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Update, March 24, 2022: The time for the teleconferences has been changed to afternoons, 3 to 4:30 p.m. Here's is the link for the March 24 legislative teleconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/9672806987?pwd=TFFudFRpRittWTF1VDNaWDUxeDVaZz09 Keep track of senior-related bills, budget decisions and other issues by attending the Alaska Commission on Aging Legislative Teleconferences. Available by toll-free call-in, the teleconferences provide a convenient forum for seniors and advocates across Alaska to share information about issues and specific...
Do you know someone whose outstanding service, dedication and leadership have had a significant impact on the quality of life for seniors in Anchorage? The Anchorage Senior Citizens Advisory Commission is seeking nominations for the Annual Ron Hammett Award for community service, to be presented during Older Americans Month in May. Nominees for this honor must meet the following criteria: •Nominees must be an Anchorage resident. •Nomination may be made by an individual or organization. •Nomination should include both the achievements and backg...
“Age Smart – Let’s Talk”, the series of forums sponsored by AARP Alaska, Older Persons Action Group and the Anchorage Senior Activity Center, returns March 8, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Events are currently held virtually on the internet, using Zoom. This month’s presentation is “Let’s Talk Libraries.” The Anchorage Public Library has a wide variety of resources available to all Anchorage residents. In addition to an extensive collection of print books, the library offers access to eBooks, audiobooks, movies, genealogical research and more. Join...
The Social Security Administration encourages you not to carry your Social Security card with you every day. The best way to “Guard Your Card” is to keep it in a safe place and share it only when required. In fact, in most cases, just knowing the Social Security number should be enough. In 49 states and the District of Columbia, a Social Security card isn’t required to request a Real ID. Only Pennsylvania requires it. Please be careful about sharing your number when asked for it. You should always ask why your number is needed, how it will...
A couple of years ago we had a normal life. Since then, we’ve had a pandemic. No matter what our life was like then, it is now more isolated, more lonely, more expensive, more fearful. When do we get back to normal? I have wishful thinking, but that is a far cry from an informed discussion. For that, we’ll have to turn to some public health folks who do not offer hard and fast recipes to make a determination, but do offer some interesting ways to think about the question. Anne Zink, MD, is Chief Medical Officer for the Alaska Department of Hea...
The Alaska Legislature began the second of a two-year session on January 18, 2022, hitting the ground running since members were already seated in their committees and leadership positions (unlike the 2021 delay in getting organized into majority and minority caucuses). Bills introduced last session are still potentially in play, in addition to this year’s crop of bills, both pre-filed before session and introduced since the start. AARP Alaska advocacy staff and volunteers have spent the interim since last session watching and participating i...
Q: What are my chances of finding work over age 60? A: Amid the disruptive loss of jobs brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been one counterbalancing force: An urgent demand for older professionals to return to work from retirement or a career break. Employers have historically viewed this group of potential employees with skepticism, a perception that their skills have deteriorated or become obsolete or that they are overqualified, require long ramp-up times, lack commitment to the...
Editor's note: This story has been updated, with corrections. March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, and there are ways you can help find a cure. We are at the age when we know of someone who is suffering or has died from colon cancer, and wished there was a better means of detection. Now Alaska seniors can take part in research. What are clinical trials? Let's look at what clinical research is and how you can participate. For the questions you should ask before signing up please...
Hello, my name is Lee Coray-Ludden, I am a Medicare counselor based at the Soldotna Senior Center. I serve Southeast Alaska, and anywhere else in Alaska that my skills can be of use. I almost feel like I am traveling Alaska having worked with people in Nome, Soldotna, Kodiak and of course the many communities of Southeast Alaska. I travel by phone, not by plane or boat. I am trained through SHIP (Alaska State Health Insurance Program) and coordinate with them. I have lived in Alaska since 1969, and on the Kenai Peninsula since 1974. Give me a...
Medicare-related decisions can be quite challenging, especially when you or your spouse areabout to turn age 65, during your Initial Enrollment Period. The decisions can be even more complicated when you have other health insurance coverage. Deciding if and when to enroll in the various parts of Medicare, when you are first eligible, is an important choice, including how to avoid potential penalties or gaps in coverage. Most people enroll into Medicare Part A (hospitalization insurance) as this...
Finding your best food plan and sticking to it will prolong your life and greatly increase your wellbeing. It's hard to be cheerful with a distressed gut. Gut and brain tissue originates from the same embryonic cells in utero. Healthy gut function includes a good appetite with an accurate sense of satiety to prevent over-eating. Healthy digestion features lack of pain or bloating after meals. Eat calmly and chew your food thoroughly. Generally, it takes 18 to 24 hours for food to be fully...
