Join Our Eldercare Revolution!
Donation protected
FACT: I’m an unabashed eldercare anarchist out to revolutionize our culture’s woeful attitudes around aging. What I lack in official credentials, I more than make up for in the credibility of experience & my creed - a bold new better is possible.
In less radical terms, I'm a Life Expansionist & General Instigator, an idea generator, a fresh approach incubator.
My goal - integrating elders, not isolating the old; engaging, not distancing; revving 'em up, rather than slowing them down. Doing my best to spur people, organizations, government to invest more in big hearts than big business!
Where most experts focus on the decline & decay aspects of aging, I spotlight the gifts & graces only available as we get up there in years. I get to touch people’s lives with what I do. It’s work that fuels me, keeps me going. Individuals, couples, families – it’s my pleasure to help them walk life’s road with a lighter step. Pretty awesome.
Whether tagging up for fun in their life care community ~or~ scooting off to a cool jazz spot, heading out for a ramble & yum dining ~or~ staying in with a closed-captioned Danny Kaye comedy or Fred Astaire musical,
I help older friends & clients get in sync with what my 90+ year old mother blogged - “My feet drag somewhat and I move a lot more slowly than I did, but most days my spirit soars, making itself felt more and more.”
While I grew up with the concept of parenting, the need for me to pick up childing skills took me by surprise. As Mom wrote, her body headed south, she slowed down, had less energy. We both had to learn new skills, to develop a different parent-child relationship.
Childing describes what we youngers can do to help ensure our older relatives, loved ones, neighbors have the space & resources to come into their aged own. It starts with redirecting the general focus from chasing youth to pursuing purpose. What has to be done to restore a semblance of sanity to our crazed culture, we need to begin by changing the general contempt & fear of old age back to appreciation & honoring.
New parents can turn to childcare gurus for guidance. Bookstores devote huge sections to what to expect when you’re expecting, navigating babyhood, surviving toddlers tweens teens. But what about older people & their loved ones looking for steps to ensure their older years really are golden?
The question now isn’t if our dismal culture around aging will ever change or even when, but HOW to rewire the way we look at & experience growing older.
A crucial factor is igniting conversations, thousands of them, talking to each other, across generations families communities,. Unless those discussions start happening SOON, my Boomer generation will find itself in far worse shape than our parents, faced with the same decreased capacities & increased dependency PLUS self-loathing.
What do I bring to this revolution?
Lifelong experience with friends who lived “best practice,” full-throttle lives, many into their upper 80s & well into their 90s.
The drive to inspire others to accept we’re never too young or too old, too weak or too frail, to live purpose-driven, productive lives.
Work that spans the full spectrum of ages, spreading the message we're never too young to start the journey of conscious eldering.
An unquenchable curiosity about how to honor our elders – as ancient wisdom commands.
My blog, older2elder , supporting my Vision Statement - "I engage, energize & empower people to move toward elderhood, experiencing what can be done only with great age, not in spite of."
I feel like a Buddhist monk by the side of the road, begging bowl in hand! What calls out to be done outstrips my present income. To attend the conferences & workshops, provide the levels of support that beckons, I need funding.
It's straightforward - how much I do over the next six months depends on how much I raise & that depends on whether & how much people value what I bring. Over the next four weeks, I hope to raise $20,000 to tackle the following over the coming six months:
Develop Values Vision Dreams – an multi-layered activity engaging all ages with their deepest values, unique vision, go-for-it dreams.
Create a freeshare template around Cyber Access for the Technically Timid (CATT) ~ connecting tech-challenged people with a HUMAN, freeing them to fully tap into the Digital Age without touching a keyboard
Craft a local campaign around StoryCorps' Great Thanksgiving Listen 2016.
Attend the Certified Senior Advisors Positive Aging Conference & the National Center for Creative Aging Conference/Leadership Exchange in D.C., Dr. Bill Thomas' Age of Disruption Tour in Pittsburgh, the Sage-ing International Biennial Conference in Colorado.
Purchase a reliable second "previously owned" car – one with enough space for a wheel chair
Secure copyright protection on a range of business names
Start writing my mother's bio, "Badass Grandma, the tough-edged survival of my marshmallow Mom"
Underwrite conultant & attorney fees re: becoming a non-profit
Additional monies would go toward taking additional workshops, online courses & seminars, underwriting my partner-in-care - John - also taking part.
As I write this request, am reminded of a treasured compliment from a cherished young friend - "Aunt Deev, you put a human face on aging."
Where I saw myself as helping move obstacles out of pathways; my young friend sees something more - the fiercely proud elderly aunt replacing surviving with thriving, the retired professor rebuilding a life, the grannie client with full freedom in her apartment, the artist whose life light was switched on by a drawing pencil, the family having someone to help them face the unexpected & unimaginable.
Joan Chittister talks about the elderly finding themselves at “that crossroad without a name.” I help older friends realize it might not have a name, but it does have a purpose!
Cannot close without sharing my IMMENSE gratitude to all my Guardian& Earth Angels who – emotionally, above all - kept us standing during some dark days. Such friendship is worth more than money in the bank!
Both John & I appreciate your consideration of this request. Whether you can contribute funding toward the goal, send words of encouragement, or simply hold our quest in your heart - thank you!
