F R E E SPRING
2014
Pursuing Peace Also in this issue: Gene and Margo Hoffman See the World on Two Wheels Fitting in Fitness with Candee Deichman and Jo Radlinger Habib Sadaka Honored by Minnesota Housing
Joan Steffend finds happiness out of the spotlight. See her speak at the 50+ LifeStyle Expo!
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Contents
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MATURE LIFEST YLE • SPRING 2014 • VOLUME 6, ISSUE 2
FEATURES 6 A Place of Peace Award winning Joan Steffend will share how she found inner peace at the 50+ LifeStyle Expo.
15
10 More than a Senior Expo The renamed 50+ LifeStyle Expo caters to a wider audience with a wider array of information available.
12 Fitting in Fitness New opportunities to exercise are popping up all over the place in Mankato – but the reason to keep doing it is still the same.
16
15 Golf Getaways You don’t have to go to Arizona or Florida to hit the links anymore! Minnesota’s golf courses are ready as well.
16 Touring on Two Wheels Margo and Gene Hoffman have traveled the world on two wheels, but favorite biking place is still home.
21 Local Lender Honored Habib Sadaka honored by the Minnesota Housing as a top producing loan officer.
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DEPARTMENTS 19 Book Reviews 22 Community Calender Mature Lifestyles Spring 2014 3
PUBLISHER’S NOTES
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Welcome to the Spring edition of Mature Lifestyle…
I
have to make a confession: Watching TV is not even close to the top of my list of things I like to do. Sure, I can get hooked on a program such as “Downton Abbey,” but I rarely can sit long enough to watch a 30-minute show before I’m distracted by the laundry, cooking or animals that need my attention. There are just not enough hours in a day, and sitting in front of the television is not usually how I choose to spend mine. On top of that, my husband and I have very distinct differences on what we enjoy watching. However, one station we enjoy watching together is HGTV, so we are thrilled that former “Design Cents” host Joan Steffend will be the featured speaker at the 50+ LifeStyle Expo held at the Verizon Wireless Center in downtown Mankato on Tuesday, May 13. She will speak at 1 p.m., and we are both really interested in hearing about her journey to find peace and happiness. Based on the story featured in this magazine, I think you will enjoy her talk. It is guaranteed to be both lively and inspiring. I’m pretty sure you’ll also enjoy the 50+ LifeStyle Expo, which is debuting its new name in an effort to reach out to a younger audience this year. Be sure to stop at the entrance and say hello to me and my staff. We will have a booth with copies of Mature. Even if you already have one, you may want another for Joan Steffend to autograph!
Along with the stories about Steffend and the Expo, read about Margo and Gene Hoffman. They have taken their passion for biking to the streets and have travelled through many foreign countries on top of bicycle seats. You’ll love their stories from the road – and their idea for how to spend their anniversary, biking through the hills of Ireland. I am so envious! Next read about fitness gurus, Candee Deichman and Jo Radlinger. Both have their own work-out studios and both know the value of exercising to build muscle strength and add mobility. Some clients, age 93 and 103 say it best, “Exercise has been a part of our lifestyle…forever.” But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t start right now, whatever your age. Moving your body, eating a wellbalanced diet and drinking lots of water are the keys of success, and to a long, healthy life. And don’t miss the golf getways, book reviews, community events and special honor that Habib Sadaka, the branch manager of American Mortgage and Equity Consultants in Mankato, received from Minnesota Housing. This issue is packed with stories that will keep you smiling while you wait for real spring weather to come our way. Enjoy! Kelly Hulke, Publisher
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Mature Lifestyle is a Quarterly Publication of the Home Magazine, Mankato, MN. A Property of Community First Holdings, Inc.
Publisher Kelly Hulke Sales Manager Mary DeGrood Sales Executives Yvonne Sonnek Debby Carlson Deena Briggs Dorothy Meyer
Advertising Information: Home Magazine 1400 Madison Ave., Suite 610 Mankato, MN 56001 (507) 387-7953 fax 387-4775
Editorial/Photography Sara Gilbert Frederick Joe Tougas Graphic Designer Deb Granger Business Manager Ron Bresnahan
On the cover: Joan Steffend
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A Place of Peace by Sara Gilbert Frederick
6  Spring 2014 Mature Lifestyles
JOAN STEFFEND
“My story is about the life that I’ve lived, the lessons I learned, and what I’ve come to know. It’s all about authenticity, about knowing that you have the capacity to change the world.” – Joan Steffend
J
oan Steffend won’t be wearing sweats when she gives the keynote speech at the 50+ LifeStyle Expo in Mankato on May 13. But she might mention how often she does wear them these days – and how happy that makes her. In her past life, sweats would not have been an option. As a long-time television news anchor and host of the interior design show “Decorating Cents” on HGTV, Steffend dressed the part of the professional woman. From the manly suits and ties she was asked to wear as a young anchor on KBJR-TV in Duluth in the 1980s to the polished outfits she choose while at KARE-TV for almost 20 years to the more casual and colorful clothes she wore while on HGTV, Steffend always looked good. But she didn’t always feel good. Now, in her sweats in her Twin Cities home – just a few minutes from both of her daughters, and her brand new grandson – she looks and feels good. “I’m more happy than I’ve ever been,” Steffend says. “I’m making less money than I’ve ever made as an adult, my car is older and I spend my days in sweats. And I’m happier than ever.” That’s the story she’ll be telling the audience at the 50+ Lifestyle Expo. She laughingly calls it “the evolution of Joan” – how she went from having what looked like great success to finding an even greater sense of peace and, finally, happiness. “I’m going to tell my story – that’s all I have to share with people,” she says. “It’s about the life that I’ve lived, the lessons I learned, and what I’ve come to know. It’s
all about authenticity, about knowing that you have the capacity to change the world.”