It’s a new era when it comes to robotics. Researchers are reporting that a robot has performed laparoscopic surgery without the guiding hand of a human. Designed by a team of Johns Hopkins University researchers, the Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot (STAR) can provide a host of potential benefits. “Our findings show that we can automate one of the most intricate and delicate tasks in surgery, the reconnection of two ends of an intestine. The STAR performed the procedure in four animals and it pro...
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.com. The program will hold caregiver support group meetings in March at the locations below. Training is from 1 to 2 p.m., with support group meetings following, 2 to 3 p.m. This month’s training features presentation and discussion of a DVD, “the Family Guide to Alzheimer’s Disease.” March 3, Sterling Senior Center March 1...
March is a busy month for all Alaskans and spring is just around the corner, so many of us are experiencing “spring fever”. Mother Nature gives us little hints that we don’t have long to wait, such as increasing daylight, warmer temperatures, more outdoor gatherings. Then, she mixes the wonderful prospect of seeing more friends and family as we get out and about with spring thaw, greener pastures and wildlife returning. Alaska Health Fair asks that you make or take time to see to your own and other family members’ health needs before you get bu...
Dear Savvy Senior: How effective is the shingles vaccine and what is the CDC recommendation for getting it? My older brother and sister, both in their fifties, got COVID a few months back followed by shingles. Do you know if there is a connection between these viruses, and would the shingles vaccine have protected them? - Scared of Shingles Dear Scared: Great question. Many healthcare professionals across the country have been urging their older patients to get the shingles vaccine (in addition to the COVID-19 vaccinations) during the pandemic...
Editor's note: Al Clayton, who died in 2008, wrote this story about a cold misadventure. It's been edited and submitted by his daughter and Senior Voice Correspondent Maraley McMichael. I made a snowplane and used it for many years for various trips and adventures. It was a great vehicle to travel through snow, especially on frozen rivers in Interior Alaska, similar to modern day snowmachine travel. Built in Seward in the mid 1950s, it had a metal tubing frame, reinforced canvas-covered body,...
Alaska seniors age 65 and older can receive a tax exemption on the first $150,000 of the value of their home, thanks to the state-mandated Senior and Disabled Veterans Property Tax Exemption. Different municipalities around the state have different deadlines to apply. Some communities offer more generous exemptions. To qualify, all applicants must have turned 65 on or before Dec. 31, 2021, and must own and occupy the exempted property as their primary residence. Note: Some communities require in-person application for first-time applicants, so...
Alzheimer’s Resource of Alaska (ARA) is teaming up with University of Alaska Anchorage and Anchorage’s improvisational comedy troupe, Scared Scriptless, to bring a new opportunity to family caregivers of someone with dementia. This free six week, in-person class will teach the principles of improv comedy to improve communications with a loved one. Participants do not have to be an actor, or even be “funny,” but instead this program will teach communication techniques that are used in improv and are considered best-practices in dementia caregiv...
In March, Alaskans celebrate Seward's Day in honor of the man who succeeded in persuading the United States to buy Alaska from the Russians. And there are many landmarks named after President Lincoln's Secretary of State William Henry Seward. However, when Seward was chosen for the name of the town on Resurrection Bay, it took the personal intervention of President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt to make it possible. By 1902, John Ballaine, originator and promoter of the Alaska Central Railway and...
Not even a youthful warning from her grandfather, a powerful entertainment attorney during the Golden Age of film, could prevent Sharon Gless from attempting the journey to Hollywood. Neil S. McCarthy, who counted Cecil B. DeMille, Katharine Hepburn and Lana Turner among his clients, cautioned his young granddaughter that the movie industry could be a "filthy business." Aided by loyal friends and associates, however, as well as possessing a fierce determination to succeed, Sharon beat the odds...
When I was a kid, I lived for a while in a town near Brazil. Not the big country down in South America, but the small town of Brazil, Indiana. What was strange about the place was that they pronounced it BRAY-zill. I thought that was really odd, until I got back home to Alaska and learned that most of the world pronounces Valdez and Cordova differently from what I grew up with. Yes, we do it differently in Alaska. It’s a snowmachine, not a snowmobile. We don’t refer to our highways by route num...
Q. My computer is seven years old. Everything seems normal when it first starts up, but the longer I use it, the slower it runs. After an hour, the wait is awful. Restarting returns it to normal, but the slowdown repeats. Help! A. This is a challenging problem to troubleshoot. Different things may cause this behavior. The instant a computer starts up, it begins to use three things: CPU, disk space and memory. The computer is designed to keep these in balance, so the computer feels fast. Your computer should have a built-in application that...
Playing Pickleball in Hawaii is just what you'd think: Pleasant weather, tropical breezes, and usually a wonderful, welcoming group of people to play with. It can also be a place where you take the time to practice on your skills at a pickleball camp. Although, with COVID, camps are not as plentiful in Hawaii, there are still places that offer in-house clinics and coaching. On the Big Island of Hawaii, one place is at the Holua Tennis Club south of Kona, where you can schedule a class with a...
