Community Center’s Downtown Ramblers have just four more Wednesdays to explore places in the Summit City’s core. After Oct. 25 the program, which has been going on for more than 10 years, will take a hiatus until next April when they’ll again set out from the center at 233 W. Main St. on educational excursions.
Jenny Keltsch has been Ramblers’ volun-
teer coordinator for the past five years.
“It’s more than an educational experience. Sometimes, we just take an hour-long walk around downtown and enjoy the activity, architecture, sunshine and fresh air. In the process, we get some exercise, too. We’ve become a family, and we enjoy and appreciate one another. Some participants have been taking the walks for the past decade.
Bruce Lehman was encouraged to join the group by his wife, Sandy, who has been attending for the past eight years.
“We’ve met a lot of great people and look forward to Wednesdays and another adventure,” said Sandy.
Eric and Elaine White moved to Fort Wayne from California in 1994. They have found that the weekly walks have helped them learn a lot
about downtown that they hadn’t realized was here.
Fort Wayne natives Linda Stabler and her sister, Cindy Hadon, have found that the city is always changing and the weekly walks are a good way to keep up with what’s happening. The two both worked in the downtown for many years. They’ve enjoyed the walks and the educational experiences for the past several years.
The group has visited local eateries, strolled around Promenade Park, toured the new apartments across from Promenade Park, been shown through Parkview Field, stopped to smell the flowers in the park department’s greenhouse at Lawton Park, marveled at the grandeur of the Embassy Theater and learned how a newspaper is produced at the Fort Wayne
Continued on page 3
Solomon Farm on Dupont Road, next door to the YMCA, is unique among the Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation Department’s many properties. That’s because it’s actually a working farm. In fact, it may be one of just a handful within the city limits.
Despite the fact that the park’s activities and programs are well publicized in the parks department’s “Fun Times” publication and on its website, Larry Hicks, supervisor of Solomon Farm Park, said it “may be one of the best kept secrets in northeast Indiana.”
Hicks, who has been farm supervisor for the past two years, points out that the farm has 30 acres of corn and soybeans, nine acres of flower gardens, eight Nigerian goats, three sheep, some mini pigs, rabbits, chickens, a mini horse and, the most recent arrivals and stars of the menagerie, two mini highland cows.
“Since we have just a parttime rental coordinator, a program coordinator, four seasonal employees, three main-
tenance/agriculture workers and me,” said Hicks, “we rely heavily on volunteers. We have a small, dedicated corps of volunteers who come in twice a week to care for our flower gardens and a whole bunch of people who like to work with the animals.
“There’s no entry fee to come into the park, walk the trails, visit the animals or admire our colorful flower gardens.”
Solomon Farm, however, is a little different than the rest of the parks in the system.
“We’re basically self-supporting through rentals of our facilities for weddings, educational meetings, seminars and workshops, and parents pay a fee to have their children attend our summer kid’s camps. About 150 youngsters participated this past summer.
“I’m particularly proud of our flower gardens. The volunteers work hard at making the beds look good. Beginning at the end of July through the end of the season, we hold upick flower days when people can stop in Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays and choose flowers to take home for a small fee.
“We served two, four-course
dinners in the flower field last month that required reservations and cooking classes, which are held in the learning center,” Hicks said.
Other fundraisers include Christmas on the Farm with Santa and lights and decorations everywhere, which costs visitors a $5 entry fee. Reservations are required for the second annual presentation of Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” which will be held Thursday, Nov. 30 through Sunday, Dec. 3 in the Old Barn.
Born and raised on a farm near Columbia City, Hicks first worked as a part-time employee at Solomon Farm in 2018. When COVID-19 hit and everything closed down, he and his wife, Janelle, headed to Minnesota to operate a condo complex on Lake Superior frequented by hikers and then ran a lodge in the Sierra Nevada Mountains before being hired back by the parks department as farm supervisor in 2021.
“To come back to Solomon Farm was always my dream,” said Hicks. “There’s no better place to be.”
The 170-acre park also includes the lake in front of Dupont YMCA, and was
deeded to the parks department in 1996. It had been owned by the Solomon family since 1871. It’s open year-
round from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Persons interested in becoming a volunteer can contact Hicks at (260) 702-7102.
Senior Life would like to include pictures and information on those persons celebrating 40 years of marriage or more. In addition to including your names, address, date of marriage, children and date of
Continued from page 1
Newspapers building on Main Street.
An authentic, deli-style corned beef sandwich in Fort Wayne? You bet.
This once-a-year opportunity is Thursday, Oct. 19, when Congregation Achduth Vesholom celebrates its 21st annual corned beef on rye meal. The fundraiser is from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Temple, 5200 Old Mill Road, Fort Wayne.
This is a chance to enjoy an authentic Jewish deli-style luncheon featuring a heaping one-third pound corned beef on rye sandwich, a giant pickle, creamy coleslaw, a fudge brownie, and a drink. Boxed meals are $18 each, if ordered by Friday, Oct. 6. After that date and at the door, the price is $21.
This year’s sale will be drivethru service only, both for preorders and same-day sales.
With an order of 12 or more lunches, the order will be delivered for $15 per local address. Must have payment for delivery orders by Friday, Oct. 6.
Order forms are available at www.templecav.org. Phone orders can be placed by calling (260) 744-4245 (credit card only) or order online.
Surprise office staff with
There are a couple of persistent myths in circulation regarding how your Social Security benefits are based. Introduce the topic and you’re almost certain to hear that your benefits are based on your income over your last three years in the work force, or on your five highest-earning years.
Both are wrong.
Social Security analysts review your income and base your benefits on your highest 35 years of earnings.
Mature Life Features Copyright 2023
something different, entertain clients in a fun and tasteful way, or just treat yourself. Proceeds from this fundraiser help support programs at the Temple.
“Normally, we meet at the Community Center a little before 11 a.m.,” said Keltsch, “and are back by noon. Sometimes we meet off-site and walk through some of the area parks and often we learn from guest experts. When I started as coordinator, there were only six or seven participants. Now we sometimes have as many as 30. Since we’ve been doing this for so many years,” she added, “we’re running
celebration tell us something about you and your spouse.
Send us your anniversary information and photo by the 20th of every month.
Anniversary information should be e-mailed to dpat-
terson@the-papers.com, or mailed to Senior Life, P.O. Box 188, Milford, Indiana, 465420188. If you include a selfstamped addressed envelope, we will be glad to return your photo.
out of new places to visit.
