Cny55plus no57

Report: Is Syracuse an Age-Friendly Community?

Ah, the Retirement Life! Where Did all The Free Time Go?

55 PLUS Issue 57 June / July 2015

For Active Adults in the Central New York Area

Should You Fund Your Retirement or Your Kids’ College?

How Four CNYers Spend Their Retirement

KING OF THE AIRWAVES Anchor Dan Cummings is celebrating more than 30 years with Channel 9 in Syracuse. He talks about his career, the industry and what’s like to wake up at 2 in the morning to go to work

Priceless

INSIDE: Prof. Marvin Druger: Tales of Dating

Smart Giving Advice

Madelyn Hornstein, CPA, is Chief Executive Officer of Dermody, Burke & Brown, CPAs, LLC in Franklin Square.

In my role as a Certified Public Accountant, I’m often asked for charitable giving advice by clients interested in establishing a private foundation. I always recommend the Community Foundation as an option to consider.

Establishing your own private foundation can be time-consuming and result in unwanted annual fees and administrative burdens. A better option is to establish a donor-advised fund at the Community Foundation.

Because the fund’s administration is done for you, the set up is quick and easy and you save both money and time.

Confidence gained while working with the Community Foundation over the years inspired me to start a donoradvised fund for my family. By doing so, our future charitable giving can be flexible – making a tax-deductible donation now, and then deciding on our grant recipients over time.

The Community Foundation is a wonderful steward of our region’s charitable funds; it has made smart decisions on how to best spend those dollars. I have the utmost confidence in the Community Foundation’s ability to make good decisions on behalf of my family and my clients, making it Where the Smart Money Gives.

Read more of Madelyn’s story at CNYCF.org/Hornstein.

Where the Smart Money Gives.

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June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

3

CONTENTS 55 PLUS

Report: Is Syracuse an Age-Friendly Community?

Ah, the Retirement Life! Where Did all The Free Time Go?

55

55 PLUS

June / July 2015

PLUS Issue 57 June / July 2015

For Active Adults in the Central New York Area

Should You Fund Your Retirement or Your Kids’ College?

How Four CNYers Spend Their Retirement

KING OF THE AIRWAVES Anchor Dan Cummings is celebrating more than 30 years with Channel 9 in Syracuse. He talks about his career, the industry and what’s like to wake up at 2 in the morning to go to work

Priceless

INSIDE: Prof. Marvin Druger: Tales of Dating

22 32

34 42

Savvy Senior 6 12 RETIREMENT Financial Health 8 • What happened to all the time I Gardening 10

thought I’d have in retirement?

Golden Years 39

See what a study recently found

My Turn 17 14 DEMOGRAPHICS Consumers Corner 38 • Is CNY region age-friendly?

18 Life After 55 40 MUSIC Aging 44 • Hanging out with The Guise,

Druger’s Zoo 46

a Beatles-inspired local duo

22 Visits 48 PROFILE

Ellen Wahl, directed the RSVP in Oswego for more than 33 years.

She recently retired. Page 50 4

55 PLUS - June / July 2015

cny55.com

• Joan Hillsman: Musician has been busy since she moved to Syracuse five years ago

24 FINANCES

• Should you fund your kids’ college or your retirement?

26 COVER STORY

• Dan Cummings contiues legendary career in broadcasting

32 ON THE JOB

• Judy Butler has operated Judy, Judy, Judy! Unisex Barber in Liverpool for over three decades

34 PERSONALITY

• Hank Brown retires following a 58-year broadcasting career

36 GIVING

• CNY Community Foundation increases philanthropy fund

42 VOLUNTEERING

• Oswego Hospital volunteers share their experience

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June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

5

savvy senior

By Jim Miller

Essential Documents You Should Have

E

very adult — and seniors in special — should have at least four essential legal documents to protect them and their family.

These documents will make sure your wishes regarding your estate are legal and clear, and will help minimize any conflicts and confusion with your family and your health care providers if you become seriously ill or when you die. Here are the key documents you need, along with some tips to help you create them.

A Will: This document lets you spell out your wishes of how you’d like your property and assets distributed after you die, whether it’s to family, friends or a charity. It also allows you to designate an executor to ensure your wishes are carried out, and allows you to name guardians if you have minor or dependent children.

Revocable Living Trust: In addition to a will, if you own real estate or have considerable assets, another option you may want to consider is a “revocable living trust.” This functions like a will but allows your estate to avoid the time and expense of probate (the public legal process that examines your estate after you die) and helps ensure your estate’s privacy.

Durable Power of Attorney: This allows you to designate someone you trust to make financial, tax and legal decisions on your behalf if you lose your decision-making capacity.

Advanced Health Care Directive: This includes two documents that spell out your wishes regarding your end-of-life medical treatment. The two documents are a “living will” which tells your doctor what kind of care you want to receive if you become incapacitated, and a “health care power of attorney” which names a person you authorize to make medical decisions on your behalf if you become unable to.

Do-It-Yourself If you have a simple estate and 6

55 PLUS - June / July 2015

an uncomplicated family situation, there are several good do-it-yourself guides that can help you create all these documents for very little money.

For creating a will, a top resource is the Quicken WillMaker Plus 2015 software (available at nolo.com) that costs $50, works with Windows personal computers and is valid in every state except Louisiana. If you use a Mac, nolo.com offers an online will maker for $35.

Or, if you only need to create an advance directive you can do it for free at caringinfo.org (or call 800-6588898), where you can get state-specific forms with instructions. Or for only $5, an even better tool is the Five Wishes document (agingwithdignity.org, 888594-7437), which is valid in 42 states and will help you create a customized advance directive.

Get Help If, however, you want or need assistance or if you have a complicated financial situation, blended family or have considerable assets, you should hire an attorney. An experienced lawyer can make sure you cover all your bases — especially when writing a will or living trust — which can help avoid family confusion and squabbles after you’re gone.

Costs will vary depending on where you reside, but you can expect to pay somewhere between $200 and $1,000 for a will, or $1,200 to $5,000 for a living trust.

The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (actec.org) and the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (naela.org) websites are good resources that have directories to help you find someone in your area.

If money is tight, check with your state’s bar association (see findlegalhelp.org) to find low-cost legal help in your area. Or call the Eldercare Locater at 800-677-1116 for a referral.

55PLUS cny55.com Editor and Publisher Wagner Dotto

Associate Editor Lou Sorendo

Writers

Deborah J. Sergeant Aaron Gifford, Sandra Scott Mary Beth Roach, Matthew Liptak Suzanne M. Ellis Hannah McNamara, Pat Malin

Columnists

Eva Briggs, M.D., Bruce Frassinelli Marilyn Pinsky, Harold Miller Jim Sollecito, David J. Zumpano Marvin Druger, Michele Reed

Advertising

Marsha Preston Amy Gagliano, Beth Clark

Office Manager Alice Davis

Layout and Design

Chris Crocker 55 PLUS –A Magazine for Active Adults in Central New York is published six times a year by Local News, Inc., which also publishes In Good Health–CNY’s Healthcare Newspaper.

Published at 185 E. Seneca St. PO Box 276 Oswego, NY 13126.

Subscription: $15 a year; $25 for two years © 2015 by 55 PLUS – A Magazine for Active Adults in Upstate New York.

No material may be reproduced in whole or in part from this publication without the express written permission of the publisher.

Third class postage paid at Syracuse, NY. Permit Number: 3071

How to Reach Us P.O. Box 276 Oswego, NY 13126 Phone: 315-342-1182 Fax: 315-342-7776 Email: editor@CNY55.com Editor@cnyhealth.com

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7

financial health

By David J. Zumpano

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55 PLUS - June / July 2015

A

Meet My New Friend

s an estate planning attorney I come across many couples who do estate planning that have been married 30, 40, 50 or more years.

A common question I ask is, “do you want to plan to protect your half of the assets from your spouse’s ‘new friend’ after your passing?”

The question usually gets a chuckle but often raises an important issue because each of us knows someone who lost a spouse and now has a “new friend.”

Most couples are willing to address the issue because ultimately they want to ensure their stuff gets to their children or beneficiaries. Similarly, those in second marriages want to be able to provide for their current spouse without disinheriting their loved ones.

It is important to accept our individual need for companionship — this is essential to humanity and in no way does kindling a new friendship or romance after a loss of a spouse negate the love one had for a deceased spouse.

Think of it as an “and” rather than an “or.”

The question becomes: Who gets your half of the assets accumulated during your life — your beneficiaries or your surviving spouse’s new friend?

The greatest threat to your assets is if your health fails and the cost needed for care. Many couples leave assets to their spouse and trust the spouse will provide as they planned.

The challenge occurs, however, when the surviving spouse needs care and appoints their new friend — or

Who gets your half of the assets accumulated during your life — your beneficiaries or your surviving spouse’s new friend? in the case of a second marriage, the spouse’s children, as power of attorney. At that point, any hope of ensuring your stuff gets to your loved ones is greatly diminished.

Planning to protect your assets for your spouse, and from your spouse’s “new friend” or in second marriages, ensuring your assets ultimately gets to your loved ones is a common goal both spouses agree on. Why? Because you don’t know which one’s going to die first so you want to ensure that no matter who does, the deceased spouse’s share is always protected for the surviving spouse, and from “new friends” or the separate kids of the surviving second spouse.

This planning is easily accomplished if you plan while you are alive and healthy, but becomes nearly impossible if you become incapacitated or die with it in place.

We have all heard the horror stories of unintended beneficiaries getting all the assets after mom or dad dies. Don’t risk it, plan for it. It’s not complicated, it just has to be planned for.

David J. Zumpano is an attorney and a certified public accountant (CPA). He operates Estate Planning Law Center. He can be reached at 315-793-3622.

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June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

9

gardening

By Jim Sollecito

Hotel California

I

t was January 1977. As the landscape season was shutting down, and anticipating the start of grad school the following September, I started my long solo drive west.

I had time on my hands and nothing to lose after my college girlfriend and I broke up. The seasonal shift brought an end to my work for the year and if you don’t have roots holding you back, it’s easier to pick up and try something new.

“Go west young man” wasn’t ringing in my ears. What I heard was a haunting phrase that I first heard on the TV show, “Gunsmoke”: “A worm that lives in a radish thinks the whole world is a radish.” I wanted to, and still want to, see what the world has to offer.

I got in that 1963 Chrysler Newport with 188,000 miles on it that my grandparents retired from their farm and handed down to me. I had a roadmap but no defined destination.

Put the pedal to the metal, and let’s get outta here. Heck, there were stretches in Nevada with no posted speed limit.

And then it happened. As I headed down I-90 in Illinois, I heard those first few chords of the Eagles’ song “Hotel California” in its early radio days. Was that an omen or what? It was decided.

I was going all the way to California on some dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair.

As with most journeys, the further you get away, the more you think about things left behind. They somehow become more valuable. Among my college memories, bars seem to generate their share of importance.

Another chapter The Chapter House near the Cornell campus was my favorite place to drown sorrows or celebrate achievements. I recall that on one of my 10

55 PLUS - June / July 2015

last nights there, I carved my name into a heavy wooden table with a grafting knife. I’m still not sure why I did that.

Sadly, the establishment recently burned to the ground. So many precious memories went up in smoke with it. When catastrophic events change our world, our lives veer into another lane. History does matter.

The things we share remind us of who we are.

The Chapter House was a shared space across generations. And now it is gone.

When you lose something from your past, it hurts.

I don’t know what will become of the site. When a building comes down, it is usually replaced with something different. And as our birthday cakes gain more illumination, change can become harder to accept. I prefer to think that now we finally see the light a little clearer.

After that drive to California and the winter spent landscaping outside San Francisco, I never did end up in grad school. I got my education on the left coast. My perspective changed.

The seasons were changing in Central New York, and I wanted in on it. So I drove 3,000 miles back and started planting. It was spring; it seemed like the right thing to do. And it was.

You go to college to learn things.

You travel for an education.

People and places from our childhood and youth make us who we are. The places and people change, so we adapt. That’s how life works. I was planting swamp white oak trees on my farm by myself a few weeks ago and realized that I might not be around to see them bear their acorns in 30 years.

I was planting trees for someone else to enjoy but that didn’t mean I wasn’t gaining pleasure from the experience.

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June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

11

55+

retirement

Ah, the Retirement Life!

‘I have no idea what happened to those dreamy mornings and those wonderfully open-ended days of leisure I fantasized about for decades’

By Suzanne M. Ellis

T

here was no doubt about it, my retirement would be a wonderful time of life. I had, after all, spent nearly 30 years planning it, especially during those 5:30 a.m. drives to work in blinding snow and all those glorious summer

weekends trapped inside a newsroom, earning my daily wage as a journalist.

I’d stay up as late as I wanted, reading or watching TV, and I’d awaken each morning when my body (and not my alarm clock) told me it was time to get up. I’d savor the

By the end of my first full year of retirement, things got so crazy I had to buy a daily planner to keep track of daily obligations and activities 12

55 PLUS - June / July 2015

aroma of fresh-perked coffee, enjoying each sip as I read the morning paper and contemplated how to spend the unfettered hours stretching ahead of me.

But today, looking back over my first few years of retirement, I have no idea what happened to those dreamy mornings and those wonderfully open-ended days of leisure I fantasized about for decades.

A funny thing happens when you suddenly have what feels like all the time in the world. Your mind has something it never had before — lots of time to wander — and before long, you start thinking about all that volunteer work you never had time to do and all those organizations you never had time to join. Your mind wanders off to that knitting class you always wanted to take, those zumba classes you could never fit into your schedule, that bedroom you’ve wanted to paint for 10 years. You get the idea.

