The Next Chapter

A growing number of older Americans are residing in senior-living communities. Demand is far higher than supply, and costs are generally high. But there are many advantages to such accommodation, even if making such a move requires some adjustment.

If you haven't heard of pickleball, you must be living in a mountaintop monastery somewhere in the Himalayas. Yet even there, at 10,000 feet in Bhutan, monks have been playing pickleball since 2023.

The Star spoke with Louise Collins, M.D., a board-certified gynecologist with Meeting House Lane Medical Practice in East Hampton about sexual activity during and after menopause.

Move over, mah-jongg. See ya later, Scrabble. There's a whole world of board games out there that hold potential interest for seniors who may be looking for something social, something different, and maybe even something new and challenging. Here are a few fun suggestions from an elder millennial for the older adults in the room.

What's going on? Why is my hair falling out? Age, they'll tell me — that's the answer to everything I question, whether it's physical or mental. Age is always the answer.

Thousands of Long Islanders are looking after someone with Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia. The role can be emotionally and physically taxing as caregivers work to keep their loved ones cared for and safe. It can also be lonely. But support groups, run by the Alzheimer’s Association, are providing a place for caregivers to share tips and frustrations, air their sadness, and know that they are not alone.

With all the talk in town about our new Senior Center I am reminded of the old ladies’ home in the town where I grew up. Perhaps it had an official name — I’m sure it did — but everyone including its residents called it The Old Ladies’ Home.

For homebound senior citizens already contending with illnesses or injuries that restrict their ability to leave the house, house-call services can become more than a means of accessing services otherwise unavailable to them; they can become a connection to the outside world.

The McNally-Gatlin family of East Hampton is a local example of a national trend: Multigenerational living, which was decreasing in the 20th century, is on the rise again as families contend with increased housing costs and working parents seek both child care and elder care.

“Aging does a number on our bodies, but if we have strength and we have mobility, we can still function,” said Rasa Tarailaite, owner of RasaPilates, who has been training clients in East Hampton for nearly a decade. “I have an 86-year-old who’s done Pilates for 20 years. She moves better than some 40-year-olds.”

This curated selection of outings, classes, and activities for older adults on the South Fork is really just a taste of what’s out there. Museums, theaters, libraries, and town facilities are cultural hubs for all things entertainment, informational, and educational.

When she heard that other municipalities had ceased holding Bingo games with money on the line, Diane Patrizio, East Hampton Town's director of human services, decided to check on East Hampton's own license to conduct the game at its senior center. She discovered that the license had expired.

In recent years, genealogy research has grown in popularity, as people are curious to discover such details about their family history. The rise of accessible DNA technology and the digitization of census data and historical documents have greatly expanded access to information.

As autumn gets colder and darker, it's the perfect time to pull up a comfy chair, make a piping-hot beverage, and settle in with a good book. This list includes memoir, historical fiction, crime fiction, and more, both brand-new and recently released, that are also available in accessible formats like audio and large print.

 Very long ago, I read the words "out on the wine-dark sea" in Homer's "Odyssey," first as a student, then as a teacher of world literature. Homer the poet was besotted with the Aegean Sea, and I, as student and teacher, was besotted with Homer, though not yet inclined to dally in the waves and tides that sourced his ecstatic reflections.

'The ancient of the salt sea haunts this place . . . '

When it comes to at-home care on the East End, those who need help are finding it, well, hard to find. Factors like long driving distances to reach clients and a perceived lack of competitive wages for aides make the home nursing field challenging to navigate from both perspectives.

In a 2021 survey, the National Funeral Directors Association revealed that only 36 percent of adults have ever had a conversation with loved ones ahead of time about what they want to have happen when they eventually die. Considering it's inevitable, the experts say that pre-planning for your own "final expenses" is one way to ease your loved ones' grief when it finally occurs. The Star asked a local expert, Ken Yardley of the Yardley and Pino Funeral Homes, for his take on funeral pre-planning. Here's what he had to say.

From classic movies to hands-on activities and educational resources, there are plenty of ways older adults can relax and socialize together at local libraries, cultural institutions, and the town senior center. Here is a curated selection of upcoming events that promise to be entertaining and informative (mainly free, unless otherwise indicated).

Memoirs have the ability to touch us more deeply than a work of fiction. What does that say about us? Many of us are interested in other people's lives — not only what happened to them but how the experience shaped and affected them.

East Hampton Town is urging Montauk residents facing difficulties obtaining medicines in the wake of the closing of White's Drug and Department Store to take advantage of its Senior Shopping Assistance Program. Through the town program, people 60 and up can have town employees from the Human Services Department pick up prescriptions from pharmacies and deliver them to their houses.

OK. I’m 76. Maybe you're 76, too. Surely, somebody out there reading this is 76. Or, older. Or, more likely, younger. So. 76. Not great. I think it was Bette Davis who said, "Old age ain't no place for sissies."

True collectors, whether of teacups or tractor seats, are a breed apart, detached from the rest of us by the intensity of their passions. I once knew an older woman who collected manhole covers, dozens of which hung like works of art on the walls of her garage. You couldn't walk with her along the lane without stopping every 500 feet or so while she bent over and peered down.

"The unconditional love of a pet can do more than keep you company. Pets may also decrease stress, improve heart health, and even help children with their emotional and social skills," according to the National Institutes of Health. Kim Nichols, executive director of the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons, weighed in on this topic in a question-and-answer session with The Star.

Community institutions like libraries, museums, and government organizations are offering interesting ways for older adults to find enjoyment, meet new friends, learn about history, and stay physically fit.

Driving a car is a rite of passage in New York State when you're a teenager, a lifeline to a livelihood when you're an adult raising a family, and a means to maintain independence as you age. Handing over the keys, then, is one of the toughest transitions an elderly person will face.

"Aging is different now," said Diane Patrizio, director of human services for East Hampton Town. She points out that the senior center serves people spanning at least two generations, from ages 60 to 100. Some go to Florida for the winter, others are lower-income. Some are frail, but most are active, she said, and "doing really well."

The residential elevator is gaining popularity on Long Island and on the East End in particular, where aging homeowners are finding that it’s adding years of useful life to houses taller than a single story.

Need help with grocery shopping, library access, transportation to doctor appointments, or household tasks? Here are several resources offered by East Hampton and Southampton Towns for senior citizens.

The move from brunette to gray hair has become a topic of fascination for me and I’ve since watched others make the change with interest, embracing their natural color.

You’ve likely heard of the digital nomad — in case not, it is defined as a person who works remotely while traveling freely, with laptops, smartphones, and Wi-Fi allowing a lifestyle free of a central workplace and even a home base. Untethered by material possessions, the digital nomad is free to pursue the best life, enjoying Instagram-worthy experiences in exotic locales virtually anywhere in the world. But working-age digitized hipsters aren’t the only ones getting in on the fun.