IN THE BACI4: ADVICE 4 ENTERTAINMENT > 50-Plus, D2-3 Parents & Kids, D4 Pets, D5 THE BULLETIN • FRIDAY, MARCH 8, 2013
O www.bendbulletin.com/allages
BRIEFING
Panel to discuss care choices The Bend Senior
Center, BendPark 8 Recreation District and
Hospice of Redmond are hosting a panel discussion titled "Starting
the Conversation," which will look at critical health care decisions. The event will be
from1 to 4 p.m. March 19at the Bend Senior Center, 1600 S.E. Reed
Market Road. A panel of experts will talk about work-
ing with Medicare and private insurance companies, how to start a conversation about a person's health care future; how to com-
municate your wishes
-=
with your loved ones;
and the advantages of having an advancedi-
II II
rective, which defines
a loved oneswishes when he or sheareunable to make decisions due to illness, etc.
Participants are asked to RSVP for this free event by March 15 by calling 541-3881133.
Parents, learn to keep calm A new class from local parenting instructor and counselor Beth
Photos by Rob Kerr/The Bulletin
Oregon State University-Cascades Campus student Irene Cooper, 47, works on her computer on the campus in Bend. Cooper decided to go back to college and complete her degree after she had a career in the culinary industry and raised two daughters, ages12 and16.
Bellamy will focus
on helping parents remain calm. Theclass is called "KeepYour Cool: Be the Person in
Charge Kids Need." "In all my years of doing parenting work, I've come to believe that managing our
• Area colleges,likethoseacrossthe U.S.,have
emotional responses to our children's be-
an increasing number of students older than 40
havior is the primary skill parents need to
develop. So much rides on it," said Bellamy in
an email. The class will discuss how parents can remain focused and train themselves
By Mac McLean •The Bulletin uring the 1980s, Irene Cooper worked as a short-order
to remain calm while dealing with the
stressful challenges of parenting. Parents will
learn how their anger becomes triggered and what to do about it. The class will be
from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Monday and March18
at Ponderosa Elementary School in Bend. Those interested must
register by 5 p.m. todaythrough BendPark & Recreation, either
in person or via the website www.bend-
parksandrec.org.
Cost is $50 for in-
district residents for
cook, prep cook, bartender and waitress at restaurants across Texas and California. She earned an associates degree from the California Culinary Academy, and for a brief period of time, opened and managed a restaurant with her husband in Nebraska. But when Cooper decided to go backtothe workforce after raising her two daughters — now ages 12 and 16 — she ran into a serious problem. All of her work experience was in the culinary field and she did not want to go back into that. "It didn't feel right going back into the culinary world after my
40th birthday," said Cooper. She knew she'd need a new set of skills if she was going to find a job that suited her in today's workforce. And that meant going back to school, she said. Cooper was 42 when she signed up for her first class at Central Oregon Community College in 2008. This summer, she'll be walking across the stage at Oregon State University-Cascades Campus' graduation ceremony to pick up a bachelor's degree in liberal studiesand be one step closerto her
goal of being a professor.
Almost I of 5 students at Central Oregon's two publicly funded institutions of higher learning is 40 or older, according to the schools' admission departments. SeeSchool /D3
'lnllllnllllllll ." ' I IIIIIIIIII
Stephen Ritter helps students in Central Oregon Community College's math lab. Ritter 45, is expected to graduate from OSU-Cascades with a bachelor's degree in business administration next year.
$68 out-of-district residents.
Contact: Bellamy at 541-617-8835.
Spring break at the museum The High Desert
Museum is offering camps for kids during spring break, March 26-30, for kids.
"Mysteries of the Winged Ones" will focus on butterflies and
hummingbirds. Kids age 7-8 can gobehind the scenes to help care for these creatures on exhibit. "Feed with Care,"
a camp for ages9-10, focuses on howto prepare diets for the museum's animals. The camps cost $150 for members of the museum, $175for nonmembers. Camps run from 9 a.m. to 3
p.m.; before andafter care is available. Contact: 541-3824754, ext. 329, or www.highdesertmu-
seum.org. — From staff reports
GOOD QUESTION
SUPPORT SYSTEM
Teach yourchild about pet care Editor's Note:Good Question is a monthly feature in which a local expert in a particular field answers a question related to family life. Have a question about
Lauren Stayer is a veterinarian at the Bend Veterinary Clinic. She also works with the Bend Spay & Neuter Project and BrightSide Animal Center in Redmond.
your family? Sendit to family® bendbulletin.com.
By Megan Kehoe The Bulletin
• Our family recently got a . dog after our middle schooler wanted one. However, I'm frustrated because my child hasn't kept his promise of helping care for the animal, and I've ended up doing all the work. How do I get him to take more responsibility? Lauren Stayer is a veterinari• an at Bend Veterinary Clinic. She also works with the Bend Spay 8 Neuter Project and BrightSide Animal Center. When a pet is new to the family, it's easy for a child to follow through on his or her promise of caring for it. But once the newness wears off and the child realizes the chores
A•
Submitted photo
involved with pet care, his or her excitement may lose some steam. Stayersays parents should realize that they will most likely have to assist in pet care, even if their child has promised to shoulder the day-to-day responsibility. " Most pets ar e g oing t o b e around for about 10 years, so it's a long-term commitment by the entire family," Stayer said. "Getting a
pet isn't something you should do on a whim." Stayer said if your child is slacking, establish a set pet care schedule that the child can refer to so he or she knows exactly what's expected. This will not only teach what proper care involves, but will also help the child develop a longterm routine. SeeQuestion /D4
When grandparents fill the parentinggap • Bend grandpa works to create support groupfor thosecaringfor their grandchildren,too By Mac McLean The Bulletin
Bill and Meredith Lindsay found themselves in an interesting situation about three months ago when a court gave them custody of their two teenage granddaughters. "All of a sudden we had the responsibilities of being a parent thrust on us all over again," Bill Lindsay said, noting that being the parents of two girls can be a daunting task, especially for a couple in their 70s, like he and his wife. So far, Lindsay said,the experience of raising his two granddaughters has been a positive one. He enrolled them at Cascade Middle School in Bend, where they've been earning good grades,and gave them a chance to learn snowboarding through Mt. Bachelor's Ski or
Ride in 5 program. See Grandparents/D3