Great Activities & Gift Ideas For Celebrating Father's Day Safely During COVID-19

Great Activities & Gift Ideas For Celebrating Father’s Day Safely During COVID-19

As we adapt and get used to this new way of life during the COVID-19 pandemic, we continue to look for ways to keep life as normal as possible. With Father’s day around the corner, here are a few tips for celebrating Father’s Day with seniors while keeping safe.

Celebrate Father’s Day safely with 15 fantastic activities and gift ideas during the coronavirus pandemic. Adapt Father’s Day traditions to celebrate safely. COVID-19 has brought both the best and worst out of people. However, with Father’s Day on the horizon, a backyard barbeque full of people is not optimal. It’s just unsafe. However, do not allow Coronavirus to infect your fun.

There are safe ways to celebrate Dad. Here, you will find  9 fun Father’s Day activities that will help make celebrating dad joyful. These activities can be done together, in small groups with proper social distancing, or virtually. 

Additionally, 6 thoughtful gift ideas are included.  

9 Fantastic Father’s Day Activities During the Coronavirus Pandemic

  1. Dad’s Love Good Food

Forget about going out to eat. COVID-19 has caused restaurants to adapt to a style most Dad’s prefer. Order and bring it home. If you don’t live near Dad, order it anyway and have it delivered.  He’ll like that too. Dads like home cooked food, especially a giant burger. So, make it at your house and drop it on the porch for Dad. This works well if you think you may have been exposed to COVID-19 or you just want to play it safe. Dad’s love to break bread with the family.  So, sit down and eat with Dad, but if that is not possible, have a virtual meal.  Facetime, Zoom, Loom, Google Duo, whatever, just make the meal-time connection. Dad will love it.  

  1. Say Hello From A Distance

Big yard signs are inexpensive but total winners with Dad! To wake up to a giant Father’s Day card in the front yard will make his day. Many yard sign services are available throughout America, so making this happen even from a distance works well. If keeping distance from Dad is a must, as he may be residing in a residential assisted living home, no one will get angry if you stand on the sidewalk and make your loud verbal greeting, while holding giant signs wishing your Dad the best day. Actually, it will bring joy to all the Dad’s in the residential assisted living home.  Go for it. If Dad is unable to see you from within the residential assisted living home due to whatever condition, call him on the phone via Facetime or some other application and do the exact same thing.  He will love it. It’ll be the talk of the home for months.

  1. Enjoy Nature Together

Fresh air is good, even during this pandemic.  Getting some fresh air is an especially refreshing activity. Sitting together on the porch, in the yard, or in front of an open window and just enjoying nature together does the mind and body good. If doing this in-person is not possible, do it virtually. Have Dad step outside, go on a hike, a leisure walk or sit on his porch, and you do the same. Together, you can experience this glorious planet at the same time in different locations. 

  1. Tour A Museum, Virtually

Science, technology, history, or art lovers might enjoy visiting a museum. If Dad is a museum lover, do it virtually. This year, you can take Dad on a virtual tour of museums across the globe.  For example, military buffs might be interested in touring the National Museum of the United States Air Force. The NMUSAF is the oldest and largest military aviation museum in the world, with more than 360 aircraft and missiles on display. Dad will never forget seeing FDR’s presidential airplane.  It’s there for his viewing, as well as other military weapons and aircraft – all virtually. You can’t beat it. Even if Dad has movement challenges, the virtual tour eliminates the impediment.  Point and click, Dad.

  1. Watch Dad’s Favorite Sports Together

Baseball may make its reentry prior to Father’s Day. Rhe PGA has already commenced play, and Major League Soccer is soon to start, but don’t forget the classics.  There’s nothing like watching the greatest sports of all time. Dad will probably commentate the entire game. With popular online sites like ESPN, NBC Sports, or a subscription to a sports streaming service would also be a great gift for a sports enthusiast!

  1. Attend A Virtual Concert Or Show

Another experience you could enjoy together is to listen to music or attend a virtual concert. Many arts organizations, musicians, orchestras, and Broadway musicals are making their shows available online for free. For a list of available virtual live shows, check out our article Coronavirus Virtual Experiences at Home: Animals, Music, Art, World Travel, Museums, Theme Parks.

  1. Relax with casual activities

Another relaxing way to spend time together, virtually or in person, is to watch a favorite movie or TV show. If your Dad is a Sci-Fi man, remember Star Wars is multi-generational. Three generations of a family can binge watch movies, even virtually. If Dad was a Hillstreet Blues sitcom watcher, many major TV networks show sitcoms for free on their websites and apps. Also, board games do not bore.  Pull out those jigsaw puzzles, sudoku, playing cards, crossword puzzles and don’t forget about Battleship.  Yes, many Dad’s played Battleship in some form or fashion. The goal is to be together. Some good ole’ fashioned board games have even gone electronic. So, if you can’t visit Dad in-person, play online.

