Loneliness is as Harmful as Smoking: Why Connection Matters

By Rev. Beth Long-Higgins, VP of Engagement and director of the Center for Abundant Aging  •  November 25, 2025

Years before the COVID-19 pandemic, I attended a conference hosted by the American Society on Aging. One session featured Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad, whose research left a lasting impression. She shared a striking statistic: the health risks of loneliness and isolation in older adults are comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. I don’t usually remember numbers well, but that one stuck. And when I’ve shared it with others, the reaction is often disbelief—Really? That can’t be!

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Save Me from Ableism and Ageism

By Kim Moeller  •  August 24, 2023

I am handicapped. There…I said it.

Aging Good … Ageism Bad

By Guest Blogger  •  August 17, 2023

Maggie Kuhn, Founder of the Gray Panthers, said, “There are six myths about old age: 1. That it’s a disease, a disaster. 2. That we are mindless. 3.That we are sexless...

An Old Form of Ageism…Gone, But Not Forgotten!

By Rev. Dr. Bobbie McKay  •  August 10, 2023

My mother loved to work. She was a “Housewares Buyer” at Marshall Fields and Company, a large department store in Chicago and the suburbs around Chicago. She never went..

Fountains of Wisdom

By Rev. Beth Long-Higgins, VP of Engagement and director of the Center for Abundant Aging  •  August 03, 2023

When our grandmother fell in our living room less than 24 hours after arriving in our new home in Kentucky for a visit, her 4-day visit ended up being about 8 weeks..

Summertime

By Rev. Beth Long-Higgins, VP of Engagement and director of the Center for Abundant Aging  •  July 27, 2023

From the Abundant Aging Blog Archives: This blog from August 2019 reminds us of the joys and blessings to be found during the summer.

You Have Permission To…Be Curious

By Rev. Dr. Kenneth Daniel  •  July 20, 2023

As kind of a science fiction nerd, I have an innate attraction to outer space. When I was a kid, the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey was released. This film revolutionized..

You Have Permission to…Create a Life List

By Kim Moeller  •  July 13, 2023

I was talking with a woman last week at the United Church of Christ’s Annual Meeting where several thousand folks gathered in Indianapolis. As we were chatting at the..

You Have Permission to…Teach Me What I Need to Know and I Will Listen

By Rev. Dr. Bobbie McKay  •  July 06, 2023

I was giving a talk to a large group of older women living in a facility for Holocaust survivors. I had done several large studies on spiritual life in mainstream..

You Have Permission to…Grow

By Rev. Beth Long-Higgins, VP of Engagement and director of the Center for Abundant Aging  •  June 29, 2023

I attended a workshop recently where the presenter shared his perspective about the life course which looked a lot like a hill with a very sharp, downward trajectory..