January 2025 | DC Beacon

OVER 50

More than 200,000 readers throughout Greater Washington

A life of music and adventure

By Barbara Ruben

When Betty Scott retired after nearly 40 years of teaching music to Prince George’s County elementary school students, she didn’t stop molding young musicians.

Instead, she began a new career launching and directing the Artists in Residence (AIR) program at Strathmore Music Center in North Bethesda, Maryland.

Even now, 20 years later at age 81, she welcomes a new cohort of young singers, musicians and composers to the program each year.

“It was a wonderfully serendipitous career shift, in that I could continue to be a mentor and encourage explorations in a lot of exciting ways,” Scott said.

“Both of my careers have allowed me to hang out with young people. It’s huge with keeping me engaged with what’s going on and looking at things through their eyes,” she said.

A ‘mother hen’

Each year, the program selects six Washington-Baltimore area musicians ages 16 to 32. They’re paired with a music mentor and attend workshops in self-promotion, band leading, job interviewing and other skills that can help them succeed in the music industry.

All the while, Scott not only helps them shape their musical talent, but also network and gather information about possible performance opportunities. In short, she serves as a cheerleader for their careers.

Despite an age difference with her artists of half a century or more, Scott said, “We really are on the same wavelength.”

Cellist and composer Erin Murphy Snedecor, a 2023 participant, said Scott inspires artists at every stage.

“She is the mother hen that seeks us out and brings us into the community. She pokes and pushes us to do the things we have to do, and cheers us on to do the things we dream of doing in a way only someone with her experience and persistence can,” she said.

Scott’s age is not seen as a drawback. In fact, it’s a positive: “Betty has the wisdom of someone who has lived through so much and seen so much of the world,” Snedecor said.

“But at any age, Betty has too much en-

keep up with her.”

ergy, joy and spirit to do anything other than work with young artists. We can barely keep up with her.”

Started young herself

Scott, a West Virginia native, traces her 60-year career in music back to the day her older brother gave up on learning to play the piano her parents had bought.

She was in first grade at the time, and seized the opportunity: “Me, me, me, I’ll take the piano,” Scott said.

She started thinking about becoming a music teacher when she was in high school.

“The big turning point for me really becoming a music educator was the all-girls’ a cappella choir in high school. I loved it so much. The teacher was fabulous…like a role model,” Scott recalled.

She chose a career in elementary music education even though her supervisors pressed her to teach in a middle or high school.

Instead, she reasoned, “I really want them at an age when their minds are so open [I can] expose them to all types of music and for them to say, ‘This is cool.’”

Never one to shy away from a challenge, she helped her young charges put on Broadway musicals like The King and I and Fiddler on the Roof each year.

Her work with the Maryland Boychoir helped garner her a Grammy in 2000 for Best Choral Performance. The gramophone statuette sits in the living room of her Silver Spring home.

ARTS & STYLE

Three books about world leaders illuminate their struggles behind the scenes; plus, Bob Levey on the old cars he still misses page 16

FITNESS & HEALTH 4

k Some good drug side effects

k The best way to take naps

LIVING BOLDLY 11

k Newsletter for D.C. residents

LAW & MONEY 13

k Should you do your own taxes?

k How to help out adult children

DIRECTORY 23

Betty Scott, 81, established the Artists in Residence program at Strathmore Music Center in North Bethesda, Maryland, 20 years ago. She continues to direct the program, helping young singers, musicians and composers learn the skills to succeed in their careers. Her artists say, “We can barely

PHOTO BY CEYLON MITCHELL, M3 MITCHELL MEDIA & MARKETING

Add it to the water?

People who know me today would hardly believe it, but as a child, I had to buy clothes in what was then called the “husky” department. My brother called me “fatso” when he wanted to be mean, and he wasn’t wrong.

Though I slimmed down in adolescence and have remained there for the most part since, there’s still a part of me that wants a magic pill that will let me eat whatever I want and not gain weight.

My ears perked up a few years ago when they developed a new form of fat that humans can’t digest. The suggestion was that people could consume potato chips and other fried foods made with the stuff, and the fat would go right through them. The problem was that everything else did, too, so it never caught on.

tions, stress, lack of sleep, and the sheer abundance of highly caloric, low-cost foods with little or no nutritive value are a large part of the problem.

We also know the health consequences of being heavy include high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, some cancers, depression and more.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

By Stuart P. Rosenthal

What has caught on is overeating. It’s a national (actually, international) problem. Today, nearly 75% of Americans over 20 are overweight; more than four out of 10 qualify as obese.

We know it’s not just from lack of willpower: Our genes, other health condi-

Given this, would anyone have predicted that such an intractable problem as universal weight gain and its associated health problems could be (almost) magically reversed by a single class of drugs?

Enter Ozempic and Wegovy (generic name: semaglutide) and Mounjaro and Zepbound (generic name: tirzepatide).

Known as GLP-1 agonists, these drugs were developed to help diabetics control blood sugar. (GLP-1 is a hormone our bodies naturally produce that triggers our pancreas to release insulin, slows digestion and increases feelings of satiety.)

These injectable drugs recently became household names after having been found to generate significant and relatively easy weight loss in many who take them — at

least, for as long as they take them.

The downsides? There are side effects, of course, as with all drugs (in this case, mostly of the gastrointestinal variety). And the drugs must be used weekly (patients get a “pen” so they can self-inject) and currently can cost up to $1,000 per month without insurance.

On the other hand, researchers continue to observe and study some incredible additional health benefits from the drugs.

Along with lowering blood sugar levels in diabetics, they appear to reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes in patients with cardiovascular disease, and of the need for dialysis or a transplant in those with chronic kidney disease. The drugs also appear to reduce colon cancer risk in diabetics.

While being overweight is associated with all these conditions, the drugs appear in some cases to reduce the risks regardless of how much weight a person loses.

Perhaps in the same way that they reduce the sensation of hunger, they anecdotally have been found to reduce cravings for alcohol, nicotine and other addictive drugs. Randomized studies are underway to confirm these effects.

And the biggie for older adults: Studies have shown that GLP-1 agonists reduce the buildup of amyloid protein in the brain, which is associated with the development

of Alzheimer’s disease. Clinical studies to assess Ozempic’s effect on cognitive decline and dementia are ongoing.

And the Alzheimer’s Association recently reported that a different GLP-1 drug “appears to reduce shrinking in the parts of the brain that control memory, learning, language and decision-making by nearly 50% compared to placebo,” reducing cognitive decline in those with mild Alzheimer’s by as much as 18% after one year.

No one is saying these drugs are likely to work equally well in all persons or on all these conditions, nor will they likely work without additional efforts, including improved diet, exercise, therapy and more.

In short, they’re not miracle drugs. But they sure seem to hold a great deal of promise for fighting some of the most serious health conditions we face today worldwide.

I look forward to seeing more results from clinical studies — and to hearing that Medicare will heavily negotiate the price of such drugs, which should be easier to do if we find that three out of four Americans need to take them for the rest of their lives.

A piece of good news: Ozempic’s core patent expires in 2026.

Stay tuned.

Beacon

The Beacon is a monthly newspaper dedicated to inform, serve, and entertain the citizens of the Greater Washington DC area, and is privately owned. Other editions serve Greater Baltimore and Howard County, Md. Readership exceeds 400,000.

Subscriptions are available via first-class mail ($36) or third-class mail ($12), prepaid with order. D.C. and Maryland residents: add 6 percent for sales tax. Send subscription order to the office listed below.

Publication of advertising contained herein does not necessarily constitute endorsement. Signed columns represent the opinions of the writers, and not necessarily the opinion of the publisher.

Publisher/Editor – Stuart P. Rosenthal

President/Associate Publisher – Judith K. Rosenthal

Executive Vice President – Gordon Hasenei

Managing Editor – Margaret Foster

Art Director – Kyle Gregory

Vice President of Operations – Roger King

Advertising Representatives –Dan Kelly, M.K. Phillips, Alan Spiegel

Assistant Editor – Ana Preger Hart

The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915

(301) 949-9766 • Email: info@thebeaconnewspapers.com Website: www.theBeaconNewspapers.com

Submissions: The Beacon welcomes reader contributions. Deadline for editorial is the 10th of the month preceding the month of publication. Deadline for ads is the 15th of the month preceding the month of publication. See page 23 for classified advertising details. Please mail or email all submissions. © Copyright 2025 The Beacon Newspapers, Inc.

Letters to the editor

Readers are encouraged to share their opinions on any matter addressed in the Beacon as well as on political and social issues of the day.

Mail your Letter to the Editor to The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915, or email to info@thebeaconnewspapers.com. Please include your name, address and telephone number for verification.

Dear Editor:

Your cover story from November [“Our own Golden Bachelorette”] is a dismaying picture of a 61-year-old spoiled teenager, still chasing her teenage delusions and pumping up her ego with every suitor she listens to and turns down.

A lot of set-in-their-ways men and women still think the world revolves around their own happiness and pleasure, and they expect others to cater to them. Get over it! It doesn’t work that way. The world needs more people that are less selfish, more willing to help a stranger. It needs more compassion and less so-called “passion.”

It needs more grown-up adult role models and less clueless old teenagers.

Richard K. Todd Washington, DC

Dear Editor:

Your December Bob Levey column begins, “A woman we knew only slightly died one recent afternoon.”

Ironically, the rest of the piece describes the head-scratching wordplay of Yogi Berra. I think Yogi would have appreciated the phrase “only slightly died.”

Michael O’Connell Sterling, VA

Dear Editor:

Re: your November article on blurry vision, I had difficulty reading with my left eye. Very bright light helped and I needed reading glasses.

My ophthalmologist told me that people who had cataract surgery would often have wrinkles in the sack that held [their] interocular lens. A five-minute laser treatment put a hole in the sack, and my vision improved significantly.

Now I do not need a bright light or glasses.

Donald W. Vierimaa Via email

Dear Editor:

Regarding advertising for bogus health treatments like CopperZap. Your editor responded in December issue that accepting advertising doesn’t mean endorsing it — but that’s not the point those two letter writers made.