A funny thing also happens to the people around you when you retire, especially the ones who are still working. Because you are now a lady (or gentleman) of leisure, everyone thinks you really do have all the time in the world. You suddenly find yourself in great demand by all sorts of people for all sorts of reasons.

By the end of my first full year of retirement, things got so crazy I had to buy a daily planner, something I had never needed at home, to keep track of daily obligations and activities. And that was before I realized I’d soon have to find part-time work.

I was fortunate to get some freelance writing jobs and I also became certified to tutor a variety of English-related subjects including ESL (English as a Second Language), SAT test preparation, grammar, reading, writing and basic computer skills, all of which took a pretty big chunk of time. And because I was getting older, I found myself spending a lot more time in doctors’ and dentists’ offices which resulted in spending a lot more time talking with Medicare reps or other insurance companies.

As my four local grandchildren got older, I was spending a whole lot more time at sporting events, musicals, concerts, scouting activities and everything else they’re involved in. Then there were trips to Atlanta a few times a year to visit my son and my other two grandchildren.

Another funny thing I’ve discovered in retirement is that it’s really hard to say “no” when asked to do something. What, after all, would be my excuse? “Sorry, I’ll be too busy at home, savoring my morning coffee, reading the paper and pondering the cloud formations?” When you tell people you’ll need to check your calendar, their eyes roll, clearly indicating they don’t understand how someone who’s retired could possibly need a calendar.

It took me a couple of years to finally realize that if we’re not careful, we’ll end up being as busy as — or busier than — we ever were when we were working full-time. We end up frazzled and weary, feelings that aren’t conducive to a happy, healthy retirement.

So I recently took a few steps backward, knocked a few things off my plate, practiced saying “no” and prioritized the things that were taking up large amounts of my time. Don’t get me wrong, life is still busy and I still have to keep track of my schedule with a planner, but making time to enjoy leisurely mornings now and then has become a necessity. And I’m a whole lot happier.

Suzanne Ellis retired in 2009 after 23 years of reporting and editing for the Post-Standard in Syracuse. She lives in Baldwinsville.

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June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

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demographics

Are We AgeFriendly?

Syracuse area analyzed for its ability to provide for growing number of senior citizens

By Aaron Gifford

C

e n t r a l N e w Yo r k h a s a reputation for its harsh winters, high taxes and shrinking population base.

But at the same time, a local civic organization proclaims the region should be trumpeted as a great place to grow old.

In a recently released community report, “Shaping an Age-Friendly Central New York,” F.O.C.U.S Greater Syracuse outlines what this area already offers to older adults and what improvements are needed to keep retirees in the years to come.

These include mainly baby boomers, which make up 37.5 percent of Onondaga County’s population.

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55 PLUS - June / July 2015

“The good news is Central New York is currently a great place to grow older,” the report’s introduction says. “It has excellent health care, which not only encourages (baby) boomers to remain but encourages boomers to relocate aging parents to Central New York. Our cost of living is relatively low. Our numerous highereducation centers offer incredible cultural, recreational and learning opportunities for boomers. Central New York’s magnificent landscape and four seasons offer year-round opportunities for outdoor recreation and physical activities, from hiking, to boating to skiing.”

M o r e o v e r, t h e S y r a c u s e

metropolitan area was ranked No. 13 in the Milken Institute’s “Best Cities for Successful Aging” report.

In these changing times, however, F.O.C.U.S. members reported there is still much work to do to keep the area desirable and competitive with growing metropolitan areas in warmer climates that are also seen as agefriendly communities.

They asked 2,000 respondents what would influence their decision to stay or leave. Once the responses were gathered and tallied, they convened five focus groups and took a closer look at the main issues: housing, transportation, social networks, retirement, and recreational, physical and cultural activities.

“If we lost people from Central New York, we’re losing consumers, property owners, tax dollars and philanthropists,” F.O.C.U.S. cofounder Charlotte “Chuckie” Holstein

said. “And we’re also losing a lot of wisdom and skills from people who still have so much to contribute.”

Some of the tasks to improve Central New York communities for seniors are quite simple: Make sure sidewalks are well lighted and kept in good shape, install automatic door openers and elevators in buildings, and promote local museums, libraries, continuing education classes and civic engagement activities.

Improving the region’s existing housing stock is a more challenging task. According to the report, the typical neighborhood in Central New York consists mainly of old two-story homes that would need to be retrofitted with bathrooms and bedrooms on the ground level.

In addition, a typical neighborhood is “not walk-able,” yet also lacks access to public transportation.

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F.O.C.U.S. put forth a series of recommendations to Syracuse area municipalities for either renovating existing neighborhoods to an aging population, or to create new ones for seniors looking to downsize: • Invest in sidewalk maintenance, streetlights and business development • Update zoning laws to promote mixed-use neighborhoods where businesses co-exist with residences • Ensure affordable housing by offering tax incentives for older adults • Provide housing safety checks and maintenance services • Create a directory of agefriendly home programs, products and maintenance services.

Holstein said her group will continue a series of meetings with local mayors and planners to discuss changing existing zoning ordinances and master plans that, when they were put in place decades ago, were generally designed to separate commercial districts from residential neighborhoods. The assumption was people would always drive from their homes to the shopping centers, restaurants and offices.

“Most boomers in Onondaga County live in the suburbs,” Holstein said. “We do have some walk-able communities that have a town center — look at Skaneateles and Liverpool, and look at Westcott Street in Syracuse.

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especially essential task, the report said. “Resources are being cut,” it said, “while the demand for services is increasing.”

“Car-dependent residents are very concerned about loss of independence as they lost their ability to drive as they age,” the report says.

The first priority is to secure funding to maintain the bus routes that exist and eventually add routes that connect residential areas to places where there are special events and age-friendly activities. Affordable transportation options like car sharing or even a bicycle-sharing service should be established.

Transportation issues addressed Some of F.O.C.U.S.’s additional ideas for transportation improvements: • Organize volunteerbase organizations or time-share organizations to provide transportation for older adults • Designate parking spaces for older adults • Improve roads and walkways to ensure accessibility to services, health care providers and public transportation • Invest in sheltered bus stops that have benches and are safe and well lighted • Create a walking/biking trail system that connects neighborhoods to retail centers, restaurants and entertainment attractions In the community and health services section of the report, F.O.C.U.S. members noted the quality and accessibility of health care in this region is praiseworthy. But it’s expected that the aging baby boomers will put increased demands on the system — for their elderly parents in the short-term and their own assisted living arrangements in the years ahead.

There is already a waiting list for many privately owned nursing homes and retirement communities, the report said.

F.O.C.U.S. believes local health care organizations need to step up physician recruitment efforts and invest in wireless technologies to facilitate in-home care (telemedicine).

Other health-related services are important to the aging patient base, including health care navigators and advocates, private case management, non-medical training programs for 16

55 PLUS - June / July 2015

caregivers, r e s p i t e programs for caregivers and adult day care facilities.

On the education, culture and recreation f r o n t , F. O . C . U . S . reported this area has plenty of Charlotte “Chuckie” Holstein, co-founder y e a r - r o u n d of F.O.C.U.S., which a c t i v i t i e s for boomers recently released and senior a study analyzing citizens, but how age-friendly the a better effort region is. is needed to promote places, organizations and events.

The group urges local colleges and universities to make on-campus housing available to older, nontraditional students who want to continue their education. Satellite campuses and more online offerings are recommended as well. And cultural activities, such as ethnic festivals, should be offered in the suburbs as well as in the city, the report said.

Taxes could be the deal breaker for older adults who are torn between two locations. BankRate.com and Kiplinger have rated New York state as the worst state for retirement, largely due to taxes. But F.O.C.U.S. says New York has very generous taxpayer-funded services for the elderly, which should be viewed as a main reason to stay here after retirement.

Taxing situation The group recommends launching a public awareness campaign to educate residents about taxpayerfunded programs and services for the elderly. F.O.C.U.S. members say fact sheets comparing the costs and benefits or similar programs in other states should be created, along with itemized tax bills for all property owners and a guide for understanding local and state taxes.

“We need to put something out that explains it in layman’s terms,” Holstein said. “We might find that we are not the most taxed state; maybe that’s a myth. But if we are, then obviously we would have to take steps

to address it. Either way, we’re stirring the pot. That’s always good.”

There are plenty of boomers here who expect to work past the age of retirement, the report said, so local employers need to offer more in the way of jobs that have flexible schedules, part-time hours or the ability to work from home. Programs are also needed to encourage and support new businesses launched by older adults. And there is a big demand for pre-retirement counseling.

According to the report, boomers feel a general lack of retirement preparedness due to factors like financial hardships caused by the 2008 recession, age discrimination, health issues and caregiver responsibilities.

Baby boomers also feel it’s important to be connected to the community, the report said. It’s important to organize groups of volunteers to embark upon community projects. Without civic engagement opportunities, F.O.C.U.S. reports, older adults are at risk of social isolation.

“An ‘encore movement’ is growing among older adults, who desire to give something back to their community as they age,” the report said. “In 2011, 20 million people aged 55-plus gave more than 3 billion hours of community service, valued at $67 billion.”

F.O.C.U.S. reports, despite the large number of Central New York residents who have moved to Florida permanently or just during the winter months, migration within the United States as a whole is actually decreasing.

Sunbelt states like Florida, Nevada and Arizona have seen a dramatic decrease in their Boomer population from 2007 to 2012, largely due to lack of jobs.

Holstein says the weather is the only thing that cannot be changed.

But even so, her group is looking at creative ways to possibly make snowbirds happier and keep them in Central New York more months out of the year. One idea is to buy direct flights to warmer destinations in bulk, along with five-week stay packages at resorts. It’s an alternative to renting or buying seasonal housing in which the snowbird might have to live on a stricter budget in order to spend more time there.

“The trade off is more luxury for a shorter stay,” Holstein said, “and they are still remaining taxpayers here in Central New York.”

my turn

By Bruce Frassinelli Email: bruce@cny55.com

Was it Coincidence, or Was it Fate?

T

wo of our most famous presidents — Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy — were assassinated roughly about a century apart: Lincoln in 1865 and Kennedy in 1963.

T h e re a re s o m e i n t e re s t i n g coincidences involving the 16th and 35th presidents. For example: • Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846; Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.

• Lincoln was elected president in 1860; Kennedy was elected in 1960.

• There are seven letters in each last name.

• Both presidents were assassinated on a Friday; both were shot in the presence of their wives, and both were shot in the head.

• Both w e re d i re c t l y concerned with civil rights.

• Kennedy’s secretary’s name was Lincoln, while Lincoln’s secretary’s name was Kennedy.

• Kennedy’s secretary warned him not to go to Dallas, while Lincoln’s secretary warned him not to go to the theater.

• Both of their successors’ names were Johnson. Andrew Johnson became president when Lincoln died, while Lyndon Johnson became president when Kennedy was killed.

Each name contains 13 letters.

• Both Johnsons served in the U.S. Senate. Both were southern Democrats.

Andrew Johnson was born in 1808; Lyndon Johnson was born in 1908.

• Their assassins — John Wilkes Booth and Lee Harvey Oswald – were southerners favoring unpopular ideas. Oswald shot Kennedy from a warehouse and hid in a theater; Booth

shot Lincoln in a theater and hid in a warehouse.

• Oswald and Booth were both killed before a trial could be held. They were born 100 years apart.

• Lee Harvey Oswald and John Wilkes Booth both contain 15 letters, and both men have a total of three names.

• Lincoln was shot in Ford’s Theatre, while Kennedy was shot in a Lincoln made by Ford.

So what gives? Are these historical figures actually linked by some spooky phenomenon?

Hardly.

Several prominent debunkers, including snopes.com, take great pains in dissecting each of the coincidences to show that chance and probability are more likely explanations in some instances, while others don’t even stand the test of historical accuracy.

For example, try as we might, we have been unable to find any indication of Lincoln’s secretary by the name of “Kennedy.”

To “gee whiz” the happenstance that each president’s name has seven letters is to ignore the fact that the average length of presidential surnames is 6.6 letters.

That both presidents were shot in the head is less than surprisingly given that head shots a re c o n s i d e re d t h e most deadly target of assassins, and both presidents were seated when they were shot making targets of other parts of the body less likely.

The Lincoln-Kennedy coincidences make for the fanciful conjecture that springs up around unfortunate international events such as presidential assassinations. There are some who believe that both Booth and Oswald were in league with rogue elements in the U.S. government, whose mission was to get rid of these men who made unpopular decisions — Lincoln on slavery and Kennedy on civil rights issues in the South.

June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

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music

Hanging with The Guise Inspired by Beatlemania, local duo continues musical journey

By Mary Beth Roach

M

eet the guys. Or more aptly, The Guise.

Adrian Gerard and Dale Randall make up this musical duo, and the name — The Guise — is a little play on words that Gerard came up with.

The duo has also come up with a recently released CD titled “Forthcoming.”

The pair’s first collection of alloriginal music, it’s already getting some local radio play and great reviews.

Local music critic Mark Bialczak writes in his blog, markbialczak.com, “The Guise had captured both the pop majesty and comforting harmonies of The Beatles. And all was good.”

Of the songs on the new CD, Gerard wrote some, Randall wrote some and the others were the results of teamwork between the two.

Randall likened their collaborative process to the way Paul McCartney and John Lennon worked.

Randall, 62, and Gerard, 65, are avid Beatles fans, and have been 18

55 PLUS - June / July 2015

playing in various bands since the 1960s. Together they bring more than 75 years of experience to their craft.

