Senior Life - Allen County Edition - January 2023

Octogenarians are into

Octogenarians Carl and Kathy Sheehan are into quilting in a big way.

Kathy has been doing it full time for the past eight years. Her quilts are uniquely patterned, colorful and range in size from baby quilts to full-size bed quilts.

Carl utilizes an entirely different medium. They’re made of wood, crafted and painted to look like a quilt. Most of them are 4 foot square and are referred to as barn quilts. The barn on their rural Monroeville property has a number of examples of his handiwork.

Carl admits to stealing some of Kathy’s designs. He added that whenever he sees something that looks interesting on television or Facebook he makes a mental note for future use. He also admits she has some really good designs.

Kathy, a military brat who lived all over the country wherever her father was stationed with the Army, was taught to sew in early elementary school by her mom.

“I started out embroidering and by the time I was in junior high school, I was making my own clothes. As a stay-athome mother raising five children, I took my sewing skills to the next level, operating several businesses from our home to make and install window treatments,” she said.

Back then their living room was for finished product, their dining room was the shipping and receiving department and a bedroom was for sewing machines and production. At that point, they decided it was time to reclaim their house. Carl and four of their sons built a large “she-shed” attachment to their garage, which is where she spends about six hours a day working on designing new patterns and turning out quilts for relatives, friends and occasionally for fundraisers.

“One of my favorite designs is called stained glass,” she said.

Working in Lincoln Life’s quilt preservation section gave her a greater appreciation of quilts and quilting.

“An aunt, my mother-in-law and great-grandmother were quilters. I have one of hers made in 1897 with 1-inch squares of fabric and, of course, hand-stitched. Imagine if I had to hand-stitch my quilts,” she exclaimed. “I’d still be on my

first one.”

Not one to say no to fabric and scrap donations, Kathy has come up with a way to put them to use as stuffing for doggie beds.

Carl, who was born in the house on Grotrian Road, raised grain and 600 head of hogs on the property until retiring in 1998. He spent another 14 years working in local grain elevators before retiring a second time in 2012.

Continued on page 3

Allen County Edition Reaching Fort Wayne And Surrounding Counties

Key Positions

AARP president supports seniors

portation Coalition and the mayor’s advisory council.

Linda Smith Dunno has a key role with an organization that supports seniors. She is the volunteer state president of AARP Indiana.

There is not necessarily a typical day for her. She covers a lot of ground on topics and literally by driving to meetings. “This position can mean anything from three Zoom meetings a week, a local meeting or four days in Washington, D.C., for a regional conference,” she said.

“I average at least one trip to Indianapolis a month. My position serves on the legislative team, which will meet biweekly in Indianapolis the months the Indiana legislators are in session, starting in January. We have been combining live and Zoom options since COVID, so this fluctuates.”

Dunno became involved with AARP about 12 years ago by joining the local Fort Wayne impact team. She has served on several committees, one of which is a cost of service study. She also was president for five years of The Senior Information Fair. She has served on Aging and In-Home Services, Bus Fort Wayne, Active Trans-

“It isn’t something I planned for, but hoped I would get a chance to fulfill,” Dunno said of the position. “You apply for the position and the state staff and regional staff interview and assign the person they feel is best suited for the position. I am starting my second two-year term in January. I had served a total of six years on the executive board of AARP IN before my first term and decided to throw my hat in the ring to continue some projects I wanted to see completed.”

Dunno has two sons, who both live in Fort Wayne, and four grandchildren. Her skills come from a broad background of experiences.

“I have a varied work history of retail ownership, chamber director of my hometown in Ohio and director for two 911 centers in Ohio and a regional dispatch center in Maine, which was my last job I retired from in 2008 to return to Fort Wayne to be with family. My 98-year-old father is still in assisted living in Fort Wayne, one reason I am so adamant about subjects that affect people 50-plus.”

She believes in the work she is doing. Her favorite part

is meeting one on one with people and letting them know the advocacy issues AARP works on. There’s a misconception that the organization

sells insurance and cellphones, which is not the case.

“Whether you depend on Social Security and Medicare or are caring for a loved

one, there are issues decided every year that affect your ability to continue your life in the manner you chose,” she said.

‘JJ’ Shaw, Attorney at Law

Jeff

Corvette Club member enjoys showing off his prize possession

throughout northeast Indiana and participating in car shows.

Being a member of the Fort Wayne Corvette Club is more than getting “oohs” and “aahs” from admiring bystanders, while driving their iconic sports cars in festival parades

According to past president Terry Kummer and his wife, Maryann, it involves a lot of charitable work.

“Our focus is children, seniors and veterans,” he said. Some of the money raised by

and we’ll walk you through it.

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the club goes to Parkview Hospital Oncology Center and half of the funds raised at the New Haven car show is donated to the New Haven Police Auxiliary.

At Christmas, the group provides gifts for Byron Health Community residents. The club is big on supporting veteran activities.

“We attend an annual event in West Lafayette at the veteran’s home, participate in the Memorial Day and Veterans Day parades, donate to the Honor Flight program and have visited and applauded the Veteran’s Memorial on O’Day Road. It’s an awesome tribute to all branches of our armed forces. We have a number of vets in our club.”

Once a year, said Kum-

mer, the club works with the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Ky., and Kentucky State Police for five days to provide funds to send underprivileged kids to Trooper Island Camp for a week. “We give the children gifts, but the most gratifying thing of that event is seeing their smiles when they sit in our cars,” he said.

One of the club’s activities is a call-in request program. Individuals can request a Corvette drive-by. As many as 40 members have responded for a personal drive-by parade. Recently, the club honored a man celebrating his 100th birthday. He watched from his porch as the colorful cars passed by and was presented a photo of the club’s 50th anniversary with

cars arranged to spell “50th anniversary.”

Personal parades have been arranged for cancer patients and sick kids. Club members also take their cars to senior centers and nursing homes so residents can view them and get up close and personal.

“Some members enjoy testing their driving skills at high/ low speed competitions. The one held at Grissom Air Base at Peru involves timed maneuvering through a course of pylons and generates money for the club’s donation fund.”

The Kummers purchased their first Corvette, a model C-3, in 1989 and traded it for a bright yellow C-5 in 2005. After retiring, both from Lutheran Health Network, they joined the Corvette Club in 2012. In the process, they found themselves a whole new set of like-minded sports car enthusiasts and a social calendar of activities and events to keep them plenty busy.

Kummer said he always loved cars, particularly sports cars, but has no mechanical aptitude. Maryann said he makes up for it by “cleaning the heck out of it.” She added, “Some of that obsession has transferred to inside the house.”

Their present car is a 2016 Z-06, 650-horsepower Daytona sunrise orange metallic beauty, which was purchased in midNovember. It will probably not see any road action until next spring.

“That’s a lot of horsepower for a retired guy. It will probably be our last Corvette,” said Kummer. “We bought our first Corvette from Summit City Chevrolet, which is now De Haven Chevrolet. They’ve sponsored the club for many years and that’s where our monthly meetings are held.”

Refereeing women’s basketball past eight years is fulfilling for Sheehan

years and he’s looking at a knee replacement at the end of this season.

Refereeing women’s high school and college basketball for the past eight years has provided a number of benefits for Mathew Sheehan.

It keeps him in great shape, puts some extra spending money in his pocket, takes him to interesting places and is what brought him and his wife, Tonya, together.

