CrossRoadsNews, October 11, 2014 - Section B by CrossRoadsNews, Inc.

October 11, 2014

www.crossroadsnews.com

Living Life to the Fullest

Information, Performances, Fashion Show, Prizes Don’t miss the excitement on Oct. 18 at the Mall at Stonecrest Lower Level, Noon to 5 p.m.

Section B

CrossRoadsNews

October 11, 2014

Baby Boomer Expo

Older adults will find plenty to entertain them, challenge them and even excite them at the 2014 Seniors/ Baby Boomer Expo on Oct. 18 at the Mall at Stonecrest.

2346 Candler Road Decatur, GA 30032 404-284-1888 Fax: 404-284-5007 www.CrossRoadsNews.com editor@CrossRoadsNews.com The Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo Special Section is a publication of CrossRoadsNews, Atlanta’s award-winning weekly newspaper.

Editor / Publisher Jennifer Parker Graphics Editor Curtis Parker Reporter Jennifer Ffrench Parker Copy Editor Brenda Yarbrough CrossRoadsNews is published every Saturday by CrossRoadsNews, Inc. We welcome articles on neighborhood issues and news of local happenings. The opinions expressed by writers and contributors are not necessarily those of the publisher, nor those of any advertisers The concept, design and content of CrossRoadsNews are copyrighted and may not be copied or reproduced in whole or in part in any manner without . the written permission of the publisher © 2014 CrossRoadsNews, Inc.

Fun and information for the 50-plus crowd The wildly popular CrossRoadsNews Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo takes place Oct. 18 at the Mall at Stonecrest in Lithonia. The event, presented in partnership with Kaiser Permanente, is a day of fun, information, demonstration and entertainment – all for 50-plus crowd. And just like the 2013 expo, adults will find plenty to entertain them, challenge them, and even excite them. The expo kicks off at 11:30 a.m. on the Main Stage near Sears on the mall’s lower level with the Solid Soul Band. The seasoned musicians, who love music and performing for others, plan to leave the audience wanting more. Exercise motivator Rae Rae Clark will warm up the crowd at 12:30 p.m. for an after-

noon of great performances and 24 exhibitors offering information, health screenings and giveaways. Gospel deejay Reggie Gay will be master of ceremonies from 1 to 3 p.m. Best of all, seniors will be entreated to get moving by an impressive lineup of line dancing groups. They will see men and women just like them dancing, stepping and wobbling. And they can join in all the fun. Jennifer Parker, CrossRoadsNews editor and publisher, says that the Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo is the largest celebration of adults who are 50 years and older in east metro Atlanta. “This expo highlights all the great things that retirees are doing in our community,” Parker said. “These seniors and baby boom-

ers are living their lives to the fullest, and we want to celebrate them.” Exhibitors for the one-stop-shop expo run the gamut from medical centers, health insurers and county departments to AARP, adult day care providers, a mortgage provider, a college and errand service, and U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson’s office. There will be prizes and giveaways, and expo-goers who visit at least 15 expo exhibitors and get their number can enter the grand prize drawings for a three-day/two-night hotel stay in Orlando, Fla., compliments of Paycation Travel or a lavish Fall/Harvest Gift Basket from the Mall at Stonecrest. The expo takes place noon to 5 p.m. The mall is at I-20 and Turner Hill Road. For more information, call 404-284-1888.

2014 Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo Exhibitors & Grand Prize Entry Form Visit at least 15 of these exhibitors* at the 2014 Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo and enter to win: n A Fabulous Mall at Stonecrest Fall/Harvest Basket, OR n 3 days/2 nights stay in beautiful Orlando, Fla., compliments of Paycation Travel in Lithonia. The drawing takes place on October 18, 2014, at 4:40 p.m. at the Main Stage in front of Sears on the lower level of the Mall at Stonecrest. _____ AARP