“It’s not necessary to fill out an application to become a Rambler,” said Keltsch. “Just show up at the Community Center around 10:45 a.m. on Wednesdays with comfortable walking shoes and $2. We depart at 11 a.m. and are back to the center around noon”
About 20 walked to Skyline YMCA on the ground floor of Skyline Plaza on Harrison Street Sept. 13, to learn about fitness programs for seniors and see the array of state-of-the-art work-out
machines. After explaining the equipment, membership enrollment specialist Maddy Fletter took the group to the sixth-floor roof garden, where some of the yoga, dance and boot camp classes are held during good weather.
Most of the walkers had not been to the garden before and were impressed by lush grass, beautiful flower beds and bushes along the concrete walkways. The nearly block-long garden afforded the walkers a good overview of downtown.
a beautiful display of framed artwork. What kind of artwork, exactly?
Peg Parker is 96, and in that many years you develop a lot of interests and talents. She has done exactly that. If you walk into her apartment, you’ll see
Poetry. Parker explained she’s not really interested in poetry, necessarily.
“I’m not sure how I started collecting old framed poems. But,
I did enjoy antiquing and I would see so many different framed poems and after a while I had collected over 75 of them,” Parker said.
The poems cover all sorts of topics, like love and family.
“But I think the most I have are on the subject of mothers. Most often, I bought the framed poems because I like the artwork or the frame more than the poem itself. I have so many that I covered an entire powder room in them,” she said.
When she moved into a Garden Home at Coventry Meadows, she covered her sun room in them.
“Now,” she said, “in my smaller unit, I have downsized to a dozen favorites. But, the rest are still at my daughter’s house for safekeeping.”
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Parker continued, “Another type of artwork I liked to look for when antiquing — or junquingas we liked to call it — were called yard-longs, which were too expensive to collect, but fun to look for.”
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Panoramic pictures, commonly called yard-long photos, became popular in the early 1900s and were a craze during World War I. They remained popular through the 1960s and are still being made today.
“There are so many beautiful frames, but my favorites are crossed-corner frames, and I’ve accumulated many of them,” said Parker.
Another hobby that has fallen in and out of fashion countless times — a lot of celebrities speak of this as a way to pass time on
set — is knitting. Parker loves it, too.
“One of my favorite creative hobbies is knitting Christmas stockings for my family and friends,” Parker said. “I have knitted 129 stockings in various patterns over the years. I recently had to give up that hobby as it has become too difficult. But I get cards and photos all the time from people enjoying their stockings, which makes me happy.”
There is no question that those stockings become lifelong keepsakes. You can’t look at the intricacy and not think of the hands that so carefully formed every single stitch.
“Lately, my interest is in
small-town newspapers because when I was middle school age I, along with my sister and four neighborhood friends, developed, published, and delivered a neighborhood newspaper called The Kendall Kids in Massillon, Ohio. We had great fun with this,” she said. “I very much appreciate the value of small-town news. The journalists at this publication and others sincerely hope that there’s some carefully saved copies out there somewhere.”
It’s a sure bet Parker will continue to stay happily, creatively busy, for all of her remaining days, and what an inspiration she is. Now, where’d I leave my knitting needles?
I’m a big “60 Minutes” fan. I remember watching the premier show in 1968. The producer of that show was Don Hewitt, an alumnus of New Rochelle High School, where I graduated in 1965. The high school has a list of famous graduates. Don is listed along with 29 other people. I must have been number 31 because I couldn’t find my name.
This past week, “60 Minutes” did a show about artificial intelligence. The story focused on how some of these AI programs can mimic someone’s voice and be used to trick people into sending money or giving out personal information over the phone. This freaked out my wife, who is very concerned about having her identity stolen. She is not
worried about my identity being stolen because to quote Mary Ellen, “I don’t think anyone would want to be you.”
She is very paranoid about this kind of stuff. She shreds everything, convinced that people will riffle through our garbage to find vital information.
“Mary Ellen, why are you shredding our junk mail?”
“Dick, I don’t want people to know our address.”
“Well, if unsavory people are going through our trash at the curb, they can figure out where we live, because we live right behind the trash.”
Now, as a result of the “60 Minutes” story, she has heightened concerns about privacy. I called her the other day to ask a question.
“Hi, Mary Ellen. It’s Dick. I need your social security number to fill out a form here at the bank.”
There was a pause on the phone… a long one.
“Hmm, when you call you never say, ‘It’s Dick.’ You always say ‘Hi, it’s me.’ Now, who is this?”
“It’s your husband. Now, can you give me the social security number, please?”
“I have a couple of questions before I give out this highly sensitive information. What is your brother’s name?”
“Peter, of course.”
“Where were you born?”
“New Rochelle, N.Y. Look, if this is some kind of an IQ or memory test, you need to make the questions a lot tougher.
“This is my way of checking if it’s really you. With all the new technology available, a crook could be calling me and making his voice sound like yours.”
“Okay, Mary Ellen, you may ask one more question. Make it a good one.”
“Okay, Dick — or whoever you are — when we got married, we stayed in a magnificent vacation spot in Big Sur, California. You said it was the most romantic, glorious hotel you had ever been in. It was a weekend you would never forget. What was the name of the hotel?”
“I don’t have a clue.”
“Oh, good; it’s definitely you. My number is 897-006-0000.”
Paula Henry is proof not all heroes wear capes. Her running shoes are her trademark accessory, and friends call her “Wonder Woman.”
When she isn’t competing on an international stage in marathons, Henry teaches fourth grade at Most Precious Blood School in Fort Wayne. On Sunday, Oct. 8, she’ll be competing in the Chicago Marathon.
Henry, 54, has been running in competitions since high school, where she specialized in hurdles. She also ran at Huntington University and threw the javelin, but her path has not always been smooth.
“I never imagined that it would turn into a lifelong hobby,” she said. “I had some health problems in my 30s which prevented me from training as much as I wanted to. In my 40s, I started to see that I could run more weekly miles than I previously thought was healthy for me.”
She started running 50-plus miles a week and began seeing results as her marathon times started dropping.
“It became a game. Just
how much more was in me? I started running with younger and faster people and grew in more ways than just running. It forced me to take risks in a good way. Life is short,” she said.
Many want to finish a marathon. Henry strives for more, and she lifts weights for strength.
She ran the New York City Marathon in 2016.
“I said I would take it easy, but I had a wish of finishing in the top 25 in my age group, at the time,” she said. “I placed 26th. I was thrilled. We did all the things on the days before the race, including seeing ‘Phantom of the Opera’ on Broadway.”