“I was refereeing games at Woodburn High School, where she was a coach and teacher. I knew who she was, and I had sort of a crush on her for several years. She was an outstanding high school basketball player, who went on to star at Iowa State. We finally met and have been married for a couple years,” he said.

Sheehan’s star power is pretty good, too. He played baseball at Heritage High School, the Stan Musial League and went on to join a slow-pitch softball team that not only dominated teams in northeast Indiana, but throughout the country. They won the Class A World Championship in Michigan City in 2011 over a team loaded with Olympic softball players. The article in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette on game day read “David Slays Goliath”

“We were big underdogs, but pulled off the victory. It was the highlight of my sports career,” he added.

In 2014, Sheehan, the team’s player and manager, was named to the World Softball Hall of Fame.

“After a career at the top of the softball sports world,” said Sheehan, “you don’t just hang up your spikes and settle into an easy chair in front of the TV. I’d been doing some refereeing of Division I women’s basketball games, found it was a good way to keep active and decided to make it a career change,” said Sheehan.

Last year, he refereed 70 high school games and 40 college games. In November, he did a game almost every day and in December he had two Wednesday nights and Christmas Day off.

“The schedulers know I love to ref and if someone’s sick or can’t make it for some other reason, I’ll do it. In fact, I enjoy it so much that I’ll do any level from middle school to little kids. It’s really rewarding to see their smiles when they sink a basket,” he said.

Sheehan has worked the NCAA finals of the Heartland Conference tournament in Louisville, Ky. He also did the Division III women’s round of 32 and elite eight tournament also in Louisville followed by the elite eight Division III in Holland, Mich.

Sports have taken its toll on his knees. He’s undergone knee surgeries in each of the past six

“It’s not going to stop me,” said Sheehan. “I’ll do the necessary rehab and ride my bike about 1,000 miles this summer to be ready for next season.”

“Refereeing has its downside,” he said. “We’ve all run into some over-the-top coaches and fans, some of whom charge out on the court to show their displeasure with a call and even follow you to the parking lot. One thing I’ve learned is to have a strong backbone and don’t get on their level.”

The Northeast Indiana Athletic Official Association member said, “It’s something that you can’t train for, but something you’ve got to have to survive.”

Fort Wayne History Center

Unless otherwise noted, all events will occur at the History Center, 302 E. Berry St., Fort Wayne. For more information, call (260) 424-4419, email administration@fwhistorycenter. org or visit fwhistorycenter.org.

• A Local Treasure and National Historic Landmark, presented by Robyn Zimmerman, 2-3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 8.

Woodlands Senior Activity Center

The center is located at 710 N. Opportunity Drive, Columbia City. For more information or to make reservations, call (260) 248-8944.

Bible Study w/ Cheryl — 9-10 a.m. every Monday. Exercise w/ Carrie — 1011 a.m. every Friday.

“White Elephant” Bingo — 9:30-10:30 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 5 and 19.

Euchre — 9-10 a.m. every Tuesday and Friday.

Dominoes — Noon to 1 p.m. every Tuesday.

Pixie Bingo — 9:30-10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 4 and 18.

Botanical Conservatory

• Happy Smallidays now through Sunday, Jan. 8, during regular public hours.

• California Dreamin’ showcase exhibit, Saturday, Jan. 14, through Sunday, April 16, during regular public hours.

• Winterval at the Conservatory, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 28, with live ice carving at 10 a.m.

• Tai Chi for Relaxation, 9:30-10:30 a.m. and 5-6 p.m. Tuesdays, Jan. 31 to Feb. 28. Ages 18 and up. Individual garden admission is included.

Registration deadline Tuesday, Jan. 24. Five sessions is $47.

1100 S. Calhoun St., Fort Wayne. $5/adult, $3/children 3-17. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thursday; noon to 4 p.m. Sunday; closed Monday. (260) 427-6550, botanicalconservatory.org.

Fort Wayne Embassy Theatre

125 W. Jefferson Blvd. For information or tickets, call (260) 424-6287 or visit fwembassytheatre.org.

• Nate Bargatze, 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21. Tickets are $46.75 to $105.

• On Your Feet, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 24. Tickets are

$40 to $75.

• Ani Difranco w/ Peter Mulvey & Sistastrings, 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26. Tickets are $45 to $65.

• Masterworks 3 Power and Passion with Higdo and Rachmaninoff, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 28. Tickets are $23 to $81.

Credit scoring scores points

The old saw about the rising young man who was a credit to his community because he owed money to everyone in town takes on a finer edge during these fiscally fatiguing times.

It’s not very fashionable to peek at your credit report right now. A recent survey reveals that almost half the population has no idea what their credit score is.

The biggest stumbling block in the way of understanding your credit situation is not checking your credit score. Second is not understanding what is considered bad credit.

To begin with, it’s been

reported that 25% of credit reports have serious errors that can contribute to a lower credit score. So check your credit score.

Each of the three major credit reporting bureaus – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion – is required to provide you with a free report once a year, so you can space your requests to get a free fresh report every four months.

You can do it online. Just type the name of the agency in your search engine. Review the report and correct any errors immediately.

The tipping point for good or bad credit has been wavering. A 100% score is 850, leading some folks to believe that scoring in the 400 range is pretty

good. Not so. Even a score in the 600 range is not considered healthy.

The difference between a good and bad score is in the eyes of the lender.

Your payment history most likely has the biggest impact on your score. Second comes the amount you owe.

While the world of finance is not closed to those with bad credit, they pay more for interest, fees and the cost of services than borrowers with higher credit scores.

You can learn to live with bad credit. For example, if you have more than one card, keep your charges revolving so you don’t overload one card, which can damage your score.

Mature Life Features Copyright 2022

Apartment Living

Churubusco & Columbia City

Fort Wayne Northeast

This New Year, learn about Social Security online

your free and secure personal my Social Security account at ssa.gov/myaccount. Once you create an account, you can:

account to:

• Get personalized retirement benefit estimates.

Social Security programs touch the lives of more than 70 million people. We work hard to ensure critical benefits and other services are accessible to you.

Consider the start of the new year as an opportunity for you to engage with Social Security online. This begins with creating

• Apply for retirement, spouses, or disability benefits.

• Apply for Medicare.

• Check your application status.

• Request a replacement Social Security number card.

If you do not receive Social Security benefits, you can use your personal my Social Security

• Get your Social Security statement.

• Get estimates for spouse’s benefits.

• Get instant proof that you do not receive benefits.

If you receive benefits, you can use your personal my Social Security account to:

• Change your address (Social Security benefits only).

• Set up or change your direct deposit information (Social Security benefits only).

• Instantly get proof of benefits.

• Print your SSA-1099.

Your personal my Social Security account has a secure Message Center. You can choose to receive the annual cost-ofliving adjustments and the income-related monthly adjustment amount online. Unless you opt out of receiving notices by

mail that are available online, you will receive both mailed and online notices.

Your personal my Social Security account offers easy access to features that save you time when you do business with us online. Check out our other resources available at ssa.gov/ onlineservices for your convenience.

Please share this information with your friends and loved ones who may need it.

Come see Turnpointe Woods Senior Condominiums

Turnpointe Woods was Fort Wayne’s and New Haven’s best kept secret — until now.