Making the News Steffend was four when she started performing; her first role was as a green light bulb in a church Christmas pageant. She so loved the stage that she studied theater at the University of Minnesota – Duluth and took off for Los Angeles after graduation to pursue a career in acting. When that didn’t work out the way she had hoped, she returned to Duluth in 1980 and took a job as a news anchor at KBJR-TV. In 1983, Steffend moved to the KARE-TV anchor desk in the Twin Cities. There, she met her husband – Joe Brandmeier, a director/producer who was a photographer for KARE-TV at the time – and established herself as a friendly, knowledgeable on-air personality. She was respected by her colleagues, including coanchor Paul Magers and meteorologist Paul Douglas, and adored by her fans. She won an Emmy Award and was recognized for her ability to tell uplifting stories. But the news was hard on Steffend. She wanted to be able to skew everything toward the positive, but that was often hard to do. Although she loved the people she worked with and the people she met in the community, she became frustrated by the focus on negative news. “I did what I could,” she says. “I kept offering up all of these ideas. But eventually, it just wore me down. And truly, I think it was meant to wear me down.”
In 1997, she decided to make a change. She gave up her anchor spot and joined HGTV, a cable television network dedicated to home and garden ideas. For 10 years, Steffend used her love of interior decorating and her ability to forge connections with normal people as the host of “Decorating Cents.” “That felt like a vacation in many ways,” she says. “I only had to work two or three days a week, which gave me time to just be with me and to figure it all out. I really got to dig into who I was.” It was during that time that she realized that the things that should bring her happiness – the things that society saw as signs of her success – weren’t bringing her joy. “I had what a lot of people thought was all that you could want,” she says. “So why couldn’t I be happy? I couldn’t stand the idea of living another several decades thinking that maybe, if I got a nicer house or a better car, I’d be happy. The solution for me wasn’t any of those things.” She couldn’t knock the feeling that something was missing from her life. She was grateful for the opportunities she had been given, grateful for the work she was able to do and for the success it had afforded her – but she still hadn’t found what she was looking for. “I was in pain,” she says. “Something was missing. I knew that there was something that I was supposed to do, something I was supposed to know, something I was supposed to be.” By 2007, she couldn’t ignore the feeling anymore. “It was knocking at my heart (continued on next page) Mature Lifestyles Spring 2014 7
Joan Steffend
(continued from previous page)
the whole time,” Steffend says. “Finally, it boiled down to peace being what I’d been seeking for my whole life.”
Pursuing Peace Now, at 59, Steffend is enjoying what she says is “the absolute best time of my life.” She has written two books – …and she sparkled, which was published in 2010, and peace in, peace out, which came out in 2012. She founded a nonprofit organization called Peace Begins with Me that is dedicated to helping people find inner peace. And she speaks frequently about her own pursuit of peace. “Every time I speak, I feel a lot of flow and a lot of joy,” she says. “I feel like every time I speak, I’m learning something new. I’m kind of speaking to myself at the same time that I’m speaking to the audience.” Each time she speaks, she tells about her own journey. But she reminds people that they have a journey to go on as well. “There are two talking points that I dance around most of the time,” she says. “The first is the journey to rediscover what you were born with. But also, to discover that you have the capacity to impact the world. The world feels very overwhelming right now. But I do know that we have the capacity to affect our individual worlds and our families. And it just goes out from there.” After years of being on camera, Steffend doesn’t often get nervous before she gives a speech. But she does admit that sometimes her hands shake – because she’s so excited and so full of energy. “It’s like I’ve become the energizer bunny,” she laughs. But that’s a good thing, she says. “Before, I couldn’t find the energy to want to go to work. Now, when I’m speaking my own language, and I know that this is the true me, I feel energized.” So it might be appropriate for her to choose sweats for her appearance in Mankato in May after all. Right: Steffend is a guest on the famous Opray Windfrey Show. 8 Spring 2014 Mature Lifestyles
Joan’s Peace Begins with Me (a small BIG peace project) is a humanitarian non profit organization dedicated to education, inspiration, and collaboration in the area of inner peace, knowing that, because we are all connected, inner peace is the way to global peace. Check it out at PeaceBeginsWithMe.org.
Steffend has written two books on finding inner peace.
The Steffend family includes (left to right) Jordan, Blair, husband Joe and Joan.