While it’s still true that “Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one,” owning one doesn’t require accepting all advertising. ESPECIALLY publications such as Beacon, targeting seniors, have a higher obligation to reject harmful

Fitness & Health

LIVE LONGER AND HAPPIER

To live longer, become more optimistic; try reducing stress and volunteering

BARLEY BASICS

Add whole grain barley to your diet to lower your cholesterol and blood sugar

IT’S NOT ALL IN YOUR HEAD

Is your condition really psychosomatic? Or just not yet well understood?

CATCH A FEW WINKS

There are better (and worse) ways to nap during the day. Experts offer advice

There’s a good side to drug side effects

By Robert H. Shmerling, M.D.

Drug side effects are common and often quite troublesome.

Major side effects, such as severe or even life-threatening allergic reactions, require immediate treatment and discontinuation of the drug. More minor symptoms may be tolerable when weighed against drug benefits. And sometimes, these go away on their own as the body gets used to the drug.

But there’s another type of side effect you hear much less about: ones that are beneficial. Though uncommon, they’re worth keeping in mind when you’re starting a new medicine.

Aren’t all side effects bad?

The term side effect is usually assumed to be a bad thing. And that’s typically true. But that leaves out the “good” side effects. Relatively little is published on this, so it’s not clear how common they are. But four notable examples include:

• Minoxidil (Rogaine, Gainextra, other brands). Developed in the 1970s for high blood pressure, this drug also increased hair growth in study subjects.

What was initially considered a bothersome side effect eventually became its primary use: topical forms of this drug are commonly used to treat hair loss.

• Diphenhydramine (Benadryl or

generic versions). This common treatment for allergic conditions has the side effect of drowsiness.

For adults with allergy issues and trouble sleeping, the sedative effect can be helpful. However, regular, long-term use of diphenhydramine is not recommended, as it may increase the risk of dementia.

• Sildenafil (Viagra or generic versions). Originally developed as a treatment for high blood pressure and angina, it didn’t take long for male users to realize the drug could trigger erections within 30 to 60 minutes.

The makers of sildenafil recognized that under the right circumstances, this could be a highly beneficial side effect. In 1998 it was approved as a treatment for erectile dysfunction.

• Semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus). This drug was developed to treat diabetes, but early users noticed reduced appetite and significant weight loss. Now, several formulations of these related drugs are approved for diabetes and/or weight loss. [See “From the Publisher,” page 2.]

In the best study I’ve read on the topic, researchers found more than 450 reports of serendipitous beneficial effects of various drugs since 1991. And that may be an underestimation, since report forms did not specifically ask for or label this type of side effect, according to the study authors.

Repurposing some drugs

While the discovery of helpful drugs can arise unexpectedly, drug developers are increasingly using a more intentional approach: using side effect profiles to look for new uses.

For example:

• A drug reported to cause reduced sweating as a side effect may be effective for hyperhidrosis, a condition marked by excessive sweating.

• Drugs reported to cause low blood pressure as a side effect might be effective treatments for high blood pressure (hypertension).

• New treatments for breast cancer may include older medicines that have a similar side effect profile as known anti-cancer drugs.

The availability of large side effect registries has made this method of identifying drugs for repurposing a more realistic option. So even negative side effects can have a silver lining.

Bad side effects and nocebos

While side effects can be positive, most are not. Medication side effects are a common reason people give for not taking prescribed drugs regularly. And adverse reactions to medicines prompt up to 8% of hospital admissions, according to one analysis.

To make matters worse, in some cases the expectation of side effects seems to make them more likely to occur

Called the nocebo effect, it increases the chances of experiencing a negative side effect and seems due, at least in part, to expectations.

Contrast this with the placebo effect, where a sugar pill or another inactive treatment can lead to benefit.

The bottom line

Many people avoid taking medications because they fear possible side effects. That’s understandable.

But not taking a medication can mean missing out on its benefits. And anticipation or expectation of side effects can increase the chances you’ll have them.

So, while it’s important to be aware of the most common side effects caused by the medicines you take, it’s also important not to overestimate your chances of experiencing them.

And remember, there’s always a chance you’ll have a side effect you actually welcome.

Robert H. Shmerling, MD, is a senior faculty editor and an Editorial Advisory Board member for Harvard Health Publishing. © 2024 Harvard University. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Key strategies to help improve memory

By Howard LeWine, M.D.

Q: I am experiencing more minor memory lapses. What can I do to help my memory?

A: Keeping the brain as healthy as possible might help delay memory issues and other age-related brain changes.

The best way to do that is by living a healthy lifestyle: exercising regularly (at least 150 minutes per week of moderateintensity exercise, like brisk walking), giving yourself the opportunity to sleep seven to nine hours per night, eating a Mediterranean-style diet, not smoking, limiting alcohol use, managing stress, socializing, and learning new things.

These habits work together to help create new connections between brain cells and to maintain existing ones, which keeps thinking and memory sharp.

A recent large study zeroed in on the po-

tent influence a healthy lifestyle exerts on memory maintenance, even in older adults with a genetic risk for Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia.

The study, published by The BMJ, involved more than 29,000 people in China without dementia (average age 72). Participants initially underwent cognitive testing, as well as genetic testing for a variant of the APOE gene, APOE4, which is known to raise the risk for Alzheimer’s.

Participants also reported how stringently they stuck to six good lifestyle habits: eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, not smoking, not drinking alcohol, being socially active, and engaging in brain-challenging activities.

Over the next 10 years, participants periodically reported their lifestyle habits and had additional cognitive tests.

By the study’s end, people who stuck

with at least four healthy habits exhibited significantly slower memory decline than those who didn’t practice any healthy habits — and this was true even among participants with the Alzheimer’s-related gene.

To improve memory

In addition, you can help keep your memory in good shape by practicing certain habits.

For learning new information: Pay attention and put effort into the learning process. You can’t effectively learn new information when you multitask. If someone is talking to you while you’re checking your email or watching TV out of the corner of your eye, you’re not likely to remember what they said.

Pay attention, write down the information, say it out loud, or repeat it back to the person.

For memory retrieval: Relax and try

to go back in your mind to the time and place when you formed the memory. Think about the senses that were engaged at the time.

What did you see, hear, smell, taste or touch? What were you feeling at the time?

The brain ties those perceptions to memories as a way to help you retrieve them later.

For overall sharpness: Make your brain work harder. Challenge it with exercises such as crossword puzzles.

Studies have shown that doing moderately difficult cognitive tasks is better for your brain than doing easy tasks.

Howard LeWine, M.D., is an internist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School. For additional consumer health information, visit health.harvard.edu. © 2024 Harvard University. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Think positively about aging for long life

By Howard LeWine, M.D.

People who tend to be more positive, optimistic and energetic as they get older are more likely to live longer and have healthier lives than those with negative thoughts about aging.

A study published in February 2022 in JAMA Network Open found that the people with the highest satisfaction with aging had a 43% lower risk of dying from any cause compared to those who were the least satisfied.

The study also found that people more satisfied with the aging process had a lower risk for diabetes, stroke, cancer and heart disease. They also had better cognitive functioning and were less lonely and depressed.

Here are some ways to help you keep a younger mind and body.

Reduce stress and anxiety. Adopt practices that help you maximize positive emotions and reduce negative ones, such as setting aside time for meditation, performing relaxation breathing exercises, and spending some quiet time each day expressing gratitude.

Have a sense of purpose. A strong sense of purpose means continuing to pursue goals and to feel life is worthwhile. Explore interests centered on self-develop-

ment, growth, and connecting with others.

For example, learn an instrument or a language, volunteer for a cause you support, mentor a young person, or take college classes in subjects that stimulate your mind.

Stay connected. Socializing keeps our minds active and engaged. Studies also show that personal connections help curb feelings of low self-esteem that dampen a positive mindset.

You might find it more natural to bond over a shared activity or interest, so consider joining a walking group, golf or bowling league, card or chess club, or service club.

Another option is to create your own “pod” — a small, intimate group you interact with regularly. Schedule weekly, bimonthly or monthly meetups with friends — in person or via Zoom or a conference call.

Challenge yourself. Find a physical challenge that you can realistically complete, create a plan of execution, and then work to meet that goal.

For example, train for a 5K race, hike a trail, complete a series of boot camp classes, or walk a mile daily for a month. Regular exercise builds confidence in your ability to be active, and setting a challenge

MAIL OR EMAIL FOR FREE INFORMATION

For free materials about area housing communities, just complete and clip this coupon and mail, or take a picture and email it to the Beacon

Housing Communities

District of Columbia

❏ Chevy Chase House (See ads on pages B2, B10)

❏ Inspīr Embassy Row (See ads on pages 3, B10)

Maryland

❏ Brooke Grove (See ads on pages B10, B11, B13, B14)

❏ Cascades of Frederick (See ad on page B7)

❏ Charles E. Smith Life Communities (See ad on page B3)

❏ Churchill Senior Living (See ad on page 10)

❏ Grandview, The (See ads on pages B5, B13)

❏ Homecrest House (See ads on pages B6, B12)

❏ Park View Bladensburg (See ad on page B15)

❏ Park View Columbia (See ad on page B15)

❏ Park View Emerson (See ad on page B15)

❏ Park View Laurel (See ad on page B15)

❏ Riderwood/Erickson (See ads on pages B5, B12)

❏ Willow Manor at Cabin Branch (See ad on page B6)

❏ Willow Manor at Colesville (See ad on page B4)

Virginia

❏ Ashby Ponds/Erickson (See ads on pages B5, B14)

❏ Culpepper Garden (See ad on page 7)

❏ Greenspring/Erickson (See ads on pages B5, B12)

❏ Vinson Hall (See ads on pages B4, B13)

❏ Woodleigh Chase (See ads on pages B5, B14)

Check the boxes you’re interested in and return this form to: The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915 or take a picture and email to housing@thebeaconnewspapers.com.

Feel free to return this coupon together with the coupon found on page B-9 of this issue.

Sweet chili chicken with zucchini barley

By Linda Gassenheimer

Here’s a way to keep boneless, skinless chicken breasts moist and tasty.

I brown the chicken in a skillet, cover with a sweet chili sauce and walnuts, then finish the cooking in the oven. That gives the chicken a nice crust, and the steam from the covered skillet keeps the chicken moist.

I wanted to make barley for a side dish and created a way to make it in the microwave with zucchini. It tur ns out the same as if you made it on the stove but is much quicker and easier.