Turnpointe Woods is conveniently located off Moeller Road. It is a 55-plus condominium community housing alternative, built to protect your retirement nest egg. One will enjoy full-

deeded ownership of a beautiful new two-bedroom, two full-bath unit with attached two-car garage. The model home is for sale or you can build on any of the 24 open lots. The available floor plans are customizable and feature open/barrier free homes designed for aging in place. They are all individual units for your privacy and enjoyment.

Lawn care, snowplowing and

resident use of the remarkable community activity center are included in the low maintenance fees of $115 per month.

Let us complete a no-obligation market valuation of your existing home to assist you in transitioning to a new forever home. Come see what Turnpointe Woods has to offer. The model home is listed for $234,900 and pricing for a new

home on your choice of lots starts at $229,900.

Turnpointe Woods is an active and friendly neighborhood, conveniently located near shopping, both downtown Fort Wayne and New Haven, walking trails, churches and with easy access to Parkview Hospital. Turnpointe Woods is an attractive community surrounded by environmental natural beauty.

Schedule a visit soon. The model home is at 2898-A

Turnpointe Blvd., north of Moeller Road, New Haven.

It is open 1-3 p.m. Saturday and 1-4 p.m. Sunday or by appointment at your convenience.

Call Century 21 Bradley’s Team 20/20 Amy Allison at (260) 557-6140 or John Hipskind at (765) 460-7622.

— Affirmations may help keep you on track

Make 2023 your best year yet

Kevin David.

Think ahead to what’s coming up in 2023; maybe it’s a reunion, or wedding. Being healthier when that event rolls around is a goal – write it down, post it on the refrigerator where you will see it everyday. Put it right next to your list of GBOMBS from Dr. Fuhrman: Greens, Beans, Onions, Mushrooms, Berries & Seeds which you should strive to eat each day.

Affirmations are exactly that – affirming your action. Many people use daily affirmations to keep on track each day like a nudge, a reminder, a bit of encouragement. Spending just a few minutes at the start of your day can set the pace. The idea being that when temptation to quit arises that you will remember one of your affirmations and realize that this is a fleeting moment that you should not give in to. Every time we try to eat healthily, along comes Christmas, Easter, Summer, Friday, or Tuesday and ruins it for us. Perhaps this would be a good affirmation as we enter into 2023:

Reset…Restart…Refocus…

As many times as you need to. Just don’t quit.

Losing weight is the most common resolution set each New Years Eve. Ideally the resolution should be to get healthy, which means a whole lot of little steps to ensure that you are eating nutritiously each day which will lead to be healthier.

If you don’t like where you are, move. You’re not a tree. Decide what it is you want, write it down and work on it. Every single day.

“Don’t fear failure. Fear being in the exact same place next year as you are today.” —

“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” — Steve Prefontaine.

Keep track to see your progress and to keep yourself accountable to yourself. I use a

100-day calendar, but you can use whatever works for you. I weigh in every Monday, but for the other days I check if I eat completely clean & if I got at least 5,000 steps. As we know, 10,000 steps is the goal, but that doesn’t always happen, at least for me. What I’m looking for is to see if I am actually complying with the way that will lead to a healthier me and taking away the cop-out of ‘this just doesn’t work for me’. It does work, if you work it. Don’t give yourself that out – be addicted to bettering yourself.

Don’t let others derail you. Whether they mean to or not, when people see you making all the good clean food choices, they will tempt you with ‘oh,

come one, just one’, or ‘reward yourself with a treat’. What kind of sense does it make to reward clean eating with a bad food choice. Right, none.

You become what you surround yourself with. Energies are contagious. Choose carefully. Your environment will become you.

Guess what? Jan. 2 is a

Monday, so all the people that start programs on Monday’s can start Jan. 2, 2023. What a year it will be.

Cat Wilson lives in South Bend and transitioned from a vegetarian diet to eating a plant-based diet over two years ago. She may be contacted at cwilson@the-papers. com.

Beth Steury helps adoptees find their roots

Beth Steury’s labor of love for others came to her after a unique experience.

Stuery, who is adopted, researched and found her biological family. Now she is helping others do the same.

“While I always knew I was adopted, I thought little about looking for my biological parents until I discovered I had been found on a doorstep as a newborn, not born in a hospital.

“My heart ached for the girl/woman who felt she had no choice but to abandon her baby. I longed to tell her and anyone else involved that I’d had a good life with great parents. With the results from an Ancestry DNA test, coupled with the expertise and kindness of a ‘search angel’ who specialized in ‘foundling’ cases, we found first my birth mother (deceased) and later my birth father, alive and well with no knowledge of a baby. In a whirlwind of emotional encounters, I met my biological dad and four half-siblings over the next couple of years.”

After finding her own history through someone known as a “search angel,” Steury and her daughter were intrigued and solved another of their “family mysteries” in 12 hours.

“We were hooked and began actively seeking other mysteries to solve,” Steury said.

Now, they will spend anywhere from two to 20 hours a week, depending on the complexity of the case.

Stuery’s faith is part of why she’s motivated to help others.

“Without a doubt, I know God’s hand has been upon my life since the moment of conception,” Steury said. “I always want to be living in the center of his will for my life. Because people matter so very much to him, they matter to me, too. The opportunity to find and connect with my biological family has been incredibly meaningful to me. If I can assist others in discovering the truth about their origins and help them to connect with their biological relatives, I am honored to do so.”

She said people will often wait until their adoptive parents pass away before they search for biological parents.

“Unfortunately, by then, it’s often too late to meet a birth mother or father. As DNA testing has grown in popularity, it has opened so many doors. As word of successful searches and stories of families connecting circulate, more adoptees are nudged to begin their own search. As records slowly open and with the insights provided by DNA testing, there’s never been a better time to pursue a search,” she said.

Steury’s own search and reunion story is chronicled on bethsteury.com under the “A Doorstep Baby’s Search for Answers” tab. She can be reached by email at bethsteury@gmail. com.

“I believe every person has the right to know their biological roots despite how complicated the situation may have been,” Steury said.

She said while several states passed legislation in 2022 to allow adoptees access to their original birth certificates, too many states still provide no access to information for adult adoptees born during the “closed adoption era” of approximately the 1940s to the 1970s and even through the

1980s.

She serves on the executive team of the National Association of Adoptees and Parents. Its mission is to unify the adoption community and elevate diverse voices by promoting dialogue, understanding and

healing through education, awareness and connection.

For Steury, finding that she has a half sister, who is just 11 months older was a special discovery. She said, “She and I both grew up with three brothers, always wanting a sister.”

Library offers variety of programs for seniors

Every month the Allen County Public Library, through its branches around the county, offers educational and entertaining programs of interest to seniors. Following is a sampling of programs at the various sites and via virtual presentation. Some events require pre-registration; register at acpl.lib.in.us (click on “Events”). Call the branches at the numbers listed or visit acpl.lib.in.us and click “Events” for a complete listing.

Main Library

• Not Coming to a Theater Near You — La Familia, 6:308:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 4.

• Learn How to Use a 3D Printer, noon to 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 7.

• Watercolor Society of Indiana Showcase-Reception, 3-5 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 7.

• Mobile Device Safety, 2-3 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 10.

• Craft Cafe, 2-3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 11.

• Creative Canvas — Winter Fox, 6-8 p.m. Tuesday,

Jan. 17.

• How-To Studio — Winter Bird Feeding, 6:30-8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 18.

