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Editor’s note: This press statement was received June 9, 2022. Congressman Peter DeFazio and Senator Bernie Sanders today introduced joint legislation, the Social Security Expansion Act (SSEA), to strengthen and expand Social Security for current and future generations. “As a trained gerontologist, I have devoted my career to protecting and expanding programs that are vital to seniors. One of my highest priorities is protecting Social Security, which millions of Americans rely on, including hundreds of thousands of Oregonians” said Rep. DeFaz...
An earlier version of this announcement stated this month's meeting was virtual via Zoom. However, it will in fact be in-person only, at the Anchorage Senior Activity Center. Interested in learning more about businesses and agencies providing senior services in the Anchorage and Mat-Su area? Want to get the word out about your own service? The monthly Service Providers Breakfast, sponsored by Older Persons Action Group, Inc., is an opportunity for all the above. Informal, early and free, the monthly event has been meeting virtually online via...
The Alaska State Troopers will begin using a new statewide alerting platform beginning July 1, 2022, to alert Alaskans to timely information regarding Alaska State Troopers operations in their area, according to a Dept. of Public Safety press statement dated June 21. The new tool will allow Alaskans to subscribe to email and SMS alerts initiated from the Alaska State Troopers. The Alaska State Troopers’ current Nixle-based alerting capabilities will be ended on June 30, 2022, as the new system comes online, according to the press statement. A...
Q: Due to a change in my health and physical capabilities, I moved to assisted living away from close friends. I’m not happy about this new situation. I feel lost and alone. A: Starting a new phase of life can be stressful. I understand and empathize. Coping with changes big or small, planned or unplanned, takes adjustment time. At first, we yearn for the ‘way our life was before’. We pine for friends and identifiable faces. There’s a sense of security, safety and confidence with recogni...
The Alaska state legislature failed to pass any bills this session to replace the campaign finance laws that were struck down by a federal court recently. So now, there are no limits to how much a person can donate to one or more candidates running for office. Attorney Robin Brena, in a recent article regarding this issue, boasted that he had just donated $25,000 to one candidate. He was the attorney who brought the lawsuit against the state claiming its laws were unconstitutional, and he won. It is doubtful that the bulk of Alaskans have that...
Note: This story was updated after the printed version went to press. AARP Alaska advocates for public policies that matter most to Alaskans age 50 and older and their families. During the 2021-22 legislative session, we passed 15 of our 22 budget and bill priorities benefiting older Alaskans. We saw successful passage of policies that support family caregivers, improve healthcare access and promote health. With wins ranging from dementia awareness and telehealth to expanded scopes of practice for Physician Assistants, Advanced Practice...
Everyone has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but a new study by researchers at the University of Groningen, Netherlands has found that some individuals weathered the stress of the pandemic better than others, in part, due to their genetics. How a person perceives their quality of life depends on a combination of factors that include the genes they inherited from their parents and their environment (a mix of nature and nurture). Studying genes related to quality of life can be complicated, but the COVID-19 pandemic allowed the...
Is your “lifestyle” correlated to your health? Although the intuitively obvious answer is a resounding “yes”, very little credence is given in the standard of care to the powerful impact of your day-to-day choices on your wellbeing. It’s not just about living longer, folks. It’s about living longer with energy, grace and satisfaction. Our health care system, unfortunately, is mostly monetized to support illness, not wellness. Therefore, we are largely on our own to promote and maintain good health. Fortunately, there is increasing awareness,...
Hospice is a program of comfort care and end-of-life pain management for those with a terminal illness. In this month’s review of Medicare-covered hospice, we speak directly to patients as if they are the ones taking these actions or making these decisions. However, discussions about hospice often involve caregivers and family members as well. If you are a caregiver, family member, or a patient’s appointed representative, you may be leading these conversations or decisions, rather than the patient. You are also encouraged to call one of our...
In 2020, nearly one in five Americans was providing unpaid caregiving to an adult with health or functional needs. That’s 53 million caregiving nationwide. This number is expected to continue to grow as the senior population increases through the middle of the century. Nearly a quarter of those providing care are providing care for two or more people, while simultaneously working full or part time jobs. The fact is, caregiving can be an emotional rollercoaster, rewarding in its demonstration of love and commitment and also exhausting, overwhelm...
We continue to offer traditional community and worksite health fairs where we need staff support. Volunteers come from all walks of life, age groups, backgrounds and interests. Volunteer opportunities include: Office volunteers: client support, phones, mail, evaluations, tallies, supplies, pack/unpack events and more. Meet and greet: Welcome people at events, share how to do paperwork. Registration: Calculate/receive cash, card, checks; record on logs. Blood pressure: Stethoscope/pressure cuffs or auto-cuffs (no experience needed). Blood draw:...
Eggs pack important health benefit Researchers now are reporting that moderate egg consumption can increase the amount of heart-healthy metabolites in the blood, and eating up to one egg per day may help lower the risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Eggs are a rich source of dietary cholesterol, but they also contain a variety of essential nutrients. There is conflicting evidence as to whether egg consumption is beneficial or harmful to heart health. A 2018 study published in the journal...
Anchorage Senior Activity Center will offer free vision and hearing screenings on Tuesday, Aug. 2, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event is sponsored and coordinated by the senior center and the Anchorage Municipal Senior Citizens Advisory Commission, in conjunction with Alaska Hearing and Tinnitus Center and Makar Eyecare. For more information, call the senior center at 907-770-2000 or the office of Emily McMahan, 907-522-4357 or www.AllEarsAlaska.com....