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50+ LIFESTYLE EXPO
More than a Senior Expo by Sara Gilbert Frederick
T
he Senior Expo began in 2005 as an effort by Mankato’s Department of Public Safety to educate older adults about personal safety issues, from how to avoid scams to staying safe in their homes and being prepared for potential weather events. That first year, it took up just half of the banquet hall in the Verizon Wireless Center, and only a few vendors participated. But the response from the community was so positive that the Expo was soon being held in the arena, and dozens of vendors were lining up to be included. By 2008, the Verizon Wireless Center had taken over coordination of the event. “The Senior Expo was a huge success,” says Tricia Stenberg, convention sales and marketing specialist for Verizon Wireless Center. “The arena was always filled with vendors, and often they overflowed into the lobby as well. Between 1,500 and 2,000 people were coming every year – the only time we ever saw a dip in attendance was when there was bad weather.” But as the Senior Expo approached its 10th anniversary, Stenberg started evaluating the feedback that she’d be hearing from both attendees and vendors. Most of the attendees were 70 or older, and vendors were eager to connect with a younger audience as well. But the timing of the Expo – from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. on a weekday – didn’t work for those who were still working. “They were telling us that they wanted to attend, but they just couldn’t get the time off work to come to the Expo,” she says. “We felt, with the 10th anniversary of the Expo, it was time to try something different.”
10 Spring 2014 Mature Lifestyles
The something different that they decided to try includes a new name, a new time, and a slightly broader focus. The 50+ LifeStyle Expo will take place on Tuesday, May 13, from 2 p.m. until 7 p.m., with the keynote speaker – former HGTV host and KARE 11 news anchor Joan Steffend – beginning at 1 p.m. Although many of the booths will look familiar from previous years, several new businesses will also be represented, including those in the travel and nutrition industries. And in addition to the typical health and safety speakers who will appear,
What: 50+ LifeStyle Expo When: Tuesday, May 13, 2 p.m.-7 p.m. Where: Verizon Wireless Center Highlights: Free and open to the public Medical screenings More than 100 exhibitors Door prize drawings Snacks and beverage available Free parking Free shuttle available from Caledonia Community/Curling Center; visit verizonwirelesscentermn.com for schedule
there will be a new performance stage coordinated by the Twin Rivers Council for the Arts and a “Community Square” space, where information about volunteer opportunities and activities will be available. The time change also allows for a slightly different approach to the concessions available at the Expo. For the first time, the Expo will include a happy hour, with a cash bar available for those coming after work; a new set of hot appetizers will also be available. Stenberg hopes that all of those changes will help attract a larger portion of the community to the Expo. The name change alone should appeal to a wider audience. “People in their 50s and even their 60s don’t think of themselves as ‘seniors’,” Stenberg explains. “And maybe the community in general didn’t realize that there was so much more to the Expo, and that all of the information available was valuable to a much younger demographic. I think changing the name, and getting the information out, will help people understand that better.” Stenberg also notes that while not many 50 year olds need to start investigating assisted living settings for themselves, some may need to be making decisions for their parents in the near future. “It’s not usually the 90 year olds who are here looking for themselves,” she says. “It’s the children who come, looking for their parents. That’s something that they should be looking at now, before they are in a position to make a last-minute decision.” One of the more popular booths in recent years has been the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s, in part because of the interactive information they’ve offered
related to the new roundabouts in Mankato. “They even have an interactive roundabout set up that you can walk through, so you can better understand how the roundabouts work,” Stenberg says. As the Expo evolves, Stenberg hopes to expand its offerings related to living an active lifestyle. “I think healthy living and eating and staying active as we age have all become more important to all of us,” she says. “There are so many opportunities in the Mankato area, from biking and running to yoga and zumba and classes offered through community rec and the YMCA. I think the Expo is the perfect place to provide that information to people.” Stenberg looks forward to seeing how the changes being introduced this year will change the Expo. “I think people will see that this is more than just an expo for senior citizens,” she says. “It’s so much more than that.”
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STAYING FIT
Fitting in Fitness by Joe Tougas
I
t’s hard to go out for a walk, jog or run in Muscles and Metabolism the Mankato area without running into a The rise of fitness as a trend is the result of fitness center. an ongoing understanding that the aches Snap, Planet, Anytime, $10 …those are and pains of growing older are not inevitajust a few of the names that have lunged up ble and can be slowed down through smart in the past five years, joining the nonprofit behavior. While much of her business YMCA and several independent fitness focuses on teaching people how to exercise, centers and trainers serving the area. Deichman is also quick to explain why to It’s enough to make one think this fitness exercise as well. business might have caught on. That’s a Getting around, not down. As we age, a good sign. lot of mobility goes away, Deichman says. “I think that people are realizing that “And when we lose mobility we lose our if they start a little bit younger it’s not so balance, so exercising on a regular basis hard to get into, and as they get and building muscle strength is older they’ll be healthier,” says important,” she says. It’s Candee Deichman, a personal Muscle mass. Getting older important trainer who opened her own means losing muscle mass, to get fit business, Next Level Fitness which means less muscle on in Mankato, a year ago. today so we the bones. This is concerning, While the increasing combecause bones protect some can live petition keeps her on her toes, fairly important things, like tomorrow. the growing demand for fitness your internal organs. “As we is a trend she finds encouraging. age, we want to make sure we’re The physiological reasons to exerkeeping muscle on our bones, because cise are compelling. But so are the emowhen you protect bones you protect your tional and mental benefits, and the energy it bones and organs,” Deichman says. provides to keep up with a busy lifestyle. Strength. Don’t think of strength as the “We can get on the floor with our grandability to lift barbells. Think of it as what children, play on the floor, roll around, you need to push yourself out of a chair reach into the back seat for those bags of or bend down to pick up something you groceries,” Deichman says, offering her dropped on the floor. Start there. business slogan: “It’s important to get fit Metabolic rate. It declines along with today so we can live tomorrow.” muscle mass if you don’t exercise – and it can result in weight gain, among other
12 Spring 2014 Mature Lifestyles
things. “If you keep muscle strength and exercise for your everyday living, you’re going to keep your metabolic rate higher as well,” Deichman says. Do nothing, and body fat percentage increases and lean muscle decreases. Exercise helps with anaerobic capacity – allowing you to enjoy long walks, taking the stairs or hustling from one end of the house to the other without getting winded. You’ll ward off the threats of Type 2 diabetes, the risk of which increases with getting older and falling short in diet and exercise. “You want to make sure you have a well-balanced diet and exercise for a good sugar-absorption rate,” Deichman says. Bone density “is huge,” Deichman says. Bones naturally decrease in mass as we get older. Yet they’re under more stress as one gains weight from not exercising. This is why older bones break easier. “Diet and getting more muscle around the bones to protect them is super important.”
