Montana 55 Summer 2016

summer 2016

never too old more fun vintage trailers

biking coast-to-coast

bam-beautiful fishing rods

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never too old

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enjoy the ride

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gardening

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vintage trailers

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be a part of it

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senior golf champ

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brain health

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life hacks

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coast-to-coast bike ride

bicycling

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roll in style

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bamboo fishing rods made in Montana

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Montana in World War II

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the magazine for montanans in their prime

publisher Mark Heintzelman editors Darrell Ehrlick, Kathy Best sales coordinator Jacque Walawander sales assistant Holly Kuehlwein

graphic designers Tyler Wilson Bob Jacobson

Montana 55 is a special publication of Lee Enterprises and the Missoulian. Copyright 2015.

For advertising information contact Jacque Walawander 406-523-5271, or email jacque.walawander@lee.net www.montana55.com

Summer 2016

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never too old

John Burnside, 75, completes coast-to-coast bicycle ride

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Tom Kuglin Independent Record

Retirement for many people means kicking back and relaxing, but when John Burnside sold his Meineke Car Care Center in Helena last December, he decided to spend part of his golden years bicycling across the country.

John, 75, recently completed a 2,700-mile bike ride from the Pacific to Atlantic, which took 45 days. Although many people ride coast-to-coast each year, probably few do so in their 70s, he said.

“The longest I’d ever ridden a bike (previously) was about 50 miles,” he said. “I guess I just said, ‘I’m going to do it.’”

John began riding a stationary bike in December, pushing himself to two, then three hours at a time. As he gained confidence and strength, the idea of making it from California to Florida seemed more attainable.

“I’m sure people thought I was crazy,” John said.

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montana55.com Appropriately, John and his wife Ellen documented the journey on the blog crazyguyonabike.com/ conquest2015, which received more than 16,000 hits.

With Ellen following in their RV, John set out from San Diego on March 2. His goal was to cover at least 50 miles per day. The first day he came in closer to 40 but hit his 50-mile goal every riding day after, using side roads to avoid traffic and add more scenery.

“California had the worst roads, but sometimes scenic and good roads are not the same,” he said. “I didn’t have any real close calls, but in east Texas there were a lot of logging trucks whipping by you. With the two-lane roads, sometimes there’s a good shoulder and sometimes there wasn’t.”

John did not ride Sundays, and they took time to visit family and friends along the route. They visited New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama, and he said crossing the Mississippi River and reuniting with the congregation of an LDS mission from 50 years ago were among the major highlights.

John was far from alone on the road.

“It was pretty obvious who was going cross-country loaded with panniers,” he said.

John often stopped to talk with fellow bikers, sometimes riding with them for days. At times, they’d load others’ gear and move it down the road for them.

After he’d spent 45 days on the road and the Atlantic was within reach, it started to rain.

“I hadn’t had to go in the rain, but I wanted to get to the coast,” John said. “Then I got to the edge of the pavement and hit the sand and because it’d been raining, my tires got sucked in. I just had to fall over and that was the only wreck of the whole trip.”

A trademark of cross-country riding is a pair of photos, one at the West Coast with the back tire in the Pacific, and another on the East Coast with the front tire in the Atlantic. He got those photos, and the journey was everything the Burnsides had hoped for.

“We really had a great time, Ellen and I,” he said.

“I think it’s going to be the highlight of our lives — it gave us the opportunity to be together with a goal in mind.”

John doesn’t have any immediate plans for another big ride. He wants to spend more time in Montana hunting and fishing as he reflects on the trip many thought was crazy.

“I think the idea is you’re never too old to do something,” he said. “If I can jump on a bike and go across the country, there are a lot of things people can do that they don’t think they can do.”

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Joan Baker, of Hamilton, enjoys lengthy rides on the backroads of the Bitterroot Valley.

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enjoy the ride

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DOMINIC FARRENKOPF for Montana 55

As bike trails expand throughout Montana, so too does the number of cyclists. One of the largest growing groups of those taking to the bike are riders older than 55.

Annie Creighton, of Valley Bicycles and Ski in Hamilton, said she has many clients older than 55, and that number is growing.

“Getting into cycling is actually quite easy; the equipment is affordable and pretty minimal,” Creighton said. “People need to ask themselves what kind of riding they will be doing and then select a bike based on that decision.”

Creighton explained three types of bikes.

“There are mountain bikes meant for all-dirt terrain. This bike is used for forest roads and trails where there are few or no cars. The next category is road bikes. They are intended for all pavement. They are equipped with drop handlebars or flat handlebars to suit the rider’s style and purpose. The final style is a comfort bike. This bike is used for light recreation and in-town travel,” Creighton said. “People can get help selecting a bicycle from their local bike shop. Most places will also have a bike stand that holds a bike in place while allowing you to pedal it in the shop before purchasing it. So, essentially you need a bike, a helmet, a little know-how and the willingness to get out and ride.”

Rachel Field is one of those willing riders. At 66, she is a retired school teacher who takes every opportunity to travel on two wheels.

“I have been riding all my life. I grew up in a small town in Montana and as kids we all had bikes and rode everywhere to meet friends, run errands or go on picnics. I took a break during my teaching career but after retirement I began riding again. That was 13 years ago. I will say that even if someone has not ridden since childhood, it only takes a little practice to regain your confidence and balance. Start by practicing in a school parking lot,” Field said.

Field finds that most of her cycling is in and around town, so she rides a Sedona Hybrid Comfort Bike by Giant.

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“Compared to other bikes I have had, this one feels like I am riding a Cadillac! This bike comes in three sizes to fit short, medium or tall people,” Field said. “I enjoy riding on the side streets through neighborhoods, and I especially like riding through the alleys in town. People have such interesting back yards and there is rarely any car traffic in the alleys.

On longer rides, of one or two hours, I enjoy riding the back roads, outside the city limits.”

But just getting around is only part of the benefit.

“I ride for exercise, recreation and practicality.

For recreation for sure, because it is so relaxing. I think that every time I ride I am getting some form of exercise, and just getting out in the fresh air is good for me. Practically speaking, when the weather is good I really like to do my shopping and errands on my bike.

Nothing is more than a 15- or 20-minute ride away: the post office, grocery store, pharmacy, bank or the brewpubs,” Field said. “I always feel better after I have been riding. I think it is good for my mind as well as my body. I have some of the typical aches and pains that come with age, and I find that riding my bike is very gentle on this aging body of mine.”

To accommodate the rising number of cycling seniors, both rural and urban Montana are rife with roads, streets, paths and trails that are perfect for twowheeled enthusiasts.

Lisa McKinney, director of communications at Adventure Cycling Association in Missoula, spoke about cycling opportunities for Montana seniors.

Some of these opportunities include national tours.

“Adventure Cycling Association’s mission is to inspire and empower people to travel by bicycle.

We are the largest nonprofit membership bicycling organization in North America with 50,000 members,” McKinney said.

Adventure Cycling has been running bike tours for 40 years.

