Fifteen mildly retarded persons originally studied in 1960-1961, and restudied in 1972-1973, were studied again in 1982. The quality of their lives over the past decade was reexamined with an emphasis on personal and social resources for coping with chronic or acute stress. We found that these persons were less dependent on others than they had been previously. Moreover, compared to other aging mentally retarded persons described in the literature, these persons were more hopeful, confident, and independent, despite ill health, stressful life events, and the lack of assistance from mental retardation service agencies.