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www.theactiveage.com Kansas’ Largest Newspaper
February 2024
Grins and wins
Their beloved coach gone, a softball team plays on
A sleep aid made with cannabis, which is illegal in Kansas.
‘Bandit’ imports cannabis for arthritis, sleep
By Amy Geiszler-Jones Susan, a retired nurse in her 60s, is tired of being what she calls “a bandit” whenever she crosses into Kansas carrying what the state classifies as cannabis contraband. But the gummies have been the only thing that has helped her get nighttime relief from the rheumatoid arthritis she’s lived with for the past 30 years or so. Her husband recalls her saying the morning after she tried
Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Wichita, KS 67276 Permit 1711
See Cannabis, page 7
By Joe Stumpe For years, Denise Johnston’s life followed a familiar pattern. Come spring, she and her husband, Rusty, would start preparing for women’s senior softball tournaments. A roster would be assembled, practices held and the team would travel to tournaments from California to Florida. Denise played and Rusty coached. Their team was known as the P’Nut Batters, for their favorite snack on these road trips. In 2019, Rusty Johnston died after a long battle with multiple sclerosis. Rather than hang up her bat and glove, Denise decided to keep the team going in his honor. There have been only a couple of changes. For one, the team is now called Team Rusty P’Nut Batters. And two, Denise and a handful of longtime teammates are in charge. “It’s a joint coaching thing,” she said. “No way I could do it all.” In truth, honoring her late husband wasn’t the only motivation for keeping the team together. “The beauty of this is not softball,” she said. “This is about love, laughter, fun. Celebrating each other.” But make no mistake, they like softball — and winning. Their most recent victories came in October at the Huntsman World Senior Games
Deanna Polly-Faulkner pounds out a hit for the Team Rusty P’Nut Batters. Below, left to right, team members Karen West, Faulkner, Judy Shideler, Debbie Kendrick (front) and Denise Johnston prepare to fly to a tournament in St. George, Utah.
in St. George, Utah, where they brought home a silver medal in the 65+ age division. "I just love getting back on the field and playing again — the competitiveness of it," said Deanna Polly-Faulkner, who joined in 2022. Women’s senior softball, played by women 45 and older, is enjoyed by thousands of women across the United States, according to Senior Softball-USA. The rules include a few modifications for player safety. For instance, sliding is not allowed, and there are two first bases and two home plates so that runners and fielders may avoid collisions. Rusty and Denise met at West High School, where Rusty played on the school’s powerhouse football teams of the mid 1960s. The couple played in co-ed softball leagues as young marrieds — until Denise remembers him telling her after one play, “I just saw three balls.” He was diagnosed with MS in 1982. The illness eventually ended his 13-year career as a Wichita firefighter, and he went to work at Ray Sales Company, which was started by Denise’s parents, Ray and Nahia Farha. Rustry "kind of fell into" coaching but quickly discovered he loved it, Denise said. The job was complicated See Softball, page 6
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Oh no, not another QR code! Relax, get out your phone
By David Kamerer You’re at a restaurant and have just been seated. But there are no menus in sight. Instead, there’s a square graphic somewhere on the table with black and white dots. It’s a QR code, short for Quick Response code. Invented in the 1990s, these codes proliferated during COVID when we decided to minimize touching physical objects
like menus. But don’t let them rattle you. Instead, follow these steps: 1. Open the camera app on your phone and point it at the code; 2. Wait until the phone recognizes the code (give it a few seconds); 3. Tap on the URL, or web address, that pops up on your screen. This will take you to a web page linked to the code — such as a
See QR Codes, page 8
Questions about services?
Central Plains Area Agency on Aging/Sedgwick County Department on Aging: 1-855-200-2372
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