“We currently have 102 tours which visit 40 different states, taking in some of the most spectacular scenery in North America, covering ground from Alaska to Hawaii, California to Maine, Canada to Puerto Rico,” McKinney said. “Many cyclists dream of traveling on a self-supported bicycle tour, but lack the experience and know-how to strike out on a bicycle adventure.

We have many educational tours and courses that teach the basics of traveling by bicycle, dirt touring, and how to be a tour leader.”

Adventure Cycling is also a great resource for maps.

“People love our maps. The Adventure Cycling Route Network is an established cycling route network with over 44,000 miles of routes throughout North America. Thousands of cyclists each year utilize these maps for their bike-touring adventures. We sell maps 10

for these routes and digital data for phones and GPS devices,” McKinney said.

At 67 years young, Joan Baker still chooses to cycle adventurously in her own way.

“I have been riding seriously for 20 years,” said Baker. “I was a runner at one time and enjoyed 5Ks, half marathons, until I began having issues with my knees. Running is a great stress reliever and cardio workout; however, it’s hard on the joints. I decided to find an alternative form of exercise. I have always been a gym member, but I need to be outside whenever I can.”

Baker’s riding preference has changed over time.

“I rode mountain bikes for 10 years and then switched to road bikes. I currently have an Allegro road bike,” Baker said. “I live in the Bitterroot Valley and, although I have access to the bike path, I find that I enjoy some of the back routes the area has to offer.

I find any excuse to ride. Riding gives me energy and I like the feeling of challenging my body. My favorite route is a back route from Victor, Montana to Hamilton, Montana. It offers good hills and flat areas to recover, with minimal traffic. The total route is approximately 25 miles. Biking offers a unique opportunity to enjoy the beauty of the Bitterroots as well as the animals, both wild and domestic. I have only been chased by one turkey since riding in this area.”

For more information on Adventure Cycling, visit: adventurecycling.org/freemag or adventureycling.org/maps

Rachel Field, of Hamilton, rides her comfort bike for both recreation and practicality.

more fun than anyone:

Montana women roll in style in vintage trailers

Carol Jo Wood, who ranches with her husband near Livingston, restored this 1959 Winnebago trailer to take on the road every summer with “Sisters on the Fly,” a vintage trailer club for women.

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Jenny Montgomery for Montana 55 Photos by Kurt Wilson, Missoulian

When she first saw it in 2011, Andria Beers’ vintage trailer was in a sorry state.

Glimpsed from the road in East Missoula, it looked promising with its post-war, aircraft-style aluminum construction. But could it be brought back to life?

As it turned out, the trailer was a rare 1946 Curtis Wright Model 2 owned by Airstreams Mintage and was awaiting its next owner. Before long, Beers sealed the deal and the Mintage team was carrying out a full restoration of the trailer, with some contemporary modifications.

“It was structurally unique,” said Kent Kraemer, who managed the project and who now owns Blue Moon Caravans in East Missoula. Kraemer said there are fewer than two dozen surviving Model 2s, and that Beers’ is one of only three that has been restored.

Beers’ trailer is unique for another reason: it was reputedly owned by Howard Hughes.

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The Sisters have a simple set of rules: “No men, no kids, be nice, have fun!” Wood has this other rule painted on the side of her trailer.

Restored with a Hollywood theme – including a movie poster from a Hughes film built into the powder blue kitchenette – the trailer had a brief fling with fame when it was featured on a reality TV pilot in 2011.

“I like to joke that my trailer is extroverted and I’m introverted,” says Beers. “It’s hard to be anonymous – I’ll stop for gas and people will try to get in it!”

Beers sees her trailer as a retreat on wheels. “It was about being able to escape, get into nature and leave technology behind.” Once she has set up camp, she enjoys cooking, lying under the stars, and reading poetry. “Jim Harrison, Rilke, Terry Tempest Williams,” she says, recalling peaceful nights in the wilderness.

Beers also enjoys the feeling of accomplishment that comes from transporting and maintaining the trailer on her own. “Some men ask, ‘Can you tow that all by yourself, honey?’ I try to be gracious about it,” Beers smiles.

Her sons, Caleb and Jude, have also enjoyed adventuring in the Curtis Wright. “They know its history and how rare it is. They like talking to people about it.” Beers, who grew up camping at horse shows

in a Winnebago with her late mother, is glad to be passing the trailer tradition on to her boys.

Sisters on the Fly

“I do have to go home and see my husband occasionally,” laughs Carol Jo Wood, who ranches with her husband near “a big bend in the river” outside Livingston. Each summer she hits the road, towing her petite, red-and-white, 1959 Winnebago trailer behind her as she heads to a series of trailer rallies around the Northwest. Wood is a member of Sisters on the Fly, a vintage trailer club for women, and revels in organized campouts with friends throughout the region.

“I live rural, so I don’t have a big social circle,” she says as she stages her trailer, arranging vintage camping gear, folding chairs, potted geraniums, and cowgirl trinkets to create an ideal tableau of outdoor fun. The original Formica counters in her kitchenette sparkle with glitter, and the golden glow of the birch interior creates a snug haven. “‘We have more fun than anyone’ – that’s our motto,” says Wood of Sisters on the Fly. Indeed, she Summer 2016

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The sitting/dining area in Wood’s trailer includes a “chandelier” and a strictly western theme.

is having the time of her life when I catch up with her at a rally in Roslyn, Washington, where she and her mother have set up camp along with over 170 other vintage trailerites. Her rig is resplendent, with its red calico “skirt” stretched across the back beneath her official Sisters on the Fly member number: #2635.

The organization, which has over 700 members in the Rocky Mountain region alone, holds vintage trailer events for women around the country. Local event hostesses plan activities such as fly fishing, kayaking, horseback riding and Dutch oven cooking to combine with trailer campouts. Strong friendships are formed. “Some gals have never done anything like this, so they join for the moral support,” Wood said. “And if anything happens with family, or with someone’s health, everyone really reaches out and supports everybody.”

The Sisters have a simple set of rules: “No men, no kids, be nice, have fun!”

It Has Meaning

Susanne Lucas, owner of Montana Spa & Boutique 14

in Kalispell, learned of Sisters on the Fly through the club’s fundraising booth at the local fairgrounds. The group was selling pink flies tied by members to raise money for Casting for Recovery, a non-profit that combines breast cancer education and support with fly fishing retreats. Sisters on the Fly has raised over $150,000 for Casting for Recovery.

“When I saw that, I thought, ‘I want to belong to this!’” says Lucas, whose maternal grandmother passed away as a result of cancer. She visited the Sisters website right away (sistersonthefly.com) and learned how to get involved.

Next, she began the hunt for the perfect trailer.

After finding her 1963 Shasta Airflyte online, Lucas and her husband drove 19 hours to pick her up. “My husband was a little annoyed with me,” she laughs, yet he soon embraced the project and restored “Rosey” in his Quonset hut alongside his vintage cars. The pretty “canned ham” trailer has since gained a personality of her own.