Mind as a Muscle Jo Radlinger has been longtime trainerfor-hire. In January, she opened L.I.F.E Wellness & Training on Mankato’s North Riverfront Drive. Her emphasis is on strength training, and she’s a believer that the mind is a muscle. “If you have a strong
mind, it carries you through and you’re able to succeed in almost anything you set out to do,” Radlinger says. It takes a determined mind to get into the kind of exercise routine that will pay off in terms of good health and a satisfied mind. Picking a time of day to exercise is important, Deichman says, but it has to be realistic. Deciding that the “new you” will get up and exercise at 6:30 a.m., when you ordinarily don’t get out of bed anywhere south of 8, is just setting yourself up for failure, despite good intentions. “If someone’s used to going to work every day, I tell them if you’re used to being out the door by 8 o’clock every day and you’re OK with that, let’s keep that pattern going and let’s have you come here at 8,” she says. “Being on a routine is a key to success.” Ditto for taking classes, which tends to have a stronger pull than working out independently. “If you stay physical and keep doing what you can be doing, a little bit every day and a little bit at a time, that’s going to help,” Deichman says. Radlinger sees the payoff of lifelong exercise when she leads fitness sessions at Pathstone Living elder care center, where she often works with people who are between ages 93 and 103. “I say to them ‘You’re still here. What did you do?’” Radlinger says. “And every single one of them says ‘We exercised since the time we were little. It’s been a part of our lifestyle forever.’ Which is what we try to teach everybody. Make it a part of your lifestyle.” Top: JoAnn Radlinger has opened her studio at a new location, 302 N. Riverfront Drive, Mankato. Middle, left: A variety of classes are held at L.I.F.E. Wellness & Training. Middle, right: Fitness balls have become a fun part of classes. Bottom: Candee Diechman encourages clients to “chin-up” in her studio located at 4 Trail Drive, Mankato. Mature Lifestyles Spring 2014 13
HI, I’M JOE TAYLOR. Overton, Texas. What keeps me coming back to the Trail? It’s just absolutely sensational.
I have people tell me what they’ve spent playing one round at Pebble Beach and a night at the hotel, or going to Pinehurst for a couple rounds. We do the entire week, travel, hotel, green fees, good meals and everything for the price of one day at these places. And it’s absolutely a sensational place to come. TO PLAN YOUR VISIT to Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, visit rtjresorts.com or call 1.800.949.4444 today. facebook.com/rtjgolf twitter.com/rtjgolf
14 Spring 2014 Mature Lifestyles
RTJ747JoeTaylorAD_CNHImags.indd 1
3/28/14 12:17 PM
TRAVEL
Golf Getways I
t’s not easy to be a golfer in Minnesota. The season is short, and the winter is long. But once the grass finally does get green, there are lots of great places to golf in Minnesota – and when you combine them with the other attractions in many areas across the state, most of them are worth a weekend – or more.
Bluff Country Minnesota’s beautiful bluff country, in the southeastern corner of the state, is home to half a dozen golf courses that make use of the area’s unique topography. From Valley High Golf Club in Houston to the Rivers’ Bend golf course at the Old Barn Resort in Preston, you’ll be treated to both mountaintop views and the rushing water of the Root River. There are also bike trails, fishing opportunities, tubing rentals on the river, and even the award-winning Commonweal Theatre in Lanesboro.
Rocks and Ridges In the southwestern section of the state, the golf courses sit amongst some of the oldest rock formations in the country, including the Morton gneiss (pronounced like nice) a 3.6 billion-year-old section of course metamorphic rock. The rolling prairie is home to several courses, including Redwood Falls Golf Club, Dacotah Ridge, Springfield Golf Club and Olivia Golf Club. The Jackpot Junction Casino Hotel in Morton offers stay-and-play packages for those wishing to play more than golf as well!
On the North Shore As you might expect, the highlight of golf on the North Shore is the scenery,
especially the water. The views of Lake Superior are a guaranteed distraction at many courses, especially from the 17th hole at Superior National at Lutsen. There are municipal courses in Duluth (Enger Park and Lester Park) and Two Harbors (Lakeview National), and a nice nine-hole in Silver Bay as well. In between tee times, you can get a lot of mileage out of your state park permit; there are six state parks in the area, including Gooseberry Falls, Split Rock Lighthouse and Temperance River.
