Assisted Living Stay Connected with These Family Projects 9/12/2022 | By Katharine Ross Seniors Guide president Katharine Ross presents three creative family projects that help you stay connected with loved ones in a senior community. The projects – photo tiles, digital picture frames, and private social media groups – can enrich a senior’s living space while keeping them engaged with the family. When a loved one moves into a senior community, families want to stay connected and help them live a rich life in their new home. These three family projects can help achieve those goals. Photo tiles One family projects idea is photo tiles, easy-to-make, lightweight pictures that are simple to mount and reposition as needed. Photo tiles are a wonderful way to decorate your senior’s living space inside any senior community, such as an assisted living community, skilled nursing community, or a memory care community. Photo tiles allow you to post pictures around their room without damaging the walls. You can rearrange them each time you visit – rotate new ones in to help them stay connected, or change the images with the seasons. These personal photos make your loved one’s environment more enjoyable, more comforting. They also help the community get more familiar with who your loved one is as they see the faces of grandchildren, children, and other people who love them. The photo tiles also act as a conversation starter for your loved one’s care providers. Creating new photo tiles can be ongoing family projects if you want, or a one-and-done. There’s a lot of flexibility to do what works for you and your family. Digital picture frames Digital picture frames, using fun modern technology, also offer many different options. At first glance, these look like any other picture frame, but the images rotate automatically. While basic digital picture frames require direct upload, some versions allow you to upload pictures from a distance. Perhaps you’re celebrating a grandchild’s first birthday or on a trip – you can send photos directly to your senior’s living space. Talk about a great way to stay connected! Regularly updated digital picture frames let them stay in the loop on what’s going on with you and your family. It’s so beautiful that it doesn’t matter how far away you are from your senior – you could be across the world and still upload pictures that they see on a regular basis. Related: More cool technology for seniors Private social media groups to stay connected By creating private social media groups, such as a private Instagram page or Facebook group, multiple family members can participate, share photos, make announcements, or just say hi. These private social media groups help everyone in the family stay connected and engaged. And they help your loved one in the senior community feel less lonely and still a part of family communications. This can be a huge emotional support – to all of you – while going through life’s transitions. Read More Katharine Ross Katharine Ross joined Seniors Guide in 2001 and has been helping seniors and caregivers find the resources they need ever since. She’s had a front row seat to the industry’s evolution in preparing for the demands of baby boomers, and she’s seen how caring and effective providers have navigated the challenges of contemporary society. She wants to empower seniors and caregivers to create their best lives by having access to the accurate, useful information. When she’s not working, Ross is chasing her son across ski slopes and bike trails.