About Us
Our Story
Songbird Transitions specializes in senior downsizing, estate dispersal and home sale preparation. Our mission is to make the transition into a new, downsized home as smooth and stress-free as possible. Whether you or a loved one are planning a move to a senior living community, a memory-care facility, or simply a smaller home/condo, we know what works—and what doesn’t —when it comes to downsizing.
Our first downsizing experience was helping Samantha’s parents move from her childhood home into a smaller house following her mom’s severe motorcycle accident. We also helped Samantha's grandmother move into a senior apartment and later into a skilled nursing facility and learned how stressful and emotional it can be to help a loved one move into a new space and make it feel like “home.” We appreciate how important it is to approach these major life transitions with an incredible amount of kindness, grace and optimistic energy. To us: it’s more than just a move.
Since 2016, we’ve helped hundreds of older adults downsize to condos, assisted living and memory-care communities. We specialize in helping you and your family navigate all of the moving details and downsizing decisions —both big and small.
"...moving isn’t just about the house – it’s about relocating the home."
How we can help
Whether you are planning to downsize or helping a loved one to move, we are here to help. We can:
- Create a detailed floorplan for your new home so you can visualize which pieces of your existing furniture will best fit your new space.
- Sort your household items, curate your collectibles and help you select your favorite pieces and mementos to take with you.
- Pack your furnishings, move them to your new home and then unpack and set up your new home. We can even hang your artwork for you!
- Prep your old home so that it is market-ready. This typically includes painting, cleaning, minor mechanical repairs and other cosmetic touchups.
- Handle any household items you no longer need by selling, donating or properly disposing them.
Learn more about how we can help.
Contact Us for a Free ConsultationAbout Us
Samantha Stearns
Sam is the founder of Songbird Transitions and the heart of the business. Sam brings an effervescent energy to everything she does. From the very first consult, to the final walk through of your new home, Sam’s passion for senior downsizing shines through as much as her love for seniors.
Born and raised in Northwest Ohio, Sam’s degrees and early career in professional dance and television production took her and her husband, Luke, to Massachusetts, Arizona and Colorado before the couple moved to Granville in 2015 to be closer to family.
In between taking her toddlers to preschool and playdates, Sam started helping older adults get rid of excess items throughout their homes as well as move into a local senior living community. Drawing upon on what she learned from downsizing her parents and grandmother, and using her experience in event production and project management, Sam expertly planned and organized all the details for each downsize. As word of Sam’s skills spread, she quickly built a waiting list of seniors seeking her assistance. Soon after, Songbird Transitions was born.
Sam’s love of Granville and the Licking County community runs deep. She serves on the board of the Michael Dean Gibbs Foundation and the Licking County Community Center for 60+ Adults, was past President of the Granville Parent Cooperative Preschool and is an ardent supporter of Fostering Further. When Sam isn’t downsizing, you’ll find her coaching her son’s soccer team, teaching Pilates, or exploring the outdoors with Luke, their two young sons and dog, Lemon.
Lucas Stearns
Luke has a background in real estate, property management and digital media production. Luke met Sam while working at a 480-unit apartment complex, where he was responsible for managing renovations, preparing units for renters, and overseeing property maintenance. Their mutual interest in Toledo Mudhens baseball and home improvement translated into many non-traditional dates!
Prior to joining Songbird full-time, Luke worked as a licensed real estate agent and Director of Information Technology at various property management companies and mortgage lenders across the county. When he wasn’t at work, he spent his time tirelessly flipping four homes in the last ten years. Luke’s experience selling homes in the region combined with his keen eye for resale value have been a huge asset to Songbird’s home sale preparation (“prep”) services which enable clients to get top dollar for homes sold after a downsize. Among his many roles in the business, Luke manages all of the logistics for packing and moving our clients’ household items, whether that is doing the heavy lifting or serving as a liaison to a specialty moving company.
An avid Ohio State fan, Luke loves watching Buckeye games with friends and his two sons. Luke also enjoys camping, dreaming up comic books ideas and planning fun adventures for his family.
Meet the Team
Zach
As one of Songbird’s first team members, Zach has been by our side through all of our biggest downsizes. Zach grew up on a homestead in Licking County and learned valuable farming, gardening, mechanical and home-improvement skills from an early age. Over the years, Zach and his family have participated in multiple service-learning trips to Central America where they provide educational resources and training to local communities.