There is a ranking system for runners at Henry’s level.
“I don’t know exactly my current ranking, but I’ve qualified for the Wanda Age Group Championship award race for 2023, based on my times in marathons in 2022,” she said.
“Basically, about 200 people are invited from each age group. I am in the 50 to 54 age group.”
She has run the Boston Marathon twice and qualifies to run it every year.
“The feeling of running up
Heartbreak Hill is a high like no other and you’re feeling good when you get to it,” she said. “I seem to always finish in the top 1-2% of female runners regardless of the race size. If anything, I place higher now than when I was younger, even though I’m starting to slow down a bit.”
Although her husband, Bob, doesn’t run, he’s there to feed her well at breakfast, and give her a great meal for recovery after she finishes, among other ways he helps. He will sometimes go fishing when he goes along for a race. Julie Dinger has run many races with her. Henry has also raced a marathon with Dinger’s daughter, Jessica, and has trained with another friend’s 12-year-old girl.
Henry said, “It’s a great honor, I believe, and so fun to have a conversation with the next generation of runners.”
She’s not so friendly with her competitors.
“I just love pushing myself and chasing down my opponents,” Henry said. “I tend to start easier than most, and gradually pick off my competition. I have two nicknames: ‘The Negative Split Queen’ and ‘Wonder Woman.’”
Most travelers share a common problem. They pack too much.
They might take few tips from traveling business people, those office-bound middlemanagement employees who used to bounce from desk to airport to attend regional staff meetings or make sales presentations or soothe dissatisfied clients.
Many found a single briefcase was enough to contain an extra pair of socks for over-
night stays. They wore a washable shirt and underwear. If they spilled something on their tie, they just bought another one.
Luggage makers offer an array of lightweight bags with straps and wheels and exterior pockets and zippered pouches designed to let you take all sorts of items from your closets and bathroom cabinets when you leave home. That may be fine if you’re hitting the highway or sea lanes, but it’s not conducive to comfortable flying.
Start by getting an easyto-carry backpack, tried and
true travelers recommend. One that will hold your medications handily, then have enough room for an extra pair of socks, underwear, shorts, and T-shirt or two. Wear a comfortable pair of shoes, slacks, jacket and tennis hat that don’t have to be packed. Always hang onto your pack so it doesn’t get ripped off. Keep your credit cards, passport, sunglasses, pocket knife, and cellphone in your pocket. Get a leash for your glasses so they’ll hang around your neck when you take them off.
Mature Life Features Copyright 2023
ing benefits on your own Social Security record.
We continue to make it easier for you to access our programs and benefits. Our website offers a convenient way to apply for benefits online.
Here are five ways you can apply for benefits using ssa. gov.
Retirement or Spouse’s Benefits — You must be at least 61 years and 9 months and want your benefits to start in no more than month months. Apply at ssa.gov/retirement. Disability Benefits — You can use our online application, available at ssa.gov/benefits/ disability to apply for disability benefits if you:
• Are age 18 or older.
• Are not currently receiv-
• Are unable to work because of a medical condition that is expected to last at least 12 months or result in death.
• Have not been denied disability benefits in the last 60 days. If your application was recently denied, our online appeal application is a starting point to request a review of the determination we made. Please visit ssa.gov/apply/appeal-decision-we-made.
Supplemental Security Income –— SSI provides monthly payments to adults and children with a disability or blindness who have income and resources below specific financial limits. SSI payments are also made to people age 65 and older without disabilities who meet the financial quali-
fications. If you meet certain requirements, you may begin the process online by letting us know you would like to apply for SSI at ssa.gov/ssi. If you do not have access to the internet, you can call your local Social Security office to make an appointment to apply.
Medicare — Medicare is a federal health insurance program for:
• People age 65 or older.
• Some people younger than 65 who have disabilities.
• People with end-stage renal disease or Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
If you are not already receiving Social Security benefits, you should apply for Medicare three months before turning age 65 at www.ssa.gov/medicare.
Extra Help with Medicare Prescription Drug Costs — The Extra Help program helps with the cost of your prescription drugs, like deductibles and copays. People who need assistance with the cost of medications can apply for Extra Help atssa.gov/medicare/partd-extra-help. Share this information with those who need it.
Medicare and Medicaid are often confused so allow me to provide a quick definition for both.
Medicare is a federal program that provides health insurance for seniors and other individuals that qualify due to certain health conditions.
Medicaid is a state program that provides health care coverage for individuals with financial need and/or who qualify due to certain health conditions.
Under the Medicaid program, when an individual becomes entitled to Medicare, the traditional Medicaid health care
coverage (HIP in Indiana) must end. If the individual would otherwise continue to qualify for Medicaid, he or she would want to establish themselves as a Qualified Medicare Beneficiary status with the state in order to continue receiving health care coverage through the Medicaid system. Because this same individual is now entitled to Medicare, payment for their health care services would be coordinated between both Medicare (federal) and Medicaid (state) programs. Individuals who are entitled to Medicare and have QMB status are referred to as “dual eligible” Medicare beneficiaries.
Dual eligible beneficiaries also have access to special Medicare Advantage plans
that often provide additional benefits that are not covered by either Medicare or Medicaid (some prescription drugs in particular).
These plans are referred to as Dual Special Needs Plans or D-SNP. Health care coverage under a D-SNP plan generally requires the enrolled beneficiary to pay low or no cost for their health care services, low or no plan premium, provides assistance with prescription drug costs and assistance with Part B premium.
If you are entitled to Medicare and also receive Medicaid and want to learn more about D-SNP plans, give us a call to meet with one of our agents. We are happy to answer your questions. Call (260) 484-7010.
customed to bedtimes shortly after the evening news.
Thursday – afternoon tea.
Save on Socializing Partying into the wee hours of the morning is something of the long ago for most seniors as they become ac-
Hosting nighttime festivities for friends and family decreases as a result, so why not invite everyone over for Sunday – or Saturday – brunch. Or Tuesday – or
You’re likely to get better responses since everyone will be able to drive home in daylight.
You’ll also probably save money on the food and refreshments since your guests will likely down less wine with the array of less expensive finger food you prepare for them.
Another Senior Scam Crooks have been focusing on health fairs that are increasing in popularity among the growing seniors crowd.
Scammers offer free genetic screening. All they need, they say, is a cheek swab and your Medicare number to pay for the screening.
The crooks then bill Medicare several thousands of dollars, which it normally rejects, and the person being screened is billed.
If you feel you could use or would benefit from genetic screening, take up the matter with your family doctor.
