A Thoughtful Move serves the fast growing senior market and those making major life transitions. Change can be stressful. We ease the anxiety of moving for seniors, the newly divorced and widowed; anyone making a move.

We are a move management service assisting people in right-sizing their lives. Even when moving to a smaller home is a good choice that suits a new lifestyle, moving and managing the process is difficult, physically and emotionally. We ease the transition, managing all the details, every aspect of the move.

A Thoughtful Move was founded by Joan Roover, MSW, J.D. Her background enables her to assist seniors and their family members navigate the complex health and legal systems which can be factors in many transitions.

We work with clients in Greater Boston, Metro West and inside the Interstate 495 corridor. Contact us for more information and a no charge in-home consultation.

We are fully insured and bonded.

A Thoughtful Move, LLC is a member of the National Association of Senior Move Managers. Joan is one of the first senior move managers to be certified as a relocation and transition specialist. Undergoing the training and certification is further evidence of A Thoughtful Move's committment to quality.

Waltham woman helps ease stress of relocation

Waltham -

When Joan Roover was 25 years old, she lost both of her parents and was left with the daunting task of cleaning out the house she spent her childhood in and putting the home up for sale.
``I made a lot of mistakes - I was young and I didn't know the value of things,'' recalls Roover.
Today, the Waltham woman, a self-described baby boomer, helps families going through similar situations and also helps senior citizens downsize.
``Change is difficult and making a transition from the place you've lived and raised your family can be overwhelming,'' says Roover, president of A Thoughtful Move LLC, which she founded a year ago. ``I try to make that a much lower stress process for people.''
A former social worker and health care executive, Roover is now in the business of moving seniors.
Roover said she helps clients with all of the details, including taking an inventory of possessions, having objects appraised, organizing paperwork, coordinating the move itself and setting up senior citizens in new living situations.
Roover even works with a videographer who specializes in creating ``remembrance videos'' so clients can capture memories on tape for future generations before selling a family home.
``(Roover) was a godsend,'' says Debbie Martel, who enlisted her help to prepare her deceased parents' Belmont home for sale. ``We'd been there for 43 years and it was all there ... it was just too much stuff and I couldn't think of where to go next or what to do next.''
Martel, who lives in New Hampshire, came back to Belmont when her mother died in February but found emptying out her childhood home too large a task to do alone. Martel said having Roover in the house to bounce ideas off and to keep things organized allowed her to spend time appreciating the memories.
Martel said Roover helped her find contacts to get rid of what she had to and donate what she could.
``One of the things that I like most about what I do is that I'm able to play Robin Hood,'' Roover said. ``People often have things that are valuable to other people and whenever possible we make donations to local shelters.''
Kathy Spellman is a volunteer with REACH Beyond Domestic Violence Inc., a Waltham-based organization dedicated to helping survivors of domestic violence start new lives. Spellman said Roover has put clients in touch with the organization so they can donate unwanted furniture to domestic violence survivors leaving shelters for their own apartments.
``These people are literally starting all over again,'' Spellman said. ``And people (like Roover's clients) are so thrilled to know that their possessions are going to an individual.''
Roover said she bills on an hourly basis, but her fee changes depending on what services she provides. All clients receive a free consultation in their homes, she said. On average coordinating an entire move from start to finish can run between $2,500 and $5,000, Roover said.
To find out more information visit www.athoughtfulmove.com.
Nicole Haley can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 781-398-8004.