_____ Dignity Memorial

_____ JenCare Medical

_____ Atlanta Center For Medical Research

_____ Embracing Hospice

_____ Kaiser Permanente

_____ Atlanta Gastroenterology

_____ Generation Mortgage

_____ Lou Walker Senior Center

_____ Congressman Hank Johnson

_____ Georgia Clinical Research

_____ NeuroStudies.net

_____ CrossRoadsNews

_____ Georgia Department of Community Affairs

_____ Oakhurst Medical

_____ DeKalb County Board of Health

_____ Georgia Piedmont Technical College

_____ Paycation Travel

_____ DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office

_____ Globus

_____ Rem-Kiks Adult Day Care

_____ DeKalb Medical Center

_____ Golden Care Errand Services

_____ Well Care of Georgia

Name ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Address _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ City _____________________________________________ E-mail_______________________________________________________________________ Home phone _________________________________________________ Cell ___________________________________________________________ * Eligible entries must be validated by at least 15 exhibitors and must include your complete name, address, e-mail address and telephone number. Employees and immediate family members of CrossRoadsNews, Paycation Travel and the Mall at Stonecrest are not eligible to win. You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You MUST be present to win.

CrossRoadsNews

October 11, 2014

Baby Boomer Expo

“This expo highlights all the great things that retirees are doing in our community. We want to celebrate them.”

2014 Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo Program Highlights October 18, 2014 • Noon to 5 p.m. • The Main Stage in front of Sears Lower Level, The Mall at Stonecrest 11:30 a.m. Solid Soul Band 12:30 p.m. Warm-up With Exercise Motivator Rae Rae 12:45 p.m.

Sylvia’s Line Dancers

1 p.m.

R&B vocalist Lewis Raye

1:30 p.m.

The Highlighters

2 p.m.

Fashion Show featuring styles from Sears and Zoom de Italy

2:15 p.m.

Food Demo With Life Chef Asata Reid

2:45 p.m.

Lou Walker Dance Troupe

Emcee Reggie Gay

Solid Soul Band

Lou Walker Center Line Dance Troupe

3 p.m. The Groove 3:30 p.m.

Lou Walker Senior Center Choir

3:45 p.m.

Second Line Queen Ora Dabney

4 p.m.

Beulah Boys

Lewis Raye

MRM#: 60264708 4:30 p.m. Line Dance-Off Date: 09/18/2014 File Name: 60264708_2014_Seniors_&_Baby_Boomers_Expo_Special_Section_Ad_ 4:40 p.m. Grand Prize Drawing FINAL.indd Designer: Anne Davies

5 p.m.

Sylvia’s Line Dancers

The Groove

Document Size Flat: 10.5” w x 8” h Prints: 4/0; CMYK Pages: 1; Sides: 1; Bleeds: None Notes: Files Deliverable Hires PDF

Chef Asata

Expo Ends

The Highlighters Line Dancers

Beulah Boys

Ora Dabney

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CrossRoadsNews

Baby Boomer Expo

October 11, 2014

“When I’m teaching classes, I often hear ‘I would eat better if I could afford to’ and ‘Healthy foods are more expensive.’”

With planning and smarts, you eat better on a budget By Chef Asata Reid

Buy in bulk Dry goods, canned goods and meat are often less expensive in bulk. You can shop once and eat several times, especially if you utilize your freezer.

These days, we are all watching our pennies and trying to make the most with what we have. For many of us, our grocery bill is one of our top household expenses. When I’m teaching classes or working with clients, I often hear “I would eat better if I could afford to” and “Healthy foods are more expensive.” Asata Reid However, that simply isn’t true. What needs to be tweaked is probably how you shop and a few other old habits that aren’t serving you anymore. Here are my top 10 suggestions on how you can start eating better on a budget today.

Eat less meat and dairy Meat and dairy are the two most expensive groups on your shopping list. However, if you follow the USDA’s recommendation to make half your plate fruits and vegetables along with a quarter plate of carbohydrates, you will find that you will eat less meat. Less meat on the plate means less meat on your shopping list. The money saved can be used to purchase more wholesome fruits and vegetables. Meat and dairy are the top dietary contributors of fats and cholesterol. Focus on “real” vs. “processed” or convenience foods: Sure it’s convenient to pop a meal in the microwave, especially if you are cooking for one. But those processed foods are high in salt, fat and preservatives and cost exponentially more than if you had made the meal yourself. Have a “prep day” where you prepare meals that you can package in single-serving containers and voila! you have

Beans, nuts and seeds, and homegrown fresh vegetables can help you stretch your food budget. Chef Asata Reid will offer a healthy food demo at 2:15 p.m. at the expo.

homemade convenience food! Fresh fruits; dark green or red/orange vegetables; rice, oats and other whole grains; beans; nuts and seeds; lean protein; and fish are types of “real” food to keep on hand to make quick, healthy meals.