• All Abilities Club — Let’s Play A Game, 10-11 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 19.

• Movie Night @ the Library, 6:30-8:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 19.

• How to Write Music You Want to Sample, eight-week class beginning 5:30-6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 10, 17, 24, 31.

900 Library Plaza, Fort Wayne. (260) 421-1200.

Aboite Branch

• Tech Time, 2-3 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25.

5630 Coventry Lane, Fort Wayne. (260) 421-1310.

Dupont Branch

• Bingo for Books, 3:30-4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3.

• All Abilities Club — Let’s Play A Game, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 12.

• How-To Studio — Winter Bird Feeding, 2:30-3:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21.

536 E. Dupont Road, Fort Wayne. (260) 421-1315.

Georgetown Branch

• Photographic selections from Angela Green and Jim Gabbard, all day Monday, Jan. 2.

• 3D Printing 101 Workshop — Make a Keychain with your Name, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3.

• Open Maker Lab Hours, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 4.

6600 E. State Blvd., Fort Wayne. (260) 421-1320.

Hessen Cassell Branch

• Talk It Up, 2-3 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3.

• Bingo for Books, 10:3011:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 4.

• Creative Canvas — Bonsai Tree, 7-8:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 9.

• Craft Cafe, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 18.

• All Abilities Club — Let’s Play A Game, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25.

• DIY Home & Garden: Winter Sowing, 7-8 p.m. Monday, Jan. 30.

3030 E. Paulding Road, Fort Wayne. (260) 421-1330.

Little Turtle Branch

• Bingo for Books, 3:30-4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3.

• DIY Home & Garden: Winter Sowing, 11 a.m. to noon Saturday, Jan. 7.

• How-To Studio — Mason Jar Snow Globes, 7-8 p.m. Monday, Jan. 9.

• ACPL Writers’ Forum, 11:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 10.

11:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 23.

2201 Sherman Blvd., Fort Wayne. (260) 421-1335.

Monroeville Branch

• Scrapbooking 101 — Cherish Family, 4-5 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 12 .

• What’s Cooking? Rerun Yummies, 4-5:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 19.

• Floral Design — Winter Wonderland Wreath, 5-6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25.

• Homesteading — Create a Card, 5-6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26.

115 Main St., Monroeville. (260) 421-1340.

New Haven Branch

• Talk It Up, 1-2 p.m. and 6:30-7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 9.

• Sit & Stitch, 6:30-8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 10, 17, 24, 31.

• How-To Studio — Alcohol Ink Jewelry, 1-2 p.m. and 6:307:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 16.

• Cyber Safety — Identity Theft, 1-2 p.m. and 6:30-7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 23.

• DIY Home & Garden: Winter Sowing, 1-2 p.m. and 6:30-7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 30.

648 Green St., New Haven. (260) 421-1345.

Pontiac Branch

• Bingo for Books, 5-6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3.

• Creative Canvas — Bonsai Tree, 10:30 a.m. to noon Saturday, Jan. 7.

• How-To Studio — Winter Bird Feeding, 6:30-8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26.

Friday, Jan. 6.

• Computer Basics, 10:3011:30 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 11.

5600 Noll Ave., Fort Wayne. (260) 421-1355.

Tecumseh Branch

• Bingo for Books, 7-8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3.

• How-To Studio — Frosty Glass Etching, 7-8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 5.

• Floral Design — Winter Wonderland Wreath, 7-8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26.

1411 E. State Blvd., Fort Wayne. (260) 421-1360.

Waynedale

• Open Board Games, 7-8:45 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 10, 24.

• ACPL Book Club, 2-3 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25.

2200 Lower Huntington Road, Fort Wayne. (260) 4211365.

Woodburn Branch

• All Abilities Club — Let’s Play A Game, 3-4 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 4.

• Tech Time, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Friday, Jan. 6, 20.

• How-To Studio — Alcohol Ink Jewelry, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Friday, Jan. 13.

• Cyber Safety 101 — Mobile Device Safety, 10:30-11:30 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 19.

• What’s Cooking? Rerun Yummies, 4-5 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26.

• Floral Design — Winter Wonderland Wreath, 10:30 a.m. to noon Friday, Jan. 27.

Saint Anne Communities 1900 Randallia Drive Fort Wayne, IN 46805 260-484-5555 • www.sacfw.org

• What’s Cooking? — Rerun Yummies, 4-5:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 12.

• Computer Basics, 10:30-

2215 S. Hanna St., Fort Wayne. (260) 421-1350.

Shawnee Branch

• Bingo for Books, 4-5 p.m.

4701 SR 101, Woodburn. (260) 421-1370.

Virtual Only

• Virtual Craft Cafe, 10-11 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 24.

Elder Law

Q. How much money can I gift my children?

A. The Internal Revenue Service is increasing the amount you can gift to an individual in a calendar year. In 2023, you will be able to gift $17,000 without using any of your lifetime gift and estate tax exemption, an increase from $16,000 in 2022. For married couples, you and your spouse can gift $34,000 to any individual in a calendar year. Transfers between spouses do not count against your annual gift tax and lifetime tax exemption.

The 2023 lifetime exemption has increased from $12.06 million to $12.92 million for individuals, and married couples can have a combined lifetime exemption of $25.84 million.

If you gift more than $17,000 to someone in a calendar year, you will not have to pay taxes on the excess above

Bryan San Jose Attorney

$17,000. However, you will need to file a gift tax return with the Internal Revenue Service. The excess gifted amount above $17,000 will be deducted from your $12.92 million lifetime exemption. Please contact an elder law attorney to properly devise your assets.

Professional Forum

Medicare Insurance

Q. Do I have to enroll in Medicare when I turn 65?

A. Technically “no”, but many should, to ensure that their healthcare needs are covered, and to avoid potential penalties laters.

Individuals who continue working past age 65 often have the option of continuing coverage under their Group Health Plan (GHP). If the employer has more than 20 employees on payroll and the plan offered is “creditable”, then the GHP would pay primary to Medicare. In this scenario, enrolling in Medicare could do more harm than good.

Working with a knowledgeable Medicare Insurance professional will uncover the do’s and don’ts associated with Medicare enrollment. At Health Insurance Shop, our staff will go through your personal scenario and help you decide what

steps you need to take to ensure you are enrolled in the most affordable and comprehensive coverage.

Join us for an upcoming Medicare Education session to learn more and get answers to your Medicare Insurance questions. Call us today to RSVP. Our consultation and education services are FREE!

Fort Wayne’s Medicare Enrollment and Education Center

3609 Lake Avenue Fort Wayne, IN 46805 (260) 484-7010 www.buyhealthinsurancehere.com

Senior Relocation

A. Wanting to downsize from your home to a retirement community can be an overwhelming experience. Many times people want to move, but end up not doing so because of the many things that must be done.

A few comments that I have heard over the years include:

1) I have to spend money to fix up my home before I sell it.

2) My attic and basement are full of stuff; I will have to have a garage sale.

3) I have to pack and move all of my belongings.

Looking at this list of concerns would cause anyone to just say “Forget It!”

This is where we can help!

Our services include selling your home

Tim McCulloch, Owner

as-is in 30 days for your price, selling your unwanted items for fair market value, selling your antiques & collectible items, knowledgeable antique & real estate appraisal services, professional packing & moving services, climate controlled storage & more.

