Good Living Guide

Seniors

94-Year-Old Woman tries on Wedding Dress for the Very First Time

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A grandmother in Alabama is proof that you’re never too old to be a princess. The 94-year-old fulfilled a lifelong dream when she wore a wedding dress for the first time.

A Secret Wish

Martha Mae Ophelia Moon Tucker, a grandmother in Birmingham, was first married in 1952. At the time, black women were not allowed in many stores, including bridal boutiques. She got married without the fun of trying on dresses that many brides take for granted.

Her family never knew about her secret desire until one evening when she was with her granddaughter Angela Strozier.

A Favorite Movie

The two were watching the Eddie Murphy comedy Coming to America, which is one of Martha Mae’s favorites. During the wedding scene, Strozier heard her grandmother say, “I’ve always wanted to try on a wedding dress.”

Determined to fulfill that wish, her granddaughter enlisted other family members for help.

Beautiful Bride

Family members quickly arranged a dress fitting at David’s Bridal in Birmingham. The whole family gathered to watch their grandmother fulfill a wish she’d held for over 70 years.

Erica Tucker, another granddaughter, captured the moment in a Facebook post that went viral. In a caption accompanying a picture of Martha Mae in a beautiful gown and veil, Tucker wrote, “Y’all better create moments and memories with your people. I’m so glad I was there to witness this.”

Creating Memories

Local news caught wind of the story and interviewed the family. Tucker told WZM News, “There’s nothing her children and grands wouldn’t give to make her smile. I’m sure she doesn’t know what going viral is, but she loves attention, so please believe that all of this love has brightened her days.”

94-Year-Old Woman tries on Wedding Dress for the Very First Time

Patriotic Grandmother Cleans Over 600 Unkempt Military Headstones

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Our country has many cemeteries that honor our fallen veterans. Although we all pay respect to them, one Washington grandmother has made that respect a way of life.

Cleaning the Headstones

Since last year, Kelly Mulvaney has been cleaning the headstones and beautifying the graves at Grand Mound Cemetery in Rochester County. As of this month, she has cleaned more than 600 veterans’ headstones.

“The people aren’t forgotten, but sometimes the headstones get old and covered with dirt, and people can’t get here,” she explained.

Daily Ritual

Every day, she pulls up in her car with buckets, a shovel, gloves and other materials. She starts by sweeping pine needles and debris from the headstone. She then cleans stains and mold from the headstone. She finishes by clearing weeds from the edges to make the border stand out.

Each headstone looks like new when she’s finished.

Mulvaney has been dubbed the “Rochester Cemetery Cleaning Angel” by locals. What’s even more amazing is none of her family members are buried in that cemetery.

Inspired To Act

She said she was inspired to act when she and her granddaughter were taking a walk through the cemetery.

“I saw all the military headstones covered in mold and mildew and I thought, those aren’t supposed to look like that,” she told a local paper.

Taking Time

Crystal Hitchcock, whose mother is buried in the cemetery, said she can’t believe someone would “take so much time out of their day and their week and year and do that for somebody they don’t even know.”

Restoring Our Heritage

On her Facebook page, Mulvaney says she wants to “restore our heritage one headstone at a time.”

She has received messages from people who want to join her as volunteers. You can follow her progress on her Facebook page.

Patriotic Grandmother Cleans Over 600 Unkempt Military Headstones

 

102-Year-Old Great-Grandmother Joins First-Grade Virtual Gym Class

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Virtual meetings have become a way of life during the COVID-19 pandemic. People have staged virtual holiday celebrations, virtual classroom sessions and virtual weddings.

VIRTUALLY EVERYWHERE

Now, these virtual meetings have turned one Arizona great-grandmother into a social media sensation.

Brody Contreras is a six-year-old boy who lives in Ajo, Arizona. Like many kids, Brody has a lot of energy, so a virtual gym class seemed like a great way to keep him mentally and physically active.

STEALING THE SPOTLIGHT

Brody’s mom Angela enrolled him in a virtual school that included a PE (physical education) class. She figured it would help him stay fit and have fun.

