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A Sixty and Me report describes three women in their 70s who developed a mutual support system in their apartment building in Cuenca, Ecuador. Their arrangements include check-ins, spare keys, emergency contacts and a shared discussion about future caregiving; one friend also bought another’s apartment after its owner decided to sell.
A Sixty and Me first-person report describes how three women in their 70s living in the same apartment building in Cuenca, Ecuador, built a support network as they think about aging in place. Their informal plans include checking on one another, sharing emergency information and discussing possible future caregiving, offering a personal example of how close friends can help address the practical concerns of living alone.
The author says the women—identified as Blake, Emma and the author—did not move into the building seeking aging-in-place partners. They became friends through drinks and dinners, then began talking more openly and helping one another through successes and difficult moments. The report calls them “thinking friends”, describing a relationship based on listening, advice when requested and mutual support.
The group initially checked in every morning and evening, but the author says that routine felt like an unnecessary obligation. They now use a three-day check-in rule: if one has not heard from another for three days, she sends a message to make sure everything is all right. The women also hold spare keys to one another’s apartments and have set up an emergency group on their phones with other trusted local contacts.
They have prepared laminated contact sheets listing ambulance services, nearby hospitals, the local emergency number, doctors, medical proxies, lawyers and people with power of attorney. The report says they have discussed creating an interest-bearing fund that could help pay for in-home support in the future, potentially with a caregiver or nurse living nearby. That idea remains under consideration, and the women are still working through its logistics.
Practical Support Beyond the Home
Aging in place is often discussed as a question of adapting a home—such as addressing stairs, bathrooms or access to medical care. This report adds a social dimension: who will notice if help is needed, and how can people preserve independence while making practical plans for emergencies?
The women’s arrangements are personal and informal, not evidence that every friendship group can provide care or replace professional services. Still, the example shows how neighbors and friends may coordinate basic check-ins, contact information and access to homes. For readers who live alone, it highlights questions worth discussing with trusted people, while leaving individual care, financial and legal decisions to the people involved and qualified professionals.
emergency contact laminated cards for seniors
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How the Friendship Became a Plan
The author frames the group’s experience against familiar concerns about staying in one’s home as people age: whether a building has stairs or an elevator, whether a bathroom can be adapted, and whether medical care is nearby. The women’s response developed gradually, beginning with social gatherings and growing into a modest set of shared practices rather than a formal care agreement.
A change in Blake’s housing situation brought the friendship’s practical value into sharper focus. According to the report, the owner of her apartment decided to sell. Emma, who had recently sold an investment property, bought the apartment and told Blake she would continue to have a home in the building. The author describes the purchase as an act of generosity and as a commitment to keep the trio together; the source provides no further financial or legal details.
“I call them my “thinking friends” because our conversations are substantive and deep.”
— The report’s author
Limits of the Informal Arrangement
The account is a first-person report, and it does not establish how the arrangement would work during a serious medical event or when one or more women need sustained care. The group’s possible shared fund is still a discussion, with no reported amount, account structure, eligibility rules or caregiver arrangement. The report also does not specify whether other residents have joined or how the women would handle disagreements, changing needs or costs.
The emergency lists and phone group are described by the author, but the report does not independently assess their readiness or provide details about local emergency response. The apartment purchase is also presented without information about its financing, ownership terms or any formal promise concerning Blake’s housing. Those details should not be inferred from the personal account.
Care Plans Still Under Discussion
The women may continue to develop the idea of a shared fund and consider whether other people in their building would take part, but the report gives no timetable or confirmed decision. Its next practical steps, if they choose to proceed, would involve working out contributions, account management and how any caregiver would be selected and paid.
For now, the arrangements described are the three-day check-in rule, shared keys, emergency contacts and written information sheets. The report does not announce a formal organization or a broader program. It presents the group’s approach as an evolving personal plan, with its future dependent on the women’s needs and choices.
Key Questions
Who are the women described in the report?
The report identifies three women in their 70s—Blake, Emma and the author—who live in the same apartment building in Cuenca, Ecuador. It says they became friends through regular social gatherings.
How do they check on one another?
They use a three-day rule: if one has not heard from another for three days, she sends a message to check in. The author says their earlier twice-daily routine ended because it felt like an unnecessary obligation.
What emergency preparations have they made?
The report says they share spare keys, created a phone emergency group with other trusted contacts and prepared laminated sheets listing medical and emergency contacts. These are arrangements described by the author, not a formal care service.
Have the women established a shared caregiving fund?
No. The report says they have discussed a fund that might help pay for in-home assistance later, but are still working through the logistics. It gives no confirmed amount or start date.
Why did Emma buy Blake’s apartment?
According to the author, Blake’s landlord decided to sell the apartment, and Emma bought it after selling an investment property. The author says Emma wanted Blake to remain in the building; the report does not give the purchase’s financial or legal terms.
Source: rss
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