Cook at home Not only do you pay more to eat out, but you can’t control the fat, sugar, salt and other ingredients that restaurants put in your meals. The only way to know what’s in your food is to cook it yourself. Plan ahead and pack lunches and snacks to take with you so you aren’t tempted to hit a fast-food drive-in while you are out and about. Save the money and instead treat yourself and a friend to a nice home-cooked meal.

Bake from scratch Corn bread, pancakes, flatbreads and muffins are all very easy to make. The ingredients like flour, cornmeal, eggs and baking powder are inexpensive and store well. Nothing tastes better than a homemade biscuit! Grow a garden A patio or sunny windowsill is all that’s needed for a few choice plants or herbs. If you have a bit of ground to dig in, hearty cherry tomatoes and green beans are weather-resistant, and a few zucchini or squash plants can yield a big bounty. Gardening is great exercise and you don’t have to go it alone. Share your plot with some friends or neighbors and share the experience and the produce.

Use your freezer Frozen produce is picked at the peak of ripeness and flash frozen, which maintains most of the nutrients. Plus frozen produce is convenient and quick to cook, and unlike fresh, it won’t go bad in a couple of days if you don’t have time to cook. Adding frozen vegetables to soups, rice dishes and pastas is a fast way to add nutrients to meals. Create a buying co-op with friends If shopping for one leaves you with too many leftovers, consider setting a up a co-op with a friend or two. Shopping together will give you an opportunity to exchange recipes and health tips. Groceries can be split up into smaller portions for each person. Eat seasonally Seasonal produce is abundant and less expensive. By purchasing what’s in season, you will get food at its nutritional peak and at the best price. Meal plan Start each week or two with a meal plan. You can see how you can use up leftovers and create a shopping list that’s smart. You know what to purchase and how to use it. Always shop with a list Grocery stores are designed to make you want to purchase more than you need. Sticking to your list will help you stay on budget and focused on making healthy selections.

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CrossRoadsNews

October 11, 2014

Baby Boomer Expo

“Music is universal. It connects us all. I want people to dance or sing along. I just want somebody to feel better.”

Prolific young songwriter to perform new single ‘Light It Up’ By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

Lewis Raye of Stockbridge, whose musical roots run deep, will appear on the Main Stage at 1 p.m. on Oct. 18 at the expo at the Mall at Stonecrest in Lithonia.

When Lewis Raye writes or performs his songs, he has one goal in mind: to entertain. “Music is universal,” he said Oct. 8. “It connects us all. I want people to dance or sing along. I just want somebody to feel better.” Raye and his feel-good music will be on stage at the CrossRoadsNews 2014 Seniors/ Baby Boomer Expo at the Mall at Stonecrest on Oct. 18. The up-and-coming artist will sing his new sultry and seductive midtempo single “Light It Up” on the Main Stage at 1 p.m. The original song, which he wrote, arranged and produced, dropped in January. Raye says it is “doing pretty well.” Early next month, his extended play album with five to six original songs will be released. In December, just in time for holiday gift-giving, his debut album of a dozen songs will be released on iTunes, Amazon and CD Baby. Raye says he takes pride in arranging and producing the album. “I can do everything it takes to make a song,” said Raye, who also plays the guitar and piano. He has been writing songs for a decade and a half and has a bookshelf of composition notebooks to prove it. “It’s been a hobby since I was 10,” he said. For him, songwriting is storytelling, and he never knows when his creative juices will flow. “I never leave the house without a notebook,” says Raye, 25. His musical roots grew at home and in the church. He sings in the choir at the Church of the Harvest International in Jonesboro. At home, the house was always full of music. His mother, Ruth Rhedrick, was choir director for Second Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Ellenwood; his sister Brittany sings in the choir; his brother Courtney plays the drums and the piano; and his dad, Bobbie, was always playing the blues on his harmonica. His musical style knows no limits. Raye says he loves soul, pop, R&B and urbanpop. He takes his inspiration from Michael Jackson, Sam Cooke, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Bruno Mars and Alicia Keys, and he just loves Motown-era music. “I love all those songs from the ’70s and ’80s,” he said. Raye, who lives in Stockbridge, is a 2006 graduate of Morrow High School. But he is no stranger to DeKalb County. His family lived in Decatur and Ellenwood before relocating to Henry County. One day Raye wants to be a blockbuster musician, but he says making it big is not his only definition of success. The impact of his music on people is more important. “Knowing that one of my songs has had a positive influence on someone’s life is my only definition of success,” he says. For more information, visit www.lewisraye.com.