One last thought – contributing toward this eldercare revolution isn’t just an investment in our future. It’s an investment in yours, too.
In less radical terms, I'm a Life Expansionist & General Instigator, an idea generator, a fresh approach incubator.
My goal - integrating elders, not isolating the old; engaging, not distancing; revving 'em up, rather than slowing them down. Doing my best to spur people, organizations, government to invest more in big hearts than big business!
Where most experts focus on the decline & decay aspects of aging, I spotlight the gifts & graces only available as we get up there in years. I get to touch people’s lives with what I do. It’s work that fuels me, keeps me going. Individuals, couples, families – it’s my pleasure to help them walk life’s road with a lighter step. Pretty awesome.
Whether tagging up for fun in their life care community ~or~ scooting off to a cool jazz spot, heading out for a ramble & yum dining ~or~ staying in with a closed-captioned Danny Kaye comedy or Fred Astaire musical,
I help older friends & clients get in sync with what my 90+ year old mother blogged - “My feet drag somewhat and I move a lot more slowly than I did, but most days my spirit soars, making itself felt more and more.”
While I grew up with the concept of parenting, the need for me to pick up childing skills took me by surprise. As Mom wrote, her body headed south, she slowed down, had less energy. We both had to learn new skills, to develop a different parent-child relationship.
Childing describes what we youngers can do to help ensure our older relatives, loved ones, neighbors have the space & resources to come into their aged own. It starts with redirecting the general focus from chasing youth to pursuing purpose. What has to be done to restore a semblance of sanity to our crazed culture, we need to begin by changing the general contempt & fear of old age back to appreciation & honoring.
New parents can turn to childcare gurus for guidance. Bookstores devote huge sections to what to expect when you’re expecting, navigating babyhood, surviving toddlers tweens teens. But what about older people & their loved ones looking for steps to ensure their older years really are golden?
The question now isn’t if our dismal culture around aging will ever change or even when, but HOW to rewire the way we look at & experience growing older.
A crucial factor is igniting conversations, thousands of them, talking to each other, across generations families communities,. Unless those discussions start happening SOON, my Boomer generation will find itself in far worse shape than our parents, faced with the same decreased capacities & increased dependency PLUS self-loathing.
What do I bring to this revolution?
Lifelong experience with friends who lived “best practice,” full-throttle lives, many into their upper 80s & well into their 90s.
The drive to inspire others to accept we’re never too young or too old, too weak or too frail, to live purpose-driven, productive lives.
Work that spans the full spectrum of ages, spreading the message we're never too young to start the journey of conscious eldering.
An unquenchable curiosity about how to honor our elders – as ancient wisdom commands.
My blog, older2elder , supporting my Vision Statement - "I engage, energize & empower people to move toward elderhood, experiencing what can be done only with great age, not in spite of."
I feel like a Buddhist monk by the side of the road, begging bowl in hand! What calls out to be done outstrips my present income. To attend the conferences & workshops, provide the levels of support that beckons, I need funding.
It's straightforward - how much I do over the next six months depends on how much I raise & that depends on whether & how much people value what I bring. Over the next four weeks, I hope to raise $20,000 to tackle the following over the coming six months:
Develop Values Vision Dreams – an multi-layered activity engaging all ages with their deepest values, unique vision, go-for-it dreams.
Create a freeshare template around Cyber Access for the Technically Timid (CATT) ~ connecting tech-challenged people with a HUMAN, freeing them to fully tap into the Digital Age without touching a keyboard
Craft a local campaign around StoryCorps' Great Thanksgiving Listen 2016.
Attend the Certified Senior Advisors Positive Aging Conference & the National Center for Creative Aging Conference/Leadership Exchange in D.C., Dr. Bill Thomas' Age of Disruption Tour in Pittsburgh, the Sage-ing International Biennial Conference in Colorado.
Purchase a reliable second "previously owned" car – one with enough space for a wheel chair
Secure copyright protection on a range of business names
Start writing my mother's bio, "Badass Grandma, the tough-edged survival of my marshmallow Mom"
Underwrite conultant & attorney fees re: becoming a non-profit
Additional monies would go toward taking additional workshops, online courses & seminars, underwriting my partner-in-care - John - also taking part.
As I write this request, am reminded of a treasured compliment from a cherished young friend - "Aunt Deev, you put a human face on aging."
Where I saw myself as helping move obstacles out of pathways; my young friend sees something more - the fiercely proud elderly aunt replacing surviving with thriving, the retired professor rebuilding a life, the grannie client with full freedom in her apartment, the artist whose life light was switched on by a drawing pencil, the family having someone to help them face the unexpected & unimaginable.
Joan Chittister talks about the elderly finding themselves at “that crossroad without a name.” I help older friends realize it might not have a name, but it does have a purpose!
Cannot close without sharing my IMMENSE gratitude to all my Guardian& Earth Angels who – emotionally, above all - kept us standing during some dark days. Such friendship is worth more than money in the bank!
Both John & I appreciate your consideration of this request. Whether you can contribute funding toward the goal, send words of encouragement, or simply hold our quest in your heart - thank you!
One last thought – contributing toward this eldercare revolution isn’t just an investment in our future. It’s an investment in yours, too.
Organizer
Deev Murphy
Organizer
Bryn Athyn, PA