Gerard, a working musician for more than 40 years, played at the original Woodstock in 1969 and at the International Pop Overthrow Festival in Los Angeles, a showcase for independent pop artists.

He has played opening acts for Chubby Checker, The Five Satins, Bulldog, Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks, and for Joey Dee and the Starlighters.

He has also performed at the Hershey Park Pavilion with The Beatles tribute band, “Abbey Road.”

Randall’s musical resume includes stints with Syracuse’s “The Coachmen;” the stage show “The Music of Carole King; he was a charter band member in the musical show, “Cruisin’ thru the 50s,” at the New Times Theater; he has played an opening act for “Beatlemania,” and he was a member of The Fab Five, a local Beatles tribute band.

With The Fab Five, Randall

traveled to International Beatle Week in Liverpool, England, in 2006 and played at the Cavern Club, where The Beatles had been the signature act.

“I got to stand on the very stage that Paul McCartney was standing on.

That was a great week,” he said with awe still resonating as he recounted the experience.

“I never really liked music when I was younger,” Gerard said. “Then I saw The Beatles, and I found I could sing their songs. When I found I could play a guitar without a lesson, I was playing ‘till my fingers bled.”

Self-taught musician He taught himself how to play on a $17 Silvertone acoustic guitar his mom bought him, and he started playing in bands at the age of 16.

Randall had played trumpet and baritone sax while in school, but it was a birthday gift when he was in his teens, of a six-string Decca guitar, that changed him. Like Gerard, he taught himself to play the instrument.

“I thought I was the next Chet Atkins with that,” he said.

The turning point, Randall added, was in 1964 when he saw The Beatles on “The Ed Sullivan Show.”

“When you see the reaction of the boys and girls in the crowd, and you say, “Yeah, that could be fun. I think I’ll do that.’”

A mutual friend, Fred Kooper, who knew of Gerard’s and Randall’s love of The Beatles, invited them to an annual music fest he hosted in Mexico.

The pair played a few tunes together then, and would later team up to form The Guise about six years ago.

Whether they’re performing their own music or cover songs, their sound is marked by their ability to harmonize.

“The best thing we found was that we could both sing on key, and we can harmonize, so if we blow a part when we’re playing, the other guy can flop to the other part,” Gerard said.

Because of the harmonies, Gerard and Randall listen to a lot of Crosby, Stills and Nash, The Byrds, and the Everly Brothers, The Association, and of course, The Beatles, and these

“Forthcoming” is the titled of the CD that The Guise has recently launched. It has received great reviews locally. Music critic Mark Bialczak writes in his blog, markbialczak.com, “The Guise had captured both the pop majesty and comforting harmonies of The Beatles. And all was good.” legends influence how Gerard and Randall write, sing and play.

The duo had their best year ever in 2014, playing five nights a week during the summer months.

The months ahead should keep the duo busy as well as they continue to market their CD through http://www. reverbnation.com/theguise.

It is also available locally at The Sound Garden in downtown Syracuse’s Armory Square.

They are also trying to start a nationwide tour and are preparing to use the Kickstarter program, which is a new fundraising initiative for creative projects.

Gerard put together a proposal for the tour, with a goal of $10,000.

For every $15 that fans pledge, The Guise will give the donor a CD of “Forthcoming.”

As they continue to market the CD and work toward realizing a national tour, the duo has no intention of slowing down. Gerard sees the endless possibilities in the future.

“I really want to leave something for the better. When I am gone, you can still hear me in my songs; someone can still get enjoyment because I did this,” Gerard said.

June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

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But Hillsman persisted.

“It was Christmas,” she said. “I never will forget it. She said, ‘I’m going to buy you a little toy piano and if you learn to play Jingle Bells on there, I will get you a big one.’ I went home that evening and learned ‘Jingle Bells.’ I then asked, ‘Now, can we go get the piano?’”

Her mom bought her a piano.

Piano woman

Joan Hillsman

A Life in Music The 71-year-old moved to Syracuse from the D.C. area five years ago to be closer to her only son Quentin Hillsman, who is the head coach of Syracuse University's women's basketball program. She has been very busy ever since.

By Matthew Liptak

J

oan Hillsman’s mother gave her some good advice when she was younger.

“She had to mold me and said, ‘Use your resources and just see where you want to go’,” Hillsman said.

“I followed that.”

That direction from her mom led her to a life in music that has lasted well over half a century, taking her from travels to such far-flung places like Europe and the Holy Land to teaching music in lecture halls, writing books on gospel and becoming supervisor of music for the Washington D.C. public schools.

The 71-year-old moved to Syracuse from the D.C. area five years ago to be closer to her only son Quentin. Quentin Hillsman is the head coach of Syracuse 22

55 PLUS - June / July 2015

University’s women’s basketball program. His mother continues to stay active in music as a teacher, mentor, performer and volunteer.

Her path in music started when she was only a young girl. Her father, William Rucker, was killed in action during World War II six days before Hillsman’s second birthday. Her mother and grandfather introduced her to the world of music in the small city of Anderson, S.C., where she grew up.

“My mom would take me downtown,” Hillsman recalled. “There was a big music store. I’d always want to go in there. I asked her ‘Would you buy me a piano?’ She said ‘No. I’m not going to invest in a piano. You’d take it for a toy.’”

Realizing little Joan had a gift with music, her mother and grandfather insisted on lessons. They hired the best teacher in the neighborhood for 75 cents per lesson.

Soon, Hillsman was performing at her church, Generostee Baptist Church in Starr, S.C. Hillsman said the name may have been a misspelling of the word generosity by its original congregation of racially mixed worshipers. The church began before slavery was abolished.

Hillsman’s journey in music almost took a drastic detour. After enrolling in Howard University, she planned on a career as a foreign correspondent. She had excelled in French in high school.

When she got to the university, those language courses were full so she took some music courses instead. She planned to go back to pursuing French the following semester.

“When it was time for me to transfer back to my major in French, I said, ‘You know what? I’m enjoying this,’” Hillsman said. “I stayed in music.”

Hillsman moved up academically.

She eventually got a PhD in music. Her specialty was ethnomusicology.

“I started doing classical music and I liked it, but something just drew me to African-American music,” she said. “The rhythms and everything just drew me and kept me there.”

Many aspects of music attracted her to the subject. She could have her hand in many areas. Hillsman could perform, sing, travel and lecture.

Hillsman said she had different musical groups as her career progressed. One of them was called The Hillsman Singers.

Through her experience with that group, she met singer Dionne Warwick’s father. He appreciated her ability to chart her own music which many musicians at that time were not able to provide.

“They gave me a job instantly to prepare the new artists that would come, screen them, make sure they know the contract,” Hillsman said.

f

Expression through written word Hillsman turned from performing teacher to author when she co-wrote her first book, “The Progress of Gospel: From Spiritualist to Contemporary.” It had a foreword provided by Dionne Warwick. Hillsman recalled the family fondly.

“I love them,” she said. “I got to meet the whole family. It was quite an experience being at that level.”

The author didn’t stop at one book.

She has recently seen the publication of the third edition of another book she authored alone, “Gospel Music and the African-American Art Form,” published by McGraw-Hill.

She officially retired from the Washington D.C. schools in 1996, but never really slowed down. She was then hired as a professor of music at Bowie State University and worked there for a while.

“You got to keep it moving,” she explained.

Hillsman now operates the Joan Hillsman Music Network, a nonprofit, and began the Syracuse Chapter of the Gospel Music Workshop of America.

She is a national board member of the GMWA. Hillsman also continues to mentor and teach students from her office in DeWitt. Tyquashia Myricks is a Syracuse University history and political science student who is learning from Hillsman.

“I love working with her,” Myricks said. “She’s such a genuine (person) and she makes it easy to work with her. She’s someone I hold really dear to me. If I’m not helping her, we’re having deep conversations about life and its lessons and my dreams and aspirations and she’s encouraging me.”

Hillsman has inspired many in music and in life. She continues to.

“My mom always emphasized being a great person,” Quentin Hillsman said. “She was a big believer in giving without expectations of receiving. I’m a reflection of her. She has undying energy and a passion for what she loves, music.”

For more information on the Joan Hillsman Music Network, go to www.

JoanHillsmanMusicNetwork.com.

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Retirement or College Fund?

Should you fund your retirement account or set aside money to help your kids pay for college? Local experts weigh in

By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

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any 55-plussers find themselves at a financial crossroads: build their retirement fund or help their children with college?

“As a general rule, helping the kids instead of funding your retirement is not a great idea,” said Clark Gronsbell, owner and broker of Fiscal Fitness in Syracuse. “Time isn’t on your side as an adult approaching retirement.”

Most experts recommend a minimum of $1 million saved for retirement. Skimping on retirement saving to help your child go to college can make your retirement years tough.

We i g h i n g y o u r options in the choice can help you make the right decision as to how much you can help with college expenses. “ Yo u h a v e t o understand how much you can fund for each goal and what the tradeoffs are,” said Cynthia Tu r o s k i , c e r t i f i e d 24

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public accountant/personal financial specialist and a certified financial planner with The Bonadio Group, which has locations in Syracuse, Rochester, and other cities across the state.

Is working until you’re 80 or 90 a problem for you? Or living a lower standard of living for retirement an option? Could your children defer attending college a few years?

Thinking the pros and cons of each choice can help you understand how the future will play out.

If your or another family member can loan your child money, the interest stays in the family, but Turoski warned that you have to pay tax penalties on the interest.

“Do you put your relationship into that of a borrower and lender?” she asked. “Will the child be responsible for paying it? Are you willing to walk away if the child doesn’t pay?”

She also warns parents to not loan money that they absolutely must have to retire.

If you really want to help the kids, leave your retirement savings alone and decide what you really need to live on. Cut the cable bill, magazine subscriptions, fancy phone plans, big vacations and meals out. Sell an unused vehicle, thus eliminating the fuel, insurance, maintenance and registration costs. Sell unused real estate or other property of value.

Consider downsizing your home.

Divert the extra money to the college fund.

You could also pick up a part-time job or return from retirement to your career. Many retirees find satisfaction working as a consultant in their area of expertise as well.

Speaking of working, do all you can to help your aspiring collegian work. Buying him a used car to drive to work may be a good investment.

Help him job hunt with the skills and connections you’ve acquired over the years.

“During the summer, reach out to the finance office ahead of time to work on campus during the school year,” Turoski said.

Working at least 40 hours per week summers and part-time during the school year goes a long way toward paying for his education.

“You get more value out of something you pay for yourself,” Gronsbell said. He also tells parents to “take advantage of the tax-favored

529 savings plan.”

Consider all the scholarships associated with organizations to which you, your spouse and your child belong: employers, civic groups, and alumni organizations, in addition to academic scholarships.

Seek expert help for finding college aid, scholarships and loans.

Your child’s high school guidance counselor may offer some ideas, as well as financial professionals.

Search online for “college planning Syracuse New York” to find local experts.

Avoid co-signing when your child takes out loans for education because if he doesn’t make enough salary after school to make monthly payments, government-backed income recognition programs can help him deal with the shortfall. If the loan is in your name, you won’t receive any grace.

QuiltWeek Coming to Syracuse

By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

How to Afford College Making college cost less can help you and your child better afford higher education.

• “Get the child on board with their degree plan so it’s something they can make money at later and afford to pay for the cost of the education upon graduation.

• “Help them pick something they’ll stick with.

Many college students spend five to six years in school because of transfers and changing degrees.

Legwork ahead of time could save a lot. Make sure the college is accredited.

• “Research ahead of time to see if you can transfer from community college. Take the general education core there. Online colleges are becoming more respected, too.”

Cynthia Turoski, certified public accountant/ personal financial specialist and a certified financial planner with The Bonadio Group • “Pell Grants can help reduce college costs.

• “I put two girls through college. If I had it to do over again, I’d recommend they go to community college for the first two years. It’s significantly less costly.

• “The value of the four-year college education today is becoming more questionable. There’s increasing value in a vocational education.

Clark Gronsbell, owner and broker of Fiscal Fitness in Syracuse

T

he American Quilter’s Society will present QuiltWeek in Syracuse. The event will boast hundreds of quilts on display and offer instruction from worldrenowned teachers.

If you need supplies or equipment, hundreds of quilting vendors will offer wares for perusal in the Merchant Mall, including fabric, patterns, equipment, quilting books, notions and demonstrations of the latest techniques.

Though entrance to the quilting contests are closed for the event, attendees can enjoy viewing scores of entries on display. The QuiltWeek website (www.quiltweek.com) has a complete list of categories.

The OnCenter will host the event July 29 through Aug. 1. Tickets purchased 30 days before opening day receive a 10 percent discount from the regular price of $14 for non-AQS members or $11 for members. Members also receive a 20 percent discount at the Merchant Mall. Multiple day passes, available online, also offer a discount.

Tour groups are welcome.

If you can’t make the Syracuse event, American Quilter ’s Society will host QuiltWeek events in Grand Rapids, Mich. (Aug. 10-13), Chattanooga, Tenn. (Sept. 14-17) and Des Moines, Iowa (Oct. 5-8).

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King of the Airwaves

Dan Cummings: hot on the anchor seat after more than 30 years on TV

By Aaron Gifford

T

he a.m. newsman’s casual, friendly tone makes you feel as if weekday mornings are not such dreaded times.

Despite his easy-going presence, he appears grateful that the viewers on the other side of the transmission

Dan Cummings circa 1993.

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signal have chosen to let him into their living room or kitchen before taking on the day. He still — after so many years on air — believes it’s a privilege, not a right, to be there.

