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Last March, the Senior Benefit program’s top tier beneficiaries – those who qualify for the program at the highest income levels allowed – saw their monthly payments drop from the program’s initial $125 to $47. As of Senior Voice press time for the April edition, March 29, legislators had voted to completely cut out the top tier funds for the program due to the state’s limited budget for the rest of FY16. However, funds were restored to the Senior Benefits program May 31, as well as other state funded programs that have been deeply impacted...
Fill a tote bag – hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, raincoat, umbrella, extra layer for warmth, rain boots, water bottle. Find the car keys and wallet and hop in the car. Destination - the Alaska State Fair! It wouldn’t be summer without at least one fair visit to marvel at giant vegetables, listen to bleating goats, crowing chickens, buzzing honey bees and enjoy local Alaskan fair foods like rhubarb-lemonade and fried, local peanut potatoes. State fairs have been part of American culture since the mid 1800s, providing education and ent...
We face difficult financial and political challenges in Alaska, but our state legislature is dysfunctional. We need to do more than sit on the sidelines and complain that politicians aren’t doing their jobs. We need and can do more to fix our government. We can increase and empower our citizens so that, together, we transform our grievances into real solutions. Alaskans from across the state have started that transformation with the PFD Voter Registration ballot initiative. This is a common-sense, money-saving proposal that increases the n...
When Senior Voice ran a feature article in the June issue about my wife Wilma’s book, it brought us a gratifying response from a wide variety of Alaskan seniors. The article, by Dianne Barske, really made the connection between the book, “Four Years Below Zero,” and its intended audience. The article described Wilma’s experiences patrolling 12 hours a night, seven nights a week, on the Arctic section of the huge Trans-Alaska Pipeline construction project in the 1970s. It also told how Wilma was unable to complete her manuscript because of illn...
Alaska faces unparalleled fiscal challenges threatening the hard-won financial and personal security of our elders. In the midst of such challenges it is prudent to utilize a wide and diverse array of policy tools to limit and counteract the damage to our people and institutions. This is not the time to cut programs buttressing the social safety net, the elements of which are the guarantor of our common wealth. Unfortunately, our legislature has taken a different approach. In the course of the legislature’s past two sessions, we’ve wit...
Moving from Alaska to Minnesota was both difficult and easy. In a way, I figured I had done enough time in the Great Land and there are lots of wonderful things to see in the other 49 states. I spent nearly 49 years in the 49th state. I lived in Fairbanks from September, 1967 to August, 1976, when I moved to Anchorage. Moving to Minnesota was easy because I grew up in Faribault, graduated there, and my nephew still lives there. My grade school chum, Marie, still lives in Faribault. Moving to Minnesota was difficult because I made so many...
Did you know that your medication can damage skin? Most of you don’t even think about that as a side effect. Photosensitivity is a fairly common skin reaction that is sparked by taking medicines which interact with ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun or tanning beds. It happened to me once and luckily the red burning rash and tingling only affected my hands. It took only two hours of sun exposure on a shady trail while hiking in California. Still, it rendered me out of writing commission for a few days. The big problem is that p...
We’ve lived long enough to see science lose and gain favor with eggs, fats, red wine, some fruits and vegetables, and chocolate. Perhaps more confusing than studies around those food items are the studies surrounding coffee. Slate magazine noted in 2010 that there were more than 500 studies on coffee and human health. Well, this senior is not human until I have that first cup of coffee in the morning. Both as a coffee drinker and a health writer, I’ve been following the coffee conundrum for three decades. (And just for the record, an old...
Do not go back to what you loved in August, for you will see the near ending of the times you loved. August is the beginning of the end of the year, the times when the lush green leaves start turning to rust and yellow. But if you are a happy outdoorsman and can’t wait to see the first snowdrop, you will be coming into your own, waxing your skis, sharpening your skate blades. Taking your heavy wool sweaters out of mothballs and checking to see where you left your snow shovels. I am not one of t...
In addition to federal VA benefits, veterans shouldn’t overlook the State of Alaska benefits. Following is a partial list of Alaska Veteran benefits. Veteran license plates The State of Alaska Legislature has designated several special license plates for veterans: recipients of the Purple Heart Medal, veterans who have been a Prisoner of War (POW), veterans who are survivors of Pearl Harbor, and Gold Star Families. Plates are issued free of charge after proof of service or family loss is validat...
Injectable devices may allow for organ regeneration Injectable medical devices are now reaching a new level. Researchers at the University of Chicago are now reporting they have come up with a light-activated injectable device that could be used to stimulate nerve cells and manipulate the behavior of muscles and organs. The new material is soft and tiny and less than the width of a human hair. It degrades naturally inside the body after a few months. Each particle is built of two types of...
