Getting to be fifty years old when you are thirty of forty seems so far away, even more when you are a teenager. I remember with my family members reaching the fifty year old mark and thinking they were old. Now I look back and I was so wrong, fifty is a great age, you get liberated of so many taboos and pretty much you speak up what you think and do what you want because you can. I am so grateful to have made it to fifty, my mom didn’t make it to that age she passed away due to leukemia after ten years remission she lost her battle at forty nine. All through my thirties and forties I was afraid no to get to my fifty due to my family cancer history and I can say yes I am fifty and loving it!
Nowadays we boomers have so many resources that we can use to be healthier, get trained in new technology and also get a hand to be able to help those we care about. During LATISM14 I had the chance to meet with the executives from AARP and I learned about so many of the programs they run and many of those programs are also available in Spanish which I think it is so important for our latino community.
During the conference AARP presented the program AARPTek where LATISM had an important role since our organization teamed up with the Los Angeles Unified School District to offer bilingual Technology, Education & Knowledge workshops to parents whose high schoolers are going away to college. This free technology and social media training helped parents stay connected with their children.
In my own experience with my my in-laws I have seen how technology has made a difference in their lives connecting them to their roots by watching videos of their homeland and hearing music from the past, allowing them to get monitored remotely by their doctors after surgery and to feel included.
I also have seen this with my husband, he’s 57 and so connected on social media, reconnecting with old friends, having topics of conversation with his daughters and sharing pictures of what is going in his life realtime. This couldn’t happen twenty years ago
Here are some words that Ana Roca, LATISM founder expressed about this partnership with AARP:
“Boomers and seniors are embracing technology. They’re learning to use smartphones and tablets, and joining social networking sites for the same reason that everyone else is: to stay connected with people and be more social”, said Ana Roca-Castro, founder of LATISM. “To those who are left behind, we need to offer tools and knowledge to close the technology gap,” said Roca-Castro.
Us boomers we are a generation of hard work and many learnings, me myself I am at the tail end of the boomer generation nevertheless I was raised with those values. Yet when at school I didn’t have computers we were used to do our homework on typewriters and if needed correction we had to start again. I was introduced to technology thanks to my job with Hewlett-Packard and other technology companies that gave me the chance to develop a marketing career when younger.
Now I love technology I don’t know what would I do without it. But if you are afraid of it or don’t take full advantage of it AARP TEK aims to empower people 50+ with technology so they can connect with friends and family, among other uses. By instructing this group of consumers how to use technology, AARP is helping empower people to use mobile technology, explore Real Possibilities and to live their best lives.
I invite you to discover AARP and all it has to offer for us boomers and caregivers. And if you are fifty like me, share your images and videos of how you live your 50s using the hashtag #VivanMis50 you could win a trip to the Caribbean!
- Tex-Mex Veal Fajitas with Melted Cheese - June 23, 2024
- Spicy Mango Pineapple Chutney Recipe - November 17, 2022
- Squash Blossom Quesadillas Recipe - November 10, 2022
