As November moves closer to the holiday season, the Christmas decorations and “SALE” signs are already being displayed in stores. Kids are starting to make their list to Santa and families are planning which side dish to bring to the family Thanksgiving dinner. The end of November is ready to take off at full speed. However, before everyone gets caught up in the hectic part of the holiday season, take a chance to slow down and have a “Senior-giving day” before Thanksgiving.
America is a blessed nation of prosperity and abundance found in many factors: health, freedom, personal and financial security, family and friends. Why not reach out to the senior members of your family or in your community at places such as the local nursing home.
During your Thanksgiving break, have a “senior day” with your family by volunteering. Use the volunteer day as a chance to teach your children about giving to others before they get services for themselves in days of shopping with Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday.
Do not know where to begin? There are numerous ways to interact with the seniors caregivers you volunteer for. Some examples are:
- Take the senior to a movie or to dinner. They might have limited opportunity to get out of the house if they have health issues or disabilities.
- Try being a “chauffer” for the senior to take them out if they need to run errands or want to do activities such as shopping around town.
- Taking a simple walk with the senior may make a world of a difference. It may be beneficial both physically and mentally and emotionally both because of exercise and company.
- If moving outside of the house is not an option, bring your family to their home. Have the children make crafts with the senior or bring handmade gifts to the senior.
Simple decisions like this can make all the difference in the world in the life of the senior you’re helping, even if it does not seem like that big of a deal to you. AARP has resources that can help too:
Livable Communities program: http://www.aarp.org/livable-communities/
Caregiving Resource Center: http://www.aarp.org/home-family/caregiving-new/
Get connected–Build community–Be Involved.
[Written with the help of this article written in the Huffington Post Post 50: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jo-ann-jenkins/senior-sunday_b_6079540.html]
