aging as an advocacy, policy and networking organization for the field;
  • Receiving awards and recognition for our programs from the National Council on Aging, the National Endowment for the Arts, the American Society on Aging, and the United States Committee for the Observance of the United Nations International Year of Older Persons, and many others;
  • Initiating and developing a training unit for the Creative Aging field in partnership with the NYC Department for the Aging, New York State Council on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Center for Creative Aging, as well as internationally with foundation support in Taiwan, England, and Australia.


You can learn more about ESTA and their legacy here.

Published: March 18, 2018