About 16.5% of the nation’s population are considered senior citizens. When was the last time you spent a day with a senior citizen in your life?

Although they make up a large part of our population, a lot of seniors go forgotten or neglected. Luckily, National Senior Citizen Day serves as a reminder to many of us to seek them out.

Are you wondering how you and your brand can participate in the celebration? Let’s look at the history of Senior Citizen Day and how you can get involved.

National Senior Citizen Day history

Modern medicine has made some extreme advances in the past 100 years, which means that life expectancy is much higher than it used to be. For that reason, more and more people living today are senior citizens.

With that higher life expectancy comes a lot of joy, knowledge, and wisdom. But there are also individual and unique challenges that senior citizens face.

Many senior citizens find themselves without a family or with a family that neglects that. There are assisted living homes and rehabilitation centers that are discovered to be abusive far too late. Senior citizens who haven’t saved enough before retiring live in poverty and are at the mercy of government assistance programs.

Although seniors are adults, they are still a vulnerable group in our communities. For that reason, in 1988, President Ronald Reagan founded the very first Senior Citizen Day. Its mission was to show appreciation for the seniors in our community and to spread awareness about the issues common to them.

How to celebrate National Senior Citizen Day

The most obvious way to celebrate senior citizen day is to go out and spend it with a senior citizen. Is there an older family member who you should devote more time to? Ask them about their favorite activities, and then take them out for the day! Enjoy their inspiring and enlightening stories as you remember the importance of a strong connection to the past.

If you don’t have a senior citizen in your life. That’s okay! This holiday is the perfect day to get one.

There are lots of opportunities to volunteer at senior homes in a variety of capacities. Senior homes are constantly looking for entertainment and activities for their members, so be sure to ask the ones in your area what they need.

You could help facilitate a movie night, help serve a homecooked meal, or put on a variety show for the senior citizens living there. Most importantly, you can just sit and have a conversation with them.

One of the biggest issues facing senior citizens is extreme and depressing loneliness. You can help alleviate some of that loneliness by just being a friendly face to talk to.

How your brand can celebrate National Senior Citizen Day

The best thing you can do as a brand this senior citizen holiday is to remind your followers that it’s taking place. A lot of people don’t know about this beautiful holiday, and you can help spread awareness.

Use hashtags

Make a campaign about how young people can share your products joyfully with a senior citizen in their life. A quick picture of a young person and an older person does a lot to spread the message that we should spend more time with our elders. It also reminds people how much we all have in common despite age.

For example, take a look at McDonald’s India’s ad campaign where they reminded their viewers and customers that everyone is a kid at heart.

Make sure that you use the hashtags #SeniorCitizensDay and #NationalSeniorCitizensDay to get the most visibility possible.

Highlight seniors who are important to you

You’re guaranteed to have several seniors who are important to your brand. You can ask employees to share photos and memories with their favorite senior citizens and then share those stories on your social media. It will remind your followers to check in with their own favorite seniors.

You may have former employees who are now seniors. On your social media pages, thank them for all the work they did for the company during their time. Highlight their personal achievements, and share how they spend their time now. Everyone likes to know that they’re remembered, and this gesture will go a long way in doing that.

Plan a special event for any seniors of your company

How can you make senior citizen’s day a special day for senior employees, family members, and former employees? Plan an event, of course!

Let the seniors in your life know that you love them by offering a meal, activities, music, fun, and fellowship. You can make it a special event all about your senior employees and invite younger employees to bring along their favorite seniors.

Then, share about it on social media. Don’t let the party go unnoticed, and instead extend the celebration to all the corners of the web! Inspire others to throw their own celebration on the next national or world senior citizen’s day.

FAQs

Are you still a little confused about senior citizen day and how to celebrate? Let us break it down for you!

What Is Senior Citizen Day?

Senior Citizen Day is a national holiday that takes place every year to celebrate the senior citizens of our communities. It’s a day of fun and celebration as well as a day to remember the struggles that many senior citizens face every day.

Not every senior is loved, remembered, and cared for. Senior citizen holidays set aside a day a year to remind everyone to go out and find the seniors who need a little more love and attention.

When Is Senior Citizen Day?

Senior Citizen Day is an annual event. Every year, it takes place on the 21st of August.

Make this National Senior Citizen Day one to remember

Even if you’ve never participated in National Senior Citizen Day before, this is the perfect year to begin. Put it on your calendar and start planning that special day with the seniors in your life!

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