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THE SENIOR TIMES
A publication of The Senior NetworkTM
May 2024
GOLDEN NUGGETS
It is May, the final month of the Northern Hemisphere’s Spring Season. The month also has the first official holiday of Summer, Memorial Day, as part of its celebrations. However, have you ever considered why the seasons are so important? Without seasons we would not be able to sustain our lives. Each time of year is unique. The elements of rain, snow and ice help the ground to be prepared for crops to grow. Temperature changes and the wind also aids in preparing the earth and the plants to produce. But why four seasons? Think about the extremes we would have if we went from the cold of Winter right into the heat of Summer. Or if we only had the warm sunshine of Spring and the frost of Fall. There would not be enough time for the vegetation to grow or for the ground to recover from the growing and harvest times. Not only would the earth be adversely affected but think of the animals and humans if we went from one extreme to the other. Our bodies would have a difficult time adjusting. Much like when you are taking a hot shower, and the water suddenly goes freezing cold. BRRR! God, in His wisdom, gave us four wonderful seasons so that we and the earth could maintain a sense of balance and well-being. The Bible states in Genesis 8:22, “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter and day and night shall not cease.”
How reassuring to know that this order will continue for as long as this world exists. This comfort should bring joy to all of us as we enjoy this special time of year.
Words of Wisdom:
“Aging can be fun if you lay back and enjoy it.” Clint Eastwood
Remember When:
American Bandstand, produced by the legendary Dick Clark, had its initial showing on national TV in 1957. On this daily show hosted by Dick Clark, teenagers would dance to the top 40 hits of the day. The most popular dance in the beginning years of the show was the jitterbug or swing which had its origins in the '30s. Kids would dance this way to the rockabilly of Presley and other popular singers like Buddy Holly and the Everley Brothers
“SENIOR-FRIENDLY”TM HALL OF FAME
If you know an individual, a business, a group, an organization, or a municipality that is “senior-friendly”TM, you may nominate them for the “Senior-Friendly”TM Hall of Fame. Submit their name, contact information and why you think they should be considered. Send to:
THE SENIOR NETWORK
3650 Rogers Road, Suite #323
Wake Forest, NC 27587
or
Humor Me….
An old couple, Abe and Esther are flying to Australia for a two-week vacation to celebrate their 50th anniversary.
Suddenly, over the public address system, the Captain announces,
“Ladies and Gentlemen, I am afraid I have some very bad news. Our engines have ceased functioning and we will attempt an emergency landing. Luckily, I see an uncharted island below us and we should be able to land on the beach. However, the odds are that we may never be rescued and will have to live on the island for the rest of our lives!”
Thanks to the skill of the flight crew, the plane lands safely on the island.
An hour later the old man Abe turns to his wife and asks, “Esther, did we pay our $5,000 PBS pledge check yet?”
“No, sweetheart,” she responds.
Abe, still shaken from the crash landing, then asks,“Esther, did we pay our American Express card yet?”
“Oh, no! I'm sorry. I forgot to send the check,” she says.
“One last thing, Esther. Did you remember to send a check for the Visa and MasterCard this month?” he asks.
“Oh, forgive me, Abe,” begged Esther. “I didn't send that one, either.”
Abe grabs her and gives her the biggest kiss in 40 years.
Esther pulls away and asks him, “So, why did you kiss me?”
Abe answers, “They will definitely find us! They'll find us.”
BRAIN TEASER
(Answer at the end)
Fourteen of the kids in the class are girls.
Eight of the kids wear blue shirts.
Two of the kids are neither girls or wear a blue shirt.
If five of the kids are girls who wear blue shirts, how many kids are in the class?
Grandma’s Cooking Corner:
The chef of N.Y.C.’s Locanda Verde, Andrew Carmellini, & Robert De Niro, his Oscar-winning business partner, share a family-style Italian chicken dish,
MARINATED CHICKEN ALLA GRIGLIA
Ingredients:
· ¼ cup chopped garlic
· ½ cup rice or white wine vinegar
· ¼ cup water
· ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
· ¼ cup grape seed or corn oil
· 2 tbsp. dried oregano
· 2 tbsp. dried rosemary
· 1 lemon, sliced
· 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
· 1 tsp. coarse ground black pepper
· 2 tbsp. salt
· 1 tbsp. sugar
· 2 small chickens, quartered
Directions:
1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and pour the mixture over the chicken.
2. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate overnight.
3. The next day, remove the chicken from the marinade (but don’t wipe all the herbs off the skin) and season with salt and pepper.
4. You can cook the chicken on a grill, or, if you’re using an oven, place the chicken on a roasting rack on a rimmed baking sheet and broil for 5 minutes on the highest setting to crisp the skin. Place chicken on the middle rack and bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Serve.
Military Salute
The US Navy Seals, one of the most recognizable Special Operations groups, are a highly specialized and multi-faceted force trained to operate in various environments, including air, land, and sea. The roots of the Navy Seals can be traced back to World War II when the US Navy recognized the need for covert reconnaissance of landing beaches and coastal defenses. In response to this need, the Amphibious Scout and Raider School was established in 1942.