“It has meaning for me – it’s not just a bunch of girls going camping,” says Lucas, who now serves as

montana55.com

When parked, Woods spreads a calico “skirt” across the bottom edge of the back of her trailer to help complete her decor.

“Assistant Wrangler” for Sisters on the Fly in Montana.

“To me it represents the strength of women, and the women in my family.”

A Little Home

Following a period of illness, Kathy Verley of Superior, was ready to embrace the fun side of life. She decided to partner with her husband Ken to renovate a trailer for herself, one she calls “my little home.”

She and Ken had so much fun with the project, they have since renovated trailers for their two nieces and great niece as well.

Ken focuses on the exterior and systems while Kathy enjoys decorating interiors.

She incorporated upholstery and pillows she made from vintage chenille fabrics in their pink and white trailer. Their tow vehicle is a stunning 1955 Lincoln Capri. “Everybody wants to talk old cars with him and old trailers with me,” she laughs.

Kathy too is a member of Sisters on the Fly and enjoys caravanning with the group to trailer rallies as far away as Coeur d’Alene and Moscow, Idaho. “It’s

like one big family,” she says of her newfound crew.

“People honk when they see us coming.”

Taking Business on the Road

Sarah Calhoun of Red Ants Pants, a women’s work clothing company based in White Sulphur Springs, finds that her vintage Airstream is an asset to her business. On her regular “Tour de Pants” journeys around the U.S. and Canada, the eye-catching aluminum trailer serves as a conversation starter as well as a home on wheels. Calhoun and her team “roll in with pants and beer” and hold house parties or park in front of breweries and distilleries, showing off their wares.

Calhoun’s Airstream has also served as a dressing room backstage at the Red Ants Pants music festival she organizes.

Whether they entered the vintage trailer world seeking friendship, a business solution, or solitude, all of these Montana women have played a part in rescuing part of America’s travel heritage. Trailers dating back to the early 20th century are being lost to Summer 2016

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Wood’s sleeping area continues her cowgirl theme with the rules of the house posted above her bed. “’We have more fun than anyone’ - that’s our motto,” says Wood of Sisters on the Fly.

the scrap heap at a rapid rate, due to the expense and expertise required to restore them. In rural areas of Montana, some are simply burned.

“Rescue, restore, rally” is the motto of Vintage Camper Trailers magazine, which recognizes the important role these trailers played in automotive history. In the age before jet travel, they were an efficient way to move a family from place to place for temporary work or vacation. Trailer travelers were known as “Tin Can Tourists,” and were a common sight on mid-century Montana highways, as families took to the road in search of adventure in our National Parks and other wild areas.

“I had five brothers and we traveled from California to Montana every single year. We were packed!” recalls Lucas. “We just loved the outdoors.”

There are other options for those who shy away from restoration. Retro-style trailers have been released by Shasta as well as popular teardrop manufacturers, such as T@B. As contemporary enthusiasm for vintage trailers grows and rallies become more widespread, motorists may see more summer travelers pulling colorful canned hams and sleek aluminum beauties along Montana’s scenic highways.

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‘wherever you are, be a part of it’ senior couple finds plenty of ways to get involved

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TOM KUGLIN Independent Record

Mary Douglas and Harry Israel enjoy the retired life.

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The 80- and 81-year-old wife and husband have the time to travel, venture outdoors hiking or biking, volunteer for organizations and advocate for causes important to them.

Since one of those big interests being advocating for is public lands, western Montana is the perfect place for them. “(Ohio doesn’t) have public lands to the extent that we do here, and with so many people in Montana and here in Helena interested, it’s made both of us really interested in environmental issues,” Israel, an Ohio native, said.

After a 40-year career in dental research and practice, Israel took a job with Indian Health Services that brought him to South Dakota and Montana. It was in his dental

montana55.com office in Wolf Point that his staff played matchmaker and introduced him to Douglas, a nurse in Wolf Point.

Marrying later in life can challenge many families coming together, but Douglas says the adventure has been a lot of fun and given them reason to travel across the country visiting children. Oregon appeared a likely destination as they left Wolf Point, but the beauty of western Montana convinced them it was the place to settle.

“Part of the reason we moved to Helena is we were impressed with a big mountain in the middle of town and trails everywhere,” Douglas said. “I guess for me it’s how I grew up camping, hiking and hunting.”

As they assimilated a few years ago, it became time to get involved. They met friends through organizations such as the Montana Wilderness Association and Prickly Pear Land Trust. After a moonlight hike with Montana Discovery Foundation, Douglas and Israel now volunteer as needed, helping with open houses at area cabins or assisting with hikes and snowshoeing trips.

“Volunteering keeps us busy,” Israel said.

“Participating has always been a feature of my life I’ve always ascribed to. Wherever you are, be a part of it.

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“Lots of times it’s just going out and being a part of it, and that makes it fun,” Douglas said. “Part of it to me is the people. The people in Helena in these groups have become our friends. They watch over you and they make it fun to volunteer.”

Israel says he enjoys the progressive attitudes of many Helenans and, along with volunteering in the environment, often the couple advocates for the environment. Among their interests is opposing privatizing or transferring federal land to state control, and that means promoting the Democratic agenda during the legislative session, he said.

“We meet a lot of people with the hikes and enjoy participating in that, but we’ve also spent a fair amount of time on the Capitol lawn advocating,” Israel said.

Douglas says she is often the political instigator.

“I hate getting on the phone and calling people, but somehow in my old age I’ve gone back to the way I was when I was young,” she said. “I’m always carrying some banner and trying to make things happen the way I think they should be.”

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bam-beautiful:

handcrafted fishing rods from Montana

Ron Bone sands down the cork on a fly rod handle recently in his home workshop on the banks of the Missouri River. “These are a lot different than Grandpa’s rod hanging on the wall,” Bone says of the rods he makes under the name ‘Barber Creek Rodsmithes.’

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TOM KUGLIN Independent Record Photos by THOM BRIDGE, Independent Record

On the banks of the Missouri River, the stacks of bamboo piled high in Ron Bone’s workshop almost seem out of place surrounded by pine-dominated cliffs.

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Bone reached for one of the stalks of hollow grass that traveled thousands of miles from Asia to Montana. With the butt end on the floor, he positioned a hida splitting tool, loosely resembling an apple slicer, and slammed the ensemble down against the concrete, splintering the bamboo into even sections.

Illuminated as they hang neatly against the wall is what the bamboo will become -- a line of hand-crafted fly rods beckoning the roots of a sport now dominated by graphite and mass production.

“These are a lot different than Grandpa’s rod hanging on the wall,” Bone said.

montana55.com

Bone puts the contour of a hand into a cork fly rod for a client.

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Rone Bone demonstrates the strength of one of his rod tips.

Bone, 72, spent more than four decades as a barber in Helena while also splitting time teaching rod building and guiding anglers. He began building rods from prefabricated blanks in the late 1970s, customizing them with wraps and components to make each production unique.