A. The short answer is “NO”. However, if you do not at least look at the options every year, you could be missing out on some extra benefits that your current plan may not offer.
The Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) that begins October 15th and ends December 7th is designed to allow Medicare Advantage members to compare their current carrier plan against others that are available in their service area for the following calendar year. Each and every year, the various Medicare Advantage sponsors make changes within the plans to set their option(s) apart from their competitors. When there is competition, this
generally means that the consumer wins! Changing your Medicare Advantage plan is your choice. We certainly recommend reviewing the options so you have the ability to make an informed decision. Have question? Give us a call. Our consultation and education services are FREE
Editor’s note: Send listings of events, for nonprofit organizations only, to Senior Life, P.O. Box 188, Milford, IN 46542, or email Editor Phoebe Muthart by the 20th of each month, pmuthart@ the-papers.com. With the listing, include the contact person, area code and phone number.
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Woodlands Senior Activity Center
The center is located at 710 N. Opportunity Drive, Columbia City. For more information or to make reservations, call (260) 2488944 or visit whitleycountycouncilonaging.com/senior-citizenscenter.
Euchre — 9-10 a.m. every Tuesday and Friday.
Dominoes — Noon to 1 p.m.
every Tuesday.
Movin’ & Groovin’ w/ Nate
— 1-2 p.m. and 5-6 p.m. every Wednesday.
Pixie Bingo — 9:30-10:30 a.m.
every other Wednesday.
Afternoon Euchre — 1-2 p.m.
every Monday and Wednesday.
Bible Study w/ Cheryl — 9-10 a.m. every Tuesday.
Board Meeting — 9-10 a.m.
Monday, Oct. 16.
Line Dancing — 9-10 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Mahjongg — 3:30-4:30 p.m.
Monday, Oct. 23.
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Monroeville Lions Club will host a pulled-pork dinner at 11
a.m. until gone, Sunday, Oct. 8. This is a drive-thru event only. It will be held at Monroeville Fire Station, 205 W. South St., Monroeville. Menu includes pulled pork, baked beans, coleslaw, and a cookie. Cost is $10 per dinner. Pork is prepared by Doc’s BBQ. This is a fundraiser to benefit Heart Beat of Hoagland Foundation.
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All-you-can-eat fish fry and pork tenderloin, sponsored by Fort Wayne Maennerchor/Damenchor, will be at Park Edelweiss, 3355 Elmhurst Drive, Fort Wayne. It is from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 13 and Friday, Nov.
3. Cost is $13 adults, $6 children. The meal is also served with scalloped potatoes, coleslaw, dessert and coffee. Full-service bar available with German and domestic beer, wine and other beverages and soft drinks; carry-out is available.
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Settlers’ Log House Candlelight Harvest Dinner is from 5-8:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 13, and Saturday, Oct. 14. Dinner will be in the 1849 Log House at the Historic Swinney Homestead, 1424 W. Jefferson Blvd., Fort Wayne. Cost: $50/person, pre-paid with reservations by Sunday, Oct. 1 by calling (260) 432-7314 or (260) 432-4232; doors open at 5 p.m. and dinner served at 5:30
p.m. A table seats four; limited seating. Park by the tennis courts. Proceeds from this event support the maintenance of the Historic Swinney Homestead. Visit settlersinc.org.
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Emmanuel Lutheran Church (Soest), 9909 Wayne Trace, Fort Wayne, will host a rummage and bake sale from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 19, and from 8 a.m. to noon Friday, Oct. 20. Friday is a bag sale. The church is located southeast of the I-469/ Wayne Trace overpass, at the corner of Wayne Trace and Emmanuel Road.
—o—
Mount Calvary Lutheran Church is hosting a rummage sale from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 6 and a bag sale from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 7. A bake sale is included.
The church is located at 1819 Reservation Drive, Fort Wayne.
—o—
Queen of Angels annual card party and social luncheon will be from noon to 4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at the church, 1500 W. State Blvd., Fort Wayne. Cost is $10 per person. There will be cards, socializing, raffles, attendance prizes. Lunch will be served; it is open to the public.
—o—
Most Precious Blood Rosary
Society Christmas Craft Show from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 4, in the school gym, 1515 Barthold St., Fort Wayne. Homemade craft and gift items and home-based business items, such as Tupperware and Avon, will be sold.
—o—
Science Central will host an annular solar eclipse Saturday, Oct. 14. The annular solar eclipse will be visible in the western hemisphere, but skywatchers in Fort Wayne will see a partial solar eclipse.
Science Central will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The eclipse will start at 11:41 a.m., reach its maximum at 1:02 p.m., and end at 2:26 p.m.
The center will have eclipse glasses available for purchase. Additionally, telescopes that can provide a safe view of the eclipse will be available. Science Central will commemorate the eclipse with a research balloon launch. The launch will occur at 12:17 p.m.
“Dinosaurs and Monsters” is the theme of the eighth annual “Sci-Fi Central” from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 14. Tickets can be purchased on the center’s website, sciencecentral.org, or at the admissions desk. Science Central is located at 1950 N. Clinton St., Fort Wayne.
It was 50 years ago —
For superstar Gladys Knight, recording “Midnight Train to Georgia” was probably like singing poignant lines from a diary. “I was going through the exact same thing that I was (singing) about when recording,” she once said, “which is probably why it sounds so personal.”
The story begins with singer-songwriter Jim Weatherly. An all-star quarterback for his Mississippi high school’s football team, he also formed a band as a teenager and began writing original songs. Upon graduation, he chose music over a possible athletic career.
Weatherly moved to Los Angeles to try his songwriting luck. One evening in 1970, he phoned Lee Majors, an actor friend who had just started dating model Farrah Fawcett. “Lee and I were in a flag football league together” Weatherly explained. “Farrah answered the phone. She said Lee wasn’t home and that she was packing to take a midnight plane to Houston to visit her folks. I thought, ‘What a great line for a song’.”
After Weatherly hung up the phone, he grabbed his guitar and wrote “Midnight Plane to Houston” in 45 minutes.
The next year, Weatherly recorded an album of original
songs, including ‘Midnight Plane to Houston’.” When RCA Records released Weatherly’s LP in 1972, gospel icon Cissy Houston — Whitney’s mother — envisioned a popcountry tune and wanted first crack at the track. “I loved it right away,” Cissy said. “But I wanted to change the title. My people are from Georgia, and they didn’t take planes to Houston or anywhere else. They took trains. We recorded ‘Midnight Train to Georgia’ in Memphis in 1972, but my label didn’t do much to promote it.”