“There are a lot of choices,” says this newsman, Dan Cummings of

WSYR Newschannel 9’s ‘The Morning News.’ “If you think about it, there’s no guarantee that a viewer is going to invite you into their home again tomorrow.”

These days, when Cummings looks back on decades of hard work in often tense or stressful environments and hundreds of deadlines, he realizes that getting up at 2 a.m. each day is still a fairly sane routine.

Thirty-plus years in such a competitive and fickle business is becoming a rare feat for news personalities anywhere, let alone those who have been fortunate enough to enjoy a career at one station.

“He’s very good at what he does,” Lou Gulino, Newschannel 9’s assignment editor, said of Cumming’s tenure. “I joked with his wife once when I worked at another station that Dan could read the phone book on the air and make it sound like he was kicking butt with an exclusive story.

He knows the back-stories of the major events in Syracuse news of the last 30 or so years. He has that institutional knowledge of people, places and events that is so important in a newsroom where often the workforce can be transitory. It’s a presence that keeps us on the right track.”

Cummings, 58, was raised in Kings Ferry, a small community in Cayuga County. His father was a rural sociology professor at Cornell

On the set of “The Morning News on Newschannel 9,� which starts at 4:30 a.m. and runs until 7 a.m., Monday through Friday. He co-anchors the show with Jennifer Sanders.

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University, while his mother worked as an emergency room nurse at Tompkins County Hospital. He has two older brothers and a younger sister.

Catholicism was central to the Cummings family. The kids spent their summers swimming in Cayuga Lake and riding their bikes down Route 34.

They lived near a golf course and took up the game at an early age.

“It was a great place to grow up,” Cummings recalled. “You wouldn’t trade a childhood like that for anything. Not only did everybody know everybody, but everybody liked everybody.”

Cummings took an interest in broadcasting when his brother, Tom, attended Cornell University and worked at the campus radio station.

The boys loved Top 40 hits at the time as well as oldies music. When Cummings visited his brother there for the first time, “I really got the bug then.”

When Tom brought home boxes of Associated Press news wire copy, his younger brother would immediately grab the documents and pretend to read them like a newsman. In school, Cummings’ favorite subject was social

Cummings with co-anchors Rod Wood and Carrie Lazarus. Circa mid ‘90s. studies, especially when the lessons involved current events and cutting out newspaper articles.

After graduating from Southern Cayuga Central High School in 1973, Cummings continued his education at SUNY Geneseo, majoring in speech communications and signing on

with both the AM and FM radio stations. During his four years of undergraduate work, Cummings served as a disc jockey, news director and station manager.

“You got to do everything,” he said.

Cummings’ first job out of college was at a country station in Rochester, 680 WNYR. He described his news casting role there “as pretty much rip and read” but said it still provided a valuable year of experience toward solidifying a career in the broadcast business.

He went on to another Rochester station where he also did news as well as some music announcing, but was laid off after three months due to budget cuts.

Taking on deadlines

With the late Nancy Duffy (center) and another reporter, circa mid-’90s at the Syracuse St. Patrick’s parade. Cummings has anchored Channel 9’s coverage of the show for most of the last 30 years.

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Cummings’ “first best job,” he explained, was at the WTKO station in Ithaca, which hired him in 1977. There, staffers covered almost everything in person, from school board meetings, to accidents, to press conferences. The journeyman learned how to write news and then edit and report it on tight deadlines.

“We covered everything,” he said, “and I had to learn how to grasp things in a hurry.”

A year later, journalist Bill Carey at WHEN in Syracuse recruited

Cummings to help the station compete against WSYR. It was a bigger market with bigger stories. Some of his reports ran nationally on ABC radio.

Cummings covered a massive rally for Jesse Jackson’s 1980 presidential bid. He also interviewed controversial Syracuse Mayor Lee Alexander.

“It was a little intimidating at times,” Cummings recalled. “Your questions would have to be pretty sharp, or he’d put you in your place.”

In 1981, Cummings decided to pursue a master ’s degree in communications at Cornell University.

He was seriously considering teaching courses in his field. But then he received another call from Carey, who Cummings to this day still considers his role model and mentor.

At that time, Carey made the move to television and was working at Channel 9. He was looking for a full-time assignment editor.

“It was a different challenge,” Cummings recalled. “It just seemed like the right time. I loved the energy level of TV news. The days were long but they flew right by.”

Within 17 months, Cummings was doing some weekend reporting in addition to his desk job at the station, and he eventually landed a position that allowed him to anchor on the weekends and report three days during the week. The mid-80s was a turbulent time in Central New York, and the news market here was fiercely competitive. Cummings covered the Allied Chemical plant closing in which 1,300 employees were laid off. There was also Alexander’s criminal indictment. Newschannel 9 covered it from Binghamton with a borrowed satellite truck. Cummings also reported the murder of two Onondaga County Sheriff deputies.

“The competition was so much more intense then,” Cummings recalled. “In our news director ’s office, all three stations (9, 3 and 5) were on and he was always analyzing them and asking, ‘What did we have?

What did we not have?’ We tried a lot of different things, but we joked then that we were the fourth-ranked station in a three-station market.”

Image makeover But that changed. Channel 9 carved its niche by focusing on “news you could use,” including consumer reports, family health casts and pet

Cummings and former anchor Maureen Green shared the same news show. Circa 1993. savers. and 15-year-old Jonah, attend Bishop Cummings was involved with the Grimes High School. decisions that elevated the station out As a working father, Cummings of the basement, and he stayed there would report a story in the afternoon because he felt it was a great place for before anchoring the 5 p.m. newscast. career growth. He was promoted to He’d return home for a long dinner assistant news director in 1987 and as break and be back at the station to news director in 1989. anchor at 11 p.m. Eventually, he was His worst moment in the business able to return to a daytime shift. took place during the 1990 recession, While Cummings had when he had to lay off 25 percent of tremendous respect for his colleagues the newsroom staff. Some of them had at Newschannel 9 and even the only been at the station a short time competing stations, he saw the late and were excellent journalists. The last- Peter Jennings of ABC as the perfect hired, first-fired policy was applied, anchorman — “warm, credible, smart, and the station took on additional deep and always responsible.” He met cost-cutting measures to get through Jennings several years ago while on financially challenging times. assignment in New York City.

“We were told to do more with “It was after a tour of the station, less, but we quickly realized that the and he stuck around for us,” Cummings best we could do was just to do the said. “He was so personable. He asked same with less,” Cummings said. me about Syracuse and took a genuine “Often we would use graphics and interest. He was so authentic of a special production elements instead person. He asked me more questions of people. We couldn’t send video than I asked him.” crews everywhere. We had to get more Cummings began anchoring creative in the way we told stories.”

Channel 9’s “The Morning News” Cummings eventually returned in 2008. He’s still done quite a bit to reporting. He got married, started of reporting and news production, a family and worked a split shift that including the 2012 “Saints Among allowed him to spend time with his Us” documentary that was covered children. His wife, Danielle, serves as from the Vatican. That piece won an the chancellor and communications Edward R. Murrow award. The same director for the Diocese of Syracuse. year, he partnered with other Syracuse Their children, 16-year-old Anna news stations in the production June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

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Cummings interviews local newsmakers who share their opinions on the hot topics of the day. Here he interviews Jason Smorol, general manager of The Syracuse Chiefs. The show — “Newsmakers with Dan Cummings” — airs on Sundays at 6 a.m. and it’s available online. of the “Protecting Our Children” documentary, which was nominated for an Emmy award.

Last year, Cummings traveled with 60 World War II and Korean War veterans to visit the memorials in Washington, D.C. as part of a 30-minute documentary, “Honor Flight: Heroes Journey.”

In addition, he hosts Newschannel 9’s studio-based “Newsmakers” program, which focuses on key players in local public affairs. During his career so far, Cummings has twice been honored with the Syracuse Press Club’s “Professional Standards” award.

Faith and family As busy as he is, faith and family are central to the anchorman. The Cummings are deeply involved in the Catholic Church and prayer is a big part of Dan’s morning routine. He also serves on the Bishop Grimes JuniorSenior High School board.

“Our faith is everything to us,” he said.

Long-distance running has helped Cummings combat stress and remain fit and energetic. He’s run in several local races, including the Mountain 30

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Goat and the Utica Boilermaker, as well as in marathons across the country.

“The feeling you get at the finish line,” he says, “it’s just awesome.”

Cummings also enjoys coaching basketball. He coached his kids’ elementary school teams before stepping up to the modified level and then the girl’s junior varsity squad at Bishop Grimes in the 2013-2014 season.

He led the team to a 10-8 record and, despite his passion for it, couldn’t sign on again this year because the travel was too much for his work schedule.

“Frankly, I’m just a dad who got to coach,” he said. “It’s so much fun to be with a group of kids that love the game so much and want to learn so much.”

John Cifonelli, Bishop Grimes’ athletic director and the girl’s varsity basketball coach, said there is only one word to describe his friend and colleague of 16 years — energy.

“He was full of energy and excitement each and every day on the basketball court. It clearly was a passion of his,” Cifonelli said. “He loved working with the girls; he took the job seriously, and coached them as if each practice would be the most important basketball experience they

would have. That is something I enjoy about Dan. He really wants people to enjoy what they are doing, and will do all that he can to try to create that type of environment.”

Cifonelli said Cummings often volunteers to run the clock at Grimes’ home football games and does the announcing at basketball games.

Cifonelli’s son, Paul, is an aspiring broadcaster and is learning from Cummings as he gradually takes over announcing duties at the games.

The athletic director said Cummings is a fixture around the school and represents the institution well.

“When you consider how many people he comes across on a regular basis, I think it is amazing to realize how much he remembers so many people,” Cifonelli said. “It is very genuine. I think people would be surprised to know how funny Dan is off camera. He shows that side at times on camera, but the news only allows for so much of it. Dan’s sense of humor catches people off guard at times because he is so quick-witted. He is clearly an entertainer at heart, and I mean that in the most complementary way possible. He is a fun person to be around.”

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To learn how you can qualify to receive your own WRVO MemberCard, visit wrvo.org/membercard Morning Edition | Diane Rehm | Fresh Air | Q from the CBC | Here & Now | All Things Considered As It Happens | Capitol Pressroom | Marketplace Money | Only a Game | Weekend Edition Saturday/Sunday | Car Talk Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me | Says You! | This American Life with Ira Glass | Snap Judgement | On the Media Day 6 with Brent Banbury | A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor | Moth Radio Hour Selected Shorts | One Planet | Prime Time Radio | Studio 360 | Splendid Table | Radio Lab TED Radio Hour | Weekend All Things Considered | Campbell Conversations | Take Care | Big Picture Science HealthLink on Air | Tuned to Yesterday | BBC News Day

WRVO 89.9 FM Oswego/Syracuse | WRVD 90.3 FM Syracuse | WRVH 89.3 Clayton WRVJ 91.7 Watertown | WRVN 91.9 Utica translators in Geneva, Hamilton, Ithaca, Norwich, and North Watertown and on iPad, iPhone, Android smartphones and online at wrvo.org June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

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Judy Butler has been a barber-hair stylist for over three decades. How many hair cuts has she given? Tens of thousands?

100,000? Butler said she can’t imagine how many, but at 75, she plans to go right on cutting.

Judy, Judy, Judy!

Liverpool barber shop maintains old-time atmosphere

By Matthew Liptak

J

udy, Judy, Judy’s Unisex Barber has been a staple of downtown Liverpool business community for almost three decades now. The longtime barber shop at 329 First St. has been owned and run by 75-year-old Judy Butler for nearly 30 years, more precisely since 1988 when a men’s haircut was $7 (it’s now $16).

Butler — or Judy as she is widely known by clients, friends and coworkers — still has clientele come in from as far away as Chittenango to get their hair cared for at the Liverpool business. Butler said many of her clients have passed away or moved from the area, but they have a good location and still get many walk-ins and regulars.

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“Basically it’s been good,” she said. “We’ve held our own.”

Butler started her journey in cosmetology rather late in life, she said.

She was a housewife, but by the age of 37 her son and daughter had entered high school and she decided it was time for a change.

S h e e n t e re d C o n t e m p o r a r y Beauty School and got a part-time job as a stylist in North Syracuse after graduating and then took a job with Gentry Salon in Shoppingtown Mall as manager.

It turned out to be a wise decision, she said. She was able to support herself with her new career when she found herself in the midst of a divorce.

“It was kind of a blessing that I did

do that and I had that to fall back on,” Butler said. “It was great.”

She found herself in Baldwinsville where she learned barbering from a local barber for a while. Then it was on to Liverpool. She worked with Joe Frank, an established barber in the community at his place on Route 57 across from Bayberry Plaza.

Frank worked into his late 70s or early 80s, Butler said. He put down the scissors only when he got sick and couldn’t do it anymore.

“He was a great person—very nice man,” Butler recalled. “He was always a barber.”

After Frank’s passing Butler took the reins. She relocated to the downtown village and renamed the

shop “Judy Judy Judy’s.” She said she had spotted the name on a salon in another community when she had been camping with family.

“I said if I ever get my own shop I am going to name it ‘Judy, Judy, Judy’s,” she said. “That’s what I did.”

The name came from an often misquoted movie line attributed to movie actor Cary Grant. It was only after that when Butler found out her shop’s name was a misquote. But it stuck.

Butler said she enjoys her career and tries to keep her shop in the style of an old-fashioned barber. Seventyfive percent of her clients are men, she estimated.

“I like the friendly atmosphere,” she said. “A lot of people say it’s a great atmosphere. I try to keep it kind of low-keyed.”