“It became whether I should own a fly shop or cut hair,” he said. “One day I decided I didn’t want to turn the thing I loved into a job.”

Now retired to his home on the Missouri, it was six years ago that Bone began building bamboo rods from scratch, learning the craft from renowned Belgrade rodsmith Tom Morgan.

“This is making rods,” Bone said.

Fly rods were once all made from bamboo. As the industry advanced, materials such as fiberglass, steel and now graphite became the manufacturers’ choice. But a few companies and builders have started offering bamboo once again as a natural alternative and reminder of history.

There are more than 1,000 types of bamboo, but it is Arundinaria amabilis that rodsmiths covet for building rods, Bone said.

A corner of the shop is dedicated to building, a laborintensive and meticulous process that takes about a 22

year to produce a single rod, although Bone builds about a half dozen every year. Rods in various stages of construction are scattered above the workbench.

Bone uses a mix of hand and power tools with a few customized attachments, some of which Bone built himself, to sand and plane each piece into its desired triangular shape and size. Triangles allow each strip to combine into a full circle as they begin to resemble a rod for the first time. Soaked in water for two days and bound with string, the section is then tempered in an oven.

The rods must meet precise measurements and moisture levels at each step in the process. It takes a day for gluing and Bone hollows the rod before he begins to apply the varnish that adds the telltale shine and protection. Each rod is adorned with its namesake “Barber Creek Rodsmiths” along with a single jungle cock feather.

(top right Using a hida splitting tool, Bone splits the bamboo shoot into smaller, even size pieces. (bottom right)Bone shows off the hand-lathed handle of a completed rod.

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Completed rods built by Ron Bone, in his home workshop.

But even varnishing is not as simple as painting it on. Bone devised a machine to dip each section in a varnish-filled pipe, extracting it over 45 minutes to maintain a consistent finish. Each butt section is dipped four times and the tips receive three dips.

As the rod nears completion, Bone sands expensive cork into a comfortable rod grip along with a reel seat marbled in grained wood. He hand-wraps each line guide which then receive its own coat of varnish.

“It all takes time,” he said. “You have to have a knack for building something like that because it’s a different kind of animal. You have to be interested and you have to be meticulous.”

(top left) Using a guide he built himself, Bone planes down a piece of bamboo two-thousandths of an inch at a time. (bottom left) Bone wraps the bamboo pieces together with twine throughout the manufacturing process.

Bone sells a few rods but says he is not interested in making the craft into a business. He likes to donate a rod to Montana Trout Unlimited to be auctioned off for the annual Pat Barnes Chapter Banquet.

Fishing with bamboo is a unique experience compared to more forgiving graphite.

“You have to know how to cast, and if you don’t, bamboo will teach you how to cast,” Bone said. “And you’d look at them and think they’re fragile but they’re actually stronger than graphite.”

Bone says he has not had a graphite rod in his boat for years and he frequently gets inquiries from other anglers about fishing bamboo and also the custom drift boat he and a friend built from the ground up. He was one of the first to have a drift boat on the Missouri decades ago, enjoying it as his place of solitude, and still frequently floats and fishes.

As the river has become increasingly crowded each year, Bone has changed his view.

“My shop has become my place of solitude,” he said.

Summer 2016

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bombs away:

Montanans still looking for Japanese ‘fire balloons’

Photo by Louise Johns

Steve Van Antwerp thought the item he’s holding in his hands, found near Bozeman, might be a Japanese fire balloon bomb, launched during World War II. Instead it proved to be merely a practice bomb, sometimes equipped with a smoke cartridge. But the find shows that people remain interested in the Fu-Go “fire balloon” campaign launched by the Japanese against North America.

With good reason: a balloon expert believes they’re still out there and some may be still dangerous.

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When they found it south of Bozeman on Sourdough Creek, Steve Van Antwerp and his significant other, Mary Ackerman, thought it was a bomb – maybe one of those Japanese-launched “fire balloon” bombs from World War II that terrorized people in the western United States and Canada.

For Van Antwerp and Ackerman, it turned out to be a false alarm.

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Hayes Otoupalik of Hayes Otoupalik Militaria in Missoula diagnosed it in a moment: a practice bomb, equipped with a smoke cartridge when it was in use. Made by the U.S., it was far smaller than the array of terror-causing devices the Japanese attached to high-altitude balloons and let loose against the U.S. and Canada during World War II. But it’s no surprise at all that Bozeman-area residents should consider the possibility that some of those so-called “fire balloons” or Fu-Go bombs might have come to rest in Bozeman

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They wanted to light the forests on fire and create panic in North America.

They were targeted for the West Coast with their technology.

and might still be found. After all, 35 of them did come down in Montana, more than in any state or province except British Columbia, Oregon and Alaska.

One of the devices already was found in Bozeman back in March 1978.

Long-range mayhem

They were no joke, says Otoupalik. They were attached to balloons calculated to travel with the jet stream over the Pacific and drop their weapons loads on North American forests and farmland. Ingenious technology dropped sand if the balloon dropped too low or released hydrogen if the balloon went too high.

“It was a big bomb that went on it. And then it had incendiaries packed around it and sand for ballast,” said Otoupalik, an expert on weaponry of the times.

“The Japanese mailed off thousands of those to the North American coast. They launched them out of north Japan. It was a terror weapon.”

It was also, for a long while after World War II, the weapon that helped the Japanese carry out the longest ranged military attack in history – but definitely not the most successful.

“They were set so that they would fly as far as where the forests are,” says Arley Fadness of Custer, South Dakota, who has studied the topic in writing about the

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history of ballooning. “They wanted to light the forests on fire and create panic in North America. They were targeted for the West Coast with their technology.”

That’s why relatively few of the devices made it east of the mountains, he said.

Where the bombs were

This assembly was recovered in South Dakota from a Japanese fire balloon that came to earth there and remained partly intact.

(Courtesy South Dakota State Historical Society) 28

Bert Webber tabulated in his 1984 book, “Silent Siege: Japanese Attacks Against North America in World War II” where the devices had been found in North America.

More than 9,000 such bombs were launched in all and the Japanese expected that about 10 percent of them would reach North America. The attacks began in November 1944 and ended in April 1945.

The first to be found, according to writer Mark Matthews, who touched on the topic in his book, “Smoke Jumping on the Western Fire Line,” was one encountered by two men cutting firewood near Kalispell, Montana, on Dec. 11, 1944.

“Newspapers reported the balloon discovered near Kalispell, but the government, not wanting to let the Japanese know whether their balloon armada had been successful, ordered strict censorship thereafter,” Matthews wrote.

Consequently, the Japanese didn’t know whether the campaign was hurting the Americans; but to a degree, it was.

A pastor’s wife in Oregon, age 26, and five children on a church picnic, ages 11 to 14, were killed near Bly, Oregon, when they approached one of the balloons in May 1945.

It was the only such incident, though more than 300 of the devices were found.