Weatherly’s tune was then offered to fellow Georgian Gladys Knight. She had been an R & B and Top 40 sensation since 1961, when, at 17, she scored her first hit single — “Every Beat of My Heart” — with the Pips, her familyoriented backup group. (One cousin was nicknamed “Pip.”)
Knight recalled, “I listened to Cissy’s version, and I loved it, but I wanted to do something moody — horns, keyboards and other instruments to create texture and to spark something in me.” Knight thus recorded her signature song, which told of a man relinquishing his dreams of Hollywood stardom to return home, with the love of his life choosing to follow him:
“L. A. proved too much for the man
“He’s leaving the life he’s come to know
“He said he’s going back to find what’s left of his world
“The world he left behind not so long ago
“He’s leaving on that midnight train to Georgia
“Said he’s going back to a simpler place and time.”
“While recording that single, I was thinking about my own situation” Knight
admitted later when discussing her chart-topping, Grammy-winning smash release on Buddah Records.
“My husband at the time was unhappy that we didn’t have a more traditional marriage, because I was often on the
road or recording. Ultimately, it all proved too much for him, like the song said, and we divorced later.”
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physical activity, according to numerous studies.
Do you feel as good now as you did when you were 40? How about when you were 50?
You could feel as good as you used to, or even better, by picking up a few new good health habits.
A simple change is to add some activity to your daily life.
Experts emphasize that physical activity is good for people of all ages.
Among older adults, falls are a common cause of injury and disability. Physical activity makes bones and muscles stronger.
When your muscles are strong, you’re less likely to fall. If you do fall, strong bones are less likely to break.
Regular physical activity is good for your brain, too. Recent studies reveal that people who do simple exercises, like walking briskly, on a regular basis are better able to make decisions than people who aren’t physically active.
From diabetes to heart disease, many chronic health problems are improved by even moderate amounts of
Talk with your doctor about your plans before you get started. Your muscles will very likely be sore when you first increase your physical activity, but don’t consider that a reason to stop. Mild stiffness and soreness will go away in a few days as you become used to the physical activity.
For most people, walking is one of the easiest activities to do. Experts recommend at least 30 minutes of physical activity on most days of the week, but you don’t have to do all 30 minutes at once. Try walking for 15 minutes twice each day, or for 10 minutes three times each day.
People who have started being physically active later in life say that exercising with a partner is the best motivation to stick with it. Some suggest starting or joining a walking group with friends or neighbors. Others suggest getting a dog that needs to be walked.
If walking isn’t your idea of a good time, try gardening or dancing. Go fishing or swimming. The activity can be enjoyable as well as good for you.
Also, when your muscles
are strong, activities like getting out of a chair or holding a door open are much easier. If you decide to lift weights, start with a one- or five-pound weight. If you don’t have weights, you can use a can
of soup, book, or full bottle of water. Keep your weights in the same room as your television set and do a few exercises while you watch.
Another way to build muscle is to use a rubber resistance band,
also called an exercise band.
Resistance bands are flexible and come in different lengths. They are commonly used to strengthen upper arm and leg muscles. Mature
ting expert advice on how to handle their own charges.
developed any new symptoms or sores. It’s a 24-hour job.
If you aren’t caring for a diseased or disabled relative, you probably know someone who does, because about one out of four people in the United States and Canada is a caregiver for a family member or friend.
An interesting sidelight indicates some 6 million American seniors live with grandchildren – and half of those elderly are the caregivers in the household.
Statistics can serve as headlines on the subject, but they do little to bring attention to the stress and heartbreak caregivers undergo because they can become overwhelmed and forego or forget about caring for themselves.
It’s important to know that, if you don’t take care of yourself first, you can’t take care of anyone else.
In addition to following the usual motherly advice to eat well and get plenty of rest, caregivers need to overcome the stress-induced depression, the fatigue and feelings of guilt and helplessness, and the array of their own aches and pains that accompany this environment along with aging.
Experts in the field suggest caregivers start helping themselves by seeking out and meeting with other caregivers.
It’s a giant step toward get-
How do you handle your father’s finances? Or your aunt’s diet as she bounces in and out of dementia and forgets to eat? And their refusal to take care of themselves and skip visits to the bathroom that you have to clean up?
And all of this without a thank you.
Caregivers have to learn how to give someone a shower and have to teach their people how to handle the remote so they can watch television when no one else is around and how to open a snack package on their own, Keeping track of their medications and medical appointments is the caregiver’s responsibility along with making sure everyone eats well, sleeps well and have not
At the same time, caregivers have to squeeze in time to take care of themselves and their health, to visit with friends, to get out from under the caregiver cloud and relax. They might consider having a friend, family member, volunteer or paid-proxy fill in for them for a few hours each week to take in a movie or other pastime.
Taking care of yourself is not selfish. Caregivers have to keep strong so they can care for their loved ones. Talking with other caregivers helps. So does consulting with their doctors and volunteer organizations that focus on problems they face, such as the Alzheimer’s Foundation and American Cancer Society.
Mature Life Features Copyright 2023
contain a variety of substances — most commonly, calcium and uric acid.
Kidney stones are one of life’s more painful disorders and have been around for at least 7,000 years, as discovered in an Egyptian mummy. Modern lifestyles can exacerbate kidney stones, which
There are ways to prevent kidney stones from forming.
In general, drinking up to 12 full glasses of water daily will help to dilute or flush away substances that form stones. Avoiding excessive protein intake can also reduce the risk.
It is estimated up to 20 percent of Americans at some point will have a kidney stone, which can be as small as a grain of sand or as big as a golf ball. Stones occur more frequently in men, but the number of women afflicted has been increasing. Kidney stones strike most people between the ages of 20 and 40. Signs of a possible kidney stone include extreme pain in the back or side that will not go away, blood in the urine, fever and chills, vomiting, urine that smells bad or looks cloudy, and a burning feeling during urination.
If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, see your primary care physician as soon as possible.
Mature Life Features Copyright 2023
a coffee break, stretch our legs, sit for a spell. He really cared for his troops.”
after day, I was part of the MPs who escorted Meredith to his classroom building.”
“I’ve never fought in a war on foreign soil,” said retiree Jim Miller. “But I wound up on a battlefield right here in America.”
Miller was an Army paratrooper during the 1960s. He had a wide variety of experiences, including serving for a time as personal bodyguard to Gen. William Westmoreland, prior to the general’s assignment as commander of all U.S. forces in Vietnam.
