Inclusion Criteria:  Community-dwelling senior 65 years of age or older. Meeting criteria of suffering from an episode of major depression, mild to moderate, as assessed by an experienced psychiatrist (DSM 296.21, 296.22, 296.31, 296.32), with the following applicable specifiers including anxious distress, mixed features, melancholic features, atypical features and seasonal pattern Willing to receive services via telephone. Have sufficient hearing to converse via telephone. Have an adequate understanding of written and spoken English. Answer yes to the question "do you perceive that you are either lonely or isolated?"  Exclusion Criteria:  Pre-existing dementia or other neurodegenerative disorder as confirmed by a Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score, telephone version, 17 or below History of schizophrenia History of bipolar disorder History of substance use disorder History of personality disorder as per previous clinical documentation History of suicide attempts or threats as per previous clinical documentation or endorsement of any of the questions from item 2-6 of the Columbia- Suicide Severity Rating Scale.