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CrossRoadsNews

Baby Boomer Expo

October 11, 2014

“The Highlighters make people shine. Dancing at nursing homes is a way to give back to the community and people in general.”

Highlighters’ happy feet bring smiles to receptive audiences By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

The only thing that Ruth Mayo loves more than bridge is the Lou Walker Senior Center and dancing. “I love to dance,” said Mayo, 65. “It makes me feel happy, and it’s good exercise.” Mayo, who retired from the New York City Department of Social Services in 2004 after 37 years, headed home to Georgia to enjoy her next chapter. “I was born in Augusta, Ga., but it was too slow there,” she says with a laugh. Mayo, who used to visit an uncle in DeKalb County while she was living in New York, chose to settle in Stone Mountain and quickly found the Austin Drive Senior Center in Decatur to do stuff with people her own age. When the Lou Walker Senior Center opened on Panola Road in 2005, she migrated to Lithonia and has remained busy dancing, first with the Lou Walker Line Dance Troupe and now with the all-female Highlighters Line Dancers, formed by Mardell Marber in 2006. “We are a bunch of women who like to dance and we visit nursing homes and dance for their residents,” Mayo said. The Highlighters perform at nursing homes because Mayo says you can’t find a more receptive audience anywhere. “They be so happy when we dance,” she said. “We just see the smiles on their faces. We like to make them happy.” The eight-member Highlighters, who range in age from 61 to 68, also include Dorothy Wright, Marsha Frazier, Doris Lowe, Eunice White, Johnnye Ashley, Carol Hughes and Reantia Stultz. Mayo said all of the women enjoy dancing and do everything from the Electric Slide to the Wobble. “We are trying to be just like the Beulah Boys,” Mayo said. Mayo likes dancing so much that she now teaches a line-dancing class at Lou Walker Senior Center on Tuesday and Thursdays. When they perform at nursing homes, Mayo said it’s easy to get participation from the residents. “They get up and shake one leg or clap their hands,” she said. The group has performed at two A.J. Rose Nursing Homes in Atlanta, at West Park Place in Lilburn, and in Decatur at Harvest Heights Nursing Home and the Alison-Williams Assisted Living Home. They also do praise dancing to some of Yolanda Adams’ songs and have performed at Fairfield Baptist Church in Lithonia. “The Highlighters make people shine,” Mayo said. “Dancing at nursing The Highlighters Line Dancers from the Lou Walker Senior Center will perform at 1:30 p.m. on Oct. 18 at the expo at the Mall at Stonecrest in Lithonia. homes is a way to give back to the community and people in general.”

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CrossRoadsNews

October 11, 2014

Baby Boomer Expo

“We all love Jesus and that makes a big difference. We love music and we love doing things for other people.”

Solid Soul Band keeps it real with old school grooves, gospel By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

When the Solid Soul Band strikes up a tune, even people in wheelchairs wanna dance. The six-member band – five men and a woman – know how to throw down. Its repertoire runs the gamut from rhythm & blues to jazz, love ballads, rock ’n’ roll, and gospel. Band leader James Nash puts it this way: “We just mix it up for them.” The band members – all seasoned musicians – cut their teeth on gospel music. They hail from four metro counties. Victoria Riley of Stone Mountain is on keyboard and vocals; John Nixon, who lives in Union City, plays trumpet; Arthur Chapman of Fayetteville is on bass; Glenn Madison of McDonough is lead singer and drummer; and guitarist Charles Wilkerson also lives in McDonough. Chapman, 20, is the group’s youngster. Madison, 76, is the group’s elder statesman, but Nash, 66, says he really doesn’t look his age. Madison, who does double duty as Solid Soul’s drummer and lead singer because of his skills at both, says he is semiretired. His long music career took off with gospel singing when he was 18. In the 1960s, he was lead singer for the Delcos, and two of his hits – “When You Dance” and “Why You Have to Go” – topped the charts in Pittsburgh for three weeks in 1963. Madison says Solid Soul is taking him back to his roots. “I love music,” he said. “It’s in my DNA. We are all put on this earth for a purpose. Mine is to give honor to God and sing.” At the Frank Bailey Senior Citizen Center in Riverdale, where Solid Soul plays monthly