Metro Area You only need a day – or even just several hours – to head to the Twin Cities and play at one of the many great courses in the metro area. Not that you can’t make a weekend out of a trip to play at Como Golf Course in St. Paul, Baker National in Medina or Braemar in Edina; there’s always plenty of shopping and sightseeing you can do after a round or two. Plan in a night game at Target Field or a show at one of the award winning theatres in Minneapolis and St. Paul and you’ve got plenty of reasons to stay awhile.
Tournament Time Not that many golfers need to be pushed out on the course, but if you’re looking for a reason to hit the links this summer, consider playing in one of the hundreds of tournaments taking place throughout the state this summer. The Minnesota Golf Association maintains a calendar of golf events, from charity tourneys to junior matches, on its website. Visit mngolf.org to find a tournament near you – or near where you want to be this spring or summer!
Tips for Beginners Don’t commit to an expensive set of clubs right off the bat. Beginners should buy an affordable secondhand set of clubs so they can get the hang of what they like before spending a lot of money. Visit a pro shop and explain that you are just a beginner. The shop will likely make some valuable suggestions and might even let you try out a pair of clubs. In addition, many driving ranges allow customers to rent clubs, and this can be a great and inexpensive way to find the right clubs for you. Take lessons. Before hitting the course, where you might be discouraged and you might frustrate those golfing behind you, learn the fundamentals by taking a few lessons at the driving range. Learn from a professional, who won’t offer you any hidden secrets to golfing glory (there aren’t any) but will offer sound advice on the game’s fundamentals. Take the game home with you. Purchase some instructional DVDs to learn the game during your down time throughout the week. Such instructional DVDs can help you master your grip and stance, which you can then take with you to the course over the weekend. Have fun. Golf is a fun game; it just takes time to hone your skills. If the game becomes more a source of frustration than fun, then take a break and put in some more work away from the course, be it at the driving range or studying at home. Mature Lifestyles Spring 2014 15
GENE & MARGO HOFFMAN
Touring on Two Wheels
by Joe Tougas
M
aybe it’s a sign of achieving some sort of milestone when you become tired of castles. If so, congratulations go out to Margo and Gene Hoffman, who are no longer interested in stopping, staying or gazing in awe at any more castles during their bike tours in Europe. Next time a castle is on the route, they’ll pass and make their way to the next stop. “It’s like Mayan ruins,” says Gene, 71, in the couple’s Nicollet home. “You see two, three sets of Mayan ruins, there’s not much else to see. The other thing we’ve seen enough is cathedrals.” That gives Margo a chuckle. She pages through about 10 pounds of photo albums loaded with pictures of all of the above, plus windmills, city centers, tulip fields, art museums and other images of a life on the road in the U.S. and overseas. It’s always tempting to use roads as a metaphor when you talk about long relationships, particularly a marriage like this one, which will be turning 50 this summer. But in the long and winding case of Gene and Margo, roads are real and essential to who they are and how they enjoy spending time together. Since the early 1970s, the two have been biking enthusiasts. They’ve been ramping it up in recent years on European paths that have ranged from cobblestone to cow pies. “We’ve never had a chance to say, ‘Oh, poor me. I’m so bored,’” says Margo. The two former owners of the Nicollet Bike Shop still live on the property that once housed the business that they sold in 2010 and is now operating out of Mankato’s Old Town. Their house has more room inside it now that it isn’t storing new bikes and parts in different rooms. The origins of the Nicollet Bike Shop began when Margo was going to college in Mankato and working for the Minnesota Department of Transportation. She 16 Spring 2014 Mature Lifestyles
asked her father, a welder by trade living in the Twin Cities area, for a bike to get around better. He assembled one from three old bikes. From there, her father started a bike repair business in Maple Plain. Gene and Margo were married, and when Gene returned from service in the Vietnam War they both found jobs teaching in the Le Sueur and St. Peter area. Gene worked summers at the bike shop. Years later, when Margo’s father died and his bike shop was sold, the couple brought the equipment south to Nicollet and decided to open their own shop using an outdoor shed to work and the house for storage. By that point Margo was an avid biker. Gene was not. “My motto was ‘I fix ’em, I don’t ride ’em,’” he recalls. That changed when Margo convinced him to join her on a two-mile ride just around the Nicollet area. Gene obliged, felt the pain, and decided he needed to shape up. “Two miles and I almost died,” he laughs. “I was so out of shape. That’s how I got into biking.” Margo, meanwhile, was biking between 25 and 30 miles a day. Gene eventually caught up.
From Business to Pleasure They opened the Nicollet Bike Shop in 1970 and operated it for 40 years. Throughout their ownership, they’d take occasional bike trips, “but once we were free of the bike shop, we could bike every day. And so we started to. And the first year we put on 3,500 miles.” During the last stretch of running the shop, they learned from a customer about a company that had affordable rates and good service on bike tours. They signed on for a seven-day bike tour from Slovakia to Hungary and found themselves enamored with the idea of bike tours as a way of seeing new places. The tour groups provided the bikes, food, hotels and airfare. Not inexpensive, Margo says, but worry-free.
Margo and Gene’s cycling adventures take them all over the world. Top to bottom: Amsterdam, Hungary, Dominican Republic.