“General Westmoreland was not haughty or pompous,” recalled Miller. “He would come outside of his HQ tent and approach those of us who were on guard duty and tells us to take
Miller was discharged May 31, 1967. While serving with the military police in 1961, he found himself on the front lines of American history.
African American student James Meredith applied for admittance to the University of Mississippi in September 1961 and was denied enrollment.
Attorney General Robert Kennedy ordered military troops to move to the campus as support for the local and state police forces. Jim Miller was tasked with making sure that Meredith got to school safely each day and back off campus each afternoon.
“I shook hands with Mer-
edith,” recalled Miller. “I assured him we would do our duty in protecting him. Day
If you avoid sandals because of thick, yellow toenails, you aren’t alone.
According to a Mayo Clinic Health Letter, almost half of people over age 50 have a fungal nail infection that causes thick, crumbly, ragged nails. An
injury, psoriasis, or poor-fitting shoes can cause similar symptoms.
If you have a toenail causing pain or embarrassment, talk with your doctor about treatment options.
Here are some tips for trimming toenails: soak your feet in warm water first to soften the nails; use an emery board
to thin the top of the nail; clip with long-handled clippers, which resemble small pliers and offer better grip and control; cut straight across to reduce the chance of ingrown nails, and wear roomy shoes. Giving your feet plenty of room prevents friction and wear that can cause toenails to thicken.
Mature Life Features Copyright 2023
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Because Miller was restricted access to outside travel, only later did he discover that a full-scale war had erupted on the outskirts of the Ole Miss campus. White rioters tipped over cars and set them on fire. Two civilians were shot to death. Newspaper reporters were beaten.
“President Kennedy activated the Mississippi National Guard to subvert,” Miller said, “but the problem was many of those guardsmen were the sons, grandsons and cousins of those doing the rioting. Those boys were torn between loyalties. As a result, federal agents and those of us in the military were called in as additional support. University property was torn up, rocks and bricks were being hurled, pistols were being shot and mobs were blocking streets and road. It was total chaos for days on end.”
Meredith had spent nine years in the United States Air Force. He completed one year of college at an all-black university; however, after hearing JFK give a talk about
civil rights, Meredith decided he should be able to attend the all-white University of Mississippi. The U.S. Supreme Court had ruled in 1954 that any citizens who paid taxes could not be denied access to publicly-supported schools. However, Mississippi Gov. Ross Barnett vowed that no school in his state would ever be integrated. President Kennedy sent in 127 U.S. marshals, 316 border patrol officers, and 97 Federal Bureau of Prisons officials with orders to disperse the protestors and rioters, restore peace, and suppress any further resurrection. On Oct. 1, 1962, Meredith was finally admitted to Ole Miss. In 1966, while leading a “March Against Fear,” he was shot by a sniper, but recovered and subsequently earned a law degree from Columbia University.
“When you are right in the midst of a national conflict, you don’t really have a sense of being part of what will become a historic event,” said Miller. “I look back now and am comforted in knowing I did what was required of me. Sure, it was risky, but it was the right thing to do. If I had to do it over, I’d do it the same way again.”
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15 grams of fat
Remember our calculation of grams of sugar divided by four equal a teaspoon of sugar? Sixty-five divided by four equals a whopping 16¼ teaspoons of sugar in that one drink.
Does a carmel apple spice sound like a better choice?
Turns out it’s less calories and fat, but the sugar is even higher.
380 calories
70 grams of sugar (17½ teaspoons)
teaspoons of sugar by the time it’s completed.
The offender is the ‘pumps’ they add to your drink, mocha sauce, pumpkin spice sauce and caramel. Then add the drizzles and assorted other ‘toppings.’
massive amounts of younger adults consume way too many of these. A can of the ‘green one’ boasts having 160 milligrams of caffeine and 54 grams of sugar (13½” teaspoons).
for men. These drinks are a far cry from fitting into that recommendation; we can do better.
We have entered the fall months of the crazy pumpkin this and pumpkin that including the very popular pumpkin spice drink at your local coffee shop. Did you realize that drink has:
420 calories
65 grams of sugar
8 grams of fat
Maybe just a cup of hot chocolate to warm your innards?
370 calories
37 grams of sugar (9¼ teaspoons)
16 grams of fat
Even a frappe coffee, which just means iced or slushy, has 11
I know two people that allow themselves one of the above in October and one in November as special treats and I say kudos to them! I know many more that lose all control and join the craziness for two months and see no problem in doing so.
Do you prefer one of the frozen drinks from the machines in a convenience? The average large size is 45 grams, or 11¼ teaspoons of sugar.
Personally, I have never had any interest in trying an energy drink, but I’ve certainly seen
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Our last example is a sports drink that has been around since 1965 that was designed to replenish the carbohydrates, water and electrolytes that were lost while playing sports. A 30-ounce bottle has 48 grams of sugar, or 12 teaspoons of sugar. The pumpkin and apple drink has some natural sugar, but the rest is all added sugar. As we’ve talked about in previous columns, the American Heart Association recommendation for sugar intake per day is 26 grams (6½ teaspoons) for woman and 36 grams (9 teaspoons)
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came CEO. A favorite scripture inspires her.
Author Colleen Coble writes stories for a living. Her life reads like a novel as well, and her faith shines through on every page. Plus, she leads other authors, who want to follow in her footsteps.
Coble is CEO of the American Christian Fiction Writers, which she’s been leading since 2008. The international group of writers of faith has about 2,200 members, including a chapter for members from other countries, like Australia and various European countries, among others.
“Seventeen years helping prepare and launch the next wave of authors. I love it,” Coble said. “It’s hard to write from the heart and be authentic, and I remember when I was just beginning. I didn’t even know another writer. I didn’t want others to flounder as I did, and my greatest joy is helping others learn the craft.”
In 1990, Coble’s beloved brother, Randy, passed away. The tragedy was a catalyst for her to become a writer. Fast forward to today and Coble’s 75 books have 5 million copies in print. This includes historical romance, contemporary romance, and her trademark romantic suspense, in addition to three children’s titles.
After joining ACFW, she be-
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future,” Jeremiah 29:11.
Christian fiction has evolved since its early days, Coble said.
“When I was first writing Christian fiction, it was mostly historical. I grew up on Nancy Drew and have always read mostly suspense, which is what I wanted to write,” she explained. “In the early days, story was mostly a sermon wrapped in a story. That’s all changed. The books don’t have bad language or explicit sex scenes, but they do have authentic characters, who struggle like I do. They are stories of people who don’t have all the answers and stumble their way through real problems while realizing there is a God who cares about their struggles.”