She has seen styles come and go over the years. The 1960s to 1970s trend of men wearing long hair had mostly passed by the time she got her start.

Today she said she sees more guys using gel and wearing shorter styles.

“More and more are going with short fades and buzzes,” Butler said.

The salesmen don’t stop by selling their supplies anymore either, Butler said. She goes to stores like A & A Beauty Supplies, Cosmo and Sally’s to get what she needs. Most of the paperwork she needs to do is done at home. She has slowed down her work schedule to Thursdays and Sundays, when she still does hair and visits with customers.

The shop takes care of first-time haircuts, too. Butler is well set up with a toy basket, cookie jar, lollipops and even had a gumball machine to distract children from the sometimes intimidating experience of getting their hair cut the first time.

The business owner has a little advice for stylists and barbers just getting their start in the field—dive right in and keep your overhead low.

“Get as much experience as you can in full-service salons, in unisex salons, in barber shops or whatever,” Butler said. “Get all the experience you can get and if you want to open up your own, do it when you’re young.”

As for the future of Judy, Judy, Judy’s, Butler was more tight lipped.

“I’m not quite sure,” she said. “I just take each day as it comes.”

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Gallery hours by appointment (315) 345-4576

PROVIDING THE BEST REHAB SERVICES AND THERAPISTS. SO YOU CAN GET WELL AND GET HOME. After surgery, you need the right place to recover. Elderwood offers a wide range of rehab services, no matter what level of care you require. We’ll customize a treatment plan to your personal needs, using protocols and technologies that coordinate your care more effectively for enhanced strength, improved motion and decreased pain. You’ll benefit from therapists with highly specialized training, along with access to diagnostic services that no longer require a hospital visit. So you can get well and get back home, faster. It’s why Elderwood is the right place, for the right care.

315-457-9946 elderwood.com

Get in touch with us to schedule a tour and learn more.

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Besides his long career in TV, Hank Brown also spent 40 years as a broadcaster for the Baseball Hall of Fame game in Cooperstown, and became a regular commentator at the Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota and the Empire State Summer Games.

Hank Brown, ‘Your Host for Coffee and Toast’ TV personality from the Mohawk Valley retires following a 58-year broadcasting career

By Patricia J. Malin

C

an you name a TV show from the mid-1960s that was a hit among teens and featured such performers as The Lettermen, Patti Page, Chubby Checker, Connie Francis, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Neil Sedaka, the

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Supremes and top recording stars of the rock n’ roll era?

Do you remember the name of the crew cut-wearing host?

If you guessed American Bandstand and Dick Clark, you’re wrong.

In Central New York in those days, another young man with ties to Philadelphia drew thousands of avid fans to his weekly TV show. This one was broadcast from Utica and the host was Hank Brown.

His show was called “Twist-a-

Rama Dance Party,” reflecting one of the popular songs and dance of the time, the Twist, made famous by Chubby Checker.

“From 1964 to 1968, it was the No. 1 local show in the nation,” Brown recalled with enthusiasm. “It was shown in Philadelphia, Seattle, Boston and Los Angeles, but Utica had the highest ratings. And I was named the No. 1 TV personality by Radio/TV Mirror Magazine.”

Brown and Clark had amazingly similar careers in radio and TV broadcasting. They even crossed paths professionally and became lifelong friends.

Brown, a Philadelphia native, recently retired following a 58-year broadcasting career in the Mohawk Valley.

Clark was born in Mt. Vernon.

In an odd twist of fate, he started his career (as a mail clerk) in 1945 at WRUN, his father’s radio station in Utica, where Brown came to work at a later time. After Clark honed his skills at Syracuse University, he became an announcer and newscaster at WKTV in Utica. Coincidentally, that was where Brown crafted his own dance show.

Clark moved to Philadelphia in 1952 to become a DJ. Within a few years and thanks to some quirky circumstances, he started a local dance show that evolved into the iconic “American Bandstand.” At the time of his death in 2012 at the age of 82 in Los Angeles, he was dubbed the “world’s oldest teenager.”

Brown rode a similar pony to fame. He is best known as a radio talk show host who earned legions of fans with a guaranteed happy-go-lucky approach that never deviated over the years. The “Hank Brown Show — Your Host for Coffee and Toast” had a style that complemented the chitchat with local callers and was a favorite with elderly shut-ins.

Brown got his first broadcasting job in Little Falls in 1957 and although he ended up traveling the world on a variety of broadcast assignments, he put down roots in the Mohawk Valley and never left.

The son of Irish immigrants, Brown was born in 1932 into a boisterous family with four sisters and brothers, and where storytelling undoubtedly played a big role (AKA good oldfashioned blarney).

“My mother wanted me to be

Hank Brown (left) in 1967 posing with his wife, Esther and Tony Bennett. a priest,” he explained in a recent interview. His mother tried to influence him by enrolling her son in an all-boys’ Catholic school from K-12. Brown had athletic ambitions in his youth.

Though he proved adept on the basketball court, the gridiron and baseball diamond, he knew his future lay elsewhere.

“If I didn’t turn out to be a jock, I would have been a doctor,” he said.

Surprisingly, it wasn’t the parish priest that had a lasting influence on him. Instead, it started at the annual Mummer ’s Parade on New Year ’s Day in Philadelphia. He remembered his father, a policeman, working the parade route while his family tagged along. At the age of 7, Brown became entranced not by the marching bands, but by the animated radio broadcaster.

The very next day at home, he tied up string and began imitating the broadcaster, admittedly driving his family crazy. “My mother refused to let me interview her,” he chuckled, “so I interviewed my brothers.”

He spent four years in the Navy during the Korean War in the 1950s.

Brown met his wife, Esther (nicknamed “Bimi”) at a church dance while he was working at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. A conversation with her father revealed that he was a boxing fan like his future son-in-law.

The couple got married in 1955 and raised six children (who went on to give them 13 grandchildren). So much for following his mother’s wishes. “I’m not worthy enough to be a priest,” Brown joked.

After his discharge, Brown enrolled at Villanova University in Philadelphia, which was then an

all-male campus, and later attended the Cambridge (Mass.) School of Broadcasting. As he started to raise a family, Brown began auditioning for jobs. He was accepted at WLFH in Little Falls as an announcer on the 6-10 a.m. shift and ad salesman.

In addition to his morning show, he moonlighted by doing play-byplay of local high school and college games year-round. In 1964, he was tapped to host the Twist-A-Rama show on WKTV, which emulated Clark’s wildly-popular show.

“We figured, why watch kids from Philly when we can watch the kid down the street? Brown explained.

“We went to the schools and recruited students. But we had rules of behavior — for example, no wise guys were allowed.”

In the 1970s, ‘80s and ‘90s, he picked up high-profile gigs working for CBS Sports Spectacular (rubbing elbows with Pat Summerall), the Madison Square Garden Television Network and Fox TV. He covered boxing matches on par with Howard Cosell and on ABC Wide World of Sports for 20 years.

One of Brown’s memorable stints came at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta when he announced the boxing matches for the U.S. Boxing Team and NBC Sports.

He was a broadcaster for the Baseball Hall of Fame game in Cooperstown for 40 years, and became a regular commentator at the Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota and the Empire State Summer Games.

Then there was the dream job that got away. In the spring of 1977, Brown said he was in discussions with Col. Tom Parker to emcee Elvis Presley’s upcoming sold-out concerts in Syracuse and Utica in August, but Presley died just days prior to the shows.

Brown is quietly known for his volunteer work with the Cornhill Senior Center in east Utica, the Knights of Columbus, and the Disabled American Veterans Chapter of Central New York.

He continues to sponsor a Christmas party every year for local underprivileged children. He served 10 years on the board of the Greater Utica Sports Hall of Fame and earned his place in the hall in 2004, and in 2009 was named to the Oneida County Hall of Fame.

June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

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55+

giving The Central New York Philanthropy Center at 431 E. Fayette St. in Syracuse is the home to the Central New York Community Foundation.

Solid Foundation CNY Community Foundation a hub of philanthropy in Central New York — it has gone from having $120 million in funds six years ago to having $190 million now

By Matthew Liptak

M

any people have heard of the CNY Community Foundation but may not know what it does or how vital the organization is to the Central New York nonprofit community.

The foundation functions as both a source of grants for nonprofits and a place for those people who are charitably inclined in the area to donate their money.

The benefit of pooling your charitable contributions with the community foundation is that as the pool grows — it now stands at around $190 million — it is easier to invest and grow.

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In fact, donors don’t control the investments of their funds at all; the staff at the foundation does that. But donors can control what causes and nonprofits their donated funds go toward.

Last year, the CNY Community Foundation took in $23 million in donations — a record — and distributed about $9 million in grants to local nonprofits, said the organization’s president and CEO, Peter Dunn.

“About 2,000 individual grants went out from the community foundation,” Dunn said. “Fundamentally, we are about receiving gifts from people who are charitably inclined in the

community for lots of different purposes, managing those funds and endowments and then distributing a portion of their value in grants each year.”

The foundation is actually made up of a mosaic of about 650 funds that are anywhere between $10,000 and $20 million in size. The funds make grants to nonprofits requesting help in a variety of different areas, from arts and culture to economic development, health, the environment and more.

The size of grants can vary widely but the average is about $20,000, Dunn said.

“Grants range all over the place,”

he said. “The smallest grant we’ve made is $100. The largest is probably $150,000.”

A 20-member board of director runs the foundation. Each member serves six years.

“Ultimately, we make decisions on how we want to allocate funds based on our assessment and understanding of the community and our own judgment,” Dunn said.

There is also a staff of 19 full-time employees and four interns.

Madelyn Hornstein, 55, of Syracuse, is an accountant and former foundation board member who, with her husband, set up her own donor-advised fund through the foundation. She also gives directly to the foundation, leaving it up to the board where her charitable gifts should go.

She said once she got a look at how efficient and accurate the board was at assessing where the money was most needed in the community, giving directly to the foundation was an easy decision.

“If I’m not sure where I should be spreading my dollars around, the community foundation is the perfect place to give it to because they have people there that are Dunn knowledgeable enough to know where those dollars can be best spent in any given year, Hornstein said. “They’re just so organized. I’ve been on a lot of boards over the years and it is by far the most organized board I’ve ever sat on.”

But if you want to keep control over what your charitable donations go toward, the foundation has that option covered too. A donor-advised fund can be started with a minimum of $2,500. With a donor-advised fund of $7,500 or more, that fund may receive a return on the community foundation’s overall investments. However, at that level, some fees are taken out by the foundation for operating expenses. The operating budget of the foundation is $2 million, Dunn said.

One of the advantages of a donoradvised fund with the community foundation is that you can direct where you want the funds to go over time, but take the tax deduction for that donated money the same year that you make the contribution.

Another advantage to donating to the foundation is that the foundation can adjust to changing times.

“You can create a structure if somebody’s charitable vision and circumstances change,” Dunn said.

“For instance, back in the 1920s, we had orphanages. We don’t have orphanages any more. The whole child welfare system has changed and so people left funds for the benefit of orphanages. We’re able to change with the times. We’re able to manage funds more efficiently by being collectively managed,” he added.

The foundation was started in 1927. Although orphanages don’t exist any more in the community, the money put aside for them through the foundation was not lost. It was directed to other nonprofits with similar needs.

Dunn has been with the foundation for six years. One of his proudest achievements, he said, was seeing the organization relocate to the former University Club building at 431 E. Fayette St. Now named the CNY Philanthropy Center, the building hosts other nonprofit tenants too and has been witness to hundreds of meetings for nonprofits in the past few years, Dunn said.

“I’m really pleased that we have been able to create a center where lots of different charitable and philanthropic conversations are happening,” he said.

The future for the CNY Community Foundation is one that Dunn hopes will see more growth. He projected that the foundation will see another $20 million in donations from the Central New York community in 2015.

Hornstein said she is very satisfied with the job the organization has done in managing her charitable donations.

“They’ve been around a long time, but it’s a credit to the people that work there that they’ve got their systems down, they’ve got their processes down,” she said. “There’s not a lot of wasted money. I can’t say enough nice things about them.”

For more information on The Central New York Community Foundation, go to www.cnycf.org.

ndly Community?

cuse an Age-Frie

Report: Is Syra Time Go? Did all The Free ent Life! Where Ah, the Retirem

55 PLUS Issue 57 June / July 2015

For Active Adults Area York in the Central New

Should You Fund Your Retirement or?

Your Kids’ College How Four CNYers Spend Their Retirement

AVES

KING OF THE AIRW

with more than 30 years ings is celebrating try Anchor Dan Cumm his career, the indus se. He talks about work Channel 9 in Syracu morning to go to wake up at 2 in the and what’s like to

Priceless

INSIDE: Prof. Marvin

Sex Is Good: Man

55

y in Their 70s and

ing

Druger: Tales of Dat

80s Still

Hard at It Pediatrician Stua rt Trust: 78 and Still Going Stro ng

PLUS Issue 56 April / May 2015

For Active Adults in the Central New York Area

John Spillett, Music Educato r of the Year in 201 4, Talks About Mus ic, Teaching

MY FIRST MARATH0N Maryann Roefaro of Camillus never ran until she turned 53. Then, at 55, she completed her first marathon. Now she wants to spread the word about Chi Running, a techniq ue she adopted

Priceless

55 PLUS MAGAZINE Reach Active Adults in Rochester and the Finger Lakes.

60,000+ readers (audited circulation)

•

75% of readers fall are between the ages of 55 and 74 61% of readers are women 74% of readers report earnings of $50,000 and higher

• •

For advertising information, send an email to editor@cny55.com June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

37

consumers corner

By Eva Briggs, M.D.