Helpful hints: Look for sweet chili sauce in the market. If unavailable, see recipe below. Be sure the skillet is well covered when placed in the oven.

Shopping list: Buy ¾ pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, 1 jar low-sugar apricot spread or jam, 1 container walnuts, 1 bottle sweet chili sauce, 1 carton fat-free, no-salt-added chicken broth, 1 box quick-

cooking barley, ½ pound zucchini. Staples: canola oil, salt and black peppercorns.

Sweet Chili Chicken

Serves 2

Ingredients:

¼ cup low-sugar apricot spread or jam

¼ cup chopped walnuts

¼ cup sweet chili sauce

2 teaspoons canola oil

¾ pound boneless, skinless chicken breast

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix jam, walnuts and chili sauce together in a small bowl.

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken and brown 2 minutes. Tur n chicken over and brown the second side 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Spoon sauce mixture on top of the chicken. Cover the skillet with foil or lid and place in the oven for 10 minutes. Re-

Primary Care At Home

move from oven. A meat thermometer should read 160 degrees. Divide in half and place on two dinner plates.

Per serving: 431 calories (38 percent from fat), 18.2 g fat (1.8 g saturated, 6.4 g monounsaturated), 126 mg cholesterol, 42 g protein, 22 g carbohydrates, 1.1 g fiber, 558 mg sodium.

Zucchini and Barley

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 cup fat-free, no-salt-added chicken broth

½ cup quick-cooking barley

½ pound zucchini cut into 1-inch pieces, about 2 cups

2 teaspoons canola oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Place chicken broth and quick cooking barley in a large, microwave-safe bowl. Cover the bowl with a plate or plastic wrap. Microwave on high for 5 minutes.

Remove bowl from microwave and add the zucchini. Cover the bowl with the plate and microwave 5 more minutes. Remove from the microwave and keep the cover on the bowl until ready to serve.

Add oil and salt and pepper to taste and serve with the chicken.

Per serving: 242 calories (20 percent from fat), 5.5 g fat (0.6 g saturated, 2.9 g monounsaturated), no cholesterol, 7.5 g protein, 42.9 g carbohydrates, 9 g fiber, 32 mg sodium.

To

make Sweet Chili Sauce

Add 1 tablespoon sugar or honey to ¼ cup bottled chili sauce such as Heinz Chili Sauce or a thick chili sauce.

Linda Gassenheimer is the author of more than 30 cookbooks, including her newest, The 12-Week Diabetes Cookbook

Listen to Linda on WDNA.org and all major podcast sites. Email her at Linda@DinnerInMinutes.com.

© 2024 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

helps you experience a feeling of accomplishment. Both can make you feel more youthful.

Ageism — the socially pervasive idea that you are too old to do certain activities

— can put a damper on your mindset. It can be tough to overcome, but constantly remind yourself that your age does not dictate whether or not you have the necessary ability, skills or desire to succeed at something.

© 2024 Harvard University. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Barley is a healthy, high-fiber whole grain

By Lori Zanteson

Barley, as a staple, is anything but basic. Native to Ethiopia and Southeast Asia, barley has been cultivated for more than 10,000 years. Since ancient times, it has been used for food — both human and animal — as well as tea, alcoholic beverages, medicine, and even as a standard of measurement.

These days, we’re most likely to enjoy our barley in a meal of hearty stew or soup, or as an ingredient in a glass of beer. But there are good reasons to reignite our relationship with this healthful and tasty whole grain.

The facts

Barley ( Hordeum vulgare ), a cereal grain, is the fourth largest grain crop in the world after wheat, rice and corn, but only 2% is produced for food products. Most is grown for animal feed and malt, which is used to produce beer.

The whole grain, hulled barley is the most nutritious because it retains the bran. However, pearled barley, whose bran is removed, is most common.

Both forms are nutrient-dense and high in fiber. One cup of cooked pearled barley ser ves up 24 percent DV (DV=Daily Value, based on 2,000 calories/day) of hearthealthy dietary fiber and about 20% DV of the minerals manganese and selenium.

The findings

A source of soluble fiber, barley has been shown to lower cholesterol. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed significantly lower total and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels after diets low, medium or high in soluble fiber from barley — higher soluble fiber diets had more notable reductions in cholesterol.

Beta-glucan, barley’s soluble fiber, also slows glucose absorption, which may lower the risk of T ype 2 diabetes.

According to a study published in Clinical Nutrition Research, Type 2 diabetes patients who ate white rice mixed with 50% high beta-glucan barley had significantly improved post-meal blood glucose levels and insulin resistance versus those who ate white rice without barley.

The finer points

Hulled, pearled and flaked barley are available packaged and in bulk containers. Additional types, including barley grits, quick barley and barley flour, are more likely found in health-food stores.

Barley stores best in airtight containers, where it should keep six to nine months (several months longer if refrigerated).

Combine with water, boil, cover and simmer until the liquid is absorbed and the grains are soft. From here, the possibilities are endless — add to soups, salads, vegetable

dishes; enjoy as a breakfast cereal topped with fruit, or served in creamy risotto style. Reprinted with permission from Environmental Nutrition, a monthly publica-

tion of Belvoir Media Group, LLC, 1-800829-5384, EnvironmentalNutrition.com. © 2024 Belvoir Media Group. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Transportation and Mobility In Montgomery County

Montgomery County’s Age Friendly Initiative focuses on the three A’s of Transportation: Accessibility, Affordability and Awareness.

What Ride On offers:

Ride On Fixed Route: Ride On covers more than 1400 miles of County roads, serving more than 5000 bus stops. 80 routes are available on weekdays, with some also offering weekend service. It connects to Metrorail and Metrobuses, the MARC rail and MTA buses. All buses are wheelchair accessible and most have level-floor boarding and wheelchair ramps for easier entry.

Ride On extRa is a limited-stop service operating between Lakeforest Transit Center and the Medical Center Metro Station since 2017. With the launch of the extRa Lime and Pink routes in September 2024, the extRa provides

even greater connectivity between the Shady Grove Metro Station, the Great Seneca Life Sciences Center and the Universities at Shady Grove.

The FLASH Blue and Orange routes provides service on US 29 from Silver Spring Transit Center to Burtonsville, running every 15 minutes all day and more frequently during rush hour.

The Ride On Real Time transit application at www.RideOn.app allows mobile phone and desktop computer users to plan trips and identify the location of their bus in real time. The Ride On Trip Planner application combines trip planning, real-time tracking and indicates bus crowdedness in a single application. The ROTP app is available for download from the Apple App and Google Play stores or can be accessed for trips at bit.ly/RideOnPlanner.

Ride On Flex: A creative on-demand program, Flex vehicles are available for trips that start and end in select zones, Monday-Friday. The service to the Rockville area is available from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The Glenmont/ Wheaton area is served from 6:00 to 9:00 a.m. and 3:30 to 7:00 p.m. During the hours of operation in your selected zone, you can summon a vehicle by using the free Ride On Flex app from the Apple or Google store, or by contacting the call center at 240301-3842 between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m. Monday-Friday. Pickups will be at locations near the callers.

The Courtesy Stop program provides flexibility by allowing riders to request a drop-off closer to their destination at any location along our regular routes after 9 p.m., enhancing safety and convenience.

For more info:

Ride On information is available at www.RideOnBus.com or by calling 311 within the County or 240-777-0311 outside the County. Additional information is available by subscribing to receive email alerts at www.montgomerycountymd. gov/govdelivery , or texting MONTGOMERY RIDEON to 468311 to receive text alerts.

Call Connect-A-Ride at 301-7383252 for mobility specialists funded by Montgomery County Department of Transportation who link callers to public, private and volunteer transportation providers and assist with program applications. In addition, Connect-A-Ride staff conduct outreach events and train County residents on how to use the public transportation system.

Check out the Transportation Network Directory: www. montgomerycountymd.gov/tnd

Is it all in your head, or not identified yet?

The body and mind are intricately connected, and sometimes, this connection can lead to physical symptoms driven by emotional stress.

These are known as psychosomatic disorders, and they demonstrate just how powerful stress, unresolved trauma and emotions can be in affecting our physical health.

However, not all unexplained symptoms fall into this category. Some are the result of hard-to-diagnose medical conditions that science hasn’t fully understood yet.

These may include:

• Chest pain from anxiety (even with a healthy heart) right before a test

DEAR PHARMACIST

By Suzy Cohen

Let’s explore psychosomatic disorders, their causes, and how they differ from illnesses that defy diagnosis.

Psychosomatic disorders

Psychosomatic disorders occur when emotional factors like stress and anxiety trigger or worsen physical symptoms. These symptoms are real — not “all in your head” — but their root cause lies in how your brain and body interact.

BEACON BITS

Jan.

16

• A rash that flares during an argument

• Migraines triggered by chronic stress

• Your heart beating out of your chest before public speaking

Stress activates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, increasing cortisol and adrenaline. Over time, this state of hyperarousal can worsen conditions like migraines, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and fibromyalgia.

What doctors may not know

Not every unexplained symptom is psychosomatic. Some conditions, like multiple sclerosis (MS), were nearly impossible to diagnose before MRI technology became available to detect brain and spinal lesions. In such cases, the problem wasn’t psychosomatic; it simply hadn’t been uncovered yet.

Conditions like chronic fatigue syndrome or some neurological disorders in-

CONSIDER BEING A FOSTER PARENT

Are you interested in learning more about becoming a foster parent? Arlington County’s Foster Parent Services offers this free virtual information session on Thu., Jan. 16 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The session covers eligibility and requirements, expectations and issues to consider, training requirements, the certification process, and support systems for foster parents. To register and receive the link for the session, email openheartsopenhomes@arlingtonva.us.

volve real symptoms that may stem from multiple, complex factors science hasn’t fully mapped. These cases highlight the importance of staying persistent and seeking second opinions.

Doctors often rely on their specialty’s “toolbox,” which can limit their diagnostic perspectives. For example, a Lyme specialist might diagnose Lyme disease even with inconclusive results, while a rheumatologist may label borderline symptoms as autoimmune disease.

This isn’t to suggest doctors are wrong; they’re often working with the best information they have. But as a patient, being your own advocate and seeking multiple opinions is essential.