Our firm is highly recommended by many of the leading retirement communities in the Allen County area due to client satisfaction.

If you are thinking about making the transition to retirement living, call me at (260) 441-8636. My free analysis will give you the information you will need to make a better decision for yourself!

Sincerely, Timothy McCulloch

Call Us For An Estimate Today (260) 441-8636 Ft. Wayne or (260) 356-4111 Huntington and clean out your junk!

Michelle Walters Executive Vice President

INDEPENDENT LIVING

Natuzzi sofa set is falling apart

warped to one side. The other side is following suit.

Leslie Azor’s new Natuzzi sofa set is coming apart. The company keeps sending a repairman to her home, but so far, he hasn’t been able to fix the furniture. Can she get a refund?

I bought a Natuzzi recliner sofa set last year from a local retailer. After using the furniture lightly for a few months, it was clear there was something wrong with it.

One recliner was completely defective where you feel the metal bar in the footrest. The leather has wrinkled and pushed up the metal pieces because the foam holding it all together is defective. The sofa

The retailer would not replace the damaged recliner and said we had to deal with Natuzzi directly because we didn’t identify the issue the day it was delivered. That was impossible to do.

Natuzzi has twice sent a repairman with stacks of foam to “repair” one of the recliners, and after the second visit, the repairman also requested parts for the other recliner. I have had to wait six months each time for the foam parts and then for the repairman, and he has had to leave both times, unable to fix the recliners because the foam was defective.

Now I have had to wait

again for more foam shipped from China, with no guarantee that it will come when promised or that it will work. This is now a year of waiting with

no end in sight and accepting at best a patch of what was supposed to be an expensive Italian sofa.

The repairman has told us he practically needs to reconstruct all of the inside parts. I have a copy of the back-and-forth emails with Natuzzi — all communication with them has been in writing. I want to close this chapter with them and stop trying to patch a new sofa as if it were 10 years old.

I want them to either fully replace both recliners, with the assurance they will be checked before they are sent to us to ensure they are not defective, or return our money. — Leslie Azor, Miami

Natuzzi should have delivered the quality product it promised, and for which you paid $6,000. Also, the retailer should have stood behind the purchase.

Many retailers have warranties, guarantees or policies that ensure if something happens to your purchase, you can get a quick refund. I think the retailer’s demand you say something upon delivery was unreasonable. I mean, you hardly had time to sit on your new leather furniture before its

warranty expired. Come on!

Natuzzi’s warranty leaves something to be desired. It contains lots of exclusions and doesn’t specify a time frame for repairs. It also appears to be an awkward translation of the Italian warranty. When I read it, I’m not sure what you are — and aren’t — entitled to. It’s just a promise to repair your furniture if something goes wrong.

You did a great job of keeping a paper trail — all the correspondence between you and the retailer. It’s one of the key components of being able to advocate for yourself.

Unfortunately, your case dragged on for too long. The company was not living up to its promise to “create harmony in spaces.” So I reached out to Natuzzi on your behalf.

A representative from both your retailer and Natuzzi contacted you the next day. They offered you a full replacement of the sofa. “You did in one day what I couldn’t in nine months,” you said.

I’m happy to help.

Christopher Elliott is the chief advocacy officer for Elliott Advocacy. Email him at chris@ elliott.org or get help with any consumer problem by contacting him at www.elliott.org/ help.

Some prostate cancer risks are identified

American Cancer Society. So does family history.

Age, diet, race and nationality all play a role in prostate cancer risk, according to the

While the causes of this disease no one likes to talk about are still unknown, statistics reveal 60% of the cases are diagnosed in men older than 60 years.

Asian men are the least likely to contract this disease while African-American are 70% more at risk than white males. It’s also more common in ethnic groups from northwestern Europe and North America than it is among those from Central and South America and Africa.

A sibling or parent with prostate cancer doubles your chances of contracting the disease. Men with a female relative who has contracted or has a high risk of contracting breast cancer also have an increased risk of developing prostate cancer. So do men who have undergone vasectomies.

Reducing the consumption of red meat and high-fat dairy products reportedly reduces the risk, as does eating plenty of fruit and vegetables, such as tomatoes, watermelon and pink grapefruit.

‘Let’s Pull the Job!’ Sinatra joked

Las Vegas takes our money, sure, but what if the tables were suddenly turned and we took their money? Who wouldn’t enjoy that?

In 1958, actor Peter Lawford paid $10,000 for a story idea that a movie-director pal claimed to have heard from a gas station attendant. Lawford then approached his fellow members of the celebrated Rat Pack (the men preferred the more dignified nickname of The Summit), which included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr. and Joey Bishop.

Lawford shared a proposal about using the idea for a heistcaper film set in Sin City. When he heard the concept, Sinatra joked, “Forget the movie, let’s pull the job!”

The Ocean’s 11 plot line became a setup for the five hard-drinking, chain-smoking, dame-chasing headliners to

make whoopee on-screen, which they did with ease and aplomb as they adlibbed many of their lines.

The premise of the gatherthe-guys yarn stars Ol’ Blue Eyes as leader Danny Ocean.

He has assembled a squad of Army-veteran paratrooper pals for a civilian commando raid in Las Vegas on New Year’s Eve. Each participant exudes a different level of passion and each has a personal reason to be involved. One hopes to help his wife stop stripping for a living. Another is terminally ill and wants to provide for his kid’s college tuition. Yet another sees a chance to buy his way out of a mundane life that includes driving a truck.

The plan was to simultaneously cut off the electricity at midnight at five major casinos—the Sahara, the Riviera, the Desert Inn, the Sands and the Flamingo. The thieves would then break into casino cages, stuff $5 million in cash into trash cans, and have one of the raiders drive a treasureladen garbage truck out of town and into hiding. But, to prove that (Hollywood) crime

never pays, one of the 11 scofflaws unexpectedly dies and a monkey wrench is tossed into the mechanism of the “perfect” plan.

Sinatra and Martin earn the lion’s share of screen time together, with Frank once saying, “You know, sometimes I think the only reason I got into this caper was to see you again.”

Cameo appearances weave through the story and include such icons as Shirley Ma-

cLaine, Red Skelton, Angie Dickinson and George Raft.

Filming often took place in Las Vegas in short bursts during the daytime before the superstars appeared on stage to perform for the likes of JFK and other celebrities of the time.

The original Ocean’s 11 became one of Warner Brothers’ most profitable pictures upon its August 1960 release. And while some movie crit-

ics harrumphed that the tale was immoral, most reviewers declared it a romp – and quite a clever scheme.

The original Ocean’s 11 is now a low-tech time capsule that delights to this day and it allows us to appreciate largerthan-life fellows with oversize personalities who try to live life by their own rules.

Check out this classic; it’s one of the reasons we once loved going to the cinema.

Roses only one Pasadena pastime

that feels like a village” a livable locale.

There’s much more to do in Pasadena than smell the roses. Most of the world becomes aware of this town 15 minutes north of downtown Los Angeles when it unveils months of work on blossom-burgeoned floats in the yearly Rose Parade along Colorado Boulevard.

This is a prelude to the granddaddy of all college bowl games: the annual New Years’ Day football festival in the Rose Bowl, where the University of California, Los Angeles Bruins play their home games.

When visitors consider Los Angeles, they envision a melange of movieland, Malibu, Disneyland and Beverly Hills.