All About Tinea Infections

W

Common infections include athlete’s foot, toenail fungus and ringworms

hen my kids were little, a drug rep gave me a little plastic monster named “Tinea” — which means fungal infection. I’ve long since forgotten what product that rep was selling, and my kids have outgrown plastic figurines, but plastic Tinea lives on as a successful geocaching travel bug. (For an explanation see www. geocaching.com/track/travelbug. aspx).

In fact travel bug Tinea has logged over 13,000 miles, which means I get frequent notices of his travels. So it’s only fitting that I write about medical tinea.

Common tinea infections are tinea corporis (ringworm), tinea cruris (jock itch), tinea pedis (athlete’s foot), tinea unguium, (toenail fungus) and tinea capitis (scalp fungal infection). I’ll write about each except tinea captitis, since that generally affects children.

Ti n e a c o r p o r i s , r i n g w o r m , typically is a scaly, rounded, red patch. The center often clears, leaving

an expanding ring, hence the name ringworm. But the ringwormcausing fungi, called dermatophytes, sometimes don’t read the textbook.

They can look like patches of eczema, psoriasis, seborrheic dermatitis, or other rashes. And other rashes can mimic ringworm. The treatment for tinea, an antifungal cream, won’t help the other conditions. Treating other skin disorders won’t help tinea. In fact, topical steroids, even over-thecounter hydrocortisone, can make it worse! In most cases your doctor with treat whatever condition appears most likely. But if that doesn’t work, you’ll need some detective work. The most common test involves dropping a few skin flakes into potassium hydroxide (KOH) and looking at it under the microscope. Fungi present, case closed. No fungi, time to rethink.

Common creams used to treat tinea corporis are terbinafine (Lamisil) and butenafine (Lotrimin). Both are over-the-counter. A tip for successful treatment is to apply the cream to an

Tinea corporis — or ringworm — typically is a scaly, rounded, red patch. The center often clears, leaving an expanding ring, hence the name ringworm. It’s one of the several types of tinea infections.

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area a little bigger than the visible rash.

And don’t stop too soon. Continuing the medicine for a week after the rash seems gone reduces the chance that it will bounce back.

Tinea cruris, jock itch, is most common in adolescent and young men.

Usually it infects the inner part of the thigh and often spares the scrotum.

Look-alike rashes include yeast infections (Candida) and erythrasma, a bacterial infection. Erythrasma often lights up under a black light. So if your doctor darkens the room and lights your privates with a black light, he’s not crazy.

Tinea pedis, athlete’s foot, particularly enjoys the moist spaces between toes. Sometimes it spreads more widely onto the soles and sides of the feet. Copycat foot rashes include eczema, contact dermatitis, psoriasis, and more.

Tinea unguium, or toenail fungus, becomes more common with age.

It’s the hardest form of tinea to treat.

Toenails appear thickened, brittle, discolored, and otherwise funny looking. Chronic toenail trauma — often from rapid stops in sports — can look just like a fungal nail infection.

Psoriasis, too, is another common imitator. So doctors often perform a diagnostic test before prescribing antifungal medicine. Toenail fungus is almost always treated with oral medicines, but these are expensive and may require months of treatment.

Patients who also have athlete’s foot, or who have more than one abnormal toenail, are more likely to have tinea unguium.

Eva Briggs is a medical doctor who works at two urgent care centers (Central Square and Fulton) operated by Oswego Health.

golden years

By Harold Miller hal@cny55.com

Plight of the American Family

D

Almost half of today’s children are born into single-parent households

aniel Patrick Moynihan — ex- New York senator and socialist — spoke of it 30 years ago.

Leonard Pitts Jr., leading AfricanAmerican journalist for The Miami Herald, and Michael Gerson of The Washington Post, weighed in on it recently.

Subject? Disintegration of the American family. This issue is not political — principally it is not racial, nor is it economical (although poor children suffer the most harm).

The simple fact is that almost half of today’s children are born into singleparent families.

The family is the core of all civilization and all society. No matter how strong militarily, how wealthy, or how well governed, a country cannot survive for long without moral, honest, well-behaved and well-educated children.

Most of what a child learns is caught, not taught.

I write of this in my upcoming book: “Memoirs of a Patriarch.”

The following is an excerpt from the chapter titled “Father Knows Best”: “The television series of this iconic family comedy starring Robert Young debuted in 1954, just a year before Janet and I were married. The show depicted the conservative and paternalistic nature of American family life during the 1950’s, salted with comedy. Father ruled (or thought he did) with a “thundering velvet glove” (it wasn’t always so velvet in our family) while mother ruled with abundant love, reasoning, common sense (which is not so common) and endless patience.

“This was a different time in American history — families almost always dined together, sharing the problems and triumphs of the day (along with some bickering amongst

the siblings of course), but the family was always the center of life and living.

“We laughed together, went to church together, and we worked together to do the multiple chores required to operate the household.

“Men and boys cut the lawn and fixed whatever needed fixing. Mother and girls washed the dishes, did the laundry, cleaned the house, etc.”

Pitts, columnist for The Miami Herald, recently wrote an editorial titled “Kids Need Fathers. Period!”

“I believe our slide toward a fatherless society, a society where the male parent is considered optional, irrelevant, or interchangeable, is toxic for our children. That concern is buttressed by a growing body of research which tells us that a child raised without his or her biological father is significantly more likely to live in poverty, do poorly in school, drop out of school altogether, become a teen parent, exhibit behavioral problems, smoke, drink, use drugs, or wind up in jail.”

Gerson in his column for The Washington Post reviews author Robert Putnam’s book “Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis”: “Our Kids” describes the forms of inequality featured in Putnam’s charts and graphs as neglect, isolation, loneliness and broken trust. When the children of wealthier parents get into trouble, they are surrounded by a network of parents, tutors, councilors, mentors, pastors and coaches that minimize consequences and steers them away from future problems.

When poor children get into trouble, these airbags do not deploy.

In this age when government portends to be all things to all people, many think schools can develop and educate our children.

But this is simply not true because the main need of a child is love and understanding.

No government or educational facility can, or will, wipe the tears, calm the fears, administer a hug when needed, or provide a mother’s calming voice and a father’s lending hand.

Most of what a child learns is gained by listening to mother interacting with friends, family and siblings. Father plays his role when discipline is required (discipline separates us from the animals). “Wait ‘till your father gets home” is probably the greatest deterrent to misbehavior known to mankind.

So we stumble and grope with the problems of raising a family in the 21st century (the same problems that existed from the beginning of mankind) but the solution lies in our past.

Courtship, engagement, and marriage with a commitment — until death do us part.

June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

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life after 55

By Michele Reed Photographs by Bill Reed michele@cny55.com

Retiring to France — an Affordable Dream

W

hen we say we’ve spent the winter in the South of France, we sometimes get this reaction from friends and acquaintances: Picturing the spendy Cote d’Azur (which is not where we make our winter home!), they say, “It must be nice …” with the unfinished end of the sentence implying, “to be able to afford that.”

But we have found that the

L a n g u e d o c - R o u s s i l l o n a re a i s surprisingly affordable, even though we rarely scrimp and daily enjoy delicious food and wine, occasional dining out and traveling.

And the cost of living in France became an even greater bargain this year. A strong dollar and weakening euro means that the exchange rate the first three months of this year was about $1.08 to the euro, very nearly

Fresh vegetables are in vast supply in the South of France, and prices are reasonable even in the winter months. Photo by Bill Reed.

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Editor’s Note: Oswego residents Michele and Bill Reed spent the winter in the South of France, where they have been exploring the possibility of retiring abroad. In a series of articles, they take readers along on their journey, sharing the ups and down of senior expat living. par. Last year, the average daily rate during our stay was $1.37 to one euro.

So our expenses this year were actually slightly more than 25 percent lower than last.

So what are our expenses in France?

We stayed in a popular vacation town in the off-season, so rent on our house, which included two apartments so our family could visit, a balcony, garden with patio and swimming pool, was only 900 euros a month.

(During the summer vacation season our landlady gets 1,200 euros a week for the use of the house, which can sleep six people.) Electricity, which included all the heat, was 250 euros a month and the water bill amounted to only 80 euros for the entire season.

On top of that we spent on average about 80 euros per week in the grocery store for household products and packaged foods and 65 euros per week for fresh vegetables from the farmers’ market, meat from the butcher, bread from the bakery and wine direct from the winemakers. That gives a total of 580 euros per month.

Eating out was something we

limited, but it was reasonable as we usually opted for the value-packed three-course lunch “formula” for about 12 euros each or 24 euros total. With lunch out about once a week, that amounts to 100 euros for the month.

And 5 euros each weekday for the café, where we drank café crème while we accessed the Internet, added another 80 euros, for a total of 180 euros a month for eating out.

Our pharmacy had a beauty section that would rival a department store, so we spent about 100 euros a month on shampoos, lotions and makeup, as well as vitamins and necessities like toothpaste and deodorant.

A bus ride to anywhere in our region cost 1 euro each, and a roundtrip train journey to Barcelona was about 20 euros each. Admission to most museums and historical sites runs no more than 5 euros, and is often free. We spent on average 100 euros per month on our travel and adventures.

We get our cash out of an ATM from our Oswego credit union account, and ATM fees amount to no more than 20 euros per month.

Our experience tallies well with the French government figures. According to an April 3 article on the website French-Property.com, the government of France estimates the monthly expenses, excluding rent or mortgage, for retirees living in France to be 1,769 euros per month for a couple and 1,150 euros for a single person.

It is interesting in that it is not a compilation of what people actually spend, but what they need for a full life.

The report is from L’Observatoire national de la pauvreté et de l’exclusion sociale (ONPES) and although that agency is focused on monitoring poverty, the report doesn’t just calculate a subsistence level of existence. The land of “Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite” wants its citizens to be active members of society. So the figures estimate what people need for participation in the life of society.

How did our figures stack up with the French government’s? They estimated that a couple would spend 455 euros for food and drink, with 222 for a single person. We went over on this category, with our 580 figure, but remember, the French agency was studying the minimum needed to live fully.

The one euro bus is one reason life in the South of France is so affordable.

Travel anywhere in the region for $1.08. Photo by Bill Reed.

Our 180 euros spent on dining out matched well with their 193 estimate for social life, and single people’s needs are estimated at 151.

Our transportation costs of 180 euros fell well below the government’s estimate of 380 for a couple (272 for a single), but they included vehicle insurance and maintenance in that figure as well as public transport, and we have no car in France.

Hygiene and beauty costs were right on — we spent about 100 euros and the government estimates 97 for a couple and 39 for a single.

When I subtracted the categories for health (mainly insurance which we pay in the US), and clothing and appliances, which we didn’t need to buy for a three-month stay, our figures were very close to the French government’s estimates for a retiree couple – 1,286 euros from the French agency and 1,257 for our actual expenses (again, not including rent).

So our monthly expenses in France amounted to $1,357 at the current exchange rate or $2,329 when rent is factored in. When multiplied by 12, that would mean a retired couple could live in France for just under $28,000 a year if they were paying rent or about $16,000 if they owned a home there and didn’t have to pay rent. Or, taking the French government’s full estimate of 1,869 euros (assuming the couple would need to buy clothing, appliances and insurance that we, as visitors, didn’t need), a couple who had their own home would need $24,222 and a single person $14,904.

So retiring to the beautiful, sunny South of France – whether part-time or full-time – can be an affordable dream.

To read the full report from ONPES about how much money a person or a couple needs to live in France, visit www.french-property.com/news/ money_france/mimimum_income_ live_france/ June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

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volunteer

Volunteer Vibe

Volunteers at Oswego Health make helping big part of their lifestyle

By Lou Sorendo

F

or several volunteers at Oswego Health, selflessly helping is more than just giving back.

It is a way of life.

Each year, several hundred Oswego Hospital Auxiliary members and volunteers donate more than 30,000 hours of their time to the organization.

Volunteers operate the snack bar, deliver mail, serve as escorts, help with errands, assist hospital personnel, and help patients by providing reading material or writing letters, according to Sarah E. Weigelt, director of auxiliary and volunteer services for Oswego Health.

While these unsung heroes are proud of their achievements as volunteers, they have also incorporated their participation into their lifestyles.

Here’s a look at several volunteers who go above and beyond the call of duty of Oswego Health:

Maurice ‘Mo’ Laws For Maurice “Mo” Laws, volunteering is helping to save his life.

Laws was born on St. Patrick’s Day in 1936. He has accumulated the most hours volunteering from April 2014 to April 2015 at 1,661.

The Fulton native and Volney resident marked his sixth year volunteering at Oswego Hospital in May. Laws spends about 47.5 hours during the work week volunteering.

Laws had two separate careers: He worked for 30 years in retailing before spending 20 years working at Miller Brewing Co. in Volney.

He and his wife Monique have a daughter and one grandson. The couple supports The Arc. “I was advised that I have to get out and do something instead of being housebound,” said Laws as to what compelled him to become a volunteer.

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His wife had developed Alzheimer ’s disease, and it was at that point that Laws’ doctor said, “If you want to live, you better go out and get yourself something to do.”

“My doctor suggested that I come down here to the hospital,” Laws said.

“I came down the next day, and they put me right to work.

“It helps me maintain my sanity.”

Laws spends most of his time being stationed at the front desk as the hospital’s informal greeter.

“Being in the position I am up front, I do anything and everything,” he said. “The No. 1 priority I always have in the back of my mind is we are here to serve and take care of patients.

We also advise them if possible, as well as employees.”