They’ve since taken two more tours with the company and have biked through Austria, Germany, Switzerland and Sicily. These tours allow them the freedom to go at their own pace, all while stopping to sample local foods, breads, wines and, in Belgium, the best beer Gene ever tasted. “We get to see the dairy farms, the creameries, the glass blowers,” Margo says. “It’s not just bike from point A to point B and that’s it.” The touring company also provides turn-by-turn directions that begin at the hotel and continue through the day’s itinerary. These directions are detailed to the point of being alarming: Stop where the road becomes unpaved, one reads. Please park and lock your bike to explore on foot the park in front of you. Beware of rocks and cliffs… Since biking on roads is more commonplace in Europe than the U.S., it can be a bit dicey at first to Minnesota bikers who are accustomed to serene paths. “You’re rarely on bike paths,’ Gene says. “Most of the time it’s on a road, and the roads are the width of the Sakatah trail, and there’s traffic. Our guides, they were so used to it they didn’t think anything of it. When the first car went by us, I almost freaked out... We went to [our guide] and said what’s going on that they go by so close? He said, ‘Oh that’s no problem, we’re all bikers here. They go by us all the time.’” That experience led to a shift in attitude. “We actually prefer biking on roads now,” Gene says. “A bike trail just tends to be an old railroad bed. And there was a time when we enjoyed that tremendously.” But since that time they’ve enjoyed roads – all the different textures. “In foreign countries you can be on anything from cobblestone to gravel to highways to a regular trail,” Margo says. “When we were going to Amsterdam one of the routings was right through a cow pasture. It was mud and muck. We were thinking thank goodness we don’t have to clean these bikes tonight.” Traveling around the world has brought them a fresh appreciation for the hills of Nicollet County and others that don’t require much travel time, let alone passports. “After doing these trips and everything, we decided right here, right here in this place we live is some of the best biking around that you can think of,” Gene says. Not that they’re settling in for too long. Their 50th anniversary plans include biking in Ireland.
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“Living Safely, Aging Well” by Dorothy A. Drago, M.P.H. c. 2013, Johns Hopkins University Press $16.95 / higher in Canada 204 pages
T
he third step from the bottom squeaks when you tread on it – which is something you tried to remember when you snuck in after curfew. There’s a light switch near the door that does nothing, and never did. One of the kitchen drawers has a tendency to stick. And someone, sometime, put a strip of wallpaper on upside down. Yes, the house you grew up in has its peccadilloes but your mother loves it there and she wants to stay. In Living Safely, Aging Well by Dorothy A. Drago, M.P.H. you’ll learn how to ensure that she does. You probably don’t need to be reminded that, as we age, our bodies change. Bones get fragile, eyesight dims, hearing can fade, balance can go out of whack. These things are annoying when you’re younger but can lead to devastating injuries for an elder. But mere awareness puts you on the advantage. Says Drago, “When you anticipate the possibility of an injury, you can attempt to prevent it.” Take, for instance, falls. According to nearly all sources, falls are “the primary injury mechanism for the aging population.” But merely knowing the risk for falls won’t prevent them; you need to know why people fall. Clothing mishaps, problems with furniture, slippery floors, and other environmental reasons can be dealt with individually or with professional
help; poor balance, medications and other physical issues can be brought to the attention of a doctor. It can also be reassuring to teach someone how to get up if they tumble. But though falls may be first on your mind, there are other things to consider when making a home as safe as possible. Kitchens and bathrooms can be literal hotspots, and there are ways to minimize the risk of burns and scalds. Medication mix-ups can lead to poisoning, which can be easily monitored. The risk of choking – the “third leading cause of home injury death among those over the age of 76…” – can be minimized. And good health decisions can be made through health literacy and by asking your doctor to be an ally. You want to keep Mom or Dad independent a little longer, whether it’s in their home or yours. Either way, Living Safely, Aging Well can give you the tools to do it. We’ve all seen TV commercials about falling, and while author Dorothy A. Drago, M.P.H. has a huge chapter on that aspect of home safety, I was pleased to see a bigger picture: Drago also digs deeper and offers solutions to other issues that don’t normally come to mind. Boomers will be relieved to know that that includes the hard stuff, like giving up dangerous-butbeloved possessions and furniture, giving up a bit of autonomy, and giving up the driver’s license. Specifically because of those I-neverthought-of-that issues, I think anyone who’s over age 50 needs this book on their shelf. If you’re concerned about safety for a loved one or want to maintain independence yourself, Living Safely, Aging Well will give you the steps you need.