Her greatest memory?
“I was in Cambodia on my first missions trip when I got the news that Rosemary Cottage (The Hope Beach Series) hit No. one in all of Amazon books,” Coble recalled. “It subsequently hit the USA TODAY bestseller list. I’ll never forget the excitement of that moment coupled with the joy of falling in love with the Cambodian people.”
Leading ACFW may be a bit like walking a tightrope.
“Member needs are so varied because we have those just starting out and others, like me, who have been in the business a long time and have weathered a lot of changes. Seasoned writers have different needs. So we try to homogenize all that,” she said.
ACFW has recently added an annual virtual meeting in February. The in-person annual conference, combined with a reader event called “StoryFest,” took place in St. Louis in August. She is already planning for next year’s conference in New Orleans in September. Coble and her husband of 52 years, Dave, are close with their family, including three grandchildren.
“We travel for book research as our leisure,” she said with a laugh.
The
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The Great Lakes are an extremely important factor in the health and welfare of the Midwest and the entire country for that matter. Eightyfour percent of North America’s fresh water comes from the Great Lakes and
they hold about one-fifth of the world’s fresh water.
The last ice age formed them about 14,000 years ago. The surface area of the six lakes is bigger than the New England States combined. In 1940, approximately 40 percent of the U.S. population lived in and around the Great Lakes.
Tons more information about the lakes, shipping, vessels, photos and a huge assortment of memorabilia can be learned and seen up-close-and-personal at the National Museum of the Great Lakes, located in Toledo, Ohio.
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Though storms on the lakes may not be quite as violent as those on the oceans, over the years more than 8,000 ships have been sunk and more than 10,000 lives lost. One of the most curious disasters was the disappearance of the Edmund Fitzgerald in a storm with near hurricane force winds Nov. 10, 1975. As told in the museum’s exhibit, the freighter suddenly and mysteriously went to the bottom of Lake Superior, where it lies 503 feet below the surface. It had been communicating with another vessel, but no SOS was sent. It just vanished. Twenty-nine crewmen died. All that’s left are a couple oars and an inflatable life raft
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Wstamped with the ship’s name. Visitors can view a simulation of the wreck on an interactive computer screen.
Barely a year after the ship was lost, popular singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot told the story of the disaster in a song that is still popular today, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”
The Great Lakes became a major conduit for smuggling rum from Canada during Prohibition in the 1930s. Historic photos show Coast Guard officers stopping, boarding and searching ships for liquid contraband. Another section focuses on the 326 lighthouses (one every 33 miles) along the 10,900-mile Great Lakes coastline. There’s also an extensive exhibit on the American Indians who lived around the lakes and traveled on them between 1,000 BC and 700 AD.
In addition to ship stories, there’s a huge display of memorabilia ranging from hypothermia suits, lanterns, compasses and diving gear to pumps, horns,
whistles and a lighthouse beacon.
And for an extra fee, visitors can board the Col. James M. Schoonmaker freighter moored just outside the entrance to the museum. Tours take visitors through the cargo hold, hatch cover, crane, engineer’s cabins, crew mess, officer’s dining room, engine room, owner’s cabin, pilot house and the plush passenger state rooms.
Built at Great Lakes Engineering Works in Ecorse, Mich., the Schoonmaker was launched July 1, 1911, and was dubbed the “Queen of the Lakes”. It was then the largest ship operating on the Great Lakes until 1914. It is 617 feet long, 64 feet wide, weighs 8,600 tons and carried 12,650 tons of coal on its maiden voyage from Toledo to Sheboygan, Wis.
Check out the National Museum of the Great Lakes at inlandseas.org/museum. The best way to get there is head east on U.S. 24, which goes right into Toledo. The museum is located at 1701 Front St.
“Wintertime, and the driving gets queasy,” to give new lyrics to a long-time favorite and focus attention on what’s just down the road.
While the next few months embrace such enjoyable activi-
ties as the holiday season and tropical getaways, they also harbor the annual hazardous driving season.
It even affects no-snow portions of the land as snowbirds clog the highways and byways in their scramble for a place under the warm sun. Stay-athome recreation seekers add
to their odds of motor mishaps after commuting to work all week and picking up their weekend groceries by heading to the slopes to ski, snowboard and snowmobile over the latest snowfall.
So it’s time to sit back and go over your wintertime road rules as you sip your morning coffee.
Instead of spending a couple of weeks sipping cool libations on some sunny beach, hoping you have enough sun block to screen out those nasty ultraviolet rays, you could volunteer to teach English to kids in Costa Rica who have little or no access to schools.
Perhaps you would enjoy giving your brain cells some exercise studying dolphins in New Zealand, or helping preserve endangered orangutans in Borneo.
How about joining a program that helps rural tribes in northern Thailand develop a sustainable resource by constructing an ecotourism network?
If you don’t want to go too far from home, you can help people have a new home through the Habitat for Humanity program that exists throughout Canada and the United States.
These efforts, and scores of other opportunities, are in a category of vacation called volunteerism.
It’s not just a trip, but a venture that combines service to others with learning about another culture, and often results in participants getting involved in the cause when they return home.
In each case, you help people help themselves.
It takes more of a commitment than seeing how dark a tan you can get on that beach. But the payoff is the kind that comes
not in skin-deep results, but in heart-felt contentment that you were able to make a difference in other lives.
Dozens of organizations provide a conduit for those who take the challenge in areas that can range from your own neighborhood to foreign climes.
An excellent resource to find out more about such enterprises is the publication Transitions Abroad. Age is not a factor in many of these programs. Mature adults, with their valuable “life experience,” are welcome.
You’ll have to pay all your costs but keep in mind that the organizations you deal with are not-for-profit outfits and, as such, some of the costs may be tax deductible.
Volunteers receive a project guidebook that provides guidance on many of the elements of
your work. As you ponder signing up for a volunteer program, here are some steps you should take.
The organization you deal with should be able to get the names of alumni of a program that interests you, so you can contact them for their impressions of the experience. You should also be able to get cost-free information about the program.
Don’t send any money to an organization before you are ready to make a reservation. Check out the organization’s Web site to see a detailed breakdown of how the program fees are used.
Ideally, 90% to 100% should go toward the program costs.
Check the Internal Revenue Service sections 501 (c) (3) that provide instructions covering non-profit groups.
