Commun ty Matters Newton Presbyterian Manor
Apple Blossom Festival makes most of chilly spring evening Thanks to the efforts of countless volunteers, entertainers, employees and sponsors, Apple Blossom Festival 2016 can be counted as another success.
June 2016
‘A World of Possibilities’ Dee Anderson’s brother, Merle Busenitz, moved to Papua New Guinea more than 30 years ago, when he got a job working on airplanes for Wycliffe Bible Translators. At first, they communicated through letters that took weeks to travel between Kansas and the South Pacific.
Premier sponsors of the evening were First Presbyterian Church, St. Luke Evangelical Church, Sutherland Builders and Taco Bell of America.
But thanks to 21st century technology, Dee has been able to talk to her brother face-to-face in real time. A friend is teaching Dee to use Skype, an Internet program that allows you to make free video calls anywhere in the world.
Major sponsors were Alliance Monitoring Technologies and Good Shepherd Hospice, and general sponsorships came from Adrian & Pankratz, PA, Central Mechanical Wichita, Graber’s Ace Hardware, Knudsen Monroe & Co., Hwa Davis Construction, Midland National Bank and Newton Medical Center.
“Until now, email was my only way of connecting,” said Dee, a Newton Presbyterian Manor resident. “With Skype, I didn’t have to plan ahead what I would say.”
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Dee, 62, is part of the growing movement among older Americans to embrace technology in a very personal way. A recent survey by the Pew Research Center showed that 59 percent of Americans age 65 and older were going online by 2013, and the number continues to climb every year. TECH, continued on page 2