For school I need to interview someone who is older than 70. I have no relatives that are, so I must now choose from someone else, preferably from my church. I know just the man I want to interview, but how will I explain to him why I chose to interview him of all people, even though I don't know him all that well?
2007-11-23 07:12:57 · 20 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Etiquette
Approach him after church, say hello and introduce yourself. Then say, "I have a school assignment to interview someone who is over 70 years old and I was wondering if you could help me?" Wording it this way leaves a little wiggle room, in case he looks older than he actually is and is not really over 70 - you could backtrack and say "You seem to know many of the seniors in the church - could you suggest someone for me to interview?" If he is over 70, he will probably be happy to help you, or if he's not, he will probably suggest someone who is. Be sure to be very polite, and thank him for his time. Also pay him at least one sincere compliment - why did you choose to approach him rather than someone else?
2007-11-23 07:22:28 · answer #1 · answered by naomi 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Just say that you are doing a school project and you need to interview people that are 70 or older. If they agree to the interview then ask them their age.
2007-11-23 07:30:24 · answer #2 · answered by tnbadbunny 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Just say "I need to interview someone older than 70 about their life experiences for my school project- any ideas on who I could talk to?" Ask this to the person you think knows the most people and their ages.
2007-11-23 07:17:12 · answer #3 · answered by Eraserhead 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Simple, you ask the minister to make an announcement and have him say that you are doing a project from school and would like a volunteer. That way, you don't have to ask. It is impolite to ask directly, because what if the person isn't over seventy? It can be insulting to assume a 50 year old is over 70 - but it is difficult to judge.
If that doesn't work, go to a nursing home. The nursing staff can direct you to someone interesting who is over 70, the resident would love to have someone one talk to and you might just meet someone amazing.
When I worked in a nursing home, I had one patient who flew a fighter over japan in the war, another who ran a boot leg liquor store and another lady whose husband was at Cornell when Einstein was. I asked her about it and she thought for a minute and said "Einstein, Einstein - Oh yes, I remember, Nice young man who used to come over for tea all the time."
2007-11-23 07:20:21 · answer #4 · answered by Cindy H 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Ask the person who you want to interview if he/she knows anyone in the church who could help you with your project. Then if they say 'I could help you I am 70'
Look surprised and say 'Oh are you, I didn't think you were that old, that is why I asked you if you knew anyone.'
Then he/she will feel pleased and you will get your person.
2007-11-23 07:49:48 · answer #5 · answered by Sally Anne 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am old enough to vote twice, and I can assure you that you may simply ask, "How old are you?" If that doesn't do it for you, then ask me "When was the first presidential election you voted in?" and calculate from there. Of course, one of the best questions you might ask, as a screening tool is "How old were you when your family got its first television set?" It is always easy to suggest that you are interviewing me because I have seen a lot of exciting times in modern history, or because you hoped that you might learn something from my life experiences. That would make me feel pretty good...
2007-11-23 08:01:52 · answer #6 · answered by jpturboprop 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Go to him and tell him that you have a school project and that you need to talk interview someone with a few years under their belt. Tell him that you felt that he would be an interesting interview and that you have no one in your family that can help you.
2007-11-23 07:18:01 · answer #7 · answered by shadowsthathunt 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
After you are well into the interview, ask if he minds telling his age. Otherwise, if you have done a good job interviewing, you can probably figure out what decade of life he is in.
2007-11-23 07:16:20 · answer #8 · answered by beez 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you could ask him if he knows of anyone older than 70 that he can interview for a project at school. smile and say you'd be really grateful!
2007-11-23 07:24:48 · answer #9 · answered by Rainey 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree with cindy H. except I wouldn't go to a nursing home, I'd go to a retirement home. nursing homes have elderly who have deminsha and alziemers( I know I am spelling it wrong o.k?) not all the people in nursing homes are but most. retirement homes the people are still on their game mentally and there are 70 year olds there. they too like to share.
2007-11-23 07:47:10 · answer #10 · answered by dobby 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