Advocate for yourself

Psychosomatic disorders include real symptoms that are linked to the mindbody connection. Hard-to-diagnose conditions also have real symptoms without a

clear explanation, often due to science’s limitations.

Both deserve empathy, so I want to assure you that your experience is valid, and that healing starts with being heard and supported.

Living with unexplained symptoms can feel lonely and exhausting. Whether your condition stems from psychosomatic factors or a hard-to-diagnose illness, your journey matters. Stay curious, stay strong, and never stop advocating for yourself!

If you’re interested in a deeper dive into this topic, I’ve written a longer, more comprehensive blog on my website at suzycohen.com.

This information is opinion only. It is not intended to treat, cure or diagnose your condition. Consult with your doctor before using any new drug or supplement.

Suzy Cohen is a registered pharmacist and author of The 24-Hour Pharmacist and Real Solutions from Head to Toe.

The HumanaChoice H5216376 (PPO) is a Medicare Advantage plan made to get you the right benefits for your budget. It includes:

Dental, hearing and vision coverage

Routine dental, hearing and vision coverage

No referral for specialists

No referral required to see in-network specialists

ANGELA GIARAFFA

667-261-2977 (TTY: 711)

Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Agiaraffa@humana.com https://humana.sunfirematrix.com/app/ consumer/humcareer/20351589/

Is there a wrong way, or time, to take a nap?

By Tiffany Casper

Dear Mayo Clinic: I am retired, and although I generally enjoy less hectic days now, I keep busy. Part of my routine includes trying to squeeze in a nap on most afternoons. My wife tells me I’m doing it wrong because I often wake up groggy. Is there a wrong way — or time — to nap?

BEACON BITS

Jan. 19

A: Closing your eyes for a few minutes during your busy day may seem like a good idea. It can refresh and recharge you. Is there a wrong way to nap? Only if the naps cause negative effects on other aspects of your life.

For your daily nap routine, it’s important to consider the time of day and length of time you nap, as these can provide bene-

MLK TRIBUTE IN ARLINGTON

Arlington Community honors the life and legacy of Dr. Martin

Luther King Jr. with dance, music and storytelling by local talent on Sun., Jan. 19 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Wakefield High School auditorium, 1325 S. Dinwiddie St., Arlington, VA. Registration isn’t necessary.

GOLDEN AGE PASS TO MARYLAND PARKS

Ongoing

If you’re at least 62 years old, you can get free entry into any Maryland State Park for life. With the Golden Age Pass, available at any state park for $10, you can also get half-price camping during the week (holidays excluded). Buy the pass in person or online at shopdnr.com/GoldenAgePass.aspx. For more information, call (410) 260-8186

fits or create problems.

On the plus side, a nap can improve your mood, speed your reaction time, improve your memory, reduce fatigue and increase your alertness. A regular nap can make your afternoon more productive.

There are some potential drawbacks of napping every day. First is sleep inertia. That’s the temporary grogginess and feeling disoriented after a nap. This can become a problem if you have places to be or tasks to complete after you wake up from your nap.

Regular naps can interfere with your nighttime sleep routine, too, especially if your naps are too long or close to bedtime. If you experience insomnia or poor sleep quality at night, napping may worsen these problems. Short naps are the best when trying to avoid interference with nighttime sleep.

Follow these four tips to get the most out of your naps:

• Set aside an allotted amount of time. If you wake up feeling groggy after a nap, you’re sleeping too long. The ideal nap length is between 15 and 30 minutes. If you want to make naps a part of your daily routine, have a planned time of day and length of time to keep your schedule on track.

• Plan to take naps in the afternoon. The ideal time to nap is around 2 or 3 p.m. This is because you are likely to experience a lower level of alertness or sleepiness following lunch.

You’re also more likely to avoid interference with nighttime sleep if you nap around this time. However, some people may adjust their napping times to fit their work or school schedules.

• Create a tranquil environment. Some people struggle to sleep during the day, but there are actions you can take to

help you become more relaxed. Eliminate distractions when napping. Turn off any screens, including your phone. Find a quiet space with minimal light. Adjusting the room temperature to what is comfortable for you also can make your space more relaxing.

• Give yourself time to wake up. It’s normal to wake up a little groggy after a nap, but that feeling should dissipate shortly. Allow yourself enough time after your nap to wake up before resuming activities, so you are alert and ready to tackle the rest of your day.

Before lying down to take a daily nap, you may want to think about why you began taking these naps. If you’ve been working the night shift or are a new parent, you probably have reason to be closing your eyes for a while.

On the other hand, if you feel that a nap is essential to your daily functioning, you may have a bigger health problem that should be addressed with your healthcare team.

Talking to your healthcare team is the best way to find out why you’re experiencing increased fatigue. The reasons for your exhaustion could be related to anything from having a sleep disorder such as sleep apnea to a side effect from a new medication.

Tiffany Casper, D.O., Family Medicine, Mayo Clinic Health System, Tomah, Wisconsin

Mayo Clinic Q & A is an educational resource and doesn’t replace regular medical care. This Mayo Clinic Q&A represents inquiries this healthcare expert has received from patients. For more information, visit mayoclinic.org.

© 2024 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. All rights reserved. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Dear Seniors,

DIRECTORS MESSAGE

By Charon P.W. Hines

Happy New Year! As we enter 2025, I’m filled with gratitude and excitement for all that lies ahead. This year is particularly special as the Department of Aging and Community Living (DACL) celebrates 50 years of serving and supporting seniors across the District. It’s a time to reflect on our journey, celebrate our progress, and honor the resilience and accomplishments of DC seniors every single day.

This month also marks 10 years of Mayor Muriel Bowser’s leadership in the District. We are proud of the incredible impact her commitment has had on DC seniors.

Together, we’ve made remarkable strides to ensure DC remains the best place to age with dignity, safety and independence.

• Safe at Home Program: Created and expanded to help seniors age safely at home. Providing over 6,000 seniors with necessary in-home adaptations.

• Connector Card Program: Providing affordable, accessible transportation for over 3,800 seniors to travel independently.

• Senior MedExpress: Offering free, non-emergency rides to health care appointments — over 60,000 rides annually since 2016.

• Senior Food Programs: Ensuring more than 13,000 seniors receive reliable, balanced nutrition year-round.

• Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD): Just last year, over 1,700 seniors benefitted from ADRD programming, positively impacting their daily lives.

At DACL, our daily mission is to support District seniors — helping you live boldly, stay connected and thrive. We ended 2024 on a high note with Mayor Bowser’s 26th Annual Senior Holiday Celebration, where over 3,000 seniors came together to laugh, dance and celebrate the season. What a joyous time it was!

As colder temperatures and potential snowfall approach, your safety remains our top priority. If you’re a homeowner aged 60 or older, you may be eligible for free snow removal assistance through Serve DC’s Volunteer Snow Program. This program pairs volunteers with senior residents to help clear snow after winter storms. To learn more or to sign up, call 202-727-7925 today.

I encourage you to prioritize your health, well-being and staying connected this winter. Stay active by participating in programs at one of our six senior wellness centers or join activities at your local Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) site. Staying social is just as important — explore everything DACL has to offer by visiting our website or downloading the DACL mobile app to stay updated on events and resources in your community. For more information, feel free to call us at 202-724-5626. Wishing you a happy, healthy and connected 2025!

In Service, Charon P.W. Hines

Mayor Bowser’s 26th Annual Holiday Celebration

As Valentine’s Day approaches, District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) students are gearing up for the 9th Annual Cupid’s Kids Initiative. Organized by the Department of Aging and Community Living (DACL), Cupid’s Kids connects the younger generation with seniors who may feel

Cupid’s Kids 2025

isolated, especially during holidays. This effort makes a significant impact on the lives of homebound DC seniors, bringing love and joy through handmade Valentine’s Day cards that will be distributed to homebound seniors along with their home-delivered meals. These personal letters not only brighten the

Financial Empowerment Resources for DC Seniors

Are you 65 or older and looking to improve your finances? The DC Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (DISB) offers online resources to help seniors avoid financial scams, understand insurance options (homeowner’s, renter’s and flood), learn about reverse mortgages and foreclosure pre-

vention, plan your estate, and more.

If you feel a financial institution has mistreated you, file a complaint with DISB. They will investigate or refer your case to the proper regulator.

Contact DISB: Phone:202-727-8000

Email: disb@dc.gov | 1050 First St NE, Suite 801, Washington, DC 20002

seniors’ Valentine’s Day, but also remind them that they are cherished and remembered by their community. For those interested in participating in making a difference, the process is as simple as reaching out to your local library branch or contacting Darneesha Polee, DACL’s

Special Project Coordinator, at darneesha.polee1@dc.gov. Whether you are a student, a parent, or a community member, this is an opportunity to contribute to a meaningful cause. Join the Cupid’s Kids Initiative to make this Valentine’s Day special for our homebound seniors.

Director Charon P.W. Hines Editor Amanda Washington Photographer Estefani Legge

Is a niche retirement community for you?

By Eileen Daspin

Baby Boomers have been shaping consumer goods and services since they were in onesies. Now, history’s most influential generation is fueling the growth of the next logical sector: the niche retirement community.

Niche retirement communities are exactly what they sound like. They’re residential developments — urban, suburban and even seafaring — designed to appeal to narrowly cast affinity groups, from Jimmy Buffett fans to yoga practitioners.

And they come in almost every type of senior accommodation — from active to independent, assisted living through continuing care.

Niche projects account for a small percentage of the nation’s 50,000 or so senior communities and facilities. But they are “the segment to watch,” said Andrew Carle, an adjunct lecturer on aging and health issues at Georgetown University and a consultant to the field.

For example, there are five to six dozen university-based retirement communities (UBRCs) for retirees who want to return to the student and academic life.

There are some two dozen properties focused on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender seniors.

There are retirement communities for

retired postal workers, equestrians, environmentalists, RV enthusiasts and fans of singer Jimmy Buffett.

Even Disney is getting in on the action. It’s about to launch Storyliving, a planned community in California “for the next chapter of your life” that includes a 55+ neighborhood.

Boomers, who are hitting 65 at the rate of 10,000 people a day, are buying in. “A developer could open a Grateful Dead community and fill it quickly,” Carle said. “I can virtually guarantee it.”

