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Add Reminders to Parent’s Echo Show

By:  Frank Engelman   |  Posted: May 6, 2022   |  Updated: May 8, 2025

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The Problem to be Solved

Simple Shared Calendaring for Distant Parent

Simple Shared Calendaring for Distant Parent

It’s a common situation: an aging parent starts needing help from family members organizing things like doctors visits, or other care-related or social activities. How do you set up and maintain some type of mutually convenient, calendaring solution that maintains the right balance between “collaborating” and “helping” and “keeping things simple”?

View the problem

Solution Details

 

Here is a simple way to add reminders to Alexa in an Echo Show.

If your remote loved one has a problem remembering appointments or other activities, you may have tried our solution about remotely managing a Google Calendar for them on an Amazon Echo Show.

If they have found the displayed calendar to be too confusing, or you have found the implementation too complex, consider the solutions below to offer them simple reminder notifications.

 

If you are at the loved one’s location:

Here are the verbal commands to speak to the Echo Show:

  • To check existing reminders:
    • “Alexa, what are my reminders?”

 

  • To delete existing reminders”
    • “Alexa, delete reminders”
      • Follow the prompts to delete reminders

 

  • To add a one-time reminder
    • “Alexa, remind me”
      • Follow the prompts to add a reminder

 

  • To add a reoccurring reminder
    • “Alexa, remind me every Friday”
      • Use the “every” key word for reoccurring reminders
        • Follow the prompts to add the information

 

 

If you are NOT at your loved one’s location

NOTE: Be careful when setting the reminder time if your loved one is in another time zone

On your mobile phone, in the Alexa app, log out of your account

  • Tap “More”
  • Tap “Settings”
  • Tap “Sign out”
  • Sign in with your loved one’s Alexa account

 

  • To review, edit, delete, or add reminders using an Alexa account
    • Tap “More”
    • Tap “Reminders”
      • You can view, edit, or delete reminders
      • Tap “Add Reminder +”
        • You can create reminders here

 

  • To set reminder customizations
    • Tap “More”
    • Tap “Settings”
    • Tap “Notifications”
    • Tap “Reminders”

 

Caption- Configure Reminders

 

  • Tap “Announce on devices”
    • Select “Everywhere”
  • Tap “Announcement count”
    • 1, 2, or 3 (Persistent for one hour can be annoying)
  • Tap “Missed Reminder notifications”

 

Tips & Tricks

  • If you find that your loved one is missing the reminders because they are away from the Echo Show, there is a way to announce the reminder when they return to a location near the Echo Show
    • Using a mobile device logged into the loved one’s Alexa account in the Alexa app
      • Tap “More”
      • Tap “Settings”
      • Tap “Accessibility”
      • Tap “Notify when Nearby”

 

Caption- Notify when nearby

 

 

  • If your loved one is living in their own home, you might want consider Amazon Alexa Together, a paid service that has several features including an easy way to remotely add reminders
  • See my Review of Alexa Together

 

Caption- Alexa Together service

 

 

Caption- Remote Assist

 

  • To track new reminder features as Amazon adds them, check this webpage

 

 

 

Kit List*

 

 

 

 

 

*Disclosure: The research and opinions in this article are those of the author, and may or may not reflect the official views of Tech-enhanced Life.

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Author

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Frank Engelman

Retired Intel Engineer wanting to share DIY technology tips for the children of parents wanting to remain living independently. I like posting ideas and answering technical questions. If a product or software has an issue making it hard for seniors to use, I try to offer workarounds and also try to contact the manufacturer for solutions. I write a column for this website in the Innovation- Homebrew Solutions & Ideas section

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