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNews

Solid Soul Band members James Nash (from left), John Nixon, Victoria Riley, Glenn Madison and Charles Wilkerson rehearse at Wilkerson’s home in McDonough. Not pictured: bass player Arthur Chapman.

on third Wednesdays, band members are legendary. Nash said he assembled the band five years ago to help the senior center keep and attract membership after a dramatic decline caused by Clayton County increasing its fees to use its senior centers. People left in droves. The music helped keep a few. Today, 50 to 60 people show up for their 11:30 a.m.-to-1 p.m. show. When Riley belts out “Mustang Sally,” Etta James’ “At Last,” and “Under the Boardwalk,” Nash says the audience just loses control of its smiles. Nash and Nixon have been friends for 20 years. Other band members met each other playing music for various churches around

metro Atlanta. A praise minister since the age of 17, Riley, 53, is a classically trained musician. She has been playing music for 45 years. A child prodigy, she enrolled in the Cleveland Institute of Music when she was 13. “I was going to be a concert pianist, but I fell in love and got married,” she said. Solid Soul members have regular jam sessions, mostly for themselves and a few close friends, at Wilkerson’s McDonough home. Wilkerson loves to play so much that he has a stage and sound equipment at his home. Riley says she doesn’t have to take her keyboard if she doesn’t want to because he has that too. After they started performing at the senior center, Nash’s wife, Evelyn, decided

they needed a name. She came up with Solid Soul. The band hasn’t looked back. Riley, who also plays the piano and writes and arranges music, joined the group 10 months ago after meeting Nash at a church where both were playing. After hearing the group perform, Riley said she jumped at the chance to be part of the band. “The secret to the band is that everybody loves to play music,” she said. “We all play because we love it.” As Solid Soul’s fame spread, they have picked up gigs at weddings, family reunions, parties and other special events. On Oct. 18, they will kick off the CrossRoadsNews 2014 Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo at the Mall at Stonecrest with a jam session. The Solid Soul band will be on the Main Stage near Sears on the mall’s lower level starting at 11:30 a.m. It’s a gig music lovers will want to see. Nash said the Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo patrons are their perfect audience – people just like them who love old school music. He plans to throw in an original blues song, “Buy Some Beans,” that he wrote in 1990. Band members plan to leave the audience wanting more, just like they have done at the Frank Bailey Senior Center. “Once we took a sabbatical for two months, and they kept asking, ‘When is the band coming back?’” he said. Solid Soul is a tightknit group. Nash said they get along because they have “like spirits.” “We all love Jesus and that makes a big difference,” he said. “We love music and we love doing things for other people.” For more information or to book the Solid Soul Band, call James Nash at 404310-4167.

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October 11, 2014

Baby Boomer Expo

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The Lou Walker Senior Center Dance Troupe brought down the house at the 2013 expo. The line dancers will showcase their new moves at the Oct. 18 expo at the Mall at Stonecrest.

Troupe returns with new moves Line dance teacher JD Hall knows why line dancing is so popular with his retired colleagues at the Lou Walker Senior Center in Lithonia. “You don’t have to have a partner to dance,” he says. “You just get in the line and move.” Hall, who trains and leads the Lou Walker Senior Center Dance Troupe, has been teaching line dance at the center since 2008. Back then, there was one line dance class. Today, three teachers lead three separate line dancing classes at the center. Hall says his fellow retirees are flocking to line dance classes because the steps are relatively easy to learn and dancing in unison is a lot of fun. “It’s a great way to express your feelings,” he said. “If you are active, you can pick it up pretty good. Plus it’s a great way to exercise.” The dance troupe of 19 to 20 is mostly women and performs regularly at county events, churches and nursing homes. On Oct. 18, Hall and the dance troupe will showcase the new moves they have cre-

ated at the CrossRoadsNews 2014 Seniors/ Baby Boomer Expo at the Mall at Stonecrest. At last year’s expo, they brought the house down with their smooth moves. The dance troupe will be on the expo’s Main Stage near Sears on the mall’s lower level at 2:45 p.m. Hall says that women dominate the dance troupe because the retired men at the center prefer to sit and play dominoes. While his colleagues are sitting, Hall, who will be 70 in November, is one of three men on the dance line with the women. Hall took up line dancing after his wife, Conneva, encouraged him to join the senior center when it opened in 2005. She saw that the retired Norfolk Southern freight train conductor was spending too much time around the house cooking and eating. In short order, he ditched the pounds and became the top student in the class. When the teacher left, he was tapped to teach the class. Now he extols the virtues of dancing. “It is very enjoyable exercise,” he says.

