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Reviewed by Jim Zurak, Villages-News — May, 2023

STEVEN LORING IS THE PRODUCER AND DIRECTOR OF A DOCUMENTARY WHOSE CORE IS THE QUEST FOR COMPANIONSHIP, friendship and possibly even love within a community of seniors whose lives are often lonely and searching for that which they may have known and have now lost.

It is the story of 30 single seniors. 15 men and 15 women. They are diverse in backgrounds, lifestyles, expectations and dreams. Some have been married and divorced. Others having suffered the losses of loving spouses. What they all share is a desire to somehow fill the void in their lives of simply being alone.

Is it possible for seniors aged 70 to 90 years of age to pursue their quest to meet that someone who might share a walk in the park, or a movie or simply a fulfilling conversation of revelation and sharing by attending and participating in the novelty of Senior Speed Dating?

This is their story, and this is the reality of hope, expectation, disappointment and rejection. It is also the story of searching for that which has been lost and might once more be found.   Continue Reading

by Monique Threatt, Head of Media, Herman B. Wells Library, Indiana University — June 15, 2022

” ✓  Highly Recommended”

THE AGE OF LOVE IS A DELIGHTFUL AND UNIQUE FEATURE-LENGTH DOCUMENTARY about finding love from the perspective of senior citizens. The opening plays like a reality television show where 30 divorcees/widowers discuss their past love and relationship and are now hoping to start anew in their twilight years.

The documentary revolves around a speed dating event for people 70 to 90 years young in Rochester, New York, the first of its kind. Prior to and during the event, director Steven Loring spends time with the participants filming and interviewing them to learn about their motivations for dating, as well as their endgame from participating in a speed dating event.

Loring expertly interviews the participants with intimate questions which reveals that dating in the 70s and 90s isn’t that fundamentally different than how the dating scene works for people in their 20s and 30s.    Continue Reading

by Nunzio Santoro, Video Librarian — May 16, 2022

REGARDLESS OF OUR BIOLOGICAL AGE, WE HAVE AN INNATE NEED FOR LOVE. Generally speaking, humans tend to view romance as scheduled by specific circumstances and strict age ranges. It is an ageist thought dynamic that is detrimental to a lot of people’s self-esteem. Steven Loring’s documentary finely captures a side of the older generations that, on a broader basis and within a larger societal perspective, is often underlooked.

One of the most common misconceptions about single baby boomers and other past generations is that having experienced a fulfilling life or saying goodbye to their lifelong partners, they must accept spending the rest of their lives by themselves. The Age of Love shatters that ageist stereotype by revealing the elderly community’s inner youth and drive for life that translates into dreams of future budding romances.   Continue Reading

by Carol Silver Elliott — May 10, 2022

CONVERSATIONS WITH LEADERS IN THE FIELD OF ELDER CARE from the century-old Jewish Home Family who share their expertise and wisdom on aging well, caring for elders, decisions faced by older adults and the burgeoning field of elder tech redefining how we age. Hosted by President and CEO Carol Silver Elliott, the show features guests and interviews from the cutting edge of the world of elder care and beyond.

CAROL SILVER ELLIOTT: WELCOME TO ‘ADVANCING THE ART OF AGING’. I’m Carol Silver Elliott…and I am really delighted today to have as our guest, Steven Loring. We met Steven when we were introduced to one of his films, ‘The Age of Love’. And we actually used it as a community education opportunity. We showed the film and then he was kind enough to join us to answer questions and share some commentary. But I have to say that we all – talking about love – we all fell in love with your film. Steven, thank you so much for joining us today….

by Amy Phariss, OutreachNC — February, 2019

FILMMAKER STEVEN LORING WASN’T THINKING ABOUT LOVE. He wasn’t thinking about matters of the heart or about dating. Loring was sitting at his mother’s kitchen table, thinking about finances.

