After seeing how many seniors struggle with loneliness and isolation, Jacob Cramer wanted to make a difference—one heartfelt letter at a time. What started as a simple gesture has now blossomed into a nationwide movement, with volunteers sending more than 800,000 handwritten notes of encouragement to older adults across the country.

When his grandfather Marv passed away in 2014, middle-schooler Jacob Cramer started volunteering at a local senior living community to ease his grief. He soon got to know several residents and was especially fond of a feisty octogenarian named Cynthia.

“Oh look, it’s you!” Cynthia would say to Jacob. He would sit by her side, share jokes and listen to her stories all afternoon.

“I often feel so lonely, Jacob,” Cynthia once told her young friend, explaining that her niece calls occasionally but she gets very few visitors and never receives letters in the mail.

Jacob’s heart broke and he decided to do something to help Cynthia. So he wrote his friend a sentimental letter and read it to her. Cynthia was overwhelmed with joy as her tears flowed.

 Jacob realized that many seniors—in Cynthia’s retirement community and elsewhere—were on their own. Can I help them feel less alone? he wondered. 

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Connecting generations

Inspired, Jacob called assisted living communities to find more seniors that would like to receive letters, and began writing and mailing out hundreds. 

After one nursing home sent Jacob photos of residents smiling with their letters, he wanted to do more. So in 2015, with help from his parents, Jacob started the nonprofit Love for Our Elders. Over the years, his organization, which includes 75 high school and college chapters, has drawn volunteers from around the country to write 800,000 handwritten letters.

At first, the letters were not written to anyone in particular and sent out in bulk. But starting in 2021, people could write letters to specific seniors featured on Love For Our Elders, which gives a bio on each resident’s situation and interests.

Letter-writers can then mail their letters — which typically include jokes, a little information about themselves and uplifting, inspiring messages — directly to the seniors’ families to be passed on to them.

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Making a difference — one letter at a time

Karen Boyce of the Milwaukee area had participated in Love for Our Elders letter writing with colleagues, then nominated her mother, Sherry Cebula, 81, who received more than 500 letters.

Sherry has an autoimmune disease and is in and out of hospitals, so she took the letters to her dialysis appointments to cheer herself up.

“Her eyes lit up when she saw the bag of letters,” says Karen. “They truly lifted her spirits!”

As for Jacob, he says it’s a privilege to help people feel connected. In 2024, he penned a children’s book, Grandma’s Letter Exchange, about the power of letter writing. “This project has shown me how kind people can be,” says Jacob, now 24 and a Yale University graduate. “It’s not just a letter — it’s something very powerful.”