Few folks even consider visiting this quiet community that’s as homey as a ’57 Chevy.

You can please both your palate and your psyche in this town that appears, in spots, like it might have been plucked out of the Poconos rather than sequestered alongside the San Gabriel Mountains.

While teasing your taste buds at one of the 500 local eateries — this number should be no surprise when you learn cooking icon Julia Child was born here — you may stumble upon luminaries of stage and big and small screen who have long found this “city

But you can get closer to much bigger stars here. Creative minds at Jet Propulsion Laboratories monitor progress of their historymaking space probes. Reservations are required, but tours of this facility are free. Details for a visit are available at jpl.nasa.gov.

To pleasure your psyche, the Norton Simon Museum offers an intimate walk among works by, among others, Monet, Rembrandt, Rubens, Renoir, Raphael and Degas, including his famous depiction of a young ballerina, “Waiting.” All are within touching distance in this visitor-friendly facility along the Rose Parade route.

While you’re in this part of town, skip over to the Pasadena Museum of History for a quick tour of the 18-room Fenyes House. The mansion echoes how Pasadena emerged out of the Spanish outpost established at Mission San Gabriel by Franciscan Friar Junipero Serra back in 1771.

The community grew after the transcontinental railway reached the sleepy little town of Los Angeles in the 1870s and the region was discovered by a handful of wealthy Midwesterners from Indiana, Illinois and Michigan seeking escape from frigid winters.

The Fenyes House is one of 52 grand maisons built in the late 1800s along “the Boulevard,” a

Millionaires’ Row that included such renowned families as the Wrigleys.

When domestic help all but disappeared after the Second World War, the Boulevard was transformed into Condo Row. These condos are still sought after, so the neighborhood is still called Millionaires’ Row.

It was a millionaire railroad and real estate magnate who established the Huntingon Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens, known simply as The Huntington, in the city of San Marino, a wealthy enclave perched on Pasadena’s southern city limits.

The 207-acre attraction is the legacy of Henry Huntington, who first visited the site in April 1892 and proclaimed it “the prettiest place I’ve ever seen.” He built a railroad spur onto the property to simplify supplying the complex.

The Library, a research center that has been dubbed the Bastille of Books, houses original Shakespeare works as well as Benjamin Franklin’s handwritten autobiography and an original Gutenberg Bible.

On display in the art gallery are several works by Gainsborough, including his renowned “Blue Boy.” A mausoleum built on the grounds was designed by John Russell Pope and used as a prototype for the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Fifteen gardens exhibit botani-

cal eye candy stretching from Chinese and Japanese landscaping to a patch of desert.

It was near a knoll now supporting a rose-festooned Temple of Love where a neighbor’s young lad used to play his war games. The boy grew up to be Gen. George Patton of World War II fame.

Between tours of these and other attractions, such as the Pacific Asia Museum, where some 50 centuries of Asian ceramics are among its exhibits, there’s a wide choice of palate pleasing moments.

Just an interlude away from the Pasadena Playhouse — such household names as Dustin Hoffman and Gene Hackman launched careers here — is

An interesting spot is Café Santorini, which overlooks a small Old Pasadena square that resembles an Italian piazza with its intimacy and informality. The Mediterranean climate and ambience that permeate Pasadena are matched in the menu.

You mustn’t overlook the nouveau-California cuisine mastered at the Twin Palms, an airy eatery originally owned by movie star Kevin Costner that is sheltered under a flowing retractable tent.

After all this activity, you just might want to take a few moments to smell the roses in Pasadena.

ASSISTED, INDEPENDENT LIVING & NURSING CARE

HERITAGE

SWISS VILLAGE, INC.

1350 W. Main St. Berne, IN 46711

Phone: (260) 589-3173 www.swissvillage.org

Duplex Homes, Independent Living Apartments, Residential & Assisted Living, Short Term Private Rehab Suites, Healthcare & Dementia Care, State Of The Art Wellness Pavilion, And Intergenerational Programming

LIFE CARE CENTER OF FORT WAYNE

1649 Spy Run Avenue

Fort Wayne, IN 46805

Phone: (260) 422-8520 www.lifecarecenteroffortwaynein.com

Newly remodeled facility, top-of-the-line service for rehab patients. Rapid rehab program, separate wing with 30 rehab suites — private single bed for short-term patients. Medicare, Medicaid & insurances accepted.

ATTENDANT AND COMPANION SERVICES

THE CEDARS

14409 Sunrise Court

Leo, IN 46765

Phone: (260) 627-2191 www.thecedarsrc.com

Complete Retirement Amenities: Skilled & Intermediate Long Term Nursing Care, Assisted & Residential Apartments, Total Rehab Unit, Villa Of The Cedars With Condominium Homes - “Come To The Country”

HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS, LET US

HELP YOU HELP YOURSELF @ HOME LLC

2478 Lake Avenue, Fort Wayne, IN 46815

Phone: (260) 387-6369

www.homecareisheart.net

Licensed Home Care/Member of IN Assc. Home & Hospice Care

There’s no place like home to receive compassionate care that tends to the whole person. Body, Mind, and Spirit. We have a new approach to In-Home Assistance. We specialize in YOU! And it’s all from the heart. Non Medical attendant and companion services for disabled individuals and older adults. Children as well.

Maison Akira, where French and Japanese cuisine are fused.

Mature Life Features Copyright 2022

AUDIOLOGY

HOME HEALTH CARE

MEMORY CARE

CARTER HEARING CLINICS

1335 Getz Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46804

NORTHEAST: 3136 Goeglein Rd., Suite A Phone: (260) 436-6400 or (877) 436-6401 www.carterhearingclinics.com

• Creating A Higher Standard of Care

• Board certified audiologists by the American Board of Audiology serving Fort Wayne since 1967

• Offices located in Fort Wayne, Auburn, Angola and Decatur.

PROVIDING

• Hearing Evaluations, Hearing Aids, Assistive Listening Devices and Auditory Training

• FREE TRIAL HEARING AID PROGRAM

BRIGHTSTAR

333 E. Washington Blvd.

Fort Wayne, IN 46802

Phone: (260) 918-0933 www.brightstarcare.com/fort-wayne Enthusiastic, kind personal level client care connection, 24/7 support enables clients to check on loved ones. Rigorous caregiver screen/background check ensures optimal security & family peace of mind.

HOME PET CARE

NORTH WOODS VILLAGE AT INVERNESS LAKES

8075 Glencarin Blvd., Fort Wayne, IN 46804

Phone: (260) 420-1866

www.NorthWoodsMemoryCare.com

Fort Wayne’s Premier Licensed Memory Care Assisted Living Community. State-of-the-art, secure community designed and programmed specifically for those with Alzheimer’s, dementia and their families.

PHYSICAL THERAPY

THE HEARING CENTER

Phone: (260) 459-6924 • (800) 555-5402 www.enthearingcenter.com

Four offices located in Ft. Wayne.

Also in Angola, Auburn, Bluffton, Columbia City, Decatur, Huntington, Kendallville, LaGrange, Marion, Warsaw, Wabash and Van Wert, OH.

* Specializing in hearing evaluations, hearing aids, and assistive listening devices.

* Trial hearing aid program.

* We practice excellence, setting the standard for hearing healthcare in Northeast Indiana. “Over 500 physicians refer their patients (and their own families) to The Hearing Center.”