‘Fancy dancer’ shares love of art

Sylvia Irwin (center) and East Lake YMCA line dancers will perform at 12:45 p.m. at the Oct. 18, 2014 Senios/Baby Boomer Expo. Irwin, 74, spends 15 hours a week instructing 11 classes.

When she was a kid growing up in Kansas City, Mo., Sylvia Irwin loved to dance so much her family called her “fancy dancer.” She was never picky about the type of dance. She dabbled in country line dance, ballroom, and square dancing, and she never lost her love for the art form. Now 74, Irwin is still dancing and teaching others to move.

She spends 15 hours a week instructing 11 classes with 235 students, mostly seniors like herself. Her class at the East Lake YMCA will perform at 12:45 p.m. on Oct. 18 at the CrossRoadsNews 2014 Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo at the Mall at Stonecrest. The expo takes place noon to 5 p.m. on the mall’s lower level near Sears.

October 11, 2014

CrossRoadsNews

Baby Boomer Expo

DeKalb Medical, Oakhurst Medical Centers and Georgia Piedmont Technical College will offer free blood pressure and diabetes screenings at the Oct. 18 expo at the Mall at Stonecrest.

Free health screenings at Expo Expo participants can get free screenings for hypertension and diabetes at the CrossRoadsNews Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo on Oct. 18 at the Mall at Stonecrest. DeKalb Medical, Oakhurst Medical Centers and nursing students from Georgia Piedmont Technical College are among exhibitors that will be offering health screenings. Blood pressure and blood checks will be offered by all three, and DeKalb Medical also

will operate a fitness prize wheel and offer nutrition information. High blood pressure, or hypertension, is often called the silent killer because victims are often unaware that they have it. The expo takes place between noon and 5 p.m. on the mall’s lower level between Dillard’s and Kohl’s. The mall is at Turner Hill Road and I-20. For more information, call 404-284-1888.

B10

CrossRoadsNews

Baby Boomer Expo

October 11, 2014

It went over real well. Everyone came up afterward to ask when were we going to do it again.”

Lou Walker Center’s newly minted band makes debut By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

The Groove band may be only 8 months old, but it already has won hearts at the Lou Walker Senior Center in Lithonia. Fans who have heard bass player Lloyd Alaman, keyboardist Bob Ayers, drummer David Heyleiger, and vocalists Galene Knox and Edward Grant are all in agreement. These musicians can jam. On Oct. 18, the Groove, which was founded at the center in February, will make its debut at the Mall at Stonecrest at the CrossRoadsNews 2014 Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo. Band members will be on stage at 3 p.m. Even though the Groove is freshly minted, all its members are seasoned musicians, and two are retired professional musicians. Alaman, 68, has been a music teacher almost all his life. Ayers, 75, is a retired keyboardist for the likes of George Benson, the Intruders and Wilson Pickett. More than a decade ago, he worked on Mariah Carey’s “Sweetheart” that went gold. Heyleiger, 68, has played percussion and bongos for decades, and Knox, 65, is the owner of “a most beautiful voice.” Alaman said Knox and Grant have been delighting audiences for years as part of the Lou Walker Senior Center Choir. The Groove repertoire ranges from jazz to R&B, new age, and gospel, of course. “We do a little bit of everything,” said Ayers, who retired from the music industry in New York in 2012 and relocated to Stone Mountain. He became a member of the Lou Walker Center and struck up a friendship with Alaman, the center’s choir director. Ayers was content teaching guitar classes at the center when Alaman saw his musical equipment in his basement. “He had everything,” Alaman recalled this week, “including sound equipment and a bass and two or three guitars.” Alaman said he picked up the bass and started “picking at it.” Ayers shared the story of his former life and offered to teach Alaman to play the bass. A few months later, Alaman said he had become pretty good on the bass.

The Groove, which was founded in February at the Lou Walker Senior Center, will perform at 3 p.m. at the Oct. 18 expo at the Mall at Stonecrest.