‘Keep it interesting’

Sheer numbers dictate there simply could never be a one-size-fits-all answer to Boomers’ retirement years.

Boomers account for one-fifth of the country’s population. That’s 73 million people looking for places that reflect their personal preferences. For developers, that equals a lot of niches that are both sizable and scalable.

“The old model was very leisure-centered,” said Lindsey Beagley, director of Lifelong University Engagement at Arizona State University, which has a retirement complex on campus. But, she said, “People can’t golf for 30 years.”

Niche retirement communities, of course, are not for every Boomer or Gen Xer, and

most people still prefer to age at home.

“The idea of living in a retirement city doesn’t appeal to me,” said Nancy Farkas, a 60-something derivatives lawyer in New York City who is weighing her retirement options. “I don’t want to be in a place that’s only old people.”

Instead, she’s choosing to live aboard the MV Narrative , a luxury residential yacht scheduled to launch in 2027, then sail from port to port on a year-round basis. “I just want to mix things up and keep it interesting,” Farkas said.

Classes to stay sharp

When Arnold Victor, a retired pediatrician, began looking into continuing care in 2021, he saw The Mirabella at ASU, a 20story luxury apartment complex and UBRC on the campus of Arizona State University in Tempe.

Instantly Victor knew he’d found his new home. “It was, ‘Oh, yeah, this is the place,’” he remembers thinking.

In the two years since moving in, Victor has taken classes in film, art and philosophy. He participates in a mentoring program for pre-med students and attends concerts, lectures and movie nights.

One favorite part of his day is dinner time, when instead of discussing “the way things used to be, medications and aches

and pains,” as he did before, “we’re talking about what we’re doing next — what concert we’re going to, what lecture, and what classes we’re going to take.”

In contrast, California retiree Mary Van Dyke wanted a community of like-minded spiritual souls, though she wasn’t exactly sure what that looked like.

A friend mentioned Enso Village, a Zenfocused continuing-care facility being developed in Sonoma County. The community was to include a meditation hall; there would be 20 retired monks in residence to teach and lead workshops.

There would also be two miles of hiking paths, acupuncture services, yoga classes and a contemplative care curriculum to help train residents in helping each other age.

Van Dyke was one of almost 1,200 people who put down $1,000 to reserve a spot, and when the units became available, she secured a two-bedroom flat.

Jimmy Buffett Town

In November 2017, when Jimmy Buffett announced his first Latitude Margaritaville in Daytona Beach, Florida — an active-living property for people “55 and better” — more than 150 fans and other lovers of the flip-flop life camped out overnight at the

y — o participate in njoytheservices the Wh In Re

o par your body doesn’t feel up t r, , it makes it difficult to yivitiesyouenjoymost.AAttourcommunit residentsen

the to mu and of e ac an ex con uscle offer -art A ivities you enjoy most t our community, , residents en ercise physiologist included in the monthly rent, mak nvenient to attend multiple classes each day designed . W y s and improve mobility. We e proudly partner with FOX r on-site physical, speech, and occupational therapies lness center wel r. . njoy the services king it easy d to strengthen X Rehabilitation in our state-of-

Area communities offer tech to residents

By Tara Prakash

Someday robots may wheel through the halls of retirement communities, distributing pills, answering questions, or checking in with residents. Artificial intelligence (AI) might be added to wheelchairs to avoid fender benders, tinted windows to block the glare, or heating and air conditioning systems to improve efficiency.

In fact, some basic AI technologies are already being implemented in our area. Within the caregiving community, AI is transforming from a luxury to a necessity, according to Laurie Orlov’s 2023 AI and the Future of Care Work report.

One recent development is the AI Caregiver, an interactive model where a virtual sitter replaces an in-home nurse. Paired with telehealth monitoring, this tool could save the cost of hiring someone 24/7. Its inventors boast that it can predict a hospitalization a week in advance by crunching data from sensors and wearable devices.

AI in use locally

Wristbands, necklaces and other healthrelated devices are already in use at Maplewood Senior Living’s retirement communities. Its Inspīr Embassy Row luxury property will open this spring in Dupont Circle. Insp ī r residents can choose to wear these predictive health-monitoring devices

on their wrists or wheelchairs. Each apartment will include an AI-powered voice assistant to answer any questions. There’s also a Life Story Project available, which uses AI to help write a resident’s memoir.

In addition, the property’s Machine Vision AI Safety System uses smart cameras to detect health emergencies. Maplewood staff also use AI in a number of ways to streamline administrative tasks.

But the company says it won’t lose its human touch.

“AI is poised to revolutionize how we deliver care and services to our residents in the years ahead,” Brian Geyser, vice president of Enterprise Intelligence at Maplewood, said in a statement.

“While we are proud to be leading the way in this transformative journey, we remain deeply committed to a human-centric approach — ensuring that innovation enhances, rather than replaces, the personal connections that are at the heart of exceptional senior care.”

Even basic AI found on cellphones and various devices — such as Alexa from Amazon, Siri from Apple and Google Assistant — can support independent living communities or people living at home. In fact, it already does.

Residents of Atria Senior Living, a retirement community in Sterling, Virginia,

use Amazon’s Alexa technology, according to Atria’s CTO Chris Nall. A small device with a screen that sits on a tabletop allows “Alexa” to answer questions about upcoming events and what’s for dinner, Nall said, “but it can also call for help.”

Amazon sells “Alexa Smart Properties for Senior Living” to retirement communities looking to improve staff efficiency and provide interaction for residents. “We want to focus on how to help senior living customers feel independent,” said Anoop Achuta, senior product manager at Amazon.

Tech growing more interactive

At Veterans Home Care, based in Missouri, about 50 patients use the technology. They can speak to Alexa to turn on the lights, lower the level of their beds or control the room temperature.

As for interactive conversations, today’s technology is still rudimentary, asking simple questions like, “How are you feeling today, one through five?” Someday, AI will interact with clients more intuitively, said David Laiderman, CEO of Veterans Home Care.

For example, if a patient with a specific illness reports swollen ankles, AI could save their health data and later use it to advise a similar patient somewhere else, Laiderman said.

While the technology is still in its early

stages, Laiderman is encouraged by his clients’ positive response to the AI so far. “We see them taking a really unique discovery-approach,” he said.

A device that makes pleasant inquiries may ease the loneliness that often accompanies old age. After all, interacting with Alexa is like carrying on a conversation, which could help older adults feel more connected.

Classes for older adults

The big question is whether or not older adults will be receptive to AI. Some older adults are eager to learn about the technology, if only as a novelty, not a necessity.

Chicagoan Michael Yublosky and his wife, Judy, teach a weekly Zoom class on AI tools for older adults. More than 100 from throughout the country participate, eager to learn about AI.

In one class, Yublosky opened an AI interface tool called Copilot and spoke to the computer. To his students’ surprise, Copilot responded aloud.

He asked Copilot to generate an image of a monkey in a tuxedo, then to fix the image by adding a top hat. His students watched through the screen, captivated.

“Then they started asking more questions,” Yublosky said.

sales office for first dibs on 300 properties.

Today, Latitude Daytona Beach is a planned community of 7,000 people, and there is a waiting list for homes under construction. There is another Latitude in the Florida panhandle, one in North Carolina, and two or three planned for Texas.

Beyond having heard “Margaritaville” on the radio, Pennsylvanian Terry Whitsel knew nothing of Jimmy Buffett or his real estate empire and was unenthusiastic about an age-restricted community. “I was not ready for 55-plus,” she said. “I’m thinking, wheelchairs and walkers.”

But when her husband dragged her to Florida to check out Buffett’s Latitude Daytona, they were so impressed with how friendly everyone was, they bought a cottage on the water.

From page B-3

When one person wanted to edit an article, he turned to an AI assistant called Claude. When his students asked, “How should we start?” he said, “I told them, ‘Get in and try it!’”

Yublosky found that there is an AI tool for a wide variety of forms of entertainment. “Want to analyze an article? Go to Claude. Want to generate art? Go to Night-

Whitsel could not be happier with her new life. “You stand in the pool and congregate with the other residents with floaties,” she said. “It’s like kindergarten.”

Then she went all in, getting her real estate license, selling homes in the development, and in 2021 she moved with her husband to Buffett’s newer Florida property, Latitude Watersound, near Pensacola.

That community is in its early stages — it’s just sold its 2,000th home and is zoned for 150,000 — and Whitsel is at the ready. As she puts it, “I found my niche.”

How to select a community

Do a self-inventory. Start with understanding what you want and need in retirement. What medical support will you need? Are you outdoorsy or bookish? The answers to these questions will shape your search.

Consider prices. Niche communities are on the expensive side. Many go by the entry-

Cafe,” Yublosky said, “There are AI tools for mindfulness, video generation, music.”

Once they learn a little about the technology, he said, they can dive in.

“One participant told me, ‘I went down this rabbit hole!’ after I’d introduced her to NightCafe, an AI art generator,” Yublosky said. She experimented with the platform, even participating in a NightCafe contest, where she placed ninth out of more than 500 people. She sounded so proud,” Yublosky said.

fee model, where residents pay somewhere between $100,000 to $1 million or more up front, depending on the location and size of the home or apartment they choose.

Then there’s a monthly fee for maintenance, taxes, meals and other services, which in 2021 averaged $3,555, according to the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care.

By comparison, the national median monthly cost of an assisted living facility is $4,500 a month, while the median monthly cost for a private room in a nursing facility is $9,034, according to Genworth, a longterm care insurance company. (Local costs are often even higher.)

Create a budget. Do you want to rent or buy? What can you afford? Will the sale of your home cover the entrance fees required by some properties? Plan for monthly fees to cover medical care and other amenities. Go on tours. When you visit a proper-

Risks to be wary of

Of course, Yublosky and others are well aware of AI’s risks, which include security threats and scams. Yublosky warns his students to use an alias email and conceal their personal information.

And if you’re ever contacted by someone asking for money, hang up, even if it’s a faceto-face video call from someone who looks like a friend or relative. It’s a good idea to create a “safe word” with your family members so you know it’s them calling you. (See

ty, don’t just go once. Visit multiple times, at different times of the day and different days of the week.