Alaska has the fastest-growing older adult population of any state in the country, and their health and well-being are at risk. As obesity rates among older adults continue to increase nationwide, so does their susceptibility to Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, early mortality, decreased physical functioning, and quality of life. One UAA research team is on a mission to improve the quality of life of older adults through an innovative hope-based education program aimed at fostering positive behaviors that fight obesity at its most c...
We all love summer and sometimes our Alaska summers are warmer and smokier than others. How do you stay cool? Seniors need to be careful of overheating, our bodies don’t adjust as well to higher temperatures, and we tend to get more dehydrated. Medical conditions can change body response to heat. Some prescription medicines can also have an impact on our bodies’ ability to stay cool. Following are a few tips we found to stay cool: Don’t wait until you feel thirsty – drink plenty of cool water throughout the day. Popsicles, flavored ice cubes f...
The Kenai Peninsula Family Caregiver Support Program office is located at 35477 Kenai Spur Highway, Suite 205 (located in the 4D Professional Building). You can call them at 907-262-1280 or email kpfcsp@soldotnaseniors.comkpfcsp@soldotnaseniors.com. The program will hold caregiver support group meetings in July at the locations below. Training is from 1 to 2 p.m., with support group meetings following, 2 to 3 p.m. Unless otherwise noted, this month’s training features a presentation and discussion on “Assisted Living Questions,” with Melis...
Alaska for the first time is getting a USGA championship. Anchorage Golf Course will host the 60th U.S. Senior Women's Amateur Championship, July 30-Aug. 4, 2022. It will mark the first time the USGA has taken one of its championships to the 49th state. Located on a hillside overlooking the city of Anchorage, this course is a municipal golf course designed by architect Bill Newcomb. The 6,600-yard layout features rolling, tree-lined fairways that lead to well bunkered, undulating greens. The...
The Alaska International Senior Games (AISG) is the official Alaska state qualifier for pickleball for the National Senior Games Assoc. (NSGA), which is a national organization of athletes age 50 and older. And this year's AISG Games will be the Alaska qualifying event for the NSGA Pickleball Championships in Pittsburgh, Pa., July 7-18, 2023. Diann Darnall, president of Alaska International Senior Games (AISG), says pickleball was requested to be included in the games in 2011, and was...
The following selections were published in Alaska newspapers July 1922. Nonstandard spelling and punctuation are presented as found in the original articles. Glorious Fourth Nome Nugget, July 8, 1922: At one o'clock, notwithstanding the various handicaps [bad weather and a flu epidemic], the Square presented a lively appearance, many adults braved the inclement weather while the children formed the majority, the enthusiastic element of the days celebration. Taking it all in all the day was...
Living at our place on Chena Hot Springs Road out of Fairbanks the spring of 1975, my husband Gary and I wanted to be as self-sufficient as possible. We had five acres, but no electric power. Besides tending our garden, greenhouse and two honeybee hives, we decided to raise our own meat. So, we purchased thirty Cornish Cross chicks and two Holstein calves. Of course, these cute little peeps soon outgrew their cardboard box. We built a small plywood shelter and created a fenced enclosure with chi...
In June, Arctic Slope Community Foundation (ASCF) announced its language learning website www.inupiaqonline.com, which combines Iñupiaq language preservation with modern technology. Funded by the Dept. of Health and Human Services and administered by ASCF, the website was built by Alaska Native web developers Christopher Egalaaq Liu (Yup’ik) and Lonny Alaskuk Strunk (Yup’ik) in conjunction with acclaimed Iñupiaq academic administrator, linguist, anthropologist and educator Edna Ahgeak Paniattaaq MacLean, Ph.D. The site references the North...
Some courageous pioneers saw the possibilities of the Yukon Basin years before the Klondike Gold Rush. And a few stand out above the rest, including Leroy Napoleon "Jack" McQuesten, Alfred Mayo and Arthur Harper. Had they not seen the need to establish supply centers, it is possible that gold rushes to the Yukon and Alaska would not have boomed during the late 1890s. These men met up in British Columbia in 1873 and continued on to Fort Yukon together. The first winter, Harper went prospecting...
Chances are, every time velvet-voiced Johnny Mathis takes center stage during his current U.S. tour, the atmosphere could turn Misty. Sure, some devoted Mathis fans might swoon teary-eyed with waves of emotional nostalgia witnessing the 86-year-old singing icon in person, but many will just dutifully sway to the familiar soothing melodies as the veteran performer delivers his signature ballads such as "Wonderful! Wonderful!," "Chances Are," and, of course, his 1959 hit, "Misty." Interrupted...
A long time ago, in a land far, far away (well, Juneau is pretty far away) there was a group of legislators who tried to do the right thing. They wanted to update and improve the laws about what happens when someone can’t make their own decisions about medical care. And as part of that change, they wanted to offer a form people could use, so that people could say for themselves who would make those decisions for them. They wrestled with this for four long years. And finally, one day, they had i...
Q. How do I listen to podcasts? A. As the old saying goes, “there is an app for that.” Many different apps, in fact. And beyond apps, most podcasts are just a click away on the Web. Podcasts are audio-only programs that have exploded in popularity in the last few years. The best place to start depends on your device. For a personal computer, a Web browser and a Google search is an easy place to start. On mobile phones, podcasts are the perfect companion for keeping your mind occupied while driving or working around the house. For Android own...