After his father’s passing, he was helping his 71-year-old mother settle into the new normal of life as a widow, and managing his mother’s financial situation was the task at hand. His mother sat beside him, writing thank you notes for condolences she’d received, when, suddenly, she looked up and asked, “Who’s ever going to hug me again for the rest of my life, or hold me, or touch me? Now I’m just another old lady in the world, alone.” Loring considered her words but had no answer.

Later that spring, Loring’s uncle moved from his home into a continuing care community. At 78, he had never married or, as far as anyone in the family knew, even dated. Soon after moving into his new digs, however, he met a woman (80 years young) and struck up what Loring calls a “wild, full-on, teenage love affair.” He says he was surprised his uncle was so “capable and interested and ready to plunge into this relationship, something he’d never experienced before.”

Seeing his uncle so happy, so full of life and love, inspired Loring, who once wrote Movies-of-the-Week for network TV, to go back to school to study social documentary filmmaking – and to start exploring the idea that love and the need for connection don’t have hard-and-fast rules, age limits or expiration dates.

In his resulting documentary, The Age of Love, Loring follows a real-life group of seniors in upstate NY who embark on a journey to find companionship through a local speed dating event exclusively for 70- to 90-year-olds.   Continue Reading

by Kyle Ferris, La Crosse Tribune (AP) — 12.1.2018

(Part of national coverage of Dawn Norris’s sociology class at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, where students screened The Age of Love, then organized a community-wide senior speed dating event as their semester project.)

ELVIS AND SINATRA SANG SONGS ABOUT LOVE.

Couples played with their coffee cups, exchanging shy smiles.

And, for a moment, the third floor of UW-La Crosse’s Student Union resembled some forgotten cafe, a picture cut out of the past, hung up in the present.

“Most places that people go to meet each other are designed for young or middle-aged people,” said sociology professor Dawn Norris, who with the help of her students organized a speed dating event for the area’s senior citizens.

“It’s really sweet to see them connect,” sociology major Angela Steffens told the La Crosse Tribune . “Not necessarily for love, but for friendship, too.”

More than two dozen seniors rolled up to the university in their Sunday best on Wednesday — the women with lipstick and made-up hair, the men in jackets and sweaters, a boyish twinkle in their eyes.

“I heard about it this morning and came on a whim,” said a man who asked to be called Pete King, a fake name. King said he was single and ready to find his queen.

“It does get harder to meet people as you age,” he said. “I’ve been looking, tried dating sites and all that. The trouble is, when you’re older, you’re just so set in your ways.”

Couples were given five minutes to talk with each other, to discuss the weather, or current events, or how the Beatles wrote songs far, far better than the ones on the radio.

At the end of the five minutes, a bell would ring. The couples would fill out a scorecard, grading the date, and decide if they’re open to spending more time together. Then the women in the room would move on to the next table, the next date.   Continue Reading

Some memories as we approach the end of another Year of Love! With thanks to all our partners – inspired screening hosts, engaged audiences, innovative educators, and couples who became couples because they saw the film, signed up for a newfangled dating event and took a chance on love. We can’t wait to be part of more life-changing stories in the years ahead!

 

With support from over a dozen sponsors, led by Revista Aptare (see pp. 30-35) and Aché Laboratórios, The Age of Love was presented in 11 neighborhoods throughout metro São Paulo this December, with the aim of sparking a nationwide discussion in support of the hearts and hopes of Brazilian elders.

From low-income senior centers to renowned universities, from an urban multiplex to the largest Jewish synagogue in South America, the film played to a wide, cultural cross-section of this economically and ethnically diverse city of over 12 million inhabitants.

The response, from each segment of a society in which life expectancy is rapidly growing – while programs addressing loneliness and connection for seniors are few – was intrigue and the demand for more opportunities and wider attention to the social and emotional growth of the country’s aging population.