Talk to the staff and the administrators. Try the food, and not just the special of the day; everything. Attend a few meetings of groups that interest you. Are there three people at bridge, or 10?

How is it managed? Make sure the property is economically viable. Ask what kind of financial reserves the community has.

Is there a board of directors? Who is responsible for the community’s finances? Is it a nonprofit? If not, who are the owners?

Note: This article first appeared in Kiplinger’s Retirement Report, a monthly periodical that covers key concerns of affluent older Americans who are retired or preparing for retirement.

© 2023 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

“Beware AI-generated audio, video fakes” in the August 2024 Beacon.)

Yublosky’s approach in leading his AI workshops is to empower older adults with the tools to solve their problems themselves, he said — “to teach them how to fish.”

It appears his approach is working. Recently, an older adult in his class sent Yublosky an enthusiastic email recounting an AI-related success with Copilot.

The subject line? “I caught a fish!”

• Ashby Ponds® Ashburn, VA • Greenspring® Springfield, VA • Riderwood® Silver Spring, MD

Understanding the new real estate rules

By Sandra Block

A $418 million settlement reached last year with the National Association of Realtors (NAR) led to new requirements for real estate transactions in ways that could save you money on the purchase or sale of a home.

The settlement stemmed from class-action lawsuits that claimed the industrywide practice of requiring seller’s agents to specify the commission being offered to buyer’s agents artificially inflated real estate commissions.

The NAR, which agreed to settle the lawsuits but denied the allegations, said commissions have always been negotiable, but they’ve generally held at 5% to 6% of the sale price for years.

Under rules that took effect in August, listing agents are prohibited from offering

commission splits to buyer’s agents on Multiple Listing Services (MLS), which real estate professionals use to share information about homes for sale in a particular area.

Sellers who list a home on an MLS can negotiate a fee with a seller’s agent and decide whether to pay the buyer’s agent.

Meanwhile, home buyers who choose to work with a buyer’s agent will be required to sign an agreement that details how much they’ll pay for the agent’s services.

When the buyer agrees to purchase a home, the money to pay the buyer’s agent can come from the seller’s agent, the seller or the buyer, depending on the terms negotiated.

In the long run, the change could result in lower home prices, according to The Kiplinger Letter. Although buyers haven’t

paid for commissions directly, they’ve paid for them indirectly through the higher prices sellers sought to cover the agents’ fees.

Under the previous rules, Americans paid roughly $100 billion in real estate commissions a year. A homeowner looking to sell a $500,000 home, for example, could expect to spend up to $30,000 on commissions alone.

What buyers need to know

Home buyers who use a buyer’s agent will probably be the first to notice how the rules have changed, because they’ll be required to enter into a written agreement that details how much they’ll pay the agent in commissions if the seller doesn’t agree to pay the full amount. (Some states required written contracts before the new rules took effect, but now buyers in all states will have to sign contracts.)

In the past, home buyers would typically work with a buyer’s agent without a formal contract in place because it was understood that the seller would pay the entire commission.

Zillow, the online real estate brokerage, recommends signing a seven-day “touring agreement” before entering into a contract with an agent. Its website contains samples of state-specific touring agreements (not all states are represented).

Zillow’s agreement states that buyers won’t be charged a fee for touring services, and stipulates that if the buyer wants to hire the agent for additional services, the parties will reach a separate agreement.

Consumer Advocates in American Real Estate, a nonprofit group, offers a template for an agreement to tour homes. The site also offers templates of compensation agreements for buyer’s and seller’s agents.

If after touring homes you decide to hire a buyer’s agent, don’t hesitate to negotiate, said Steve Brobeck, executive director of the CFA. He recommends offering 2% of the sale price or lower, depending on the services required.

If you’re willing to do some of the work yourself — for example, you prefer to do your own home search but want help making an offer — the agent may be willing to accept a flat fee for specific services, said Richard Hopen, founder of SmartBuyers AI, which provides education and advice

Don’t commit to a long-term, exclusive contract until you’ve had an opportunity to view several homes and determine whether you want to work with the agent, the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) advised.

Seniors Helping Seniors does just that

By Margaret Foster

If you’re living at home and need some extra help around the house, many companies are on hand to provide light housekeeping, run errands or cook meals.

One company is unique, though. Seniors Helping Seniors hires older adults to care for other older adults. As they put it, they provide “affordable, professional in-home care services and heartfelt companionship.”

Launched in 1998, the company has more than 250 franchises nationwide. Four of them exist in the D.C. metro area.

“Seniors Helping Seniors has something that makes them stand out by having mature, sophisticated caregivers,” said Ben Chernow, owner and CEO of Seniors Helping Seniors Bethesda, which opened almost three years ago. “The concept and the business model really work well.”

Seniors Helping Seniors in-home care services was co-founded by Kiran Yocum and her husband, Philip. Kiran worked for Mother Theresa for 14 years, moved to the U.S., and started a caregiving business three years later. They began franchising the business in 2006.

Experiencing both sides

Last year, Ann Montanari, an Alexandria retiree, spotted an announcement at a local café: Kurt Gray, owner and CEO of Seniors Helping Seniors Metro Springfield, was giving a presentation about getting or receiving in-home help.

“I was kind of thinking I’d like something to do,” Montanari remembered, so she returned to the café for Gray’s open house event.

“When I met him and he explained what the company was all about, I was so moved by the mission of companionship for seniors who maybe can’t get out much and

have been feeling isolated since the pandemic. So I said, ‘yeah, I’ll give it a try.’”

Montanari worked as a “care partner” for almost a year and enjoyed helping people. Then, after undergoing surgery in November, she became a client herself.

“It was very interesting to be on that side of it,” she said. “Kurt paired me up with someone who was just wonderful. I got to see the companionship part.

“It wasn’t just me telling her do to the laundry…It was more of a friendship, a conversation — learning from each other.”

Care partners who identify

The company calls its paid caregivers “care partners.” That’s an important distinction, Gray said.

His 85-year-old mother was reluctant to admit she needed help around the house. “I don’t need a caregiver,” she told him.

Gray put a positive spin on it. “You just need a partner,” he told her — someone to take her shopping, do the laundry and “anything else my father didn’t want to do,” he said.

His mother agreed to try it, and now she and her care partner have a strong connection. “They hang out once a week for six hours, and they have a blast,” Gray said.

Seniors Helping Seniors works hard to find the perfect match for each client, so it’s rewarding to see people get along so well, Chernow said.

“They get really attached to each other. They value that relationship.”

People who are paired with a caregiver closer to their age may feel a deep sense of connection. After all, they share the same history, remember the same songs and understand the same pop culture references.

“My goal to remain healthy and as active as possible in my own home is more

like a partnership now with Seniors Helping Seniors in-home care services, since I have 24/7 care,” one client shared on the Seniors Helping Seniors website.

“The flexibility and different personalities of my Seniors Helping Seniors caregivers creates interesting experiences day to day. I value their timely reminders as we make lists, shop, run errands, respond to emails and fulfill appointments.”

Caregiver support

The group’s mission is not just to provide nonmedical care but to encourage human connection. In that spirit, last month Chernow’s franchise launched a support group for family caregivers.

“It’s largely attended by clients, but it’s open to everyone,” he said.

Led by a social worker who specializes in geriatrics, the group meets once a month on Zoom to discuss strategies for caring for someone with dementia.

Montanari and other care partners are proud of their work with Seniors Helping Seniors. It’s not just work, after all; it’s a good cause.

“That mission of companionship and having someone to talk to is unique,” Montanari said.

For more information on the free Virtual Caregiver Support & Wellness Group, which meets on the first Monday of every month from 4 to 5 p.m., email info@shsbethesda.com or call (301) 895-0205.

For more information about working for or hiring Seniors Helping Seniors, visit seniorshelpingseniors.com.

Housing News

By Beacon Staff

New law protects Maryland renters

If you rent your home and your landlord decides to sell it, a new Maryland law grants you first rights to buy the property.

The Renters’ Rights and Stabilization Act, which Gov. Wes Moore signed last fall, allows tenants a 30-day window to make an offer before the property can be put on the real estate market. Landlords who don’t comply will be fined $1,000 per violation.

The act also lowers security deposit

maximums and bans evictions during extreme weather, among other changes.

Lawmakers designed the act to prevent displacement, and to preserve affordable housing in the state, allowing homes to be sold to tenants’ groups before developers.

For more information, call (301) 429-7462 or email customerservice.dhcd@maryland.gov.

Kudos to Hebrew Home

According to Newsweek magazine, the top nursing home with over 150 beds in Maryland is the Hebrew Home of Greater Washington. The magazine’s 2025 rankings were announced in October. Located in Rockville, Maryland, He-

Ask an At-Home Care Expert

Alex Petukhov, Owner Best Senior Care

Q: We live out of town and visit our mother every year during the holidays. Although we speak with her often throughout the year, we are beginning to wonder if she could use some help to stay safe and happy at home. How do we know when it’s time to get help, and what should we do?

A: This is a concern we hear often, especially during the holiday season when families reunite and notice changes in their loved ones. It’s common for seniors to underplay their challenges, but some signs are hard to ignore: skipped meals or an increase in processed snacks, missed medications, changes in personal hygiene, and a lack of meaningful social interaction.

At Best Senior Care, we specialize in providing compassionate, professional caregivers who don’t just assist with daily activities like cooking, bathing, and medication reminders. Our caregivers build connections, creating a sense of purpose and engagement for your loved one. Whether it’s companionship, help around the house, or simply peace of mind for families like yours, we’re here to help. Let us ensure your loved one can stay safely and joyfully in their home—no need for a costly assisted living facility.

brew Home also earned a “high performing” rating for both short-term rehabilitation and long-term care from U.S. News & World Report. Only 5% of the 15,000 nursing homes surveyed won that rating in both categories of care.

“Our commitment to service excellence extends back more than a century,” said Bruce J. Lederman, president and CEO of Charles E. Smith Life Communities, which operates the 1,100-bed property.

“While we maintain high standards regardless of appraisals by others, it’s always rewarding to receive such recognition,” he added.

For more information about the Hebrew Home of Greater Washington, call (301) 770-8496.

Real estate rules

From page B-6

for home buyers.

Some real estate brokerage firms are already experimenting with new pricing models — such as offering buyers and sellers a menu of services with a billing rate for each service available.

