Christmas is a time of celebration, food, catching up with those who we care about and hopefully some much-needed downtime. But spare a thought for those in our community, especially older people, who through a myriad of reasons don’t think of it as a joyous time of the year. This is especially so for those who live alone and are financially disadvantaged, lonely and have minimal contact with family members and friends.
So how can we as a community extend our hand of friendship and make connections with our elderly neighbours? The following is a list of suggestions on how we can really make a difference in someone’s life:
- Introduce yourself: Introduce yourself to an older person who lives alone in your street. You probably have noticed them before and made a mental note of saying hello, but the pressures of the day got in the way. Why not knock on the door to say hello or put a Christmas card in their letterbox.
- Invite them over: Ask the elderly person if they would like to come over to your place for a cuppa. They may enjoy meeting your family and also your pet, as many older people no longer are able to manage the responsibility of looking after a pet.
- Share a gift: Drop over some of your Christmas shortbread, talk to them about their favourite recipes and arrange to swap some favourites.
- Share Christmas day: Find out what they are doing at Christmas time. If they have nowhere to go, why not invite them over to share a meal with your family. If they decline, why not take over a plate filled with Christmas goodies for them.
- Share left-overs: In the original spirit of Boxing Day, invite them to your house to share some of the left-over Christmas food. They may find a smaller group of people less confronting.
- Introduce them to seniors: Offer to introduce them to other older people who live alone in close proximity.
- Research local social support groups: Do some research on the internet for social support groups in your area. Download a few brochures and arrange a time to pop in to show what you have found. Help them remember by putting the brochure on their fridge (ask us for our Activities program flyer, including a fridge magnet).
Recommending attending a social support group such as Care & Share may be just the social prescription to get the new year off to a good start by making new friends and connections within the local community.
For more information on eligibility and how we can help please get in touch.
Janine and Barbara.
Care & Share at Trinity.