BALANCE AND DIZZINESS

HUMANE FORT WAYNE IN-HOME SERVICES

4914 S. Hanna St. Fort Wayne, IN 46806

Phone: (260) 744-0454 www.humanefortwayne.org

This FREE program helps seniors care for their pets. Services include grooming, walking, waste clean-up, wellness checks, transportation and more.

HOSPICE

HOOSIER PHYSICAL THERAPY

Michael F. Barile, D.C., P.T. 3030 Lake Avenue Fort Wayne, IN 46805

Phone: (260) 420-4400 www.hoosierpt.com

Medicare Assignment Accepted “Personalized Care”

ENT BALANCE CENTER AT Ear Nose And Throat Associates 10021 Dupont Circle Ct. Fort Wayne, IN 46825

Phone: (260) 426-8117, Choose Option 4 www.entfortwayne.com

The Premier Balance Program In The Region, ENT Balance Offers Comprehensive Care For Patients With Dizziness, Unteadiness And/Or Falling Problems. StateOf-The-Art Diagnostic Testing And A Full Complement Of Treatment Options Are Available. We May Be Able To Help You Regain A Steadier View Of The World.

GRIEF SUPPORT

STILLWATER HOSPICE

5910 Homestead Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46814 (260) 435-3222 • (800) 288-4111

Formerly Visiting Nurse, Stillwater Hospice provides compassion, comfort and guidance along life’s journey. We provide palliative and hospice care wherever you call home or in our Hospice Home, the region’s only freestanding inpatient hospice unit. Grief support available for those who go on living. Hospice involvement not required. Locally based non-profit serving the community since 1888. Serving Adams, Allen, Blackford, DeKalb, Grant, Huntington, Jay, Noble, Wabash, Wells and Whitley counties.

MEMORY CARE

FAMILY PRACTICE CENTER

750 Broadway Suite 350 Fort Wayne, IN 46802

Phone: (260) 423-2675

• New Patients Welcome

• Most Insurance Companies Accepted

• Medicare & Medicaid Accepted

• Staffed By Over 30 Family Medicine Residents

• Supervised By Board Certified Faculty

PEGGY F. MURPHY

COMMUNITY GRIEF CENTER

A service of Stillwater Hospice, formerly Visiting Nurse 5920 Homestead Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46814

Phone: (260) 435-3261

Web / email: www.vnfw.org / mail@vnfw.org

Grief counseling in your home or at our Grief Center, grief support groups, grief education programs/presentations — all at no charge.

LIFE CARE CENTER OF FORT WAYNE

1649 Spy Run Avenue

Fort Wayne, IN 46805

Phone: (260) 422-8520 www.lcca.com

Denton Hall, Memory Care Unit

We offer a premier special care unit for those with Alzheimer’s disease or related disorders. We provide a safe, homelike environment to increase and/or maintain each resident’s level of function at its highest sustainable stage.

RELAY INDIANA - INTRAC

7702 Woodland Drive #130, Indianapolis, IN 46278 (877) 446-8722

Problems hearing on the telephone? We provide captioned telephones to assist you to read what the other person is saying. No more garbled or misunderstood conversations. Simply, READ what you’re hearing.

6,000 years of history survive in Egypt

His list of 55 wives and 115 children is pretty impressive, too.

I’m looking over the Nile River from a hotel balcony in Cairo, Egypt — a fantasy land I’ve heard about my whole life. I needed to revel in the moment.

I was about to begin a magical journey through 6,000 years of history. And then accept the hard truth. How do you recapture 60 centuries of history in words? All I can do is let you experience a little bit of Egypt the way I did.

Consider first a stop at the Egyptian Museum as an introduction to the many iconic sites across the country.

Amid the many monochromatic miles lies Sakkara, a sprawling complex of temples, pyramids and crypts. The largest of the many tombs is the Step Pyramid of King Zoser. It is the first pyramid ever to be built, dating back to 2650 B.C.E., and remains the oldest stone structure in the world.

The statue of Ramses II in Memphis that dates back 3,200 years is an intimidating size: about 36 feet tall, and that’s with his legs cut off. Ramses reigned 67 years, the longest of all the pharaohs, and was the most prolific builder of temples.

The Valley of the Kings outside Luxor takes you deeper into the tombs of the most famous of Egypt’s rulers. These pharaohs had their tombs chiseled deep into the sides of desolate cliffs. Because they had been sealed so long, the walls preserved colors to look as if they were just painted. Deeply etched carvings depicted in hieroglyphic symbols describing the journey to the afterlife appear as if they were recently crafted.

Our guide, Hussien, spoke fluent hieroglyphics and could read the walls like a storybook. Thus, we learned of the royal lives of the kings and everyday lives of the villagers from 5,000 years ago. Sort of ironic that our country celebrates the historic lives of the colonists who lived 250 years ago in Williamsburg.

Pyramids have always been a fanciful figment far away and so long ago, but nothing I could personally relate to — until now. Landscapes were reshaped to the ego of the pharaoh to ensure his safe journey into the next life along with all the accoutrements — jewelry, foodstuffs, furniture, chariots,

weapons — he had acquired.

The Pyramids of Giza pretty much define Egypt. No matter what else you see, this probably will be where your mind’s eye returns whenever you look back on the trip.

The Great Pyramid, at 480 feet tall and built more than 4,500 years ago, is the last of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World to still stand. Looking at the 2 million to 3 million massive boulders hauled around the clock from limestone quarries 20 miles away

over a 20-year span, I could imagine the 10,000 workers sweating and straining to create this eternal edifice in honor of the pharaoh Khufu (Cheops).

“Take some time to revel in the history embedded in every block of stone and the incomprehensible size of each structure standing tall in the desert sand,” intoned Hussien.

From afar, the surface of the pyramid looks smooth. As you get closer, you can see the enormity of each stone, several feet in diameter, carefully placed beside and atop the others. To look at the pyramids astride a camel added a whole new level of authenticity not usually associated with standard sightseeing options. As I climbed newly embedded stairs onto the pyramid itself, I wondered if Khufu would take offense.

I was pretty sure I wasn’t

going to be impressed by the size of anything else anytime soon. And then we came to the Sphinx — the inscrutable and mysterious Sphinx, equally as old and carved from almost one piece of limestone. The head of a man and the body of a lion represent the combination of intelligence and strength attributed to the pharaohs.

While our OAT tour took a deeper dive into other ancient temple complexes as well as a taste of Egyptian lifestyle and culture, archaeologists announced they have uncovered yet another trove of ancient artifacts at the necropolis of Sakkara, including mummies and bronze statues dating back 2,500 years.

I suspect that will continue to be true for quite some time. After all, it’s been going on for 6,000 years.

Mature Life Features Copyright 2022

South Beach art deco —

A national treasure to be seen

The demise of art deco has been greatly exaggerated. It’s alive and well and headquartered in Miami on South Beach. Examples of this style of architecture proliferate in a host of hotels along the main streets of Ocean Drive and Collins Avenue. In fact, of the 1,200 buildings in the area, 850 are in the art deco style. Art deco’s roots can be traced to the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale de Arts Decoratifs et Industreis Modernes and was the hottest

topic there. It was sure to completely change the architectural world and did become popular in Europe and the USA. One of the signature structures of the art deco style, though not in Florida, is the iconic Chrysler Building in New York City.

