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Seniors Support Directory
Free Downsizing Support
Thinking about moving, downsizing, or decluttering? Get help at no cost to you.
Get Free Downsizing Help
Genealogy & Family History
Curious about your family tree? Get help with small projects or extensive research.
Free Genealogy Consult
Capture Your Life Story
Want to preserve your memories and wisdom for your loved ones?
Get a Free Life Story Meeting
Have You Written Something?
Learn about professional editing, publication options, etc.
Get a Free Publishing Consult
Long-Term Care Insurance
Thinking about long-term care insurance?
Get Free Expert Guidance
Senior Living (55+, Assisted, Memory)
Looking for assisted living options near you? We can help.
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Retirement Circles (Peer Support Groups)
Looking for connection and purpose in retirement? Join small, facilitated peer groups that meet twice monthly online.
Apply to Join a Retirement Circle
Creating Meaningful Gifts Without Buying Anything New
The most meaningful gifts are rarely the most expensive. Often, they’re the ones that carry attention, memory, or effort — things you already have. Creating gifts without buying anything new shifts the focus from spending to significance, and many people find that these gifts are remembered long after others are forgotten.
Turn What You Already Own Into Something Personal
Look around for items with unused potential: a favorite recipe, old photographs, letters, or knowledge you’ve accumulated over time. For example, typing up a handful of family recipes with short notes about when you made them or who taught you creates a keepsake that feels intimate and useful. A small stack of labeled photos tied with ribbon can be just as meaningful as a framed print.
Gifts don’t have to be physical. Offering to teach a card game, help organize old photos, or spend an afternoon telling family stories can be deeply appreciated. These gifts work best when they’re specific: “One afternoon of baking together,” or “A monthly phone call where we share a memory.” Specificity turns an offer into something tangible.
Create Memory-Based Gifts
Memory gifts honor shared experience. Writing a short letter that recalls a particular moment from your perspective — a trip, a challenge, or a tradition — can be more powerful than a purchased item. Some people enjoy recording a voice message or writing a single-page story about a meaningful time. These gifts feel personal because they can’t be replicated.
Repackage Something With New Intention
Sometimes the gift already exists — it just needs framing. A book you’ve loved becomes a gift when you include a note explaining why it mattered to you. A plant cutting from your home, labeled with its origin, carries more meaning than a store-bought version.
Why These Gifts Last
Gifts made from what you already have carry your presence. They show thought, not transaction. And they often become the things people hold onto longest because they tell a story rather than fill a space.
On Health
Healthy recipe: Hot Apple Orange Cider
On Finances
Legacy Spotlight
“The Blue Address Book”
From the life overview of Frank D., 88, Toledo, Ohio. Shared with permission.
I bought the address book—blue, vinyl, and alphabetized, which felt very grown-up for me at the time—in 1974 at a drugstore near my office. I wrote my name in block letters on the inside cover, pressing hard enough that the pen nearly tore through the paper. I didn’t know then how long it would last or how heavy it would become.
At first, the pages filled quickly with the names of coworkers, neighbors, and cousins I still called on Sundays. Later I included school parents, bowling league friends, and a barber who insisted on reminding me of my thinning hair. Each name felt permanent when I wrote it down, like a small promise that I would keep in touch with the person whose name I was inscribing.
Over the years, I crossed out certain names. Others, however, remained untouched, even after their numbers stopped working. It just didn’t seem right to erase them completely. The book began to look uneven, with some pages appearing crowded or smudged and others nearly blank.
I still keep it in my desk drawer, even though all the important numbers live in my phone now. Every so often, I open the book and flip through its pages slowly. It reminds me that a life isn’t just the people who are still reachable—it’s also the ones who were once close enough for you to write down.
***
Do you want to (1) capture your life story like above or (2) edit, format, and/or publish something you’ve worked on for years?
Three Things Worth Your Time
The National Gallery of Art – NGA Images
NGA Images provides free, high-resolution images of works in the museum’s collection. The site is straightforward and well organized, making it easy to explore artists, styles, and specific periods with clarity.
The Peabody Essex Museum – Phillips Library Digital Collections
The Phillips Library houses maritime logs, personal diaries, and regional records spanning centuries. Its digitized materials are carefully cataloged, offering a window into everyday lives as well as global trade and travel.
An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith
by Barbara Brown Taylor
Taylor invites readers to see everyday life as a landscape of sacred possibility, revealing how simple acts—walking, working, even waiting—can become “altars” where we encounter the divine. With grounded wisdom and evocative prose, this book reshapes spirituality as something found in the ordinary rather than distant or abstract.
Quick Poll (vote to see the anonymized current results)
Do you work with a financial advisor?
Capture Your Life Story: Today’s Daily Prompt
This daily section is brought to you by MemoirGhostwriting.com, experts in capturing life stories for loved ones and/or the public. We can meet any budget. (Does your story deserve to be told?)
What’s a skill you learned by watching others rather than being taught?
Take a few minutes to jot down your thoughts. Even a few sentences are a memory preserved for loved ones.
Do you want to (1) capture your life story like above or (2) edit, format, and/or publish something you’ve worked on for years? Get a FREE Life Story or Publishing Consultation
On Tech for Seniors
How to Use Store Pickup and Delivery Apps
Store pickup and delivery apps can make everyday shopping much easier, especially if walking long aisles or lifting heavy bags has become tiring. With just a smartphone or computer, you can order groceries and household essentials in minutes. Here’s how to use these services confidently and safely.
Getting Started with Pickup or Delivery
Download the store’s official app. Common options include:
Only download apps from the official Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
Create an account. Enter your email address, create a password, and add a credit or debit card.
Choose Pickup or Delivery.
Pickup: You order in the app, drive to the store, and an employee brings the items to your car.
Delivery: Groceries are brought directly to your home for a fee (sometimes waived for larger orders).
Select a time window. Choose a day and time that works for you.
Review your cart carefully. Check quantities and allow or decline substitutions for out-of-stock items.
Saving Money and Staying Organized
Use the “reorder” feature for items you buy regularly.
Turn on app notifications for pickup updates.
Compare membership programs if you shop often:
Look for digital coupons in the app before checking out.
For security, use strong passwords and never share your login information. With a little practice, store pickup and delivery can save time, energy, and even money.
On Travel for Seniors
Cruise deal of the day: 4 Nights Pacific Coastal Cruise - departing May 2, from $259
Unmissable American gem: Rome, Georgia is a charming riverside town where seniors can explore historic homes, stroll Berry College’s beautiful campus, and enjoy scenic views from Myrtle Hill at an easygoing pace.
Unscramble
Unscramble the letters to find a famous person, event, or object! Be the first to reply with the correct answer, and we’ll send you a free gift in the mail.
Today’s clue: Classic Humphrey Bogart romance.
NASCLAABCA
Want to Earn in Retirement?
Help a life story get told, earn thousands: Refer someone to MemoirGhostwriting.com and earn 12% of what they spend. Find out more here.
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