The following message was received recently through this web site. I am sharing the message (but leaving identity off):
Hello.
I came across your group when I watched a video on loneliness published by VOX. I was really struck with what y'all said about loneliness and about finding friendships and social connections in life's transitions.
My grandpa retired very young and spent most of his retirement gardening and watching me and my cousins grow up. But now that I'm in college, I worry about what he is doing with his day. He always talks about how his neighborhood is all retired ladies and no men. His wife has book groups and quilting groups she regularly attends and always has things to do at home for those groups when they aren't meeting, but my grandpa doesn't have those same groups and activities. My grandpa brings so much joy to my life; I hate to imagine him not having many friends or activities that give him joy.
Maybe this won't work, but if the ROMEO Club has any groups in or around Seattle/Bellevue, WA, I would love for my grandpa to attend a meeting.
Even if there aren't any ROMEO Clubs in my grandpa's area, I want to thank you (and your contribution to VOX's video) for reminding me how much my grandpa means to me and how much I want the best for him, just as he wants the best for me.
Thanks and peace,
I also was contacted last year by another granddaughter, senior in college, who was concerned about her grandfather. Her note said:
Hello Frank!
I hope this email finds you well. My name is xxxx and I live in xxxxx.
I heard about the ROMEO club and thought that it would be a great fit for my grandfather, Richard. My grandmother (his wife) passed away about a month ago and we have been trying to find ways to get him to be social again and make new friends, since he just recently moved to another town.
Being an Italian, one of his favorite things to do is eat-so why not do it with some other retired men, instead of alone?
I was wondering if you could send me any information you have on meetings in the upcoming weeks, so I can convince him to try it out.
Thank you for your help!
In that case, we had a group that was meeting in his locale. She convinced him to come (power of a granddaughter) to a lunch meeting. He reluctantly came to a meeting, reaching out of his comfort zone and loneliness to attend, this one time to satisfy his granddaughter. He has not missed a meeting since in the last nine months.
The VOX video link is here. The video is called: Why Are We So Lonely? - Glad You Asked S1. Click on the link below to this video, ROMEOs will be during the time slots of 8:37 - 11:24 and 20:21 - 20:32
https://youtu.be/EidKI1Bdons?t=503