When reviewing a contract, look for red flags, such as a requirement to compensate an agent before you decide to become a client, or a provision that combines compensation for the listing agent and buyer’s agent, which violates the spirit of the new rules, the CFA suggests.

Because you must enter into a contractual agreement, it’s more important than ever to work with a competent, reputable real estate agent, Brobeck said.

Start by asking friends and relatives who have purchased homes for referrals to agents they’ve been pleased with, with the goal of identifying at least three prospective agents to interview, he said.

Use real estate websites such as Zillow

Best U.S. places to live

Each year, AARP analyzes American cities and towns for the “services and amenities that affect people’s lives the most as they age,” according to its website. Last fall, AARP announced the Top 100 Places to live for older adults in 2024. In Virginia, the top 10 places were Falls Church, Arlington, Vienna, Alexandria, Charlottesville, Herndon, Fairfax City, Fairfax County, Vinton and Blacksburg. In Maryland, Montgomery County, Rockville and Takoma Park made the list. To see where your community was ranked, visit livabilityindex.aarp.org.

and Realtor.com to research an agent’s recent sales and customer reviews.

Finally, a prospective agent should provide you with a copy of the contract, be willing to discuss the terms, and give you plenty of time to review it.

What sellers need to know

If you have decided to put your home on the market, you still have the option of offering compensation to a buyer’s agent. This decision will depend on several factors, including your local housing market, and whether you think paying a buyer’s agent or broker will make your home more attractive to potential buyers. Your own real estate agent (if you use one) must receive your approval for any agreement to pay a buyer’s broker, as well as the amount of the payment. The terms must be disclosed to you in writing. This item first appeared in Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine.

© 2024 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

FREE HOUSING AND OTHER INFORMATION

Check off advertisers of interest and mail this coupon to the Beacon with your contact info. Or you may take a picture of your completed coupon and email it to housing@thebeaconnewspapers.com.

All coupons received by February 14 will be entered into a random drawing to win tickets to The Music Man at Toby’s. You need not request information to win.

HEALTH INSURANCE/ MEDICARE ADVANTAGE

r Humana – Salmon

.B8

HOME HEALTH CARE

r Best Senior Care

HOUSING

r Ashby Ponds/Erickson .

r Brooke Grove Retirement Village

.B8

.B5, B14

.B10, B11, B13, B14

r Cascades at Frederick

r Charles E. Smith Life Communities

.B7

.B3

r Chevy Chase House .

.B2, B10

r Grandview, The/Erickson .B5, B13

r Greenspring/Erickson . . . .B5, B12

r Homecrest House .

.B6, B12

r Housing Initiative Partnership . .B7

r Inspīr Embassy Row

.B10

r Park View Bladensburg . . . . . . .B15

r Park View Columbia .

r Park View Emerson .

r Park View Laurel

.B15

.B15

.B15

r Riderwood/Erickson . . . . .B5, B12

r Vinson Hall

r Willow Manor at Cabin Branch

.B4, B13

.B6

r Willow Manor at Colesville . . . . .B4

r Woodleigh Chase/ Erickson

.B5, B14

SKILLED NURSING/ REHABILITATION

r Brooke Grove Rehabilitation . .B10

r Hebrew Home of Greater Washington .

TRAVEL

. . .B3

r Collette Tours/Iceland . . . . . . . .B16

Check the boxes you’re interested in and mail (or email a photo of) this coupon to: The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915-2227; email housing@thebeaconnewspapers.com You may return the free info form on page 5 together with this coupon.

INDEPENDENT LIVING • ASSISTED LIVING • MEMORY CARE

Inspīr

Embassy Row

202-293-2100

2100 Massachusetts Ave NW Washington, DC 20008

https://inspirseniorliving.com/senior-living-washington-dc

In the heart of Washington, D.C.’s prestigious Embassy Row neighborhood, a beacon of luxury senior living is emerging, poised to set a new standard in assisted living and memory care. Inspīr Embassy Row, formerly the historic Fairfax at Embassy Row hotel, is undergoing a remarkable transformation, and at its core lies a commitment to providing an exceptional lifestyle for older adults. At Inspīr Embassy Row, residents will experience a lifestyle that combines comfort, elegance, and the finest amenities. From the moment one steps through the doors, it’s evident that this is more than just a place to live; it is Senior Living redefined. Call 202-293-2100 to learn more or to schedule a private tour at our Leasing Gallery.

ASSISTED LIVING COMMUNITY

Chevy Chase House

202-905-0708

5420 Connecticut Avenue NW Washington, DC 20015 www.chevychasehouse.com

Chevy Chase House provides boutique assisted living for older adults looking for personalized care without compromising lifestyle and active living. In addition to 24-hour nursing available, the community features Life Inspired, the daily activities program that promotes overall wellness, socialization, and a Chef-prepared dining experience. Unique to the Chevy Chase House is its partnership with FOX Rehab to not only provide on-site physical, occupational and speech therapies, but also employs a full-time exercise physiologist to help residents with improving balance and mobility, strength training, and fall prevention programming. Conveniently located on Connecticut Avenue in D.C. Call 202-905-0708 to schedule a tour or stop by Chevy Chase House to learn more.

REHABILITATION

Brooke Grove

Retirement Village

301-321-8707

18100 Slade School Road

Sandy Spring, MD 20860 www.bgf.org

Imagine an extraordinary staff and the best therapies and equipment—in a beautiful environment that rejuvenates and restores. Physical therapy spaces bathed in sunlight. The quiet comfort of a garden walk or relaxing massage. Imagine getting back to the activities that matter to you. Our new, state-of-the-art rehab addition at Brooke Grove Rehabilitation and Nursing Center offers innovative therapy services for seniors, including NeuroGym® Technologies mobility training, the Korebalance system and much more. Visit us to see why Brooke Grove Retirement Village is one of the most sought-after continuing-care retirement communities in the state. Rehab here is simply different… because what surrounds you really matters.

Know which remodeling projects pay off

By Robyn A. Friedman

Are you planning to spruce up your home? Whether you’re getting ready to sell your house or you’re just tired of having a dated kitchen or bathroom, it’s important to make smart, cost-effective choices when you renovate.

If you expect to stay put for a while, even a minor remodeling project can enhance your enjoyment of the space.

And if you plan to put your house on the market soon, you can give it a competitive edge by painting, updating lighting fixtures and appliances, or even refreshing a bathroom or two before listing it.

Tips for sellers

If you’re making upgrades in anticipation of putting your home up for sale, do your research first to make sure it’s money well spent.

After all, not all fix-it projects yield the same return on investment. Why plunk money down on a project that won’t provide a reasonable return when you sell?

“If you have a house that looks old or worn, your potential buyers will discount their offer by their estimate of what it will take to bring it up to par,” said Mari Adam, a certified financial planner in Boca Raton, Florida.

“But while it’s great to make your house look fresher and up to date, you don’t want to over-improve it or do idiosyncratic projects that won’t appeal to a potential buyer.”

Consult an agent. One way to help get the most value for your remodeling buck is to consult an experienced local real estate agent.

A local agent understands the market, knows what’s selling and what’s not, and is familiar with the homes that will compete against yours. He or she knows what it will take to present your home in the best possible light and can make suggestions of projects to improve its marketability.

In tight markets, where there is limited inventory and buyers still compete for available homes, it may not be necessary to make any improvements because buyers will snap up anything that becomes available. A local agent knows this and can be of tremendous value to sellers.

Get the data. Another valuable resource is the annual Cost vs. Value (CVV) report from Zonda, a housing data and consultancy firm. This report analyzes 23 common home-renovation projects to determine how much value those projects retain at resale.

Results of the CVV report are often surprising. For example, many homeowners believe that a kitchen or bath remodel will provide the most return on their investment.

But the 2024 CVV report, released in April 2024 and based on 2023 data, found that a garage door replacement was the

top-performing project. With an average cost of $4,513 and an $8,751 resale value, a homeowner completing that project will recoup a whopping 194% of the cost.

The second- and third-ranked remodeling projects on the 2024 list were a steel entry-door replacement and installation of manufactured stone veneer, which returned 188% and 153% of their cost, respectively.

Focus on curb appeal. It’s no coincidence that all three of the top-performing projects this year are exterior projects that help to improve a home’s curb appeal.

“A buyer’s first impression of a house is super strong,” said Clay DeKorne, chief editor of Zonda’s JLC group. “When buyers drive up to a house that looks really shabby on the exterior, they form an impression that directly affects how much they want to pay for it.

“The interior may be wonderful, but they have to overcome the impressions they form about the outside.”

Curb appeal is an example of the old adage, “You don’t get a second chance to make a first impression.”

Prospective buyers assume that if a house is well maintained, with an updated exterior, fresh paint, flowers and manicured landscaping, that the owner has been equally attentive to routine maintenance of the rest of the house, DeKorne said.

The CVV also indicates which home-improvement projects don’t deliver value. An upscale bathroom addition, for example — a project with an average cost of $107,477 — returns just 32.6% of that cost at sale. And an upscale primary suite addition, with an average cost of $339,513, has a return of just 23.9%.

That’s why home sellers need to carefully assess their planned projects to make sure they don’t spend money they won’t get back on the sale of their homes.

The full Cost vs. Value report breaks down the average cost and resale value for projects by region as well as nationwide.

If you plan to stay a while

Even if you’re not planning to sell your house soon, the CVV report can help guide you if you’re on a budget. Many of the projects with the highest return on investment are also among the ones with the lowest costs.

And because you don’t have to worry about making renovations that appeal to a wide range of potential home buyers, you can choose upgrades that suit your tastes.

“People love to renovate their kitchens and bathrooms because that’s when they can put their mark on a house,” DeKorne said. “All of the selections — the countertops, flooring, cabinets, fixtures — are per-

INDEPENDENT & PERSONAL CARE COMMUNITIES

B’nai

B’rith Homecrest House

301-244-3579

14508 Homecrest Road

Silver Spring, MD 20906 www.homecresthouse.org

Homecrest House is a non-profit, affordable, subsidized senior adult community nestled amidst 10 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds with its own lake, neighboring Leisure World. The three residential buildings on the B’nai B’rith Homecrest campus provide 235 apartments for Independent Living, some designed for adults with physical mobility challenges, and 42 apartments offering Enhanced Care Services. We are excited to have you come and see our elegantly renovated community buildings. You’re invited to tour this incredible transformation.

