Want to get a laugh from a group of older adults? Ask if any of them could use some one-on-one guidance with a cell phone.

Teen Help, a group of United Way volunteers from local schools, posed the question last week at the “Granny Go Surfing and Cell Phone Blast,” a service project at the Warren County Public Library.

And after the laughter died down, the teen volunteers were busy with several seniors who held out their cell phones with questions about adding contacts, sending text messages and saving photos. A few minutes later pairs of teens and elders could be found at the library’s computers, “Googling,” exploring e-mail and formatting documents for printing.

“I do it because I want to help better the community,” said 16-year-old Jamel Dagher, a junior at Warren Central High School who brought the idea for the workshop back from a campus visit to the University of Arkansas. “I found that they did it with some of their older citizens to help them with technology. I thought it would be good for us to try it.”

Jamel is a second-year participant in Teen Help and serves as vice president of the group. Traditional school rivalries are left at the door. “We all come together,” Jamel said. He paired with Charlene Shoit, teaching her cell phone tips and how to get started on the computer.

“I told him he should be a teacher,” Shoit said. “He is really smart and explained everything so well. I enjoyed it and learned a lot.”

Jamel’s younger brother, Jalen, also volunteers. “We learn a lot through trial and error,” he said of the teens’ ability to pick up any phone and explain how to use it.

Besides the satisfaction of helping others, some students also earn hours toward honors at graduation. Seniors who perform 50 hours of community service this year will be designated by a colored cord worn with their caps and gowns.

“The definition of Teen Help is helping others,” said Julianna Jones, 18, a senior at Vicksburg High School and group president. “We love to be involved.”

Julianna, a cheerleader and six-year softball team veteran, attended her first meeting of Teen Help at the beginning of the school year at the urging of her mother. She found herself elected president.

Wednesday, as she helped 76-year-old Charlie Peets master the art of the text message on his RAZR, she and Peets discovered that she is best friends with his granddaughter.

Alexandra Trichell, 15, a sophomore at Warren Central, began volunteering with Teen Help when she was in the seventh grade. “I helped a lady add people to her contacts list and showed her how to find books in the library’s directory,” Alexandra said. She also volunteers with the Red Cross and What Up With Dat, a county organization that works to combat drug and alcohol abuse.

United Way director Barbara Tolliver learned how to send a file via her phone’s Bluetooth wireless protocol. “I didn’t even know I had Bluetooth,” she laughed.

Tolliver was pleased with the interaction between the teens and the seniors.

“It sends a message to the community, to everybody, that there are some good children that we need to invest in,” she said. “My goal is to spend time with them.”

She hopes to repeat the program in other settings, including the Vicksburg Senior Center and possibly at local churches. “The beauty of it is the pairing of a younger person with an older one.”

After the phone and computer session, Tolliver led the teens’ monthly meeting, where they continued planning next month’s activity. They will be presenting collections of stuffed animals to police, sheriff and rescue workers to use with young children in emergency-response situations.

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Contact Pamela Hitchins at phitchins@vicksburgpost.com.