The Next Chapter

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 The rise of accessible DNA technology and the digitization of census data and historical documents have greatly expanded access to information.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.

A new East Hampton Town senior citizens center on Abraham’s Path in Amagansett took another step toward reality on Tuesday when the architects selected for the project presented updated plans to the town board. Design development and construction documentation will continue for another six months, with hopes of putting the project out to bid in the first half of 2024.