  1. Relax with music

Memory lane is hosted best by a Disc Jockey. Pull out those old records, CD’s, 8-tracks, cassettes or the same on your latest music app. Who doesn’t like music? Dad will enjoy listening to music and may even tell you a story associated with a particular song. Be careful, it may be beyond PG-13. Karaoke anyone? The equipment is cheap, and the software inexpensive and the fun invaluable. Host a sing-a-long. You may be shocked at Dad’s musical prowess or lack thereof. 

  1. Read a book together

Is Dad a lover of literature? Believe it or not, reading aloud remains a most enjoyable activity.  Voice inflection makes every reader an Academy Award winner. You can download a variety of books online free through your local library’s online services, buy e-books or get free e-books from Project Gutenberg. Reading along books can be done in-person or virtually. There is just no limit. Try it.

6 Thoughtful Father’s Day Gift Ideas

When searching for gifts for Dad, be sure to search sites like Amazon that provide delivery options and a huge array of selections. 

  1. Send A Heartfelt Card Or Letter

Sending a card or letter with a nice message is always a thoughtful way to show how much you care and that they’re in your thoughts. Don’t forget a short personal note. While the writers for Hallmark do a great job, they can’t say what Dad means to you better than you. Pictures are nice too.

  1. Gift A Device That Makes Video Calling Easy

All of this new technology often overwhelms our seniors. They just don’t get it. It’s too complicated because the inner workings of technology are not necessarily mechanical, which they are more accustomed to handling. So, remove the technology gap. Make it easier for Dad to be able to virtually see you more often. Get Dad a video calling device and handle the setup ahead of time. Some devices include ViewClix, Amazon Echo Show, Amazon Spot Show, GrandPad, and Facebook Portal. These devices do need to be set up to connect to a WiFi network, so if possible, you could ask someone in their household to help get it set up. The staff at Dad’s residential assisted living home will be more than delighted to assist you.

  1. Give Gift Cards For Favorite Services

To make their life more convenient, give Dad a gift card to a popular restaurant currently delivering meals or to an online store. He’ll love getting gourmet Italian on Tuesday night. Many Dad’s never enjoyed grocery shopping. So, to make grocery shopping bearable, let Dad know that you’ll be giving him their next grocery delivery and you’ll be placing the order for him.  He’ll tell everyone what a great son or daughter you are. Also, these gift cards are supported by grocery delivery services available from a variety of stores.

  1. Send A Custom Gift Basket

Gift baskets can remind Dads of Thanksgiving and Christmas. These are two holidays when baskets were given to family members full of wonderful treats. So, get Dad a customized gift basket. Fill it with all of the stuff Dad loves like these cool coffee mugs. You can drop it off to Dad or have it delivered.  Just make it happen for Dad. Be sure to watch cutoff dates. Some services have deadlines because demand may be high.  

  1. Consider Other Thoughtful Gifts

a)    A few novels or audio books by his favorite author or about a favorite topic.

b)    A new deck of large print playing cards.

c)     History-themed gifts, including books, documentaries and movies.

d)    Music! With options for every age group from toddlers to seniors. 

e)    A comfy pair of non-slip house slippers from shoppok.

  1. Create A Custom Photo Album, Calendar, Blanket, Or Puzzle

Dads love pictures. They show them to all their friends. They love to brag on their grandkids and the success of their children because no one else in their residential assisted living home has children or grandchildren faintly as successful as their own. So, give Dad the means to make it happen. For Dads with Alzheimer’s or dementia, you could even create a custom book they’ll love to read by adding simple text to photos or images they enjoy. This becomes a bedrock of comfort for these fathers as they live with this insidious disease. Many Dads still look at a calendar on the refrigerator to organize their day. So, make a custom photo calendar to help Dad keep track of days, months, and appointments while seeing smiling family faces.

Sometimes, Dad may get chills, especially if he is taking a blood thinning medication. So, give Dad the gift that keeps on giving – a customized photo blanket. He will make sure everyone sees it. He’ll even pull it out in the summer just to make sure all his friends see what a cool and innovative gift you gave him. These photo blankets are especially nice for Dads with Alzheimer’s or dementia. A custom photo puzzle uses a family photo or picture with special meaning to create a fun puzzle your Dad can put together again and again. Imagine Dad putting together a picture of your family when you were 10 years old.  He’ll love it.

Dads Provide A Lifeline To Assisted Living Homes

The Residential Assisted Living National Association celebrates residents whenever the opportunity presents itself. In addition to providing resources for owners, operators and caregivers, RALNA supports families. Owners can gain access to legal expertise, continued education, national marketing, group purchasing power and a continual positive voice for the industry. Although this content is specialized for Father’s Day, industry driven content is provided on a regular basis. There are many additional tips RALNA offers to help owners staff their assisted living home. RAL home operators do not have to go through these difficult processes alone. Visit www.RALNA.org for professional tips and to get connected to a positive network in the assisted living industry in the face of challenges.

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