Little did she know that someone else would soon steal Brody’s spotlight.

FAMILY TIME

Brody was excited about his new class, and he wanted to share the fun with his great-grandmother Julia Fulkerson. Julia is 102 years old, but she is not letting anything slow her down.

Once Fulkerson received the COVID-19 vaccine, the family could spend time in person with her. The family posted a series of Instagram pictures showing Brody and Julia sharing special times.

 

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A post shared by Angie Contreras (@angiec_143)

SHAKING A TAILFEATHER

What happened next shocked everyone. When Brody showed Julia his virtual exercise class, the centenarian was inspired to join in and start moving.

Within minutes, she was shaking and grooving to the beat. Fortunately, Angela was there to film the whole thing. The incredibly inspiring video swept social media and turned Julia into an overnight star.

SOMETHING POSITIVE TO SHARE

It’s evident she’s still in incredible shape as she keeps up with a group of first graders.

It’s easy to see why the video went viral. Everyone could use something positive and inspiring to share these days. As Angela posted on Instagram, “This was quite honestly one of the most special moments ever.”

102-Year-Old Great-Grandmother Joins First-Grade Virtual Gym Class

Instagram | angiec_143

Jelly Drops Are Sweets That Help Keep People With Dementia Hydrated

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A new sweet could be the answer to a serious health concern. With Jelly Drops, it’s easy for elderly people and others to boost their water intake.

Why Hydration Matters

Dehydration is a serious problem for older people. Many elderly people with dementia and Alzheimer’s don’t drink enough water to stay hydrated. Every day, older adults are hospitalized for life-threatening dehydration.

It’s also a serious concern among children with special needs and people in nursing homes.

An Easy Way To Drink More Water

Now, an easy-to-eat jelly candy could be the answer for people with dementia and their caretakers.

Jelly Drops are round, brightly colored jelly candies that come in fun fruit flavors. Each is about the size of a ping pong ball. You just pop it in, chew it and enjoy the juicy goodness.

The Story of Jelly Drops

Lewis Hornby invented Jelly Drops after his grandmother ended up in the emergency room with dehydration. He knew she loved sweets, and he used that knowledge to develop Jelly Drops.

The candies were an instant hit with elderly people and their caretakers. Jelly Drops have received awards and recognition from a slew of organizations, including the Royal Academy of Engineering, the Alzheimer’s Society, the European Investment Bank and the Helen Hamlyn Center for Design.

Drops of Goodness

Jelly Drops contain 95% water, natural fruit flavors and no sugar. They are soft, chewy and easy to eat. The bright colors and fun shape make them attractive to people with dementia who have lost interest in food.

If you eat 10 Jelly Drops, you take in the equivalent of a cup of water. They contain no harmful ingredients, and it’s safe for children and elderly people to eat as many as they like.

Where Can You Get Them?

You can buy them directly from the Jelly Drops website. Most people use the monthly subscription service.

Jelly Drops

Pets For The Elderly Charity Expands Effort To Help Isolated Seniors

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A charity that brings pets and people together is expanding its outreach during the coronavirus pandemic. Pets for the Elderly specializes in helping people over 60 find a loving, four-footed companion.

Pets For The Elderly

HELPING SHELTER PETS AND PEOPLE FIND EACH OTHER

Loneliness is hard on seniors, and animals make wonderful companions. Those two facts are the driving force behind Pets for the Elderly, whose mission is to end loneliness among the elderly. The organization calls its program Companion Connection. The program helps pay the adoption, spaying and other fees for people over 60 who adopt shelter pets. It’s a win-win. Seniors find a fluffy friend, and pets find a forever home.

Around 50 shelters in 30 states take part in the program. It has helped more than 100,000 shelter pets find homes.

FORGING A LIFELONG CONNECTION

This week, the organization announced it was ramping up efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pets for the Elderly is reaching out to help older people pay for food, grooming and in-home visits from shelter workers.

Loneliness is a serious problem for older people. According to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, more than a third of adults aged 45 and older feel lonely, and nearly one-fourth of people over 65 are “socially isolated.” Many are even more isolated without the ability to socialize or receive visitors because of the pandemic.

