Engaging activities and hobbies for senior males can be found by looking to the past.
For most older men, who have spent a lifetime on a meaningful career, family, hobbies and interests, the very thought of settling in for a few hours of crafting is, at best, unsettling. The secret to discovering appealing activities and hobbies for senior males is in first making the effort to dig back into the history of their lives to identify what captured their interest over the years, and then seeking out creative ways to incorporate those ideas in their lifestyle today.
At Live Free Home Health Care, we enjoy getting to know the senior men we serve and providing opportunities for them to experience life to the fullest extent! Listed below are a few ideas which could work well for the patriarch in your family:
- Sports: For the sports aficionado, look into one of the many gaming systems that allow for participation in a variety of virtual sports from the comfort of home. When it’s appropriate to be out and about, look into the neighborhood high school or college schedules and take your loved one to games he most enjoys: baseball, basketball, football, swim meets, golf tournaments, etc. Or consider the idea of planning a future family gathering around his favorite team’s games on TV, recreating a live sporting event environment with particular foods (like hot dogs and nachos), team t-shirts for everyone to wear, banners and flags for the kids to wave, and a lot of cheering, of course!
- Outdoors: If your senior loved one was a devoted fisherman or hunter, make sure he has an abundance of possibilities to be in nature and to watch nature programs on television or over the internet. There are many zoos and nature centers who now offer web cams for watching live animal behaviors. Consult your local parks to determine accessibility to fishing spots and boat rentals to determine if it is practical for your loved one to enjoy some time on or by the water, or plan a picnic in a wooded area and take pleasure in enjoying wildlife together. You can talk to organizations which help individuals who are differently-abled, such as the National Association for Down Syndrome, which sometimes holds outdoor events where a member is paired with an older person to provide advice about fishing or other outdoor activities.
- Music: For individuals who played a musical instrument, sang with a band, or simply just enjoy tapping their toes to a specific genre of music, sustaining a connection to music is very important, and while it can be as easy as playing favorite music and singing along, it could be made more engaging with a visit to a music store, attending a concert – again, the local high schools and colleges are a wonderful resource for musical performances, or hosting a talent show for friends and family who are also musically-inclined.
- Work: Maintaining a feeling of purpose is vital for each person, no matter his age. Men who are retired teachers can volunteer to tutor or read to children through the library or school system; those who were handy with tools can continue to paint, help construct bird feeders or squirrel houses, focus on putting together model cars with the grandkids. Those numerous years of knowledge can continue to influence the next generation!
As one of the top senior care companies in Concord, Live Free Home Health Care has many more suggestions to help the older men in your life remain active and involved in what interests them most. Give us a call today at 603-217-0149 to schedule a complimentary in-home consultation to learn how our expertly trained in-home caregivers can bring renewed joy and purpose to each day for those you love.