BOOK REVIEWS by Terri Schilichenmeyer
“Kitty Genovese: The Murder, The Bystanders, The Crime That Changed America” by Kevin Cook c. 2014, W.W. Norton $25.95 / $27.50 Canada 256 pages
Y
ou always hold doors open. That’s because your mama taught you to help others: you hold doors for stragglers, lend your ear, dispense advice, volunteer, donate, and keep an eye on your neighbor’s house. Really, it’s no big deal. You’re a good helper, but how involved do you get in other people’s matters? Read Kitty Genovese by Kevin Cook, for example, and ask yourself what you’d do if you heard a murder. By all accounts, Catherine “Kitty” Genovese was a nice girl with a great smile and a generous spirit. As the manager of a local bar near her Queens, New York neighborhood, Kitty was trustworthy, good with customers, and was known to loan money to regulars in need. She made friends easily and was an “adventurous, troubled but optimistic, hard-working, fastdriving, living, breathing person…” Until the morning of March 13, 1964. It was just after 3am that morning and Kitty was on her way home to the apartment she shared with her girlfriend, Mary Ann Zielonko. Most people thought they were just roommates and, though it wasn’t quite the truth, the women let others believe it because it was safer. In 1964, homosexuality was still illegal. She was in her beloved red Fiat and was driving fast, as she usually did. Perhaps because of the hour, Kitty didn’t notice that she was being followed. Quiet, soft-spoken Winston Moseley had done something noteworthy for a (continued on next page) Mature Lifestyles Spring 2014 19
Book Reviews
(continued from previous page)
Negro man in 1964: he’d purchased a house in an up-and-coming, mostly white neighborhood where he and his wife, Betty, were raising their boys. Between his good job and Betty’s salary, they were relatively well-off but Betty sometimes worried about Winston. He was an insomniac and liked “just thinking.” What she didn’t know was that he was “thinking” about killing. In early March 1964, Moseley committed the “particularly gruesome” murder of a black woman, then calmly went to work. He wondered if killing a white woman would be any different. Two weeks later, while driving around, looking for a victim, he spotted a little red Fiat and had a “compulsion” to find out… You might be asking yourself what’s so unusual about a fiftyyear-old crime. Author Kevin Cook will tell you as he takes you on a journey through the early 1960s and a death that literally impacts everyone in North America today. But that’s not all you’ll read in Kitty Genovese. Cook reminds us in many ways that Genovese was more than just a victim, that she was a real person who loved life. On the flipside, we meet the neighbors who supposedly ignored her cries and we’re shown the slow making of a “monster” who seems chillingly without conscience. Cook uses these parallel stories to illustrate what happened as he busts myths that still linger to this day. There are outrageous surprises in this book, some heartbreak, and passages that are grisly enough to make anyone squirm. But if you’re a true-crime fan or you love good storytelling, Kitty Genovese is a book you can’t help but devour.
And if Cook’s book piques your interest and you absolutely need to know more about this crime and the aftermath, then look for “Kitty Genovese A True Account of a Public Murder and Its Private Consequences by Catherine Pelonero. Here, Pelonero takes a deeper look at Moseley and the murders he committed prior to the attacks on Genovese. You’ll also get a few more details on the trial that followed Moseley’s arrest. It’s a nice companion to the Cook book for anyone who’s still curious. 20 Spring 2014 Mature Lifestyles
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HABIB SADAKA
Local Lender Honored by Sara Gilbert Frederick
H
abib Sadaka understands why some lenders are reluctant to work with Minnesota Housing. He knows that offering some of the agency’s products and services to low- and moderate-income home buyers requires more work. But he also knows that it’s a big benefit to the people of southern Minnesota – and to his business as well. “We see it as an opportunity to provide a service to the people who wouldn’t be able to buy a home without one of these programs,” says Sadaka, the Mankato branch manager for American Mortgage & Equity Consultants (AMEC). “So we’ve worked hard to market these programs and get the word out. And the response has been good – we’ve been able to convert many of them and get these people into houses.” The response has been so good, in fact, that Sadaka was honored by Minnesota Housing as a Top Producing Loan Officer at the Platinum Level for both the first and second half of 2013. “Minnesota Housing is pleased to have Habib as such a strong partner,” says Minnesota Housing Commissioner Mary Tingerthal. “The Mankato community is benefitting greatly from this partnership. Habib, with the support of Minnesota Housing’s low-interest mortgage products, is helping local families realize their dream of home ownership.” Sadaka started working in the mortgage industry in 2004 – right after graduating from high school. Two years later, when his mom urged him to earn a college degree, he started studying international business. But in 2008, with the economy struggling and friends failing to find jobs after graduation,
Sadaka put his college plans on hold and reestablished himself as a lender. “It wasn’t really the best time,” he admits. “There was a lot of turmoil in the housing industry then, and it was the start of a lot of new regulations for the lending industry too. I think that a lot of people were weeded out of the mortgage business at that time.” Despite the difficult circumstances, Sadaka stuck with it. And late in 2012, he decided to begin working with Minnesota Housing, which has a more than 40-year history of working with Minnesotans to provide access to safe, affordable housing. “It was a great opportunity to service the community and build my business at the same time,” he says. “We were able to get a lot of volume through the door.”
Through AMEC, Sadaka offers a full line of loans for homebuyers at every level, from USDA and VA loans to conventional products and FHA loans. “We offer all of the loans that are out there,” he explains. “But we can layer those loans with the products from Minnesota Housing, like down-payment assistance.” Sadaka, who processed more than 100 loans in 2013, is honored by the recognition from Minnesota Housing. But he hopes it brings more attention to the services he can provide than to himself. “It’s nice to get recognition,” he says. “It’s been a very humbling experience. But I think that I’m just as motivated, if not more, to help more people get into homes.”
Habib Sadaka, manager of American Mortgage & Equity Consultants (AMEC) is congratulated by Heidi Erickson from the Dept. of Minnesota Housing.
