Grandpa was small-town mayor and misses printed newspapers

Dear Live Grand:

My dad, 85, was the mayor of a small town for years and is still passionately interested in community and area events. We subscribe to his local print papers and bring them when we visit, but he misses receiving the large area paper. Unfortunately, this paper has gone completely online except for two days a week. We bring him those two papers, but he misses the daily news. Dad’s pretty social in the retirement complex but he still gets bored. We’ve tried a laptop and a tablet, but they frustrate him. Still, he loves learning new things. Is it possible that he wouldn’t miss his newspapers so much if he could entertain himself with a GrandPad? – EJ

Dear EJ:

The loss of the print editions of many newspapers has been keenly felt by older readers, yet that’s the way of the future. You’re a thoughtful family to make sure that your dad receives those that are available.

What may surprise you is that GrandPad has stepped into this gap. With this unique tablet, he could also read the online editions of the newspapers he loves.

Since he already subscribes to the large area paper, all you’d need to do is add that paper’s website to the GrandPad Internet options and log him in. If they also have an online site for updates, you could add that, as well. In fact, you could add as many as he wants. Your dad would just tap the Internet app and he'd see his options.

The Internet app includes pre-sets for Wikipedia as well as an option that leads to the obituaries of famous people so he could learn about their lives. There’s even an option called “Growing Bolder” that offers news, stories, and podcasts for people over 50. If he'd enjoy YouTube, the family admin can easily add that.

The radio app would probably appeal to him, as well. If he has some favorite local stations the admin could add them. Two popular pre-sets are the GrandPad Radio option which features music and talk, and the Radio Recliner option that offers shows run by DJs living in retirement situations like your dad’s. He could even have a few friends over during his favorite shows. They could call in requests and listen to entertaining, often nostalgic stories from other callers.

Of course, once he sees how he can easily start or receive a video call with anyone in his contact list he’ll be sold. He’ll see photos and videos that the family admin has uploaded, listen to music from any era, and play an assortment of games from poker to memory challenges. We’re betting, too, that as a former mayor and dedicated newspaper reader, he’d enjoy the articles app that provides all kinds of interesting options according to interest, including “Media History.”

With a GrandPad, your dad could return to reading multiple newspapers regularly, EJ. The other options would keep him engaged and connected in a way that promotes mental and social wellbeing.

Live Grand is a weekly column brought to you by GrandPad — the simplest, safest tablet-based solution that helps reconnect families.