Here’s where the bombs came down, according to Webber: Alaska, 37; Alberta, 20; Arizona, 2; British Columbia, 57; California, 25; Colorado, 3; Hawaii, 1; Idaho, 12; Iowa, 3; Kansas, 1; Manitoba, 6; Mexico, 3; Michigan, 2; Montana, 35; Nebraska, 5; Nevada, 7; North Dakota, 2; Northwest Territories, 4; Oregon, 45; Saskatchewan, 9; South Dakota, 9; Texas, 3; Utah, 5; Washington, 28; Wyoming, 11; Yukon Territory, 6.

In addition, 4 came down in the north Pacific Ocean.

Matthews’ book reveals another connection to Montana: In summer 1945, the War Department recruited members of the Civilian Public Service – an organization made up in large part of conscientious objectors who sought alternatives to serving in the armed forces – to serve on a top secret project called Operation Firefly. They were to fight fires in case the Japanese effort to bomb the western United States was successful.

The 555th Parachute Battalion, an all-black unit, was trained for that mission at Pendleton, Oregon, but some of the trainers were from Missoula, where the

montana55.com country’s first experimental smoke-jumper program began in 1939.

The Japanese bombing campaign wasn’t successful, as it turned out. The 555th Parachute Battalion did indeed fight 28 fires in 1945, Matthews notes, but none of them were attributed to the Japanese campaign.

Rather, it was the usual foe on the fireline – Mother Nature – from that day to this. But the memory of the Japanese terror campaign of World War II still lingers in the mountains of Montana – and well it should.

Fadness said that if U.S. and Japanese experts agreed that about 10 percent of the 9,000 weapons launched made it to the U.S., then 900 might have reached North America, and only something over 300 have been found. That’s roughly a third of what experts thought might have arrived on these shores.

And the rest? Fadness expects a few of them might still turn up in the wilderness of places such as Montana, Oregon and British Columbia where they were found in such numbers early on.

“They’re out there. I would bet on that,” said Fadness. “And some of them are still dangerous. That would be my guess, knowing a little bit about the ballooning scene.”

This image shows what a Japanese fire balloon looked like in the sky. (right)

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hidden gems:

Aaron Parrett’s Territorial Press

Aaron Parrett is the owner of the Territorial Press of Montana, which specializes in “existential letterpress printing, utilitarian bookbinding, and anything arranged, “ said Parrett.

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Brian D’Ambrosio for Montana 55 Photos by Gary Pemble

Printing was sustainable before ‘sustainability’ became a buzzword.

Before the age of offset printing, ‘handmade’ was not only customary in the industry – it was the only way of life.

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Letterpress artist Aaron Parrett is tracking the painstaking path of J. Allen Hosmer, who wrote and printed “A Trip to the States in 1865.” Hosmer, a teenager at the time, was the first Montanan to write a book, print it with handset type, letter by letter, and then bind it manually.

(Letterpress is printing from a hard, raised image under pressure, using thick ink.)

“Hosmer was the only and the first person to be crazy enough to do it,” said Parrett, positioning lead letters into an iron “type stick” that he will use to make a “form” that he fixes in place on the press.

“He created a 92 page book and he did it one page at a time, and he made maybe four dozen copies, total. There are still 12 of those in existence. There is an inherent worth – you can’t get one of the copies for less than $28,000 – because he went to all of the labor to do it. That is part of the charm of it.”

Parrett’s letterpress studio at 201 1/2 N. Rodney St., in Helena, is boosted by a C&P platen linotype press built in 1920 that he picked up in Black Eagle. Rarely used today, Linotype is a

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The terms “upper case” and “lower case” originated from the layout of the drawers known as type cases. Type cases were used to hold the movable type for letterpress printing.

composing machine that casts an entire line of type in one bar of lead.

Selecting from a case full of non-alphabetized letters, Parrett in chorus illustrates and describes the process.

“The terms ‘lower case’ and ‘upper case’ originated from the regular layouts of the drawers called type cases used to hold the movable type for letterpress printing. The little letters could be located in the lower case.”

On the table, he places a “form” inside “furniture” (small wooden pieces), supports it with a “reglet” (spacing material) and uses “coins,” or locking devices, to tighten. Similar to presses used in winemaking, the form needs to be tightened by the printmaker. Then the form is inked, a sheet of paper is placed on top of it and the paper is pressed onto the form, transferring the ink to the paper. The speed and movement are operated by Parrett bearing down on a foot treadle.

“Ben Franklin did everything the same exact way,” said Parrett, who teaches Latin at Carroll College and is a tenured English professor at the University of Great Falls.

“It’s laborious to pull an impression. You go back and forth. And every impression, well, it probably took

Franklin two to three minutes to pull and hand ink it. Until about 1850, printing was done the same way that it had been done when (Johannes) Guttenberg did it. Offset printing all but supplanted Linotype by the mid-1970s.”

The walls of the slim, narrow building are lined with metal and wood type cabinets designed to hold the different typefaces of blocky letters and numerals.

One of Parrett’s cherished cases traveled by steamboat to Fort Benton in 1870. Every piece of typeface has a foundry mark indicating when the type was made; many of them are archaic or incomplete.

Indeed, Parrett said that everything about letterpressing is steeped in antiquity and that’s a big part of what intrigues him. The concept of durability is another.

“The odds that you’ve read a sown-bound book are pretty slim,” said Parrett. “Most books these days are made with perfect binding, slapped together, and are designed to be obsolete. Three or four readings of a hardcover book and it will fall apart and you just send it to Goodwill. The opposite of that is that there are 300 copies of Guttenberg’s first bible around. That’s a different approach to the presentation of text.”

Parrett, born in Butte, raised in Helena, said that Summer 2016

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Letterpress printing produces an image by repeated direct impression of an inked, raised surface against sheets or a steady roll of paper. Parrett applies ink before rolling and imprinting a set of elegant invitations.

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(Opposite) Top left: The type case used by Parrett’s Territorial Press.

Top right: The letterpress machine which Parrett employs to conduct the same functions and duties that would have been familiar to Benjamin Franklin.

Bottom: Letterpress produces work of firstrate quality, but it requires ample time to adjust the press for varying thicknesses of type, engravings, and plates.

a number of his earliest childhood memories are wrapped in images of bookbinding and book artistry.

“I used to take these Big Little Books and they were kid-sized, an inch thick, I was probably in the fourth grade. I stacked the paper up and I remember putting it into a paper cutter. No glue. I taped it and filled that with my own Big Little Books. I’ve always had that in the back of my mind. I get flashes of it when I do this.”

While Parrett describes the Territorial Press as more of a pursuit of passion than a deliberate commercial enterprise, he finds himself accepting orders to hand-press everything from business cards to art opening announcements. Still, his primary goal is to relish in his hobby and complete his own 32 page book, as a deferential nod to Hosmer.

“I am still amazed by a functional book like Hosmer’s,” said Parrett. “I mean, he wrote the book at age 15 and these beautiful impressions were a part of the page at a time. It’s funny, but at the end of his book, he apologized, and he said he was sorry because he ran out of type.

