Where Carrie’s Been: Advancing Age & Youth in Action Across the Country

Carrying Maggie Kuhn’s Vision Into Today’s Movement

The past year has been one of steady, meaningful progress in the nationwide effort to reimagine long-term care—and Carrie Leljedal has been at the center of it. Through her work with Gray Panthers NYC, The Live Oak Project, and the growing Connected Communities coalition, Carrie helped bring Maggie Kuhn’s mission into the conversations and rooms where real change is happening.

Whether speaking at conferences, strengthening resident and family voices, rallying for Medicaid, or building intergenerational partnerships, she continued to advance the Gray Panthers tradition of “Age and Youth in Action” in practical, grounded, people-driven ways.

Launching a National Movement: EINSTEIN Option Summit → Connected Communities

From February 24–26, advocates from more than 17 states convened with Carrie at Pere Marquette Lodge in Illinois for the first-ever EINSTEIN Option Summit, now Connected Communities. It was a grassroots, cross-movement event—exactly the kind of bold coalition Maggie Kuhn believed in.

The summit solidified Connected Communities as a people-powered, justice-driven approach to transforming long-term care, ensuring that residents, families, and frontline voices—not institutions—lead the movement forward.

Amplifying Resident Voices & Disability Justice

In March, Carrie traveled to Roosevelt Island, in NYC for the Open Doors/Reality Poets second book launch—an event that deeply reflects Gray Panthers values. The Reality Poets, residents of Coler Nursing Home, use art and truth-telling to challenge stereotypes and demand dignity. Their message echoes Maggie Kuhn’s insistence that those most affected must lead the change.

In April, at The Arc’s National Disability Conference in DC, Carrie expanded connections with the disability rights movement, participated in a Hill Day, and joined two Save Medicaid rallies—standing side-by-side with caregivers and national activists.

At the invitation of Ai-Jen Poo (Caring Across Generations), Carrie extended her trip to serve as the closing family caregiver speaker at a congressional roundtable. She also met one-on-one with longtime Gray Panthers ally Senator Ron Wyden, strengthening intergenerational justice ties dating back to 1970.

Gray Panthers NYC Annual Meeting — July 2025

Carrie attended the annual board meeting, further elevating Connected Communities within the Gray Panthers network and supporting the expansion of intergenerational activism, including the Girl Scout Patch project.

Centers for Innovation Conference — August 2025

Carrie presented in two sessions, staffed the Connected Communities booth, and helped facilitate the powerful Door Project, spotlighting ethical issues with locked memory care units. Nearly 500 people experienced it.

Strengthening the Movement in Illinois

Carrie brought Gray Panthers energy into two major statewide conferences:

• Illinois Department on Aging – Framing the Future

• Illinois Pioneer Coalition Summit on Culture Change

Both gatherings reinforced values central to Gray Panthers: dignity, community, self-determination, and resident voice.

Looking Ahead: 2026 & Gray Panthers Leadership

March 2026 – Eden Alternative Conference

Connected Communities will host a five-hour pre-conference session, highlighting person-directed care and the power of grassroots collaboration.

April 2026 – ASA Annual Conference

• Carrie and Michael Arnot, President of GPNYC, will present on Age & Youth in Action—including the Girl Scout Patch and intergenerational organizing.

• Carrie will co-present with national partners on Connected Communities.

A Year of Panther Momentum

In 2025, Carrie advanced Gray Panthers priorities by:

• Elevating resident and disability voices

• Advancing Age and Youth in Action across the country

• Rallying for Medicaid and speaking directly to lawmakers

• Amplifying grassroots leadership in long-term care reform

• Building intergenerational and cross-movement alliances

2026 is poised to be an even bigger year—with Connected Communities emerging as a national model grounded in the justice principles that have defined Gray Panthers for more than 50 years.