Joining the conversation at our final screening at Unibes Cultural – a main hub of culture, creative entrepreneurship and social issues in São Paulo – was one of Brazil’s leading psychiatrists and sexologists Dr. Carmita Abdo, who answered questions from the full house of healthy aging professionals, together with psychologist and geriatric specialist Dr. Valmari Aranha, the publisher of Revista Aptare Lilian Liang, and the film’s director Steven Loring (many thanks for the simultaneous translation!).

In each of the 14 countries in which The Age of Love has screened, the call for more attention to the emotional needs of elders has resonated. Regardless of culture or race, religion or gender, we all experience the emotional losses that aging brings. It’s clearly time, as demographics rapidly shift and every society faces these issues, to reject stereotypes of aging, and to redefine our attitudes, policies and programs.

With thanks to the people of São Paulo! How exciting to watch the film resonate in your city and inspire a new understanding of the importance and endurance of love….

 

by Rheana Murray, Senior Lifestyle Reporter, 11.8.2017

PICTURE THIS: A GROUP OF SENIOR CITIZENS GATHER IN A ROOM, mingle over drinks and snacks, and then find their seats at one of the many small tables, one man and one woman at each. They have five minutes to talk, to learn each other’s names and interests and backgrounds, and then a bell rings. On to the next date.

Events like this are usually aimed at young professionals — until now. Speed-dating events for seniors are slowly cropping up across the country and, spoiler alert, they’re a huge success.

“I think people forget that when you get older, and especially if you lose a spouse or partner, you’re by yourself a lot,” Kim Phillips, the senior citizens services manager at the Portage Senior Center in Portage, Michigan, told TODAY. “Isolation can be a physical killer.”

Speed dating typically conjures images of big cities and millennials, but as Phillips is learning, it might also be a unique fit for senior citizens. She’s organized five speed-dating events for seniors in her community so far, with more planned for November and December.   Continue Reading

by Earlene McMichael • August 10, 2017

CLICK THE IMAGE TO READ THE ENTIRE STORY AND LISTEN TO THE PODCAST

HAVING A STRONG SOCIAL NETWORK HAS A POSITIVE EFFECT ON THE HEALTH OF SENIOR CITIZENS. But here’s the thing: Finding a partner and friends can be tougher for older adults.

Tammy, a Kalamazoo-area woman, has been searching for that special someone for a long time.

“I’m 65. I am divorced, and I have been on my own for about 18 years,” she says. “I’ve had some dates in between.” But nothing turned serious.

She’s even tried a matchmaking service. “It’s a paid service, where they do a background check and everything… It’s been three or four years since I signed up with them, and they never really got any matches for me.”

Gordon is a 78-year-old man from Portage. He says it’s been hard to move on after the death of his wife of over a half century, who died three years ago.

He has taken a few women out to lunch since her death, but he says he wouldn’t call that dating.

“When you’re married that many years as long as I’ve been, you figure you’re never going to find love again because it’s too big of a loss,” he explains, pausing, his voice beginning to crack.

“And to try to overcome that loss is a difficult thing to do.”

Playing cupid: Speed dating

Kim Phillips manages the Portage Senior Center. She’s heard similar stories from older adults as they seek to re-enter the dating world.

So in July the senior center started offering its first ever speed dating events to address the social isolation some older adults feel. There’s ones for people aged 50 to 65; another for those 65 and up. The response from women has been especially robust, resulting in waiting lists and, ultimately, more sessions added.

It’s only been a few weeks since launching, but speed dating has already led to some older adults no longer having to spend their days alone.

“We got a call from a gentleman who was at the first speed dating event on July 17th, who said he has made a connection with a woman that night,” Phillips says. “They have been seeing each other practically every day, and they’re happy. He said he almost didn’t show up to the event. He was so nervous in the parking lot.”

What was originally supposed to be a handful of speed dating events will now be many ones offered several times a year on either an every-other-month or quarterly basis, officials say…

PLEASE CLICK THE IMAGE ABOVE TO LISTEN TO THE ENTIRE STORY AND INTERVIEW WITH KIM PHILLIPS