Healthy aging is about more than staying physically active. It can also mean maintaining meaningful relationships, discovering new interests, continuing to learn and finding ways to contribute to your community.

During Healthy Aging Month this September, Emerald Heights is celebrating the many ways older adults can stay active, connected and engaged throughout retirement.

At Emerald Heights, a Life Plan Community in Redmond, Washington, healthy aging looks different for every resident. For some, it means fitness and outdoor activities. For others, it means lifelong learning, volunteering, leadership, friendships or discovering something completely new.

For Emerald Heights resident Jeffrey “Jeff” Jones, it has included all of those things, plus trading the courtroom for the pickleball court.

What Does Healthy Aging Look Like in Retirement?

There isn’t one definition of a healthy retirement. Physical wellness matters, but so do social connection, intellectual engagement, purpose and having opportunities to continue growing.

Jeff’s experience at Emerald Heights is a wonderful example.

Jeff retired in 2017 following a law career that spanned more than four decades. He rose from associate to managing partner of a Boston-based law firm of approximately 160 attorneys, helped negotiate the firm’s merger with an even larger practice and later spent 10 years serving as part-time in-house counsel for his alma mater, Williams College.

His career also fostered a strong commitment to nonprofit service and community leadership.

Jeff served as director and board chair for both the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston and the West Suburban YMCA in Newton, Massachusetts. His extensive volunteer board experience also included service with Radcliffe College, the ACLU Foundation of Massachusetts, uAspire and Willow Hill School.

After graduating with honors from Williams College, Jeff served four years in the U.S. Navy before earning his law degree, also with honors, from Harvard Law School.

Retirement, however, didn’t mean Jeff was finished contributing, learning or trying new things.

Finding Purpose and Community at Emerald Heights

Jeff and his wife, Susan, moved from Boston to Emerald Heights in Redmond, Washington, in August 2018 to be closer to their daughter and her family.

Once here, Jeff found opportunities to put his decades of leadership experience to work in a completely new environment.

He served on the Emerald Heights By-Laws Committee and Residents’ Council Advisory Group before joining the Emerald Communities Board of Directors. When his Board term concludes, Jeff plans to continue serving his community as a resident representative on the Finance Committee.

His experience illustrates an important part of healthy aging: retirement doesn’t have to mean stepping away from purpose. It can create new opportunities to use a lifetime of knowledge and experience in meaningful ways.

And sometimes, healthy aging means trying something you never expected.

From the Courtroom to the Pickleball Court

After moving to Emerald Heights, Jeff met fellow residents who played pickleball and decided to give it a try.

It became more than a new form of exercise. Pickleball provided another opportunity to make friends, stay active and enjoy time with people in his community.

Today, Jeff and a group of Emerald Heights residents play every Monday at a local indoor pickleball court.

For someone who spent more than four decades making his case in court, Jeff has simply found a different kind of court for this chapter of life.

Why Are Purpose and Social Connection Important to Healthy Aging?

Healthy aging can include many dimensions of well-being, including physical activity, social connection, intellectual engagement and a continued sense of purpose.

Living in a senior living community can provide opportunities for all four.

At Emerald Heights, residents can participate in fitness and wellness programs, educational opportunities, resident-led groups, volunteer activities, creative pursuits and social experiences. Just as importantly, residents are surrounded by people who may introduce them to interests and experiences they might never have discovered on their own.

Jeff’s pickleball story is a perfect example.

He didn’t move to Emerald Heights because he was looking for a place to play pickleball. He discovered pickleball because he became part of a community where other people invited him to try something new.

What Does Healthy Aging Mean at Emerald Heights?

At Emerald Heights, we believe healthy aging is about having opportunities to continue becoming who you want to be.

It might mean staying physically active. It might mean continuing to use decades of professional experience to serve others. It could mean living closer to family while creating an entirely new circle of friends.

And sometimes, it means picking up a pickleball paddle for the first time.

During Healthy Aging Month, Jeff’s story reminds us that retirement isn’t necessarily about slowing down.

It’s about deciding what you want to do next.

Because healthy aging isn’t simply about aging well. It’s about continuing to live well.