“He said something like fussy readers will note that I used a comma where I should’ve a period and will note I only had one capital W. That is charming. He was not a bad writer or typographer. He was doing the best that he could with what he had.”

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how does your garden grow?

Pat Bleecker, a caregiver to living and growing things, tends a raised flower bed at her Hamilton home.

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“All the names I know from nurse: Gardener’s garters, Shepherd’s purse, Bachelor’s buttons, Lady’s smock, And the Lady Hollyhock.”

DOMINIC FARRENKOPF for Montana 55

This opening stanza of Robert Louis Stevenson’s poem, “The Flowers,” speaks to the heart of flower gardeners as they lovingly care for their plants. They know them all by name – have for years.

Margie Cook, of Cooks’ Gardens, The Greenhouse, in Hamilton, said many seniors enjoy and excel at flower gardening.

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When I am among beautiful blooming flowers, wherever they may be, they bring me a special kind of joy that is quiet, deep, peaceful and calming all at the same time.

For more than 20 years now, Cook has co-owned the greenhouse business with her sister, Charlene Riggle.

“I’ve been growing flowers from seeds on up and making recommendations for local gardeners with their containers and beds,” Cook said.

According to Cook, you don’t need much space.

“One pot on a patio works, or a hook for a hanging basket to enjoy all summer. From small spaces to large landscapes, there’s no limit. A single geranium can be all it takes to fill a blank space. For a bigger statement, and if there’s room, consider planting a few perennials along with some hard-blooming annuals. This will supply non-stop color all summer long,” Cook said.

Pat Bleecker works at growing a piece of paradise in her backyard. Bleecker describes herself as “gliding through her eighth decade” and a caregiver to living and growing things.

“Rarely can I bear to toss out any kind of plant life if there is the slightest chance it might recover and thrive,” Bleecker said.

Bleecker spent much of her childhood under the care of her grandmother who taught her to love and respect all living things.

“I still remember toddler days in my grandmother’s garden. Many times I would wake early and head for the backyard, simply bursting with eagerness to see what had popped through that black earth in the night. I was never scolded, but gently encouraged to get dressed properly before going out. That same eagerness is with me to this day and I cherish this special gift which was given to me as a child,” Bleecker said.

Bleecker’s eagerness persists to this day, and she has honed her flower-gardening skills through trial and error and informal instructions from outstanding gardeners she’s met along the way.

“When I am among beautiful blooming flowers, wherever they may be, they bring me a special kind of joy that is quiet, deep, peaceful and calming all at the same time,” Bleecker said. “The benefits of growing flowers are countless. Growing flowers can be therapeutic. Harmony with nature provides respite from our all too hectic world. Nurturing plants into blooming beauties gives us a sense of accomplishment, a reason to spend time outdoors and unplug from technology and, during the winter months, it’s great to be an armchair gardener, planning next season’s collage.”

Summer 2016

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Tony Lubke, of Hamilton, uses his garden greenhouse to grow vegetables.

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Akin to growing flowers, vegetable gardening also provides Montana seniors a fulfilling experience.

Samantha O’Byrne, director of The O’Hara Commons & Sustainability Center in Hamilton, has been gardening since she was 21. She has been in the gardening industry for 17 years.

“I have worked in the greenhouse and garden seed industry, owned a retail garden shop and most recently I have been working with The O’Hara Commons, a non-profit community center with the mission of empowering a resilient community through education, demonstration gardens and shared resources,” O’Byrne said.

Not much room is needed to begin growing vegetables, either.

“As little as one container on the front porch is adequate. I always recommend that new gardeners start small and grow the size of their garden with experience,” O’Byrne said. “The tools that people need to get started growing vegetables are: Soil, sunlight, water, air, seeds (or starts) and a sturdy garden trowel, and maybe a pair of gardening gloves, but mine always end up by the wayside.”

O’Byrne recommends starting with plants that you know your household uses and enjoys as a fresh harvest.

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“Great plants for new gardeners include bush beans, bush zucchini, cherry tomatoes and bush cucumbers.

These are plants that can be grown in containers or directly in the soil. Mostly, they are plants that you can grow from starts, available at local nurseries or farmer markets, and the early season varieties will begin to produce within 45 to 50 days,” O’Byrne said.

Tony Lubke is a vegetable gardener who grows what his household uses. Lubke, 58, lives in Hamilton and works for the Forest Service in Fire Dispatch.

Lubke has been gardening for 32 years now.

“My mom and dad had a garden and I liked being able to eat fresh from the garden,” Lubke said.

Lubke, too, has gained much of his gardening skills through trial and error and talking with other gardeners about successes they have had gardening in his area.

Lubke’s gardening hobby mostly benefits his family.

“I do share with neighbors and friends, and I have started selling a few plants out of my greenhouse these last two years,” Lubke said.

“Artichokes are my favorite thing to grow and weeds are my least favorite,” Lubke said. “My neighbor wanted me to plant artichokes because I had gotten a greenhouse. My neighbor only took a few of the plants after I got them started, so I grew the extra ones. I

Or email your name and address to: niche@lee.net covered them that winter and three plants survived.

I got about nine artichokes. After the second year I got about 20 artichokes. We like to cook them in the steamer and dip them in mayonnaise. I’ve also made really good Alfredo chicken artichoke pizza. For me, the best part about gardening is being outside and having success making a fresh meal in my kitchen. I grow healthy food and it is very relaxing to be in my greenhouse. I can’t wait to retire so I have more time to garden. I also plan to get a bigger greenhouse.”

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Stacey looks to repeat as seniors champ in Bozeman in August

I

GREG RACHAC for Montana 55

It was May 17, Cal Stacey’s birthday. The Billings golfer, a renowned player on the Montana State Senior Golf Association stage, didn’t have much time to celebrate.

There’s only one place he wanted to be on that picturesque day — stalking the vast grounds at his home course at Yellowstone Country Club. Instead, Stacey was stuck pushing papers at his law firm.

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With litigation looming, it will be a busy summer for the trial attorneys at Stacey & Funyak. For the 63-year-old, it will be extra-busy as he tries to build his prestigious amateur golfing résumé.

“A few guys have called me asking to play but I’ve had to turn them down, and that’s hard to do,” Stacey said. “I’ve got a lot of work piled up. It’s no way to celebrate your birthday, but that’s alright.”

“At this age,” he chuckled, “it doesn’t really matter.”

Stacey was once mentioned in a Sports Illustrated article chronicling Montana golfers where it mentioned how he’d asked a judge for a continuance in a lawsuit “due to the press of business.”

The next day, a picture of Stacey playing golf appeared in the newspaper.

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Photo by James Woodcock/Gazette Staff

Billings golfer Cal Stacey practices at Yellowstone Country Club. Stacey will be competing in the U.S. Senior Amateur.

Summer 2016

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thinkstock

“I take it too serious. Way too serious,” Stacey said.

