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Comment by afarrell | Hacker News Reader

As an immigrant (moved US->Southeast London) who probably won't be able to have kids, I find that I really wish there was a way to become an 'uncle' somehow. Modern society gives us a lot of choice and mobility, but also a lot of ways to find ourselves unrooted.

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The LGBTQ community originated the concept of "Chosen Family", people you willfully make a connection with as deep as blood family ties. As you can imagine, this is a particularly pressing need for people who are forcefully severed from their families, often at a very young age.

Some of us have to work mindfully to get something many people take for granted. Hopefully naming the idea gives you a way to talk about it with other people.

> The LGBTQ community originated the concept of "Chosen Family", people you willfully make a connection with as deep as blood family ties.

I thought that started with the mafia..

Maybe in the future, the mafia will specialise in the two things it's really good at, pizza delivery _and_ helping people find social connections as deep as blood family ties?

I needed this.

Is there a Big Brothers/Big Sisters program in the UK? Or perhaps an opportunity to help serve meals to the elderly or homeless or impoverished? I tend to volunteer on holidays if I'm not headed to a family gathering. Meals on Wheels is a great program in the US and it involves a lot more than just dropping off food.

How about volunteer to be a football coach, or a coach for some other sport?

You can actually rent uncles in Japan.

https://www.businessinsider.sg/you-can-now-rent-middle-aged-...

This depends strongly on your friendship group. We've adopted half a dozen of our close friends as honorary aunties and uncles for our kids.

Godfather concept?

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