Laws said he gets great satisfaction out of “just observing and meeting all different types of personalities within the community.”

“Most everybody around town knows me,” he said. “I just love people and have been around older folks all my life.”

What are the keys to being an effective volunteer?

“You need to be dedicated. When you say you’re going to be here, be here. Things like that,” he said. “You just help everybody and anybody that you can all the time.”

Don Wilcox For Don Wilcox, volunteering is a way for him to pay it forward.

Wilcox, 64, contributed 810 hours over the past year volunteering at the Fulton Medical Center.

The Fulton native and resident can certainly relate to what patients go through in a hospital setting.

In 1996, he was forced into retirement after he received a liver

transplant.

He worked at the Nestle Co. in Fulton for 25 years.

“Usually after 10 years, people start having trouble [post transplant],” he said. “In my case, I got bone marrow from the donor along with a liver, and the bone marrow makes the body think the [original] liver has been there right along. They took me off all my rejection medicine.”

Wilcox has a son Donald who also resides in Fulton.

His wife Beverly passed away last August after a lengthy battle with cancer.

Wilcox said he received much help from volunteers when he and his wife were sick.

“She was sick in the hospital and volunteers helped. She was the one that gave me the idea of volunteering three years ago,” Wilcox said.

Wilcox can be seen manning the front desk at the Fulton Medical Center.

“I do everything. I go out to the parking lot and get patients and help them out of their car and get them to where they need to be. Anything they need, I will help with,” he said.

“It makes me feel good when people turn to me after I help them and try to give me a tip,” he said. “I don’t take it.”

Wilcox answers the phone at the medical center on occasion, and it is not uncommon for people to inquire about him.

“They will ask, ‘Is that man who helps us in today? If so, then we are going to come in. If not, we’re not coming.’ That was the best feeling,” Wilcox said.

Orlando Testi For former boilermaker Orlando

Laws

Wilcox

Testi, volunteering at Oswego Hospital is the best job he has ever had.

Testi was born in Assisi, Italy, the home of St. Francis of Assisi.

He has been volunteering at Oswego Hospital for seven years.

He works 8 a.m. to about 2:30 p.m.

Wednesday through Friday.

Testi recently turned 74 on April 6. He contributed 625 volunteer hours at Oswego Hospital from April 2014 to April 2015.

Prior to his involvement, a former volunteer director at the hospital whom Testi knew asked him what he did all day during retirement. “The director said, ‘Don’t worry about it.

You will learn. It’s not that hard,’” Testi recalled.

“I thought it was a good idea, so I joined. I ended up being very happy about it,” he said.

He came to the United States in 1966 and worked mostly in restaurants and hotels in Buffalo prior to moving to Oswego.

Testi worked in construction as a boilermaker before retiring.

“All my life I worked for money, and all of a sudden, I work for nothing and I like it better,” he noted. “It’s the best job I’ve ever had.”

Testi is busy at the hospital helping guide those who come in seeking assistance.

“Oftentimes they look like they are lost and I ask them where they are going and what they are looking for,” he said.

If necessary, Testi will escort patients to their destination. He also helps patients get in and out of their cars and wheels discharged patients to their vehicles.

Testi

Corradino

“People seem to appreciate it very much,” he said.

Testi likes to share encouraging words to those in strife. “They appreciate it, and that makes you feel good,” he said.

Emma Corradino Emma Corradino holds the distinction of being the longest-tenured volunteer at Oswego Health.

Corradino, who turned 89 in May, has been a volunteer for 29 years.

Nowadays, the bubbly volunteer can be seen delivering inter-office mail throughout the entire facility.

She was born in Italy and came to the United States in 1948, where she would marry her husband Joseph.

“He saw me on the balcony and fell in love with me,” she said. “He went to his aunt to find out who I was.”

Once she learned English, she worked in a grocery store in Oswego.

“My husband passed away 29 years ago, and that’s why I came a volunteer,” she said. Joseph passed away in June of 1986, and Emma became a volunteer a few months later.

Corradino has three children, one of whom resides in Las Vegas.

“I was looking for a job to keep busy, but my son said he was ashamed that I was taking a job away from someone who needed it. I didn’t need the money, so I tore up the application and became a volunteer,” she said.

At that time, she volunteered three days a week.

“I used to do everything, but on account of my age, I can only do the mail now,” she said. “I used to push wheelchairs, but now I need someone to push me.”

White

Donald White Volunteer Donald White’s past medical experience aids his efforts at comforting patients at Oswego Hospital.

White turns 83 in June.

Originally from Bristol, Tenn., White resides with his wife Lois at Springside at Seneca Hill, Minetto.

He retired from the U.S. Air Force as a senior master sergeant after 24 years of service.

While in the Air Force, he was stationed all over the world, including Europe, Goose Bay Air Force Base in Labrador, Canada, California, and his favorite location, Torrejon Air Base outside of Madrid, Spain.

White has been volunteering at Oswego Hospital since 2010. He works from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Thursdays.

White served in the medical corps with the Air Force, and his health background helps him connect with patients and understand their conditions and respective treatments.

White is normally busy taking patients from the hospital to their cars following discharge.

He also runs errands, such as taking specimens to the lab. White also serves as a guide for those patients looking for certain departments.

White says he enjoys interacting with patients, and gets a chance to get to know them and where they are live.

“The main thing is getting out and meeting people,” White said.

“There is also a camaraderie among the volunteers, which is also something to look forward to.

June / July 2015 - 55 PLUS

43

aging

By Marilyn L. Pinsky

‘Semi-retirement’ For several folks, the pace of life does not slow down in retirement

I

spoke to a number of people asking them if they’re getting to do the things in retirement that they didn’t have time to do when working.

The fact that I had so much trouble catching up with them for an interview says a lot. Though they’ve left their full-time jobs, for the three people in this article, retirement doesn’t quite seem the right word.

Karen Keane Karen Keane, a retired assistant principal at Fayetteville-Manlius High School, knew the word retired wouldn’t adequately fit her life.

“When I first retired, I didn’t like that word, so I called it rewired, but

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it didn’t seem to catch on,” she said.

She hadn’t planned to retire and therefore had not given thought to what she would do when the time came. As she explains, “I had a quick four-to-five days to make the retirement decision and my head kind of exploded with ideas of what I’d like to do and what I could do. So I took the retirement option and never looked back.”

Q.: Did you bring the same interests with you into this new life or did you seek to reinvent yourself?

A.: “I think I’m the same person, but I was able to expand on those interests. For example, I’ve always played tennis but now instead of playing one night a week, I play three to four times a week, and that is just wonderful,” she said. “And I’ve always been interested in the arts and travel. When I was working, I did a lot of travel with students, including taking seniors to New York City.

“That branched out into international travel with teachers and counselors and I took them to places not often visited. We had home stays in North Ireland and outside of Johannesburg in South Africa. We did about 10 trips altogether.”

Q.: Now that you have some time to spare, what are you doing that you always wanted to do?

A.: “I’m reading a lot more, going to theater and art exhibits a lot more, doing a lot more travel but I still can’t fit everything in,” she said.

Keane is being modest. For five years, she has been the co-leader of a trip to London for 40 theater buffs and prior to that, was an assistant for 12 trips through Cayuga Community College.

She has just assumed an even larger role that involves choosing the plays and getting tickets months in

advance, not an easy task given the time difference between here and London and needing to be up at 5 a.m. to make those arrangements.

In addition, she works with the hotel both before and after the group arrives and then plays gentle shepherd once the group is in London so everyone turns up at the right time at the right place.

Q.: Is there anything you miss about working?

A.: “There is. I miss the teenage culture, and how funny and exciting and challenging they are. I loved both teaching them and being an administrator to help make the world work better for them,” she said.

Merriette Chance Pollard In over 45 years in higher education, Merriette Chance Pollard has had multiple positions at various universities and colleges, including assistant professor of social work and gerontology.

She most recently served as a nontraditional first lady at two c o l l e g e s . B e f o re leaving Syracuse in 2002 to accompany her spouse, Pollard William Pollard, in his presidencies, she was active in the community and served four years as executive director of the Dunbar Center.

In July 2013, she and her spouse returned to Syracuse, a place the couple considers home.

Pollard is a trustee at St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center, a member of the executive committee for the Heart Association’s Go Red Program, is active with her church and social

organizations like Syracuse Links Inc. and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority.

Her passion and commitment to the Dunbar Association has not changed.

Pollard considers herself semiretired, saying, “I haven’t quite said I wouldn’t go back to work part-time if an opportunity became available that I really wanted to do, but at 68, no more than a few hours a week.”

Q.: Had you planned for retirement or did circumstances happen?

A . : “ A l i t t l e o f b o t h . We h a d d o n e re t i re m e n t p l a n n i n g financially but did not spend a lot of time thinking about the actual date. We knew we would do it around 68 or 70. With my agreement, my spouse has turned down other presidential opportunities as we both are enjoying this semi-retired status.

Since we both had higher education careers, we knew we wanted to live in a community that had academic institutions. I also saw myself having more quality time with my spouse, parents, grandchildren and adult sons William and Frederick.

“Additionally I’m a longdistance caregiver to my mom, who has Alzheimer’s and lives in North Carolina. That requires a lot of time and coordination. I am presently in the process of moving her here. Though we haven’t been able to travel as we hoped, it has made it possible for me to spend the time with Mom.” As a member of the “sandwich generation,” Pollard added, “Longdistance care giving is very hard. On an advocacy note, I wish there were more services that focus on the quality of life for seniors and not just custodial services. This is an area where I plan to devote more time. As a country, we are not prepared for the longevity of our nation. Services are not adequate or structured correctly in most cases and it is very difficult to access quality services.”

Manny Barbas After 35 years with Onondaga County government, Manny Barbas concluded his career as deputy commissioner of facilities and management, where his training as an architect proved to be invaluable.

He is an enviable example of someone whose training and profession allows him to stay active in semi-retirement.

Manny Barbas with wife Ellen.

Q.: How is life different now?

A.: “Actually, the nature of what I do has changed dramatically. I went from the planning and execution of major capital projects including the facade renovation of the civic center, the new justice center, the new criminal courthouse, the new crime lab and forensic center and the renovation of our historic courthouse to a muchreduced scope. Though I’m still using my architectural skills, I’m not doing the planning and executing of multimillion dollar projects.

“Instead, I am doing minor commercial planning and various levels of residential design. I’ve designed some homes and do modest design renovation projects such as bathrooms and kitchens. And that’s fine. I’m not in a position where I want to grow a business; I just want to stay active using the skills I’ve acquired over many years.”

Q.: Are you getting to do the fun things you thought you’d do?

A.: “I found that sports, entertainment and grandchildren have taken a front row seat in our priorities.

I love golf and tennis and now I can practice at the range or just hit balls.

With wanting to see the grandkids, my wife Ellen and I travel a lot. When I was working, we’d spend a day and a half and have to rush home. Now we’re able to spend three or four days and we’re there to be able to help with the grandkids.”

Q.: What are the things, if any, that you miss about working?

A.: “I enjoyed working on largescale projects as part of a team, so you can’t really compare it to what I’m doing now. Then again, the challenges were greater than they are now but that’s not what retirement is about — it’s about minimizing the challenges.”

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druger’s zoo

By Marvin Druger

Tales of Dating

T

he dating situation has gotten out of control.

Since my granddaughter registered me on an online dating service, I have met and had dates with several women. I was amazed at how many contacts I had, especially for an older man, like me.

I thought I still had a lot of charisma left after all, but then I realized that there are many more women than men out there.

At my age, it was still flattering.

Getting to know all these women did fill some lonely times, but trying to remember what each woman told me and who was who became problematic. After almost 60 years of a wonderful relationship with my late wife, Pat, I couldn’t remember what I was supposed to do on a date.

I met Pat when she was 15 and I was 20, so I never had much experience dating, anyhow.

This article is not intended to criticize or demean online dating.

Indeed, a number of my friends have found a companion through online dating. But there are humorous aspects. Here are some of my memorable dating moments.

1 — One woman went to Florida for the winter, but we communicated by email during that period. Meanwhile, I wrote my article on “My Pathway to Online Dating,” (druger’s zoo, 55 Plus, issue 56, April/May 2015). I’m sure the woman thought we had established a meaningful relationship. When she returned from Florida, I invited her to have wine, cheese and conversation at my home, before going out to dinner. The first thing she said to me when she arrived at my home was, “I just read your 46

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article about online dating. My friend showed it to me.” Ouch!

2 — I took another woman to dinner and a movie, and I wanted to show her my house on Owasco Lake.

There was several feet of snow and I had no way to shovel a path from the road to the house. So, I dragged her through the snow to the house. Then, I tried to light a fire in the fireplace, but I couldn’t figure out how to do it. There was nothing good on TV, so I ended up reading excerpts from my poetry books to her.

Here is part of the tale — in her own words:

“Hello my Funny Friend , As usual, you did not disappoint me with your surprise crazy antics. As we drove up and you pointed out your house I couldn’t see any shoveled pathways anywhere !!!!!I I thought here we go again. Is this crazy guy really going to wade down a long path through 3-foot drifts? No, there must be a path that I just can’t see!; Oh my gosh, there are no shoveled paths!

Are we are really going to do this? And no place to escape. He’s got the keys and I am not quite sure how we even got here. It would have been different if I had had waist high waders and my

lumber jacket on BUT I DIDN’T !

Well in the end it was well worth it. It made feel like a kid again and your house was more than worth the trip. It had every element for a perfect home and the architectural and organizational lay out was amazing. Terrific choice Marvin!

You have lifted the winter blues.”