“I try to tell myself not to take it serious, but it’s like any competition if you play sports.”

Just prior to his birthday, Stacey, a father of six, had returned to Billings from South Bend, Ind., where he watched his daughter Morgan graduate from law school at the University of Notre Dame. He drove the 1,300mile trip, which may have contributed to his cabin fever.

Soon after that, Stacey was on a plane to watch his son Austin receive his undergraduate degree from the University of San Diego.

There wasn’t time for chips and putts, much less the driving range. Still, Stacey’s eyes are fixed on the upcoming Montana State Seniors tournament, which will be played Aug. 2-4 in Bozeman. Stacey is the defending champion, having won his second seniors crown last summer in Butte.

That victory was the latest in a line of amateur victories Stacey has accumulated during the years, which includes four Yellowstone Country Club crowns and a handful of County Am titles. He won his first seniors championship in 2012, though he originally hadn’t planned to play because he “didn’t want to buy into the idea of being a senior.”

This year’s seniors tournament, which Stacey hopes to win for the third time, will rotate between three Bozeman courses — Riverside Country Club, Valley View Country Club and the Bridger Creek Golf Course.

Bill Sprinkle, the MSSGA’s executive director, said he expects roughly 330 golfers age 55 and older to compete.

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Stacey is one of a few who have a legitimate shot of winning, but that doesn’t keep a vast number of players from entering. Stacey compared it to the way the Montana State Amateur was set up years ago.

“I would say this: That tournament, from what I’ve seen, it has a large field, and not all of them have any chance of winning, nor do they expect to,” said Stacey, who counts Bozeman’s Ron Garland among the favorites to win the tournament this year. “They have buddies and friends and family, they bring their wives, they party and they have a great time. It’s a social event.

And then of course there are some that are trying to win the tournament that might be a little more serious, like myself.

“But everybody has a great time, an absolute great time. They party pretty hard still, which is good.”

••• Stacey’s golfing life began when he was about nine years old, when his father Bob started letting him tag along to swing the clubs with him and his friends at Lake Hills in Billings. Stacey points to it as a time when he fell in love with the game.

As an adolescent, Stacey would travel with his father to various tournaments around Montana, notably the State Am. It was around this time that Stacey became acquainted with Paul Allen, the longtime pro at Yellowstone and a local golfing patriarch.

Stacey counts his father and Allen as his greatest influences.

“Paul Allen was the first head pro here, and the pro

montana55.com here for 50 years,” Stacey said. “As a kid growing up, and as a young adult, a middle-aged adult and as an older adult, he was a significant influence both on the golf course and off the golf course.

“Golfers come and go. There are great players. You could be good for two or three years and then not be able to make a putt and you’re gone. There’s more to it than just the talent and the scores.”

Stacey tied YCC’s then-course record (63) in front of Allen a number of years back, which Stacey counts as one of his crowning moments.

Stacey’s father passed away about six year ago at the age of 84. “He loved the game,” Stacey said. “Even up to the end he was working on his swing, trying to find the secret.”

Allen passed away a couple years later at 82. Stacey’s mother, Betty, died in the early 1990s at the age of 64 from stomach cancer. Among Stacey’s greatest memories is the time he clinched the County Am in Laurel with his mother in attendance.

“She and my dad came out and followed me around the course,” Stacey recalled. “I remember hitting to their No. 18 at Laurel, I knocked it up there in two and lipped out for eagle and won the tournament with that shot. And she was there to witness that.”

After graduating from Billings Senior High School in 1971, Stacey attended the University of Oregon and played on the golf team. One of his teammates was Peter Jacobson, who went on to a fine career on the PGA Tour. Jacobson proved an example to Stacey of what it would take to compete on the national stage.

If Stacey had any professional aspirations, he stashed them away — partly due to Jacobson’s example and partly due to his desire to attend law school. Stacey said he didn’t play much while studying law at the University of Montana, but by the time he returned to Billings to begin his career as an attorney in the late 1970s, the game was back on his radar. And he didn’t miss much of a beat.

Stacey’s days of winning club championships or state amateurs are behind him, but his status as a contender on the Montana senior circuit is not debated. Stacey chalks it up to his determination and focus.

“I’m not at the point of just going out and drinking beer for 18 holes,” Stacey said. “It’s still you against the golf course. No matter what level you are, you know you can play better and you know you can get better.

That’s the mystery of the game of golf. It entices you into thinking you’ve got it, and then it squashes you.”

••• It took Stacey time to accept his increasing age and the limitations that accompany it on the golf course.

Stubbornly, he avoided playing in senior events even though he became eligible when he turned 55. But he has since accepted — and embraced — the changes.

“Mentally, you think you can play as good as you used to,” said Stacey, who admitted to having a slight back injury during the spring. “Your mind sees things and you know what you can do and have done, and it’s a little disappointing when you can’t do it like you used to.

Mentally, that’s the deal. Physically, obviously, as you grow older things change. Your swing gets shorter, guys get fatter, and you’re not in the same shape. But you can still play very well.

“I don’t feel as strong and as healthy as I used to. The age … there’s nothing good about growing old from a health standpoint that I can determine. You don’t feel the same, you don’t feel as strong, and that’s just the way it is. But in golf you can sometimes get away with that.”

That might be the inherent challenge of senior golf. How do you manage your game with the growing realities of the passing years?

Stacey hopes he can continue to succeed on the senior stage for many more years, starting with the tournament in Bozeman at the beginning of August.

Stacey said he plans to be more prepared than he was before last year’s tournament in Butte, when he triplebogeyed on his first hole at Fairmont but still went on to win. Work requirements might get in the way — he’ll never be able to completely escape — but Stacey hopes to make another mark in the game that’s defined him for decades.

“Golf has meant everything to me through the years,” he said. “It’s a very unique game, unlike any other sport I’ve ever played. This game teaches you a lot of valuable lessons that you take through life. As a consequence you learn as a young man how to treat people and how to deal with people.

“It’s a game of honesty, of high integrity. Those who don’t have high integrity never excel in it. The ones that you see playing, they are fine people. Women or men.

They’re the ones that are polite, refer to people as ‘Sir’ or ‘Ma’am.’ There are very few exceptions. It’s been an incredible advantage to me to have played the game.”

The Riverside Country Club in Bozeman.

Summer 2016

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working out means keeping your brain healthy a how-to plan to defeat dementia by keeping your brain pumped up!

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Brace Hayden for Montana 55

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According the recent U.S. Census, the population older than 65 is predicted to double during the next 25 years, growing to 70 million by 2030.

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Along with the swell of the senior tsunami, the prevalence of Alzheimer’s and other cognitive diseases is estimated to increase by as much as 70 percent with more than 7 million people affected in the next 10 to 15 years.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia. This disease results in widespread loss of memory, language and thinking skills as the brain’s nerve network gets clogged and tangled by attacking plaques. Research shows this process starts upwards of 30 to 50 years before the hallmark signs and symptoms arise such as struggling with word choice, losing your keys, or getting lost on your drive home. It affects one in every eight Americans older than 65 and 50 percent of the elderly more than 85. Epidemiologists predict that Montanans can expect an 81 percent increase in our afflicted residents totaling 29,000 by 2025.

