Celebrate Age-3 Life Lessons

We had a booth at the LeadingAge 50th Annual Meeting and Exposition in October, where the theme for the year was Celebrate Age.  We love the theme and agree completely.

The 3 afternoons of the exposition were wonderfully busy.  We all enjoyed meeting new people and seeing friends, clients and acquaintances.  It is always fun to be spreading the good word about SNF Solutions and how we help Skilled Nursing Facilities with their Accounts Receivable challenges.  The best icebreaker we’ve ever had in our booth was a little display I put together to show what Celebrate Age means to me.

I had 3 pictures displayed with the words “Ask me how to Celebrate Age“.  The main picture (above) was of my great grandmother and her 8 daughters.  My great grandmother lived to the ripe old age of 106! All her daughters but one lived well into their 90’s and one is still around; Aunt Vic, who is 97.   The other two pictures were of my late mother, Esther Craw, who was an entertainer.  She played the accordion all her life, from USO tours with Bob Hope during World War II through playing every weekend at Diebels in German Village in Columbus, Ohio.

My answer to the question of how to Celebrate Age is what I learned from these women who were great influences in my life. Each of them really seemed to enjoy every day they lived and relished life.

From them I got 3 “life lessons”;

Keep Busy-My grandmother used to say “a busy person is a happy person”.  I guess this is no secret since lifestyle and activities are at the core of the marketing for all levels of senior housing and care.  All of her sisters took this to heart, staying busy to the end doing something they loved.

Keep Moving-All of my aunts were great at this, but my great aunt Annie was exceptional.   It wasn’t until she was in her late eighties that I could even begin to keep up with her.  In fact, the day she passed away at 93, she had been helping move a mattress up her stairs into the attic!

Keep Smiling-Just have fun and laugh.  My mother was the best at this.  Being an entertainer for so long, and being able to do what she loved, I saw on a daily basis that she truly enjoyed life,  and never met anyone she didn’t like.

I have been so blessed to know these amazing ladies and have them be a part of my life.  I have to believe that their influence is a major part of my decision to devote my professional life to Long Term Care.