Now that the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are finished, we look forward to Easter and springtime. The hope for warmer weather and beautiful flower blooms everywhere. The sunshine always brings new life and allows us to brush off the winter boredom.

Spring time is also a good time to think about our senior family members. How did they handle the winter months? Perhaps they struggled with high heat and other utility costs. If they live in a different area than family members, are they suffering from the winter blues?

The daily lives of our seniors can be very different than our households. They sometimes have no visitors, and very little chance to socialize. They may have gone without eating or medicines or just forgot to cook or take their meds. So as the spring rains bring new growth, let’s all take the time to spend time with our senior family members to see if they are still safely living alone.

There are many options for help – your church, local community organizations and local assisted living residences. They are all there to help answer your questions and relieve any concerns you have about senior family members.

Michael Bradford is the executive director of Bell Gardens Place in Hillsboro.