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Friendships Are Good for Your Health March 15, 2023 by Mary Jacobs - As a human resources executive, Carole Leskin traveled around the world and worked with a diverse group of interesting people. She never married and never had children, but life was full. Then a recession ended her career at age 65.…
What Happens When Someone Dies without a Will? February 8, 2023 by Mary Jacobs - Years later, the story still haunts attorney Jennifer Cona. A man—in his 70s and in good health—retained her to draw up a will. He wanted to bequeath his sizable estate to his grandson and to a few charities. He did…
Celebrating Aging January 4, 2023 by Mary Jacobs - After her mother passed away, Jeanette Leardi invited female friends to her home for a special gathering. It wasn’t exactly a memorial service; many attendees never knew her mother. Instead, it was a healing ritual for Leardi. The group lit…
Changing the Way You Think about Aging Can Improve Your Life December 28, 2022 by Judith Graham - People’s beliefs about aging have a profound impact on their health, influencing everything from their memory and sensory perceptions to how well they walk, how fully they recover from disabling illness and how long they live. 
Needed: New Ways to Prepare Older People for Disasters December 8, 2022 by Judith Graham - All kinds of natural disasters—hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, wildfires, dangerous heat waves—pose substantial risks to older adults.
A Photographer’s Rich Portrait of Aging November 22, 2022 by Judith Graham - What happens when a 70-something professional photographer sets out to record her own body as she ages and the bodies of other, older people, sometimes naked and sometimes not? In this article, Journalist Judith Graham interviews the photographer, Marna Clarke,…
Seasoned Warriors September 6, 2022 by Mary Jacobs - Every Monday morning for nearly a year, Judy Sherry, 82, has called the office of her senator, Roy Blunt (R-Missouri), with the same question: When is he going to get the courage to do something about gun violence? “He’s retiring…
Villages: Boutique Options for Aging in Place July 28, 2022 by Judith Graham - Twenty years ago, a group of pioneering older adults in Boston created an innovative organization for people committed to aging in place
Apps Can Open Up a World of Possibilities for Older Adults July 6, 2022 by Mary Jacobs - John Brandt is still on good terms with his ex-mother-in-law—so good that he gave her an iPad for Christmas last year, along with a promise to provide tech support. The learning curve turned out to be a bit steep. At…
Retooling the Nation’s First Long Term Care Insurance Program June 29, 2022 by Michelle Andrews - Patricia Keys, 71 and a stroke survivor, needs help with many everyday activities, such as dressing and bathing. Her daughter Christina, who lives near her mom in Vancouver, WA, cares for her in the evenings and pays about $3,000 a month for help from other caregivers.
Advance Care Planning for Guns June 7, 2022 by Judith Graham - Kerri Raissian didn’t know what to do about her father’s guns when he died of COVID-19 in December at age 86 and left her executor of his estate.
Top Experts Question the Value of Advance Care Planning May 24, 2022 by Judith Graham - For decades, Americans have been urged to fill out documents specifying their end-of-life wishes before becoming terminally ill—living wills, do-not-resuscitate orders and other written materials expressing treatment preferences.
Smashing Stereotypes on Social Media May 11, 2022 by Mary Jacobs - When she retired 15 years ago, Tzipporah “Zippy” Sandler was floundering and unsure what was next. Then a tech-savvy friend suggested she start a blog and even offered to build it for her. “I didn’t even know what a blog…
Saying a Wrenching Goodbye to My Longtime Primary Care Doctor March 30, 2022 by Judith Graham - I hadn’t expected the tears.
My primary care doctor and I were saying goodbye after nearly 30 years together.
Getting Older with Grace—and Gratitude March 3, 2022 by Mary Jacobs - In a cruel twist of timing, Sally Magnuson’s husband of 55 years died of COVID-19 on February 10, 2021—the very day the couple was scheduled to get their first vaccines. Around the same time, Magnuson, 80, of Plano, TX, also…
Older Women Face a Fashion Challenge January 14, 2022 by Mary Jacobs - On a shopping outing, Jane Bourland informed her granddaughter, “I can’t wear sleeveless. I can’t wear short. And I can’t wear low-cut.” Surveying the styles on the racks at the department store, her granddaughter quickly realized that didn’t leave many…
‘They Treat Me Like I’m Old and Stupid’ January 7, 2022 by Judith Graham - Joanne Whitney, PharmD, 84, a retired associate clinical professor of pharmacy at the University of California-San Francisco, often feels devalued when interacting with health care providers.
Never Too Old for Fun and Games December 15, 2021 by Mary Jacobs - When Kathy Thomas’ “big Catholic family” gathers for the holidays, everybody plays bingo. Her 90-year-old mother, Rosemary Doyle (“RoRo” to the grandkids), calls the game, 
What’s So Funny about Aging? October 20, 2021 by Mary Jacobs - When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March 2020, Carmen Emery, 75, began emailing uplifting spiritual meditations to about 300 friends from church. She quickly realized the daily emails needed something more, so she added three or four funny memes at…
Older Adults Are Becoming Nomads September 8, 2021 by Mary Jacobs - Five years ago, Susan and Rob Beck moved into an RV, after they were forced to sell their home in upstate New York. Rising property taxes had doubled their monthly housing bill, and Rob didn't receive his usual bonus at work.
Minister for Older Adults Has Seen How Pervasive Ageism Is - Later life is a time of reassessment and reflection. What sense do we make of the lives we have lived?
Memory Hacks - When I was young, I could memorize epic poems with ease and recite the Gettysburg Address years after I learned it in school. I seldom forgot the names of books I’d read, the films I’d seen or who starred in…