Mature Life Features Copyright 2023
Wherever you live, always check the weather forecast before getting behind the wheel of your car. Sandstorms and monsoons can make driving in warm climates just as treacherous as blizzards and black ice in snow country.
If you haven’t already, take your auto in for its annual checkup. Have all belts and fluids topped off. Install winter tires and make sure their air pressure and tread are up to par.
Toss a blanket and warm hat or cap in the back seat and check your disaster kit to make sure it has a flashlight and batteries, first-aid kit, candle and matches, gloves and snacks. Tuck a windshield ice scraper and snow brush under the front seat. Check the trunk to see if you have battery jumper cables and road flares. A pair of tire chains might also be handy along with a short shovel.
During the winter, don’t let your fuel level drop below half a tankful. And don’t venture out when the weather’s bad.
When you do head for a drive, brush and scrape off all ice and snow from the windshield, windows, mir-
rors, hood, bumpers, cameras and any other sensors on the vehicle.
Let the engine run a few moments before backing out of the driveway.
Take it easy. Avoid quick stops and sudden turns that can slip/slide you into trouble.
Keep social distancing in mind and give traffic around you plenty of room.
If you’ve grown up in this type of weather, remind yourself how to relax during a skid on icy roads – take your foot off the gas and don’t slam on the brakes. Remember that, if the back end fishtails, steer into the direction of the skid. Then, after some slowing down, you pump the brakes gently to gain control.
Staying home is the healthiest way to avoid a driving disaster during winter cold, but using your head can help make a trip through the snow a more pleasant experience.
Those of you in the tropical climes, check your battery life, air conditioner, windshield wipers, tire pressure and all other rubber surfaces because these all suffer the most under the baking sun.
Mature Life Features Copyright 2023
You may feel like you’ve been a prisoner during the lengthy off-and-on-again shutdowns mandated by various levels of government during the COVID-19 pandemic.
To get a better idea of what jail really feels like, you can break out of your neighborhood and visit a few historic prions around the country.
One of the most notorious penitentiaries sits out in San Francisco Bay – Alcatraz, also known as The Rock. Opened in the mid-19th century as a military fort, the facility was home to such infamous gangsters as Al Capone and Mickey Cohen before shutting down in the 1960s.
Visitors are ferried to and from the “Island of Incarceration” and offered a range of tours.
Several hours away is another storied Hell Hole – Yuma Territorial Prison – overlooking the Colorado River on the Arizona side of the border with California and Mexico.
The stories of how prisoners handled the heat, cramped cells, and thick rock walls before it was closed in 1909 due to overcrowding is told in the museum housed in the complex. Most visitors are
surprised to learn the facility served as a school from 1910 to 1940 before falling into disrepair and becoming a home for the homeless until a museum was opened in the 1940s. It became a state park in 1961.
Mature Life Features Copyright 2023
Want an appliance? Some furniture? An elephant? At one time, all were available with enough small paper books filled with trading stamps.
The S & H stamp story began in 1896. Salesman Thomas Sperry noticed a store he visited was having significant success with a program in which certain customers were rewarded by being given coupons redeemable for goods in that store. Perry thought: why not dispense coupons that were not tied to merchandise
from any particular store but could be redeemed anywhere?
With business pal Shelley Hutchinson, the pair launched the Sperry and Hutchinson Company and began selling S & H Green Stamps.
Here’s how things worked: Retailers bought the stamps from S & H, then distributed them — 10 stamps for every dollar spent — to appreciative loyal customers as a bonus for making cash purchases rather than by using credit. Customers then pasted the tiny rectangles into booklets handed out by the company visited.
The first S & H Green Stamps redemption center — a “premium parlor” — opened its doors in 1897. Then, as they did later, people would
bring in booklets filled with stamps and stroll out later with a shiny new something, bolstered by the (incorrect) feeling that the item was somehow free.
S & H bought merchandise at wholesale costs and sold it at retail prices when stamps were redeemed. Retailers grumped that buying the stamps cost them about 2% of their sales, although they did hope that the expected increase in business the stamps could generate would offset the cost of the stamps.
The popularity of trading stamps spread like proverbial wildfire, becoming a part of everyday business at sundry supermarkets, gas stations, drugstores and numerous other outlets.
By the mid-1960s, 83% of America’s 58 million households were saving S & H Green Stamps. (That’s three times more stamps than were issued by the U.S. Postal Service.) Each year, S&H was printing 32 million copies of its merchandise catalog — dubbed the Ideabook — as well as 140 million blank savers books.
The most popular purchased item back then was a toaster. But, over time, changing values and, much to the customers’ delight, the limited list of available op-
tions mushroomed to include some, well, “unusual” things, to say the least.
Some companies began issuing their own trading stamps but were never able to overcome S & H’s dominance.
Then came the 1970s, and food and gasoline prices soared. It became more prudent to seek lower prices: people began to value having extra money in hand more than owning another set of glass tumblers.
The last supermarket to dispense Green Stamps was a
Tennessee Piggly Wiggly store in 1999.
Trading stamps have now been replaced by reward programs and discount coupons. In the Green Stamps heyday, though, such exotica as donkeys, gorillas and elephants were sometimes made available when zoo groups pooled enough filled books.
Offered but probably never purchased: an eight- passenger Cessna airplane.
Hmmn. One must wonder just how many Ideabooks were needed for that?
For many aging adults, the idea of downsizing is an overwhelming and stressful proposition. The first step to help eliminate some of the stress in these situations is to
have a customized plan. Areas that the plan should address can be broken down into key components. These components include the individual’s health concerns, the financial resources, decluttering and deciding what to keep, the physical move, the personal property and the real estate.
The individual’s health can be, and often is, a major component in this process. Oftentimes the move process can be initiated because of a health issue that has cropped up. Is this health issue a strong driving force to make a change in the current living situation? Or is it one factor of the overall plan to help eliminate possible future health issues, such as a fall, poor eating habits, or lack of socialization, which can lead to increased depression, the inability to drive or other situations?
How is the person’s attitude toward the move? Tests have shown that a positive mental attitude benefits one’s longevity and quality of life.
Like all challenges in life, knowing people who have traveled down this road first can be very beneficial. Being in business since 1961, Ness Bros. Senior Relocation Services strategy is to help you navigate down this sometimes challenging road. That’s what we mean when we say, “Our Family Helping Yours”.
Contact our Senior Relocation Program team — Katelyn, Chauntell or me — for assistance and answers to your questions at (260) 459-3911 or stop in our office at 3344 Mallard Cove, Fort Wayne. We look forward to “Our Family Helping Your Family.”
