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3 Ways Older Adults Can Pay It Forward: Redefine retirement through community connection
(Family Features) This time of year always provides plenty to celebrate and commemorate with the warmer weather and longer days.
May is also Older Americans Month, a time for celebrating the contributions that older adults make in our country from coast to coast. This year’s theme, “Aging Unbound,” promotes the independence, fulfillment and joy older Americans can experience by choosing their own paths as they age.
Instead of letting age define their circumstances, older Americans are embracing change, pushing boundaries and transforming their communities through creativity, commitment and service. Everyone benefits when older adults remain engaged, independent and included.
Volunteering is one way older adults can improve their quality of life through connections with others, and it’s also been proven to make measurable improvements in the mental and physical health of the volunteers themselves. In fact, 84% of volunteers report stable or improving health after one year of service and 88% report lower levels of feelings of isolation, according to a study conducted by AmeriCorps Seniors.
As a first stop for anyone looking to explore volunteer opportunities, AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors connect individuals and organizations through service and volunteering. AmeriCorps Seniors matches Americans 55-plus with opportunities to improve their communities through the contribution of time, passion, skills and experience.
“AmeriCorps Seniors is tailor-made for those aged 55 and older,” said Atalaya Sergi, director, AmeriCorps Seniors. “It provides a space for older adults to take charge of their ‘second act’ and use their time in valuable and impactful ways. All of our volunteers share a goal of making a difference in their communities, and many see their involvement as a chance to make friends and form meaningful connections.”
More than 140,000 Americans are matched with volunteer opportunities each year through three programs: RSVP, the Foster Grandparent Program and the Senior Companion Program.
“Our programs offer varying levels of involvement, interaction, time commitments and work with a diverse set of partners,” Sergi said. “We believe there’s a good fit for everyone and many opportunities for volunteers to meet like-minded peers who share their interests or pursue volunteer opportunities that can involve their families, too.”
Consider these ways older adults can get involved in their communities.
Respond to the Needs of Your Community
With more than 115,000 volunteers, RSVP is the largest of the programs. It is a popular choice due to its flexible time commitments and diverse ways to serve. The program partners with national, state and local organizations to offer volunteers a wide range of service opportunities, from building houses to delivering food.
“All the people you meet when you’re a volunteer tell you their stories and experiences,” said Srini Srinivas, a volunteer serving with the RSVP program. “You find that very rewarding and it enriches your life. Doing this service is a way of paying it forward. It supports the community. It keeps me active, which is a good thing. You also feel useful.”
Serve as Mentors
For older adults interested in working with children, the Foster Grandparent Program pairs volunteers with local schools and other programs focused on children, caring for and working with classes, groups or individual students. Volunteers serving with the Foster Grandparent Program serve between five and 30 hours each week based on their availability and may be eligible for a small monetary stipend to offset the cost of volunteering.
“My motto is, ‘There is never a never, you can always accomplish something.’ I’m here to help the kids learn, be there for them and teach them as much as I can,” said Priscilla Tsethlikai, a volunteer since 2016. “They’re teaching me, and at the same time, I’m teaching them.”
Provide a Helping Hand to Other Older Adults
Fostering relationships with other older adults is also a rewarding, and needed, option. Volunteers serving with the Senior Companion Program give about 20 hours each week and spend time with older adults in need of companionship or help with day-to-day tasks such as grocery shopping, getting to appointments or paying bills. Volunteers also may provide respite to family members caring for loved ones with chronic illnesses. The program may offer a small monetary stipend for volunteers who qualify.
“Volunteering has changed me, it keeps me grounded,” volunteer Carmen Swanson said. “When you help others and do for others, you enrich your life. My favorite part is being available and of service to them. Whatever their desire is, whatever they’d like to achieve – if I can execute the task, follow it through and accomplish it then it makes my day.”
While it may mean different things to different people, this year’s Older Americans Month theme of “Aging Unbound” provides one overarching sentiment: growing older can and should be empowering.