Zach brings his caring, hardworking and super human strength to every downsize move. Furthermore, he’s our go-to expert painter when updating houses prior to their listing, helping us make the home transition complete. His quiet, easy-going attitude and gentle soul make him an absolute joy to work with.
When Zach isn’t helping families to downsize, you can usually find him at Charlie’s Apples, a certified organic orchard, that he operates alongside his brother.
Susan
Prior to joining the Songbird team, Susan served as the Digital Content Director at Floret, a flower farm and seed company featured in the Magnolia Network show, Growing Floret. Susan launched Floret's three bestselling books and managed the Floret Online Workshop, a course that teaches small-scale, sustainable flower farming practices to growers around the world.
Susan and Sam became fast friends in their sons' “mom & me” preschool class. Their two families later teamed up to create a second grade “pod squad” during the pandemic. The arrangement provided structure for the kids and offered an opportunity to dream big about the future of Songbird.
In addition to working alongside Sam on local downsizes, Susan (aka “Boss Lady”) is responsible for creating content for Songbird Stories and developing business growth strategies for Songbird Certified.
Susan’s personal downsizing experience includes paring down her possessions from an antique-filled, 3-story home to just two suitcases prior to moving to Ecuador to serve in the Peace Corps.
An avid gardener and nature lover, Susan also enjoys cycling, hiking, traveling and finding treasures at yard sales. She serves as a board member of the League of Women Voters of Licking County and lives and with her husband, son and dog, Miley, in Granville.
Tabitha
Tabi joined the Songbird team in 2021 after a long career in the restaurant industry. As our favorite server at a local brewpub for many years, Tabi’s warmth, fun personality and deep commitment to an excellent customer experience always left us smiling. Tabi’s search for a new career with a more family-friendly work schedule corresponded with our search for a new team member to assist with our growing downsizing business. Tabi brings her caring, can-do attitude to every downsize. She connects easily with clients, is an excellent problem solver and has a great ability to put clients at ease and anticipate their needs.
Growing up locally makes Tabi our go-to expert when navigating the Columbus metropolitan area efficiently during senior moves. As the daughter of a minister, Tabi spent part of her childhood helping her dad with home improvement projects for his congregants. This experience has been invaluable to Songbird estate dispersals and home sale preparations. Finally, her art degree and background make her a fantastic “finishing touches” sidekick to Sam when hanging art and making clients’ new spaces feel like home.
When Tabi isn’t hard at work, she enjoys painting and central Ohio’s finest eateries with her husband and two sons.
Jackie
When Jackie joined the Songbird team, we knew instantly she was going to be a fantastic fit. Jackie brings a background in teaching as well as experience working with 55+ communities to her work at Songbird Transitions. Jackie learned to read blueprints at a young age while tagging along with her dad as part of his work with the family-owned construction business. She later served as the company's New Home Sales Manager where she helped to design floor plans for clients, coordinate move-in dates and manage building timelines.
Following her graduation from Ohio Dominican University, Jackie taught English and Math for nine years in Worthington before moving in order to fulfill her family's dream of owning land in the country. An avid gardener, Jackie loves to cook giant farm-to-table meals, listen to music and be around children. When she isn't working with Songbird on local downsizes, she serves as a substitute teacher and private tutor. Jackie lives with her husband and two daughters (plus two dogs and many chickens and goats) on a mini farm outside of Granville.
Meet the Fleet
Boxy
Not too big and not too small, our 15-foot box truck is just right for virtually all our downsizing moves. Boxy delivers all your household goods to your new downsized home and also takes any of your unneeded furnishings to be donated or sold. Boxy's favorite things to transport include bookcases, kitchen contents and wardrobe boxes full of coats and clothing. Boxy advises, “If you fill me up twice, you’re probably taking too many things!”
Zippy
Our Ford Transit joined the Songbird fleet in the summer of 2021. Zippy safely transports artwork, special collectibles and any fragile items to your new downsized home. Zippy allows the Songbird team to make quick work of getting all of your most precious possessions set up in your new space. Zippy’s favorite things to transport include antique lamps, pottery, framed artwork and family portraits.
Taco
Our Toyota Tacoma provides extra hauling capacity and transports excess items to donation processing centers and household hazardous waste disposal facilities. Taco’s favorite things to haul are old computers, broken papers shredders, paint cans and lawn care chemicals. When Taco isn’t busy working for Songbird, he loves towing the Team Stearns pop up camper to Ohio state parks and to visit friends and family in Indiana and Michigan.
Free DIY Downsizing Guide
10 pro tips to declutter your basement, garage, or other cluttered space in your home.
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