Pride for older adults in Massachusetts

Pride for older adults in Massachusetts

All 2Life communities welcome people from different backgrounds, and we approach our differences as opportunities to learn more about the residents who make up our communities. That is why we join cities and towns across the Commonwealth in celebrating LGBTQIA+ Pride every June.

2Life’s Pride celebrations combine food, fun, and learning. Attendees can win prizes while they soak up the sun and enjoy lively music while playing lawn games with friends. Like many celebrations at 2Life, the events also feature opportunities to create and learn. Residents paint kindness rocks with images or messages of hope, kindness, love, and encouragement. Staff are also on hand to help attendees learn about LGBTQIA+ Pride, its important to so many in our communities, and its historic significance as a time of acceptance and love.

Many seniors in the LGBTQIA+ community do not always feel this welcome and celebrated where they live. In 2020, Fenway Health released a report, “LGBT Aging 2025,” about older LGBTQIA+ adults in Massachusetts and the challenges they face as they age. Many of their concerns mirrored those of other older adults in the state:

  • Social isolation
  • Housing affordability
  • Healthcare costs
  • Navigating the healthcare system
  • Support groups and services

Other concerns were more specific to the community:

  • Anti-LGBTQIA+ prejudice from age peers
  • Anti-LBBTQIA+ discrimination in assisted living
  • The need for LGBTQIA+-friendly housing
  • LGBTQIA+-competent and -affirming healthcare in rural areas

2Life provides resident support services that help address these concerns.

Because 2Life is committed to celebrating diversity, we also host annual events such as  Lunar New Year, Juneteenth, and Rosh Hashanah to allow residents to learn about their neighbors and embrace their cultures. Events such as these are part of our aging in community model, which promotes community support and lifelong learning.

Click here to read the full report and to find out how Fenway Health recommends addressing the concerns of older adults in the LGBTQIA+ community. 

More News

Receiving a blessing during the Blessing of the F(l)eet
Brookline residents and others gathered for a joyful blessing of the bodies and mobility devices that move us through the world, based on a centuries-old tradition in fishing communities.
Abdel Ait Chaib and Ghizlane Bellacen Shillman House
For Abdel Ait Chaib and Ghizlane Bellacen, assisting older adults is not just their job — it is their culture. In the couple’s native Morocco, living in multigenerational families is the norm. That has proven to be the ideal background for their roles at Shillman House in Framingham.
2Life_Storytelling
In our latest blog, Rabbi Hindy Finman shares her experiences as 2Life’s inaugural Scholar in Residence, a program that recognizes this synergistic opportunity between graduate students and older adults.