“We know there are stereotypes surrounding older adults, but we want people to shift their thinking,” Sergi said. “See the ways older adults continue to contribute to your life and communities, appreciate their wisdom and lived experiences, and join them in new endeavors. When the older adults in our communities are engaged, valued and genuinely included, we all benefit.”
For more information, and to find volunteer opportunities near you, visit AmeriCorps.gov/YourMoment.
Support Older Adults in Your Community
Though many older adults remain independent and engaged as they age, some may find they are no longer able to complete daily tasks and require assistance. By looking for ways to assist older adults with tasks and engage with them intellectually, you can help them continue to live fulfilling lives. Consider these ways you can make a difference in the lives of older adults in your area:
Offer your services. This may be especially useful if you are a skilled tradesman, such as a plumber, carpenter, electrician or mechanic, or have technical skills and can assist with navigating devices such as computers and cell phones.
Volunteer at an older adult community. Assisted living, skilled nursing and memory care communities often rely on volunteers to host game nights and social events to help residents socialize and stay active.
Assist with household chores. While many older adults choose to age in their own homes, they may require assistance with cooking, cleaning, yardwork and more.
Help with transportation. If you have a car and a valid driver’s license, driving older adults can help them complete their errands more quickly and safely. They may need to get to a doctor’s appointment, go to the grocery store, visit the post office or complete other tasks outside of the home that a driver can assist with.
SOURCE:
AmeriCorps Seniors
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New hybrid event aims to give grieving audiences meaningful holiday viewing, with films from more than 25 countries and a mission centered on love, loss, and emotional truth.
A new film festival debuting in late 2026 is taking a different approach to holiday entertainment. Grief Fest™: The Grief Film Festival, created by My Grief Angels Inc., is being introduced as what organizers believe is the world’s first film festival dedicated entirely to grief, remembrance, resilience, and healing.
The hybrid festival will run in two segments: November 25–29, 2026, during Thanksgiving week, and December 24, 2026, through January 3, 2027, during Christmas and New Year’s. Top Honors films will be announced on December 31, 2026.
Organizers say the timing is intentional. Research cited in the announcement shows that grief and loneliness are major holiday stressors for many Americans, making the season especially difficult for people coping with loss. In that context, Grief Fest™ is positioning itself as an alternative to the flood of traditional feel-good holiday programming.
The festival is open to short films, features, documentaries, experimental work, AI-generated projects, and VR experiences. It is described as inclusive, non-religious, and LGBTQ+ friendly, with submissions already received from more than 25 countries. All films will be presented in English, either spoken or subtitled.
Grief Fest™ will be available both in person and virtually through Film Festival Plus, making it accessible to audiences worldwide. The launch of GriefFest.com also includes Lumen, a multilingual AI guide designed to help filmmakers and attendees navigate the festival in their preferred language.
Rather than focusing on industry prestige, organizers say the festival is centered on community and emotionally honest storytelling. For audiences who feel unseen during the holidays, Grief Fest™ is aiming to offer something rare on the seasonal screen: recognition.
Source: PR Newswire
Related Reading
- Grief Fest: Official festival site
- My Grief Angels Inc.: About the nonprofit behind the festival
- Film Festival Plus: Virtual access platform
Catch the latest in movies, TV, music, pop culture, and live events in STM Daily News’ Entertainment section.
As the United States moves toward the 250th anniversary of its independence, a new public storytelling project is asking Americans to answer a big question: what does the American Dream mean today?
McCourt Entertainment has launched America-Dreams.com at SXSW as a digital platform designed to collect video submissions from people across the country. The goal is ambitious: gather one million voices reflecting on hope, opportunity, and what Americans want the future of the country to look like.
The initiative is tied to AMERIGO, an upcoming documentary presented by South Florida PBS and distributed by American Public Television. The film, which will be available to PBS stations nationwide beginning in June as part of 2026 programming tied to the nation’s 250th anniversary, explores the past, present, and future of the American Dream through conversations with people across the United States.
