Saturday, September 23, 2017 • Page 1B
Making History
Grandchildren are a health benefit to many seniors
Age is barely even a number for David Adickes. There’s no other way to explain how he continues to build massive sculptures. He is pictured with editor and director Robert Jones. (Photo Contributed)
90-year-old artist still building big By Kim Hogstrom For The Leader The near northside is home to some remarkable artists, but perhaps none are more prolific – or loved - than David Adickes. Last month, the 90-year-old Heights artist relocated his four, 40-foot Beatle sculptures to the beer garden at 8th Wonder Brewery east of downtown. About 350 people turned out to celebrate the towering musicians and their new availability. A long line formed of selfie-takers to snap the sculptures and the artist alike. For those who love selfies, there are plenty of opportunities when it comes to Adickes’ work. His 76-foot-tall sculpture of Sam Houston on I-45 in Huntsville is his most famous. “Virtuoso” in front of the Lyric Center downtown comes in second. Commuters using the I-45 - I-10 exchange love “Mount Rush Hour,” a small patch of park hosting sculpted busts of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Sam Houston,
Adickes’ next project is to build a sculpture a little smaller than “Huntsville Sam” for the city of Baytown. (Photo from HuntsvilleTexas.com)
and Stephen F. Austin lined up in a tidy row. Each bust sits on a 10-foot base bringing it to 28 feet. They are cast in concrete and each weighs about 7,000 pounds. There are flood lights at ground level to highlight the statesmen after nightfall making for a remarkable sight from the highway.
For years, Adickes’ art studio, called Sculpturworx and located on Sawyer St. at Summer, was home to all 44 of his famous 20foot heads of American presidents (with a 45th in the planning stage). Tour buses would stop by the site everyday so tourists could take photos. Adickes’ famous “We ‘Heart’ Houston” sculpture originally located on I-10 at the edge of the Heights, has also become an icon. Today it appears on city postcards and promotional materials everywhere. The years have not slowed this artist down. He was recently commissioned to create what is likely to be his most celebrated sculpture to date. The city of Baytown asked Adickes to produce another giant sculpture of Sam Houston in a little smaller scale than his “Huntsville Sam,” but this time, the general will be sitting on a horse. It will appear in the center of a new traffic round-about and stand on a landscaped, tiered terrace in the center See Adickes P. 3B
In the not-so-distant past, extended families were the norm, with multiple generations residing on the same street if not in the same house. Today the family unit is largely an amalgam of different situations. The rise of two-income families has pressured parents into finding childcare situations. Quite often grandparents once again step in to offer guidance and support for youngsters. This can be a good thing for both the grandparents and the grandchildren. Although a bevy of psychological research focuses on parent-child relationships, new evidence points to the benefits of the grandchild-grandparent relationship as well. Close relationships between these different demographics is often a sign of strong familial ties. A study from researchers at Boston College discovered that emotionally close ties between grandparents and adult grandchildren reduced depressive symptoms in both groups. Research at the University of Oxford among English children between the ages 11 and 16 found that close grandparent-grandchild relationships were associated with benefits including fewer emotional and behavioral problems and fewer difficulties with peers. Adult and grandchildren alike benefit from relationships with their elders. Grandparents can provide a connection and exposure to different ideas while providing a link to family history and knowledge regarding traditions and customs not readily available elsewhere. Nurturing grandparent-grandchild experiences may be easy for families where grandparents live in the same house or close by. For others, it may take some effort. The following are some ways to facilitate time spent together. · Schedule regular family reunions or get-togethers. Host or plan multi-generation events that bring the family together and expose children to various members of their family. · Promote one-on-one time. Have grandchildren spend time with grandparents in intimate settings. Alone time can be good for both and offers each undivided attention. A meal at a restaurant or time spent doing a puzzle or craft can be interesting to both generations involved. · Video chat when possible. If distance makes frequent visits challenging, use technology to bridge that gap.
Book Scene provides avenue to living a dream By Landan Kuhlmann landan@theleadernews.com Alda Pool cannot imagine a greater purpose in life than what she’s doing in her later years. Pool, the 66-year-old co-owner of The Book Scene on West 43rd Street along with business partner and longtime friend Cathy Stringer since November of 2015, had envisioned owning her own store almost since she can remember, and that dream has finally come to fruition. Pool learned to read by spelling words out for her grandmother (who was blind), and a passion was born that could almost never be fully quenched. “She would tell me the words for me to spell out, and that’s how I learned to read—after that I just developed a love for books. I was never without something to read, and it just grew from there,” Pool said. Opportunity awaits From crosstown treks to the old Heights Library as a young girl, to working under
The Book Scene’s previous owner – who she has known for more than 30 years — beginning in 2013, Pool was never without a novel in hand. Then, in early 2015, a door opened. “Eventually [the former owner] decided to retire to spend more time with her family, she asked if I wanted to buy the store. I wanted to, but didn’t know if I could afford it, so I passed it around to some friends,” she said. “I always went to her store and bought her books, so it was perfect. I didn’t know the business, but I knew the book store, and as I worked with her I learned a little bit of the business.” Pool and Stringer had worked together at Exxon since the 70s until retiring in the early 2000s, had traveled together, and gone to book conventions together long before The Book Scene was even an idea. Additionally, Stringer had always looked to break into the business world — so the stars were aligning. “Our lives have always been very intertwined — she likes a lot of the same things and books that I do. We read different things, but we have the same pas-
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sions,” Pool said. A dream come true So, a partnership rooted in friendship blossomed. However, though she had cursory business knowledge, Pool quickly discovered — with Stringer’s help — that owning a passion and owning a store represented completely separate ideologies, especially considering her seniority. “It’s really been an eye-opening experience for an older senior person — I’ve had to learn on the go, and it’s a scary experience. Cathy and I are responsible for this,” she said. “But we have a greater love for the people who come into the store — that’s really what it’s about.” Simple as that—people invigorating people. Right or wrong, today’s perception of the older adult may be that they want to simply retire, and wait for life’s hourglass to run out—but not Pool. “I like people. I’ve always been a talker, always been a reader. You meet people who have the same passion for books that
See Books P. 3B
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