IT’S THE RIGHT TIME

Executive Director Susan Kurowski said this is the right time to increase the organization’s efforts.

“With COVID, bridging this isolation gap with companionship is going to show, when we look back, as being key to many people’s mental wellness. You don’t have to live alone to feel isolated.”

Has a pet helped you cope with the pandemic? Let us know.

Neighbors Are Throwing A Social Distance Dance Party Every Morning

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If social distancing is making you feel stir-crazy, take a tip from a group of neighbors in Frodsham, a village in the UK. Every morning, neighbors fire up the music and start dancing.

Social Distance Dance Party

A Daily Dose of Fun

Every day, they enjoy a safe, socially distant dance party. The whole neighborhood looks forward to this daily dose of fun.

They Call It Distance Dancing

Local fitness instructor Janet Woodcock came up with the idea to help older people feel less isolated. She now leads the combination dance party and workout each morning. Elsa Williams, a neighbor who posted a video of the party on her Twitter account, said it’s become a popular event.

“Distance dancing only lasts 10 minutes a day so causes minimal disturbance,” she tweeted. “Mostly our road is kids and elderly residents who are self-isolating, so they look forward to it.”

It’s a Sensation

The dance was supposed to be a one-time thing, but it became too popular. The daily dance has attracted the attention of CNN, the BBC and other news outlets looking for some good news to share during the worldwide lockdown.

Williams said the dancing has lifted everyone’s spirits and made the community closer than it was before.

Bringing People Together In a Safe Way

“It was only meant to be a one time thing, but it lifted people round here up a bit and they wanted more,” she wrote. “It’s also worth noting that our road hardly spoke to each other before all this!”

What is your community doing to bring everyone together safely?

Neighbors Are Throwing A Social Distance Dance Party Every Morning

Grandpa Has The Sweetest Dance-Off With Granddaughter From Across The Street

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He’s 81 years old. His name is “Papa.” Or at least that is what his darling six-year-old granddaughter Kira likes to call him. And for the sake of love, he is busting out the dance moves to make Kira smile.

Grandpa Has The Sweetest Dance-Off With Granddaughter From Across The Street

Kira and Papa’s Story

When Kira was just a baby, her grandparents moved into the house right across the street. Kira and her mom, Sherrie, feel grateful to have her parents so close.

But right now it isn’t safe to let Kira run across the street several times each day to go play with her elderly Papa and Grandmama.

And so….Kira and Papa started holding daily dance parties.

Staying Close While Staying Safe

Kira chooses the playlist songs. She shows up for the daily dance-offs decked out in her best finery.

Papa (real name Marvin Neely) wears denim and a windbreaker jacket. Kira throws down the initial challenge and then waits eagerly to see what her grandfather will do next.

As Marvin’s daughter, Sherrie, puts it, he “has some special moves.” She also says she has never seen him dance before – until now.

Grandpa Has The Sweetest Dance-Off With Granddaughter From Across The Street

The Best Kind of Virus to Catch

What is so neat about this video is – dare we say it – how it, too, has gone viral. But now we are not running for masks, gloves and toilet paper.

Instead, we are running to hit the “share” button so we can pass the laughter, joy, hope and love along.

Kira and Papa Are on the Today Show!

Within days of when Sherrie posted the friendly little home video clip on her personal Facebook page, the Today Show picked it up.

Now it, too, has made its way around the world from America to Canada, India, Europe and beyond.

Turn Handwritten Recipes From Loved Ones Into A Special Recipe Plate

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A family member’s famous “secret” recipe is deserving of its own recipe plate.  If your relatives are like most, you probably have at least one piece of lined paper with a recipe written carefully in longhand. There might also be a few splotches, spills and scribbled notes.

A RECIPE THAT’S BEEN HANDED DOWN

You’ve probably handed that piece of paper around for generations, and it may be starting to fall apart. Now, you can take that piece of paper and have it memorialized forever on a ceramic pie plate, quiche plate, platter, serving dish or casserole pan.

