Usually, Alison Van Hecke recruits a round table of professionals to talk about the issues addressed in her Senior Truth Series. They speak at Concordia, but the seminars are open to the public.
On Thursday last week, the seminar took a different direction when people with personal experience spoke about downsizing.
Russ Swanson went about downsizing the right way. He and his wife thought about what they wanted to do and discussed it with their family. One of their children lives in Kansas City and wanted the Swansons to move there, but they decided they liked Northwest Arkansas where they have friends and activities. They took their time looking around for the best location.
Joyce Ciepiel had a different experience. She received a frantic phone call from her father and flew home to find her mother in the hospital recovering from a fall. When she got to her parents home, she realized her mother must have been having medical issues for a while. The house needed a lot of work and it was up to her to move her parents to a more appropriate location.
"I did it the hard way," she said.
Van Hecke provided a five-step outline to successful downsizing. It begins with creating a plan. You can look around before you commit to moving, she said.
The second step is talking to family and friends -- not to ask permission but to include them in the process. Downsizing from a family home can be emotional even for adult children.
Van Hecke explained that, in her professional life, she is something like a general contractor. She runs a real estate group called Lighthouse and specializes in senior clients. She can recommend professionals to help prepare her clients to move into a smaller space. They may need a professional organizer or a person to run an estate sale or even a handyman.
People are often intimidated by the thought of downsizing, Van Hecke said. She recommends starting slowly and working through one area at a time.
"I tried to keep emotions out of it," Ciepiel said about helping her parents downsize.
They agreed that it's likely that adult children won't want too many of their parents' possessions. People don't use sets of good china or silver anymore.
"Use your special-occasion china," Ciepiel said, enjoy it while you can.
Concordia's Angie Clark joined the panel and suggested photos of some beloved possessions will help the owners let go. She also likes different colored sticky notes to put on every item indicating keep, sell or donate.
Some people may choose to hire an estate liquidator. The owner decides only what they want to bring with them to their new home. Everything else is taken care of by the professional and the owner receives the proceeds of the sale.
Take advantage of all the programs offered in your new community, Van Hecke said.
Swanson discovered he enjoys a sit-down exercise class and his wife is happy to not cook.
Ciepiel said her father adjusted well to his new circumstances and quickly found a group of peers to drink coffee with each morning.
Van Hecke's outline ends with this advice: "Simplifying your life should leave you overjoyed, not overwhelmed."
General News on 07/31/2019