“I went out and bought my own,” he said. While he had played clarinet in high school, Alaman said when he graduated in 1962, he picked it up again. When the band first played at the center, Alaman said they “turned it out.” “We did seven or eight songs,” he said. “It went over real well. Everyone came up afterward to ask when were we going to do it again.” Before the Groove launched, Ayers thought he was finished with the music business.

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“They brought me out of retirement,” he said. “They got me back into it.” So far, he says playing in the band has been a lot of fun. “I like music,” he said. “I have written a lot of songs. We will play some of them.” He plans to grow the band with members from his 31-member guitar class at the center. He already has his eyes on two promising students. “I am trying to get them up to speed to join the band,” Ayers said.

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Baby Boomer Expo

“We do it mostly around Mardi Gras. … The handkerchief comes out and we wave away the evil spirit and sadness.”

Mardi Gras Queen invokes happiness Seniors will strut their stuff By Jennifer Ffrench Parker Even to this day, if Ora Dabney hears the in fall fashions strains of jazz or zydeco, she is likely to follow

Models will wear the latest in fall fashions from Sears and Zoom de Italy. Former beauty queen Jan Reynolds will choreograph the fashion show.

A dozen fashion-conscious seniors and baby boomers will showcase new looks from Sears and Zoom de Italy at the CrossRoadsNews 2014 Seniors/ Baby Boomer Expo at the Mall at Stonecrest. The male and female models will wear the latest in fall fashions that are ideal for Sunday service, leisure and special occasions. The fashion show will be choreographed by Jan Reynolds, the 1976 Miss Black Missouri and Miss USA contestant. Reynolds regularly serves as a judge for Miss Black Atlanta, Miss East Coast, Miss Teen India and Miss India. The fashion show takes place on the Main Stage near Sears on the lower level at 2 p.m. Sears is one of five anchors at the 1.3 million-square-foot mall. Zoom de Italy, a trend-setting menswear store, celebrated its first anniversary at the mall in August. It features the latest styles in Italian dress and casual wear for men of all sizes. The expo, which is presented in partnership with Kaiser Permanente, takes place from noon to 5 p.m. with live performances and more than two dozen exhibitors offering information, health screenings, and giveaways. The Mall at Stonecrest is at I-20 and Turner Hill Road in Lithonia. For more information, call 404284-1888.

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the music – wherever. “I don’t have to know the people,” says Dabney, a self-described second-line queen. “It takes you back to your roots. I hear the beat and I am gone.” It was the same when she was a child growing up in New Orleans. Dabney said she would hear the music coming down Daniel Street and she would take off after the Second Line, the people following the traditional brass band parades just to enjoy the music. Participants walk and sometimes twirl a parasol or handkerchief in the air. Hours later, it would be dark and she would be trying to make it home. “I would be so tired too,” she recalled Tuesday with a laugh. From the colorful Indian headpieces or her gaily decorated umbrella, Dabney knows how to be true to her culture. A self-described New Orleans Charity Hospital baby, Dabney is Lou Walker Senior Center’s 2014 Mardi Gras Queen. All her colleagues at the Lithonia center know that nobody can wave a handkerchief like her. On Oct. 18, with a shake of her handkerchief, she will be chasing away sadness and invoking happiness at the CrossRoadsNews 2014 Seniors/Baby Boomer Expo at the Mall at Stonecrest. Dabney will perform from the Main Stage near Sears on the mall’s lower level at 3:45 p.m. Dabney, 69, who lives in the Hidden Hills community in Stone Mountain, relocated to the area in 2006 when her late husband, Melvin, retired from the Army. Before that, they spent 20 years crisscross-

Ora Dabney, Lou Walker Senior Center’s 2014 Mardi Gras Queen and a self-described second-line queen, will perform at 3:45 p.m. on Oct. 18 at the expo.

ing military bases in the United States and Germany. Everywhere she went, Dabney took a little New Orleans with her, second lining on the base whenever the opportunity presented itself. She says there is no special time for the Second Line to come out. “We do it mostly around Mardi Gras, but we do it for funerals too,” she said. “The handkerchief comes out and we wave away the evil spirit and sadness.” Dabney also plays the tambourine, and sometimes she dances with her decorated umbrella. “I have been doing it all my life,” she said. “It’s the culture. When you hear the music, you want to move.”

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