My mom is 89 and lives in assisted living outside of Philadelphia, not far from where I grew up. My sister—God bless her—spends a lot of time with our mom, taking her to doctors’ appointments and helping manage most aspects of her life, including the big items (her care) and the small ones (keeping her freezer full of vanilla ice cream). My role is a lot less significant. I visit as often as I can, and I call a few times a week to provide her with some laughs.
My dad just turned 96. He lives about 30 minutes from my mom. Fun fact: His grandfather fought in the Civil War with the 110th Pennsylvania Regiment, Company C, which was attached to the Army of the Potomac. (My great-grandfather fought in nearly every major battle of the Union army in the Eastern theater, including Gettysburg, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville and Appomattox.) When I was a kid I had friends whose great-grandparents were still alive, so it seemed pretty wild to me that one of mine had fought in the Civil War. I guess they were late bloomers on my dad’s side.
At any rate, my dad is remarried to a wonderful woman who is dedicated to him and his care. In addition, my sister (the aforementioned rock star) is a very active participant in providing both of them with assistance. I, on the other hand, turn up as often as I can with some wine and to take them to dinner.
Many of us are navigating the needs of our aging parents. We are grateful to have them in our lives, but also fully aware that it’s a challenging life stage for us, and even more challenging for them. And nobody likes to talk about the inevitable. That’s why we decided to pursue a story on planning for end-of-life care. In “Having the Tough Conversations,” Stephanie Kanowitz personalizes this difficult topic by sharing her own experience with her aging mother. She then weaves in best practices from local experts to provide a “how-to” guide of sorts for talking with elder family members about their wishes and getting those health and financial documents in order.
Shifting to a celebratory topic, this is the issue many of you have been waiting for all year long—the Best of Arlington issue. Thousands of you voted in our annual survey, naming your favorite people, places and businesses in the community. It is a wonderful resource, highlighting winners and top vote getters (the runners-up) in more than 60 categories. Sprinkled throughout are our editors’ favorites, too.
Speaking of the Best of Arlington, please mark your calendars for our annual Best of Arlington party. It will be held on Thursday, May 22, 2025, at Mercedes-Benz of Arlington. I won’t claim that it’s the best party of the year, but it is a very good time. The event features food from many of your favorite restaurants, craft beer, wine, live music and a fun crowd.
I hope you find this issue both entertaining and informative. As always, we love hearing from you. Please send your feedback and story ideas to greg.hamilton@arlingtonmagazine.com. Letters to the editor should be sent to jenny.sullivan@arlingtonmagazine.com. And if you haven’t visited our new, improved website, you can find it at ArlingtonMagazine.com. Hope you have a wonderful holiday!