3 — I planned to take two different women (at different times) to the movies. I asked them to choose the movie. They both picked the same one. This created an awkward situation, since I didn’t want to see the same movie twice. So, I told one of the women that I heard that movie was terrible, and we should choose another one. We did.

4 — I went to dinner with one woman, and she wanted a glass of wine. The waiter brought her a glass with a sample. She tasted it, and didn’t like it. She put the remainder of the sample on the table near me.

I didn’t drink it. Then, the waiter brought her a glass of a different wine that she really liked. When she had finished about half of the glass, I decided to be conservative and not buy her a second glass of wine, so I stupidly poured the sample wine that she didn’t like into her half-full glass of wine. She stared at me in disbelief. Yuk! 5 — I was driving to dinner with a woman and I talked so much in the car — probably from nervousness — that I drove in the wrong direction. When I finally corrected the error, I said, “I always like to drive around in the area before I go to the main street.” Actually, I get disoriented when I drive at night.

6 — I usually liked to start a date at my home in Syracuse with some wine, cheese, crackers and snacks.

One woman offered to bring a bottle of wine. My thought was to say, “Don’t bother. I have plenty of wine left over from my previous date.” I didn’t say anything. A wise decision.

7 — Whenever I took a woman to dinner, I tried to impress her with how famous I was. I would give each woman a magnifier business card. I did this in one restaurant and the waiter approached us and said, “I also have one of those.” Proof of fame.

8 — A few of the women knew that I was dating other women. I wrote an email to one woman and

addressed it, “Dear #7.” She replied that it sounded like a James Bond movie. Thereafter, she became “007,” and I signed my emails “James.”

The email communications were fun. I asked her to go to a movie with me, but she couldn’t make it. Her advice was, “Take # 4.”

9 — I wrote an email to one woman, starting with, “Dear Jane (I mean Louise). She responded, “At least you got it right on the second try.”

10 — I did a reading of my poetry books to my daughter’s second grade class in Maryland.

I emailed about the event to one of the women and I jokingly said that I didn’t catch the measles.

She replied, “If you did, then call Susan or Marianne.”

11 — I usually talk a lot (mostly about myself) and rarely give my “date” a chance to say much. One woman wrote, “My notes are much longer than yours, Marvin, but it is the only way I ever get a chance to say anything.”

I asked her if she wanted to go to a movie with me. She replied, “OK, but only if you promise not to talk!”

The same woman told me, “I enjoy listening to you.

I am not sure why.”

12 — I arranged a date with one woman, and we had to change the time of our meeting to a later time that day. Her comment was,”That way you wouldn’t have a chance to talk too much, and I might not have to talk at all.”

After about three weeks of hectic online dating experiences, I asked my granddaughter to get me off the online dating service, and she did. Enough is enough. I met some very nice people, but the memory of my late wife, Pat, haunted me.

I found that matching a love of almost 60 years was impossible.

Some people seemed offended because I dated other women after Pat’s death. They have not experienced the loneliness that is part of the grieving process, and they don’t understand that Pat can never be replaced.

In a joking manner, I became the Don Juan of the neighborhood.

Dating became very complicated, time-consuming and expensive.

How can I juggle so many women

at the same time? This was not easy. I couldn’t remember which person I had taken out already, where we went, and what stories I had told to whom.

My usual approach was to take a woman to lunch. Some friends who had done online dating advised me, “Don’t take them to lunch or dinner. Ask them to meet you for coffee. Then if you don’t like the person, you don’t have to pay for her meal.” However, I decided to take the women to lunch. After all, I’d have to pay for Pat, if she was with me. Whenever anyone new appeared at the grief support group that I attended, I would jokingly yell out, “Do you want to go to lunch?” This became a favorite joke of the group.

I once came late to the group session. The participants were sitting in a circle. There were two chairs open. One was between two women; the other was between two men. I immediately sat in the chair between the two women.

Everyone laughed. They had made a bet about where I would sit.

Several people have commented that I’m not “ready” to go on dates. At my age, my response is, “If not now, when?” As an older person, I don’t want to be “ready” to date when I’m underground.

When I became eligible to receive social security payments, I was told that I’d get more if I waited until later to start collecting payments. I replied, “This is later!”

I started collecting payments as soon as I became eligible.

I must remind readers that my interest in dating is deeply engrained in my love for my wife, Pat. Before she became ill, she said to me, “If I die tomorrow, I want you to know that I had a wonderful life. On a scale of one to 10, with 10 being the best, my life was a 10.” I jokingly replied, “Mine was a six.” She also said that the sign of a good marriage was that the surviving spouse should find another companion and seek to have a happy life.

I am trying to follow Pat’s advice, but it’s very difficult. Her beautiful image is with me every moment of every day. I know this is true for others who have lost a loved one. But we must have courage and force ourselves to move on. That’s what life is all about.

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55+

visits 10 Things to Do in Schoharie County, Where the Past is Present Howe Caverns where visitors descent 156 feet below the Earth’s surface to journey through the expansive main cavern marveling at the stalactites and stalagmites.

Drive the historic Route 20 Byway between Sharon Springs and Esperance or explore Schoharie County’s less-traveled roads and enjoy the tranquility and beauty of the countryside

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n 1712 the first European settlers arrived in the beautiful and fertile Schoharie Valley, near Albany.

Today visitors can travel the scenic country roads enjoying a step back into the past to a more tranquil time and appreciate the bounty of the local farmers. It is a place to take your time, explore the country roads, learn about history, and discover new places to love. Drive the historic Route 20 Byway between Sharon Springs and Esperance or explore Schoharie County’s less-traveled roads enjoying the tranquility and beauty of the countryside.

Caverns: Six million years before the first settlers Mother Nature was carving out amazing underground caverns. The most famous is Howe Caverns where visitors descent 156 feet below the Earth’s surface to journey through the expansive main cavern marveling at

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the stalactites and stalagmites and then take a boat ride on the underground River Styx. At Howe Caverns there is also a zip line, ropes course, rock wall, H2OGO Balls, a motel and more. Nearby is another underground wonder, the Secret Caverns, complete with a waterfalls.

Nature: The Landis Arboretum is one place to enjoy the outdoors.

It is a place where trees and shrubs are grown for study and display. It is one of only three arboreta in eastern North America with old growth forest. There are several trails open for year-round use.

Don’t miss the Fred Lape Trail where the arboretum’s most notable trees are located. The arboretum sponsors a variety of musical events in its meeting house. Mine Kill State Park is another great place to explore nature. Walk along the Cobleskill Creek Trail.

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Iroquois Indian Museum: The Iroquois also known as the Haudenosaunee, which means “people who build a long house,” were in NYS before the European settlers. The museum is housed in a building that recalls the traditional longhouse offering an insight into the Iroquois culture by promoting Iroquois art and artists. Interactive exhibits and archeological displays from their historical collection tell the vital role the Native Americans played in the development of the area. There is a nature trail plus a variety of festivals, events and learning activities for all age groups.

Blenheim-Gilboa Power Project: Combine education with outdoor fun. At the visitor center learn about energy and its benefits using state-of-the-art interactive exhibits. Adjacent is the historic 19th century Lansing Mansion,

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listed on the National Register of Historic places, to get a glimpse into a day in the life of the people of a bygone era. The mansion has many unique items such as a 1727 Dutch Bible, a memory quilt in the girl’s room, and a fascinating period kitchen. There are a plethora of events held year round including a quilt show, an antique car show and a wildlife festival.

Old Stone Fort Museum: The Old Stone Fort Museum Complex sports several buildings including a 1700s home, a 1780 Dutch barn, a one-room school house, plus a 1772 stone church that was fortified and attacked by the British forces in 1780. Take note of parishioners’ names that the builders chiseled into the stones. The Treasure Hunt of the Fort’s eclectic museum collection is fun for all ages. Try to find a shield from the Philippines, a button with a photograph on it, and a glass tombstone. A variety of historical events are reenacted.

Agritourism: The excellent farmland brought settlers to the area and today agriculture is alive and well in the valleys that George Washington referred to as “The Breadbasket of the American Revolution.” There are farms growing a variety of produce from asparagus to zucchini where visitors can buy fresh produce; several offer prepared food, café lunches, and other products.

Some offer tours and many have u-picks including the Carrot Barn and Pumpkin Pete’s Family Fun Farm.

Old Stone Fort Museum

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Main Street USA: The county is dotted with classic Main Street towns featuring unique shops with locally made goods, art galleries, restaurants and restored turn of the century accommodations.

Step back to an earlier time in Carlisle, Cobleskill, Esperance, Middleburgh, Sharon Springs, and the historic village of Schoharie. The Hive is just one place to shop for antiques and The Apple Barrel has a variety of “wicked cool stuff” and one-of-a-kind treasures. In Sharon Springs don’t miss the Beekman 1802 Mercantile made famous in the “Fabulous Beekman Boys” of reality TV fame.

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Golf and more: Enjoy miniature golf at Gobblers Knob where they also have a nine-hole,three-par course; a bungee trampoline; and an ice cream parlor. The Cobleskill Country Club has an 18-hole championship course Rev up your fun with the go-karts at the Muscle Motor Speedway. Don’t forget all the activities at Howe Caverns where visitors can have fun while honing their skills.

The Schoharie Colonial Heritage Association: The group, in an effort to preserve the local history, maintains the 1743 Palatine House, an example of medieval, German home construction.

(Palatine refers to the German people who settled in Schoharie County in the early 1700s.) They also operate the Railroad Museum sporting a restored 1891 passenger car, a restored 1917 caboose, and other artifacts associated with the railroads.

Uniquely Schoharie County: One of the most outstanding above ground geological features in the county is Vrooman’s Nose, a promontory near Middleburg with hiking trails, connection to many historical events, and expansive views of the valley. In Middleburg, the 19th century Victorian house of Dr. C. S. Best has an amazing collection of medical items and the 1920’s kitchen cabinets are fully stocked with vintage food items.

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10 In Sharon Springs don’t miss the Beekman 1802 Mercantile made famous in the “Fabulous Beekman Boys” of reality TV fame.

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By Hannah McNamara

Ellen Wahl Directed Retired & Senior Volunteer Program in Oswego for more than 33 years Q. How did you first get involved in the Retired & Senior Volunteer Program?

A. After graduating from SUNY Oswego with a Bachelor of Arts degree in art and theater, I was originally working with freelance art and design.

I was out of school for about seven years and decided I needed a steady income.

I applied to work as the secretary for RSVP through SUNY Oswego. I started in May of 1981 and I remember being completely blown away by the concept of the program.

Six months after working as a secretary, the director retired and I became the director. I was the director of RSVP for more than 33 years and the day I retired as director, I became a volunteer.

Q. What were the keys to your longevity at RSVP? A. First of all, I think it was just a perfect match because I was able to use my creativity and aptitude. In RSVP, you have to be well rounded and it helps to be creative and flexible, so it was just being able to create programs and work well with so many different people.

I think the key is to work within your own passion. I have so many interests that it was easy to adjust to the job. I always felt that I could read people and believe in the clientele we were working with to carry out the program.

I always enjoyed busting the myths of aging and bragging about the seniors that brought programs to life.

Q. What were some of your career highlights as director of RSVP? A. There are so many over all these decades but I would say that getting the grant to start the USO Oswego 50

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nightclub for seniors was one of my biggest accomplishments.

Health and exercise are very strong initiatives of our federal sponsor and when the greatest generation was growing up, dancing was a primary mean of exercise and socialization. The grant to start a big-band nightclub of $100,000 was the largest grant we have ever received.

We had a 17-piece band that played music from the era of Jimmy Dorsey and Glenn Miller.

Unfortunately, it only lasted for five years but I still get questions every season about re-opening the big band nightclub. Now my main focus when writing grants is to incorporate dance in some way for the clients of RSVP. Q. What did you gain the most job gratification from in RSVP? A. Seeing the transformation of people’s lives in a nutshell. That doesn’t just involve the senior volunteers, but also the people they’re working with.

It goes both ways when you love and when you give and see the light in the recipient’s eyes. What can beat that?

It’s love.

It’s really self-gratifying to help people find a way to enjoy and love life. It’s personally gratifying but because of the altruism, that’s what gave me a kick.

Q. What were the most challenging aspects of being the director of RSVP? A. It’s probably what I share in common with my colleagues in the nonprofit sector. It’s all about prevention because it’s so inexpensive compared to the fix.

But these kinds of programs such as RSVP have been abandoned in the past 10 years due to funding. RSVP is all about helping senior citizens age in place and keeping senior citizens

safe in their home. That is a whole let less expensive than nursing home care. However, we don’t receive the funding we should for prevention due to being in the nonprofit sector and it just doesn’t make any sense. The volunteers in this county are pretty dedicated and there’s not a whole lot of money, so with RSVP, we’ve had to do a lot of fundraising and grant writing.

Q. What is your ideal retirement scenario?

A. Well, my husband and I sat down in January and looked into how we were going to make use of all of this extra time. I introduced the broad word “wilderness” and my husband offered the broad word “music,” and that became a metaphor for what I want to do. I want to see new places and I want to do new things.

We spent last fall making several trips to the Adirondacks to climb the remaining peaks that we didn’t get to climb in our 20s. You have to have a will to do new things.

I want to get back into my painting and take my grandkids on adventures.

I also want to continue with my volunteer work at RSVP. I probably don’t have all the time to travel to all of the places I want to see, but I’m really happy exploring this county. I want to travel in unknown ways and see Oswego County in a whole new way through its spines and arteries.

Doing the things I love with the people I love in the places I love really sums it all up.

Dan Cummings

Jennifer Sanders

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