Mature Lifestyles Spring 2014 21
WHAT’S HAPPENING Hubbard House Open May 10-11, 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Hubbard House, 606 S. Broad St., Mankato (507) 345-5566, bechshh@hickorytech.net Music on the Hill – Imaginative Craftsmanship May 11, 2 p.m.-4 p.m. Good Counsel Chapel, Mankato 50+LifeStyle Expo May 13, 2 p.m.-7 p.m. Verizon Wireless Center (507) 387-8453 Third Thursday Gallery Walk May 15, 5 p.m.-7 p.m. 523 S. 2nd Street, Mankato (507) 387-1008, info@twinriverarts.org Educare Foundation Benefit May 16 Courtyard Marriott Mankato (507) 387-1868 info@educarefoundation.org 4th Annual Our Community Has Heart May 17, 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Spring Lake Park, North Mankato (507) 317-2180, info@lastingimprint.org Exclusive Lebanese Gourmet Dinner May 17, 6 p.m.-9 p.m. Massad’s Mediterranean Grille, Mankato (507) 388-6854 Hubbard House Open May 17-18, 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Hubbard House, 606 S. Broad St., Mankato (507) 345-5566, bechshh@hickorytech.net Brassworks! May 18, 3:30 p.m. Bjorling Recital Hall Gustavus Adolphus College, St. Peter marketing@gustavus.edu “The Can’t Miss Money System for Aging Parents and Adult Children” May 22, 6:30 p.m. Old Main Village Senior Living Community RSVP to Brooke at 507-345-4558 Hubbard House Open May 24-25, 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Hubbard House, 606 S. Broad St., Mankato (507) 345-5566, bechshh@hickorytech.net 10Kato Race for a Cause May 26, 8:30 a.m. Mankato Clinic on Main Street, Mankato (507) 829-6576 mankato10kato@gmail.com
Where To Go & What To Do Right Now! Rope May 27-31, 7:30 p.m. Andreas Theatre of the Earley Center for the Performing Arts Minnesota State University, Mankato (507) 389-6661 Hubbard House Open May 28-29, 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Hubbard House, 606 S. Broad St., Mankato (507) 345-5566, bechshh@hickorytech.net Mankato Zombie Run May 31, 11 a.m. Jack McGowan’s Farm, Mankato (507) 382-0452 MAD Girls – Roller Derby Bout May 31, 7 p.m.-11 p.m. Verizon Wireless Center (507) 387-8453 3rd Annual Lake Crystal Duathlon June 7, 8 a.m. Lake Crystal Recreation Center Lake Crystal (507) 726-6730 Old Town Art Fair June 7, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. The Coffee Hag, Mankato (507) 387-5533 Hubbard House Open June 7-8, 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Hubbard House, 606 S. Broad St., Mankato (507) 345-5566, bechshh@hickorytech.net Next to Normal June 11-14, 7:30 p.m. Ted Paul Theatre of the Earley Center for Performing Arts, Minnesota State Mankato (507) 389-6661 Don’t Fall Victim to Identity Theft June 12, 6:30 p.m.; Old Main Village Senior Living Community, 301 South 5th St., Mankato; RSVP to 507-388-4200 ArtTalks! June 12, 5:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m. Emy Frentz Arts Guild 523 S. 2nd St., Mankato (507) 387-1008 Outdoor Movies in the Park: “E.T.” June 13, 9 p.m. Spring Lake Park, North Mankato (507) 380-3934 Solstice Outdoor Music Festival June 14-15, 12:30 p.m.-11 p.m. Riverfront Park, Mankato (507) 388-2506
Hubbard House Open June 14-15, 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Hubbard House, 606 S. Broad St., Mankato (507) 345-5566, bechshh@hickorytech.net Third Thursday Gallery Walk June 19, 5 p.m.-7 p.m. 523 S. 2nd Street, Mankato (507) 387-1008, info@twinriverarts.org Outdoor Movies in the Park June 20, 9 p.m. Franklin Rogers Baseball Field, Mankato (507) 380-3934 ArtSplash Art Fair June 21, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. North Mankato Taylor Library (507) 345-5120 Arts by the River June 21-22, 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Riverfront Park, Mankato (507) 387-1008 Livestock: A Celebration of Giving and Music June 21, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Minnesota Square Park, St. Peter (507) 934-2390 Jazz Nite! At Morgan Creek Vineyards June 21, 6:30 p.m. Morgan Creek Vineyards (507) 947-3547 Hubbard House Open June 21-22, 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Hubbard House 606 S. Broad St., Mankato (507) 345-5566 bechshh@hickorytech.net Boeing Boeing June 24-28 , 7:30 p.m. Andreas Theatre of the Early Center for Performing Arts Minnesota State Mankato (507) 389-6661 Henderson Sauerkraut Days June 27, 9 a.m.-1 a.m. Bender Park, Henderson (952) 200-5684 Hubbard House Open June 28-29, 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Hubbard House, 606 S. Broad St., Mankato (507) 345-5566 bechshh@hickorytech.net Blooming Pretty Garden Tour June 29, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Various locations, Mankato (507) 389-5945
spring
Find more events, and more information, at greatermankatoevents.com. 22 Spring 2014 Mature Lifestyles
Ice Cream Social
& oPen hoUSe! SATURDAY, MAY 31 >>> 2-4 PM Join us and get the full scoop on the good life at Monarch Meadows!
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Mature Lifestyles Spring 2014 23
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