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Summer 2016

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montana55.com Since there is no cure on the horizon, our best defenses are early detection, direct intervention and prevention. The good news is progressive loss of intellectual function is not a normal part of the aging process. We can modify our lifestyle to prevent or dramatically reduce our risk of dementia. By actively reducing high blood pressure, high cholesterol and sedentary behaviors in the middle years, it can boost brain health in the senior years. Recent studies in Lancet Neurology Journal found that what is good for your cardiovascular system is good for your cognitive health.

If cardiovascular exercise could be put in a pill, it would be the safest and most cost-effective medication to fight this deadly brain disease. Obesity, Type 2 diabetes (which roughly doubles your risk), depression, and sedentary lifestyle choices and inactivity are some of the biggest risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. Reducing these risk factors in our population by 25 percent could prevent up to half-million future cases of the disease in the United States.

Why does 45 to 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobic exercise five to seven days per week dramatically reduce the risks of developing dementia?

Getting out for a power walk, dancing, a circuit training class, or swimming will help the brain get

sufficient oxygen to keep building its nerve networks.

If our brain is deprived of life-sustaining oxygen with the above mentioned risky lifestyle behaviors, it wastes away like a fish out of water. A large quality study on the elderly in Finland found that seniors with higher weekly exercise levels could reduce their dementia risk by 30 to 40 percent compared with the low or sedentary activity level group. This study also found that physically active people tend to maintain better cognition and memory than the inactive group, and they also had substantially lower rates of different forms of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.

Plenty of rationale exists to increase your daily cardiovascular exercise, but exercising presents many challenges for people. If exercising is uncomfortable due to joint pain or you are uncertain about the appropriate steps to take build a home or gym program, schedule an appointment with a physical therapist. PTs are specialists in movement assessment and can help develop a custom exercise program for your level of fitness and limitations.

Brace Hayden, DPT, OCS, CSCS is a physical therapist that specializes in improving functional mobility, balance and vestibular therapy at Alpine Physical Therapy in Missoula.

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The truth about Alzheimer’s: early detection makes a difference

(BPT) - It’s the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States, affects more than 5 million Americans and one out of every three seniors will die from it. Yet misconceptions surround Alzheimer’s disease.

Contrary to what many people think about Alzheimer’s, it’s not a normal part of growing older. And while there’s not yet a way to prevent, cure or even slow the progression of the disease, people with Alzheimer’s can benefit from detecting it early. During June - Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month - the Alzheimer’s Association is encouraging everyone to learn the truth about Alzheimer’s disease.

“Misunderstanding crucial facts about the disease can have consequences that can lead to stigma, delayed medical attention and inadequate support for caregivers,” says Ruth Drew, director of family and information services, Alzheimer’s Association. “Greater understanding of Alzheimer’s is urgently needed given the dramatic impact of the disease. It devastates too many families for it to remain a mystery. We need everyone to know the truth about Alzheimer’s so we can bridge current gaps and build greater support toward advancing treatments and finding a cure.”

Debunking common myths Alzheimer’s is most often associated with memory loss, but the truth is the disease can appear through a variety of signs and symptoms. A progressive and fatal disease, Alzheimer’s attacks the brain, killing nerve cells and brain 46

(BPT)

tissue, which affects a person’s ability to remember, think and plan.

While the majority of people who have Alzheimer’s are seniors, it can also affect people in their 30s, 40s and 50s a form of the disease known as younger-onset Alzheimer’s.

About 5 percent of people with the disease have youngeronset Alzheimer’s. Everyone is, technically, at risk of developing Alzheimer’s, but certain groups have elevated risks; African-Americans are twice as likely as whites and Hispanics one and a half times as likely to develop Alzheimer’s. Nearly two-thirds of all people who have Alzheimer’s are women.

Empowering information Every 66 seconds, someone in the U.S. develops Alzheimer’s, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.

Detecting the disease early may help the person with Alzheimer’s, caregivers and loved ones in multiple ways.

People who receive an early diagnosis may have more time to explore treatments that could help relieve some symptoms, and help them stay independent longer.

They may be able to participate in a clinical drug trial to help advance Alzheimer’s research. Resources such as Alzheimer’s Association TrialMatch can help you find current studies.

Detecting Alzheimer’s early can also give people with the disease, their caregivers and loved ones more time to plan for the future. If you are diagnosed in the early stages of the disease, you may be able to participate in decisions

montana55.com about your care, living arrangements, and financial and legal matters.

Only a doctor can accurately diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, but the Alzheimer’s Association has developed 10 warning signs and symptoms that may help you decide it’s time to consult a physician, including: * Memory loss that disrupts daily life. * Challenges in planning and solving problems. * Difficulty completing familiar tasks.

* Changes in mood or personality.

“If a person is having trouble doing something that they routinely did for years or they demonstrate a significant shift in personality that lasts over time - those are warning signs that need to be explored,” Drew says. “Too often people dismiss these changes as stress or having too much to do, but when they persist over time, it’s best to get it checked out. Ignoring the situation is the worst way of handling it.”

To learn more about Alzheimer’s disease and to find resources for caregivers, families and people living with the disease, visit www.alz.org, the website of the Alzheimer’s Association.

* Confusion over time or place.

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* Trouble understanding visual images or spatial relationships. * New problems with spoken or written words. * Misplacing things and not being able to find them by retracing your movements. * Decreased or poor judgment. * Withdrawal from others at work or in social situations.

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If you have difficulty understanding words clearly over the phone, just fill out this form!

You may qualify for free assistive telephone equipment through the

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The Montana Telecommunications Access Program (MTAP) provides FREE assistive telephone equipment to those who qualify, making it easier to use the phone to do business or keep in touch with family and friends.

Equipment available through MTAP includes: • Amplified telephones • Captioned telephones • Loud bell ringers TTYs • Artificial Larynxes • And much, much more!

Yes, I want to learn more about MTAP! Return form to: MTAP P. O. Box 4210, Helena, MT 59604 Name: Address: City:

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Each day to the fullest.

The secret to happiness as we age is to stay as mentally, physically and socially engaged as possible. To feel a sense of purpose. And to be surrounded by those who truly care. Helping residents live each day to the fullest is our mission at Highgate. We offer a host of activities, nutritious and delicious meals, and full care for all in a lovely, homelike setting. If you or your loved one needs either a little or a lot of extra help with daily living, call today and schedule a tour of our Assisted Living or Memory Care community. You’ll see why a move to Highgate is one of the best moves you can make.

Highgate at Great Falls 3000 11th Avenue South Call: 406-454-0991 Highgate at Bozeman 2219 West Oak Street Call: 406-587-5100

Highgate at Billings 3980 Parkhill Drive Call: 406-651-4833

HighgateSeniorLiving.com