MAKE THAT TATTERED PIECE OF PAPER LIVE FOREVER

Imagine seeing your grandmother’s handwriting permanently inscribed on a plate that you can use to bake a pie or hang on the wall. Think about handing that plate down to your own children and grandchildren.

You can also choose to permanently inscribe your wedding invitation or a special letter on a plate. Did your mother write an encouraging note to you that you’ve kept all these years? Immortalize it on a plate.

TURN IT INTO A WORK OF ART

Prairie Hills Pottery is an Etsy shop that specializes in turning handwritten notes into objects of lasting, useful beauty. The lettering, invitations or other documents are etched in black paint on pure white plates. The look is simple and stunning.

A recipe plate can also work as a wall display.

A RECIPE PLATE MAKES AN UNFORGETTABLE GIFT

They are amazing:

  • Wedding gifts.
  • Sympathy gifts.
  • Birthday presents.
  • Holiday gifts.

They come in your choice of size and shape.

HOW TO GET YOUR OWN GORGEOUS RECIPE PLATE

Prairie Hills Pottery is an Etsy seller with five-star customer ratings and enthusiastic reviews. Get ready to turn your favorite family items into heirlooms that will be cherished forever.

Couple Recreates Iconic Woodstock Photo 50 Years Later

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It took 50 years for Jerry and Judy Griffin to find a photograph of their first meeting. That’s especially astonishing when you consider that they met during the 1969 Woodstock Festival, one of the most photographed events of the 1960s.

Couple Recreates Iconic Woodstock Photo 50 Years Later

Photo: Screenshot from American Experience | PBS, Footage Courtesy of Warner Brothers Entertainment

GOING TO THE FARM

On August 15, 1969, Judy was one on her way to the dairy farm where Woodstock was taking place. When her car broke down, she and her friends accepted a ride from a group of guys that included Jerry.

Both were 22 years old.

PEACE, LOVE AND ROMANCE

It was a festival of love, and they fell in love that day. Even more astonishing, they are still happily married today.

Couple Recreates Iconic Woodstock Photo 50 Years Later

Judy and Jerry Griffin now, at their home in Manhattan Beach | Ben Trivett

As Judy says, “By the time we got out of the car and set up camp, we were into each other, and we basically were together from that point on.”

Since then, friends and family members have asked to see photographs of the couple at Woodstock, but despite years of searching, they could never find any. One day, they attended a screening of the 2019 PBS documentary Woodstock and were astonished to finally see themselves in a brief film clip.

A LOVE THAT LASTED

You can see them in the first few minutes of the trailer for the PBS documentary. They’re the smiling young couple wrapped in a blanket together.

Jerry told a local news station that he yelled, “That’s us!” when he saw the clip. Now, they finally have a photograph showing the first moments of a lifelong love.

More Seniors are Downsizing into Tiny Homes at Retirement

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All over the country, seniors are declaring their independence by moving into tiny homes that give them personal and financial freedom.

In one hilarious promo, Uber and Johnsonville are celebrating this trend by highlighting the feisty “Sausage Nonnas,” three Italian grandmothers who cook, travel and socialize in their tiny homes.

Music and Meaning

Adele Smith is a retired music teacher who moved from a 1,300 square foot house in Tennessee to a farm in Oregon. Her sister owns the farm, and she invited Adele to build her dream tiny house on it. Doing so allows Adele to live comfortably on her retirement income.

Her tiny house is charming and cozy, but the best feature is its back deck with a large, comfortable hot tub.

“It feels like a little piece of heaven to me,” she says.

A Whole New Plan

Michelle Boyle married twice, divorced twice and then realized she had no house, no retirement income and no plan for the future. In a sharp-witted and inspiring interview, she talks about first building a tiny house to live in and later building additional tiny houses to rent out.

Her tiny house features a large, airy kitchen with genuine vintage appliances and lots of clothing storage.

“A lot of people sacrifice their kitchens and clothes in a tiny home,” she says, “but I wanted to show that you can go into a tiny home and still be stylish.”

Living Large In a Tiny Home

These ladies are living life to the fullest in their tiny homes. Have you ever thought about downsizing to a tiny house?