According to the project team, selected user-submitted videos may become part of the broader AMERIGOstorytelling effort, turning the campaign into more than a promotional rollout. Instead, it is being framed as a living archive of public voices gathered during a milestone moment in American history.
South Florida PBS President and CEO Dolores Fernandez Alonso said the goal is to make the anniversary feel inclusive and participatory.
“To celebrate the 250th anniversary of America’s independence, we wanted to do something truly remarkable and invite all Americans to share their hope for the American Dream at America-Dreams.com,” Alonso said. “We are extremely proud of the cross-section of voices from across our nation and we want to capture these stories, experiences and perspectives so that people feel included in this historic national conversation.”
Emmy Award-winning producer David McCourt said the project builds on the documentary team’s nationwide reporting.
“As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, this project asks a simple but powerful question: ‘What is your hope for the American Dream?’” McCourt said. “We want to hear directly from people across the country.”
The campaign arrives at a moment when interactive documentary projects and audience participation are becoming a larger part of public media storytelling. With AMERIGO, the combination of a PBS documentary and a nationwide video submission initiative gives the project a broader cultural footprint than a traditional film release.
Submissions are now open at America-Dreams.com. A trailer for AMERIGO is also available on Vimeo.
For entertainment audiences, the project stands out less as a conventional documentary launch and more as a large-scale invitation to participate in a national media moment ahead of America’s semiquincentennial.
Catch the latest in movies, TV, music, pop culture, and live events in STM Daily News’ Entertainment section.
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Viewpoint Hosted by Dennis Quaid Brings Attention to a Little-Understood Condition Affecting Families Nationwide
A new Viewpoint hosted by Dennis Quaid segment with APFED raises awareness of eosinophilic esophagitis, its subtle symptoms, and its impact on families.
For more information, readers can visit viewpointproject.com and apfed.org.
For many families, health conditions do not always begin with a dramatic diagnosis. Sometimes they show up in small, everyday habits that seem easy to explain away. Cutting food into tiny bites. Drinking extra water with every meal. Quietly avoiding certain foods altogether. A new educational segment from Viewpoint hosted by Dennis Quaid is shining a light on those subtle warning signs through a collaboration with the American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders, helping more people recognize the realities of living with eosinophilic esophagitis, or EoE.
Viewpoint hosted by Dennis Quaid
The segment, distributed to Public Television stations across the country, focuses on making this chronic inflammatory condition easier for the public to understand. For viewers, that matters because EoE is often misunderstood or overlooked, even as it affects daily routines, family meals, and quality of life. By connecting medical information to real-life experiences, the program gives audiences a more human picture of what people with the condition may be facing.
When everyday habits tell a bigger story
Eosinophilic esophagitis occurs when eosinophils, a type of white blood cell, build up in the esophagus, causing inflammation that can lead to tissue damage and narrowing. But what stands out most in this story is not just the science. It is the way people often adapt without realizing it. Behaviors like chewing excessively, avoiding certain textures, or relying on liquids to help swallow can become so routine that they no longer feel unusual.
That is one reason the segment carries real community value. It encourages people to look more closely at symptoms that may have been normalized for years and to seek evaluation from specialists such as gastroenterologists or allergists. It also raises awareness among parents, caregivers, and primary care providers who may be the first to notice that something is not quite right.
More than awareness
The program also explores the emotional and social side of the condition, especially for people navigating dietary restrictions and the uncertainty of delayed diagnosis. In that sense, this is not only a story about medicine. It is also a story about advocacy, support, and the importance of helping people feel seen.
APFED Executive Director Mary Jo Strobel noted that many people with EoE do not realize they have adapted their lives around a medical condition. That message gives the segment its strongest human element: awareness can change lives, not only by leading to diagnosis, but by helping families better understand experiences that may have felt isolating or confusing.
Originally distributed in January 2025, the documentary will continue to be made available to stations through March 2027, extending its reach to more households nationwide.
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Read more from STM Daily News on community issues, public television, health awareness, and stories that connect national topics to everyday life.
For More Information
- Visit the official Viewpoint hosted by Dennis Quaid website
- Learn more about the American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders
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