The premise was actually quite simple. The design of the exterior of the front was based on a triad. Both sides were symmetrical and the center section soared from the entrance to, in many cases, above the roofline and generally encompassed a decorative element, like zigzags, chevrons, sunbursts, fluting or banding. It was all to be accomplished in a streamlined style that would create a sleek, anti-traditional elegance symbolizing wealth and sophistication.

South Beach was destroyed

by a hurricane the year after the Paris Exposition. The reconstruction was done in the art deco style. The hotels were indeed elegant and the tourists flocked to Miami to enjoy the beach.

Another calamity struck South Beach and the entire country in 1929. This is when the bottom fell out of the stock market and fortunes immediately disappeared. Tourists no longer had funds for Florida vacations and many of the hotels failed from lack of occupancy.

Then along came World War II and the country’s focus was on other things. Art deco was considered to be too gaudy and ostentatious for wartime austerity. After the war, promoters attempted to secure loans to spruce up the hotels, but banks weren’t taking the bait and rich financiers were few and far between. Surprisingly, the money to rebuild South Beach to its earlier elegance came from the mob.

The art deco period ended up spanning the Roaring 1920s, the Great Depression of the early 1930s, through the war years and into the early 1950s. South Beach today is considered a national architectural treasure. The buildings have been carefully restored as close to the original look as possible.

When visiting South Beach, you will be able to tell art deco buildings from newer structures by their distinctive triad-style facade and some of the other little touches that distinguish them. Their pastel

colors give the neighborhood a stately, bright, clean appearance. Be sure to step inside some of the hotels where you’ll find art deco designs incorporated in the marble lobby floors, their wall decorations and even the registration desk.

Two-hour walking tours of the historic district get you up close and personal with art

deco, which was sometimes referred to as the “style moderne.” You’ll also learn that the style also extended into fashion, furniture, fine arts and decorative arts. Be sure to see the neighborhood at night when they’re beautifully lit. Unfortunately, the ocean can’t be seen from Ocean Drive because of a tall protective dune.

Health care, Medicare and a fixed income

out-of-pocket, so you know what you might have to pay if you have a lot of expenses in a given year.

The “golden years” shouldn’t be a time of life worrying about medical bills and having to choose between paying a doctor or paying the electric bill.

Choosing the type of Medicare health insurance coverage is often the first step in avoiding this type of dilemma. I recommend looking at the big picture.

Many Medicare beneficiaries migrate to Medicare Advantage plans, because some have $0 premium (not including Medicare Part B premium). As they use health care, they co-pay for most services. Unlike original Medicare, Medicare Advantage plans provide a maximum

On the flip side, some beneficiaries choose to pay a monthly premium and enroll in a Medicare supplement plan along with a stand-alone prescription drug plan to cover their meds.

Original Medicare qualifies and reprices the claims, then pays their portion. The balance is sent to the Medicare supplement plan for further payment.

Depending upon the plan, some Medicare supplement plans require very little payment for health care services in the calendar year.

When trying to decide which makes more sense, I often recommend annualizing the premium and adding in the

“worst case” out-of-pocket costs or exposure. I’m not a fan of gambling, so I would choose the option that presents the least amount of risk to my budget. Either way, there is no wrong answer.

Aging into Medicare or simply want to learn more about the options? Attend one of our Medicare education sessions each second and third Thursday beginning in January. To reserve a spot, call (260) 484-7010.

Some prostate cancer risks identified

Age, diet, race and nationality all play a role in prostate cancer risk, according to the American Cancer Society. So does family history.

While the causes for this disease that no one likes to talk about are still unknown, statistics reveal that 60% of the cases are diagnosed in men over 60.

Asian men are the least likely to contract this disease, while African-Americans are 70% more at risk than white males. It’s also more common in ethnic groups from northwestern Europe and North America than it is among those from Central and South America and Africa.

A sibling or parent with prostate cancer doubles your chances of contracting the disease. Men with a female relative who has contracted or has a high risk of contracting breast cancer also have an increased risk of developing prostate cancer.

It’s been revealed in some surveys that men who have undergone vasectomies face increased risk also.

Diet can lower the risk. Reducing consumption of red meat and high-fat dairy products is a good first step. And eating plenty of fruit and vegetables, such as tomatoes, watermelon and pink grapefruit, is also believed to lower the risk.

New Year’s Day — 1944: Baer Field WWII

It’s quite interesting that the Baer Field Beacon newsletter was published and became available to the GIs on “Saturday, Jan. 1, 1944, Fort Wayne, Ind.”

Printed before the actual first day of the new year, this January 1 issue of 1944 reported the happenings of December 1943. One line at the end of the “Civilian Chatter” column that should have been at the top and in bold print were the words, “Happy New Year everyone.” Additionally, the editor made this wish: “Make the kind of New Year’s resolution you know you can keep.”

The “WACTIVITIES” column reported that “Xmas is over but the spirit will live on in the memory of the WACs as this was the first Xmas in the service for many of us.” And from the girls: “Thanks are due to everyone who helped make us happier.”

Beacon’s newsletter editor, Cpl. William J. Wilkir, and the staff writers, informed the GIs of some great news in the Saturday, Jan. 1, 1944, New Year’s Day issue. Just a few days before, Aubrey Dee, the daughter of Mrs. Viola Childrey of Fort Wayne, became the wife of T/Sgt. Emmett Brummell. Their wedding was performed in the base Catholic Chapel at 4 p.m. on Dec. 22 by “Chaplin Burke,” and a cakecutting ceremony followed in the base reception center.

Baer Field’s GIs were also informed that Pfc. Louis Christ and Ilene Moore of Fort Wayne were also married by Rev. Charles Byrt of St. Paul’s Church. The bride was the daughter of Mrs. Helen Goodman of 2021 1/2 Winch St.

We trust the New Year went well for everyone.

Any information welcome to: Dr. Greg Lawson, 1801 E. 3rd St., Mishawaka, IN 46544. Lawson is a long-time writer laureate of area history and human interest stories.

A new year, a new beginning

Stay positive as you downsize or are planning to downsize this year. These tips will help you.

Take time with your treasures. As you declutter, allow enough time to thoughtfully go through your belonging and enjoy the memories associated with them.

Do a trial run. If you’re looking at an assisted living facility or a 55-plus community, many will let you stay for a few days to try it out. Knowing where the amenities and common areas are will help you acclimate faster.

Focus on what you’re gaining, not what you’re losing. Change is

always hard and there will be tough days. Try to think about how your life will improve. Think of all the extra time you’ll have to enjoy your days and family instead of cleaning, working or trying to find things.

Enlist help. Even if you hire a professional moving manager, there is a lot detail in downsizing. One might need help with tasks, like reviewing contracts, negotiating rates, site visits or vetting storage facilities. Even processing belongings with friends and family can bring a lot of laughter and new memories.

Make plans to see people. If you’re moving, set some concrete dates to meet or chat with friends. Familiar faces and staying busy

can help speed up the acclimation process.

Join classes and clubs ahead of time. Being part of a group of like-minded people helps stave off loneliness and anxiety. If you’ve signed a contract, be proactive and enroll in activities you look forward to participating in.

At Ness Bros. Real Estate and Auctioneers Senior Relocation program, we are here to help you every step of the way.

Contact our relocation specialists at (260) 459-3911 (Fort Wayne office) or (260) 356-3911 (Huntington office).

We look forward to assisting you this year.