The Kenai Peninsula Family Caregiver Support Program will hold the following peer support meetings in August. This month’s focus is National Health Center Week, with presentations by Peninsula Community Health Services of Alaska. Aug. 2, Caregiver support meeting at Sterling Senior Center, 1 p.m. Aug. 9, Caregiver support meeting at Soldotna Senior Center, 1 p.m. Aug. 16, Caregiver support meeting at Kenai Senior Center, 1 p.m. Aug. 30, Caregiver support meeting at Soldotna Senior Center, 1 p.m. Support meetings allow you to share your e...
"It's a history book, a photo book and a memoir – all in one." That's how photographer and storyteller Jim Lavrakas describes his book, "Snap Decisions: My 30 Years as an Alaska Newspaper Photographer." He's just released a second edition of the book originally published in 2012, and has included some updated stories and new photos. Jim comments on his motivation for the book, when he first thought of putting it together back in 2010. "I had left the Anchorage Daily News as a staff p...
This year's 12th Alaska International Senior Games will be held August 12-21 in Fairbanks, with the opening ceremony and gala games kicking off at 6 p.m. at the Fairbanks-North Star Borough Birch Hill Recreation Area. The event begins with a torch lighting ceremony, lead by the senior athlete Bettie Upright, 101 year young! Since 2003, AISG has attracted participants from across the United States and several other countries to compete in everything from disc golf and road races to ice hockey...
Dubbed The Arctic Venus by newspapers across the globe, Helmar Liederman turned many heads as she strutted her stuff in 1922 during the Inter-City Beauty Contest – forerunner of the Miss America Pageant. The 23-year-old beauty, who immigrated from Sweden in 1921, proved to be one of the most popular contestants of the 57 that entered the Atlantic City event. Only 10 girls had competed in the inaugural contest the previous year. "A real beauty from the north country, Miss Helmar Liederman of June...
One of the hottest actresses to emerge from the 1970s has been appearing around the country in recent years presenting her stage show, "More than a Bionic Woman: An Evening with Lindsay Wagner." In August, Lindsay will be in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida. (See www.lindsaywagnerinternational.com for details.) "I'll be sharing anecdotes and stories from behind the scenes in my career, and showing clips and photos from my personal collection," said Wagner from her California home. "So it should be a...
Have you played any online games that promised to reduce cognitive decline? They may be fun to play but be aware that any health-related claims made by the companies may be unfounded. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently brought charges and settled with several companies that advertised false scientific claims that users would develop better cognitive health by playing their online games. Lumosity will pay $2 million in settling deceptive advertising charges (to be paid to customers who purchased the products) and Learning Rx will pay a...
You probably heard that changes in the law now affect the way you file for certain benefits. These changes place limits on when voluntary suspension and reinstatement can begin for you and your family members who might also be entitled to benefits on that record. This is not the demise of “file and suspend.” It’s still one of your best tools for boosting your Social Security benefit after you reach your full retirement age. The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 made changes to the Social Security claims filed by married couples. The law affected an...
Staff from Alaska’s Social Security office will be available for questions via videoconferencing at the following locations and times: Kodiak Job Center, on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month (Aug. 9 and 23), 9 a.m. to noon. Kenai Senior Center, on the first and third Wednesday of each month (Aug. 3 and 17), 9 a.m. to noon. Ketchikan Job Center, every Thursday (Aug. 4, 11, 18 and 25), noon to 3 p.m. Social Security provides toll-free telephone service to all of Alaska. Residents in Alaska’s southeast communities can call the Jun...
“And another thing,” says the client across from me, tapping his finger on the desk for emphasis, “I don’t want Junior to get anything. He’s an ingrate who broke his mama’s heart, and didn’t even call when I had my heart attack.” “No problem,” I reply, “we can leave him nothing.” It’s not the first time I’ve heard something like that. But that isn’t enough. “What’s more,” he continues, “I want one of those No Contest clauses I’ve heard about, so he can’t challenge the will.” “Alright, th...
Q. When callerID displays a strange number on my phone, I ignore it unless the number is local. Yet lately when I do answer, often local numbers turn out to be a big company with something to sell. Has someone opened a call center in my neighborhood? A. Possibly, but unlikely. “Robocall” apps can dial phones by the thousands and “spoof” callerID with friendly-looking local numbers. The practice is illegal, but enforcement is spotty. Fake callerID isn’t new, nor are robocalls, but the resulting number of problems continues to skyrocket...
In railroad parlay, "foamers" are those who literally foam at the mouth at the sight of a steam engine. If you are one, take the 18-hour road trip to Skagway in Southeast and take a ride on one of White Pass & Yukon Route Railroads' steam engines. The 3,000-foot climb over the historic White Pass and into a sliver of Canada's British Columbia is filled with great vistas from mountaintops to deep valleys with rushing rapids and places where a ledge for the narrow-gauge tracks has been blasted so...
