Downsizing your precious belongings can be one of the most daunting tasks to face when you’re preparing to move into an assisted living community like ViewPointe.

These are items you’ve had for decades — maybe even generations. They're part of your memories through the years. Fortunately, you have many options to consider when rightsizing your belongings as you get ready to move into your new apartment.

Here are three ways you can share your precious memories with others while choosing to bring your most important and treasured items along to your new home.

1. Host a “Friends and Family Only” Giveaway

For items that you won’t be able to bring along but that you can’t imagine selling to a stranger or donating to a charity, host a “friends and family only” giveaway day. For an added bonus, combine this event with a barbecue to celebrate moving to your new digs or a potluck family reunion to gather loved ones together from far and wide.

Set up your space by arranging items as if you’re hosting a garage sale. Then allow your friends and family to wander through and choose a few of their favorite pieces to add to their own private collections. You can even set aside items for “favorite customers” — that dresser that would be perfect in a cousin's spare room, or a tea set you really want to pass along to your oldest granddaughter.

2. Sell Items or Collections to Fund Your Next Hobby or Trip

Once you’ve determined which items will be going with you and which will be going with friends and family, you’ll be left with a variety of tchotchkes that aren’t as precious to you but will still be of value to someone else.

Have an actual garage sale or use online resources like Craigslist, 5Mile or OfferUp to sell these items to others. If you have larger collections — or collections that carry significant value — consider auctioning them off on eBay or working with an auction house.

Now, you’ll have some extra money to fund your next trip or a new hobby you want to take up once you move into your assisted living apartment.

3. Use Your Remaining Items to Benefit a Nonprofit

The last stages of downsizing can be the hardest — those items you’re left with that may not have a lot of value to sell and that you aren’t anxious to take with you or give away.

Many nonprofits — from national organizations to local churches — will gladly scoop up the rest of your discarded possessions to stock their local resale stores or use at their next fundraising sale. This is a win-win-win proposition — you’ll be able to finish clearing out your old home, the nonprofit often hauls away items without any extra work (or expense) on your part and you can enjoy a bit of a tax write-off while the nonprofit is able to earn money through selling those pieces.

Don’t let downsizing get the best of you. Whether you’re able to give away or sell items right within the Colorado Springs area, gift things to family members far and wide or help benefit your favorite charity, the items you’ve spent years living with can now go on to benefit others while you get ready to enjoy your best years to come in a vibrant new community like ViewPointe.