Who’d A Thunk…
Would you believe that one of the most popular toys of all time was originally created as wallpaper cleaner? When sales of the cleaner began faltering, a teacher suggested having her students use the product as clay. The dough was a hit, and the company, Kutol Products, created a subsidiary, Rainbow Crafts, which repackaged the product as Play-Doh. By 1957, Play-Doh was available in red, yellow and blue and was a big hit at schools. Soon after, Bob Keeshan (CaptainKangaroo) began featuring Play-Doh on his television show. That skyrocketed the popularity of this nontoxic, easy-to-use product that's still enjoyed by kids everywhere.
Our NonProfit of the Month:
Special Olympics is a trusted organization supporting individuals with intellectual disabilities globally for more than 50 years. Its work succeeds in changing lives, building advocacy networks, and creating a lasting positive impact. With more than six million athletes and Unified Sports partners and one million coaches and volunteers in over 200 accredited Programs, Special Olympics delivers more than 30 Olympic-type sports and over 100,000 games and competitions every year. This organization also engages the families, friends, caretakers, and healthcare professionals involved in Special Olympics. They work side-by-side with their partners, seek to develop shared-value partnerships, compelling marketing initiatives and immersive, employee engagement opportunities while furthering the ability to deliver life-saving and life-changing interventions to individuals with intellectual disabilities.
THE SENIOR NETWORK’s #1 priority now is socialization of seniors. We create events and transport seniors to them wherever we can.
DID YOU KNOW?
Seniors wound up with lower blood pressure after they were coached to get up and move more often.
Sitting less led to a reduction of nearly 3.5 points in the seniors’ average blood pressure.
"Our findings are really promising because sitting less is a change that may be easier for people than increasing physical activity, especially for older adults who are more likely to be living with restrictions like chronic pain or reduced physical function," said lead researcher at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Research Institute in Seattle.
Older adults typically sit between 65% and 80% of their waking hours, researchers said in background notes. Such sedentary behavior can lead to heart disease and diabetes.
SENIOR OF THE MONTH
April 2024
GLORIA TURNER MCGLONE
Gloria hails from a little town outside of Philadelphia. Showing a talent for performance, she studied piano, dance and voice. At 7 years old, she appeared on the television show, “The Children’s Hour”, hosted by Ralph Edwards. Throughout high school, Gloria won awards singing at state and national competitions. She holds a Masters Degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Moving to New York City after graduating college, Gloria enjoyed a successful career as a recital artist. Being an excellent sight reader, she worked in recording studios as a demo, jingle and backup singer, backing up singers such as Barry Manilow, Whitney Houston, Luther Vandross, Neil Diamond and Nancy Wilson, to name just a few. Gloria was also the first black singer of the Ed Sullivan Singers, a specialty group on the Ed Sullivan Show.
Gloria has performed in every state in the USA and provinces of Canada while touring with classical, variety and Broadway Show touring companies. She also toured with Harry Belafonte for more than eight years throughout the U.S., Canada, Europe, Scandinavia, Cuba and Japan. With Belafonte, she performed for Queen Elizabeth at her 25th Jubilee Celebration and at the Red Cross Ball, hosted by Princess Grace and Prince Rainier of Monaco.
Broadway credits include Scot Joplin’s “Treemonisha”, “Porgy and Bess”, Eubie and the role of Ruth in the Tony Award winning musical “Raisin”, the musical version of “A Raisin In The Sun”.
In 1990, Gloria and her psychoanalyst husband, Don McGlone, retired to Freeport, Grand Bahama Island in the Bahamas. There she met Ivy Elden, an actress and singer. They formed Elden/McGlone Productions, a partnership that lasted over 25 years and mounted more than 30 productions of musicals such as, “Guys And Dolls”, “Clue”, “Ain’t Misbehavin”. “Dreamgirls” and “Raisin” and plays, including “The Women”, “Girls of the Garden Club” and “Steel Magnolias”. They also mounted theater productions for young performers to enable them to hone their skills in “Fame”, “Phantom of the Old Opera House” and “Making It”. They produced galas for The American Women’s Club Scholarship Fund and other charitable organizations. Keeping Theater “Live” on Grand Bahama Island was the credo of Elden/McGlone Production.
After living in the Bahamas for nearly 30 years, Gloria has now returned stateside where she lives in the Atlanta suburbs enjoying theater, art, travel and family.
Gloria and Ivy are working together again as they produce and MC the Third Annual Senior Talent Show at the Renaissance in Wake Forest to benefit The Senior Network. This spectacular show will take place on Friday, May 24th at 7 pm. Tickets are available on theseniornetwork.org.
We need to prioritize and foster meaningful social connections, not merely for emotional fulfillment but as a strategic approach to championing cognitive health and resilience. Proactive measures include community engagement, participation in group activity, and regular outreach to friends and family. Virtual connections should not be a substitute for the tangible benefits of in-person socialization. Addressing the loneliness epidemic is not just about improving life quality but stands as a collective effort in preventing the onset of dementia within our communities.
Answer to Brain Teaser: 19