For a personalized tour now, call 301-244-3579 or visit us at www.homecresthouse.org

INDEPENDENT LIVING COMMUNITY

Greenspring Retirement Community

877-589-9570

7440 Spring Village Drive • Springfield, VA 22150 GreenspringCommunity.com

Greenspring. Vibrant Senior Living. Unmatched Peace of Mind. An active lifestyle, with peace of mind awaits you at Springfield’s premier continuing care retirement community.

Stylish Homes. A Wealth of Amenities.

Choose from a variety of stylish floor plans to suit your needs and budget. You’re just steps from the fitness center, pool, clubhouses, and eight restaurants. . Exceptional Financial Value

We make life predictable and simple. Your Monthly Service Package covers all utilities, home maintenance, and amenities in a single bill. Health and Well-Being Services

Receive convenient care when you need it at the on-site medical center. The community also includes higher levels of care If your needs ever change.

Get your FREE brochure today! Call 877-589-9570 or visit GreenspringCommunity.com

INDEPENDENT LIVING COMMUNITY

Riderwood Retirement Community

877-742-4390

3140 Gracefield Road

Silver Spring, MD 20904 Riderwood.com

Discover Riderwood, Silver Spring’s Favorite Senior Living Community

Active seniors agree: Riderwood is Silver Spring’s premier continuing care retirement community, for so many reasons.

1. Maintenance-free Living

Residences are big on style, budget-friendly, and maintenance-free.

2. Resort-Style Amenities and Activities

Dine with friends, work out or swim, take a class, or watch a performance. It’s all just steps from your door.

3. Health and Well-Being Services

The on-site medical center is staffed by full-time providers. Should your needs ever change, multiple levels of care are available on-site.

Get your FREE brochure today! Call 877-742-4390 or visit Riderwood.com

Remodeling

From page B-10

sonal, and the value you get is the enjoyment of living in the space you created.”

You can spend tens of thousands of dollars to create a kitchen you love, a place where you’ll spend countless hours dining, entertaining or socializing with friends and family.

But if the buyer of your house doesn’t like the ornate cherry cabinets you selected and prefers a bright white kitchen, then that kitchen will have no value to the buyer.

Homeowners planning to stay for a while should feel free to personalize their space, choosing designs and finishes that make their house a home, rather than keeping it neutral in an attempt to appeal to a broader audience of potential home buyers.

Do what makes you happy. Debby Belt, a senior associate at Hammond Residential Real Estate in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, said clients often ask her whether a certain renovation is worthwhile.

“When I’m asked that question, the number one thing I say is, ‘Will you enjoy it?’” she said. “You can’t think of the future because, by the time you sell your house, the styles might be different.”

Below are four remodeling projects among the top 10 from the CVV report that recoup the highest percentage of their cost at resale.

We chose them not only because they are decent investments, but also because they can make your living space more enjoyable if you plan to stick around for a while.

Or, in the case of putting energy-efficient appliances in your kitchen or adding new siding, the projects can reduce energy use and save you some money on utility bills in the long run.

Plus, all these renovations have an average cost of less than $30,000, and some may run considerably less, allowing you to rejuvenate your home without breaking the bank.

Give your kitchen a facelift. A minor kitchen remodel is one of only two interior projects that are among the CVV report’s top 10 performers (the other is a midrange bath remodel; see below). The kitchen remodel costs an average of $27,492, with a resale value of $26,406, and 96.1% of the cost recouped.

Upgrade to fiber-cement siding. Replacing existing siding with new fiber-cement siding has an average job cost of $20,619, a resale value of $18,230, and a return on investment of 88.4%.

Fiber-cement siding, while more expensive than vinyl, is durable and long-lasting, and it performs better in moist environments, according to Elizabeth Gomez, coowner of Bridge City Contracting in Battle Ground, Washington.

The most important component of the installation process, which takes about three to five days for a 1,250-square-foot siding job, is the wrap that goes under the siding, because it weatherizes the house and protects it from moisture issues such as dry rot and black mold, she said.

If your existing siding is in good shape and you’re primarily interested in boosting

curb appeal, one way to re-side a house cost-effectively is to do only the front.

That’s what Danielle Kilian did in 2021, when she installed fiber-cement siding on the front of her 1,546-square-foot home in Vancouver, Washington, at a total cost of about $13,000, including painting and a new front door.

“The rest of the siding was in goodenough condition, and we did the front to update the look of the house,” said Kilian, events director for the Building Industry Association of Clark County.

“The front is what is seen by neighbors and by ourselves when we come home. So that was the most important piece for us, and we were able to do it in an affordable way.”

Build a deck. The addition of a wood deck has an average cost of $17,615, a resale value of $14,596, and a return of 82.9%.

The construction of a 16-by-20-foot wood deck takes less than a week, according to Michael Ebner, owner of Back to Nature Decks in Oreland, Pennsylvania. Once the deck is completed, he recommends sealing it (and re-sealing every year or two to preserve it).

Ebner notes that about 80% of his clients opt for a composite deck instead of wood. The price is higher than wood — an average $24,206 for a 16-by-20-foot deck with similar specifications — but composite will last longer, Ebner said.

It’s good for 20 to 30 years with no maintenance. So, if you’re planning to stay in your house for more than 10 years, he said the composite is “a no-brainer.”

One tip Ebner has for homeowners who want a deck is to go big. “A 16-by-20-foot deck is decent, but with all the amenities people have now — grills and furniture and a fire pit — think about extending the budget a bit to make it bigger. You will always fill it.”

The incremental price of building a slightly larger deck is not substantial, he said, adding about $40 to $45 per square foot to the cost.

Update a bathroom. Renovating a bathroom can add tremendous value to a home. A mid-range bathroom remodel comes with an average job cost of $25,251, a resale value of $18,613, and a return on investment of 73.7%.

Bardin said that what starts as a simple bathroom remodel may end up being more comprehensive if the plumbing or electrical systems need to be updated as well.

Bardin has two tips for homeowners planning a bathroom remodel. First, for the sink, he recommends a single-hole faucet, not the type with a spout and two handles. He said the single position has fewer problems, lasts longer and is easier to clean.

Second, if a tub/shower is being installed, he said it’s critical that it be no deeper than 14 inches because it’s challenging for a homeowner or guest to step over anything higher, especially with wet feet.

He suggests that anyone who wants a soaking tub install it in the primary bath, not a secondary bath that children and guests will be using.

©2024 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Ten safe, livable communities for retirees

By Kathryn Pomroy

Retirement is all about freedom and choice. It’s doing what you want on your terms — like moving to a new town to be closer to family, craving warmer weather, or simply wishing for a different view from your kitchen window.

Making sure the retirement town you choose is safe and yet still provides everything you need when you retire is vital to any move.

Analyzing data from the U.S. Census American Community Survey, Sperling’s BestPlaces and the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey, GoBankingRates found cities that are both “wealthy” and “safe.” Cities were considered when at least 25% of the population was age 65 or older.

Here are the top 10 ranked for safety and livability with low crime, high retirement income and affordable living for retirees:

1.Oro Valley, Arizona

Oro Valley is a suburban town six miles north of Tucson, Arizona. It sits at the base of the Santa Catalina Mountains.

In 2020, the population was 47,070. Called the “Upscale Tech Mecca” of Southern Arizona, Oro Valley has a median household income nearly 50% higher than most towns of the same size.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 0.57

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 11.41

•Ages 65+ average retirement income:

$52,098

•Single-family average home value:

$525,380

•Livability score: 81

2.Pinehurst, North Carolina

Pinehurst, dubbed the “Home of American Golf,” is a village in Moore County, North Carolina. In 2020, the population was 17,581, including the village and the Pinehurst Golf Resort, which has hosted multiple U.S. Open Championships.

In the early 2020s, the area was considered one of the best micropolitan areas in North Carolina for the quality of local amenities, solid medical complexes and tourism.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 0.43

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 3.40

•Ages 65+ average retirement income:

$50,351

•Single-family average home value:

$542,557

•Livability score: 73

3.Bella Vista, Arkansas

Bella Vista is situated at the base of the Ozark Mountains in Arkansas. Between the 2000 and 2020 censuses, the city experienced an 82% growth in population.

The town is considered a retirement community with low crime and abundant medical and recreational facilities aimed at retirees.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 1.48

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 3.81

•Ages 65+ average retirement income:

$32,209

•Single-family average home value:

$336,590

•Livability score: 65

4.Rancho Palos Verdes, California

Rancho Palos Verdes is located south of Los Angeles on the Pacific Ocean. It’s an affluent community with a median household income of $118,893.

It also offers plenty of opportunities for outdoor recreation, like hiking, camping and walking on the beach. The city had a population of 42,287 as of 2020.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 1.18

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 8.48

•Ages 65+ average retirement income:

$72,238

•Single-family average home value:

$1,913,039

•Livability score: 58

5.Georgetown, Texas

Located about 30 miles north of Austin, Texas, the city has a population of 96,312, according to 2023 census estimates. The estimated median household income in 2022 was $97,533 with the average price of a single-family home of about $443,000.

The crime rate is much lower than the U.S. average, and amenities for seniors are abundant.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 1.59

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 11.71

•Ages 65+ average retirement income:

$46,886

•Single-family average home value:

$442,904

•Livability score: 83

6.Centerville, Ohio

Centerville is a suburb of Dayton, Ohio, with a population of 25,156 in 2022. The town has a median income of $80,518 and the average single-family home sells for just over $329,000.

The town is known for low crime and a lower cost of living than many towns of the same size. Although a smaller city, Centerville offers many amenities targeted to seniors, as well as a robust medical community.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 0.47

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 14.01

•Ages 65+ average retirement income:

$36,275

•Single-family average home value:

$329,817

•Livability score: 84

7.Mesquite, Nevada

Mesquite sits on the Arizona state line,

Vinson Hall Retirement Community

571-556-4136

6251 Old Dominion Drive McLean, VA 22101 www.vinsonhall.org

Living Well, All Winter Long Explore the Lifestyle at Vinson Hall With the start of a new year, Vinson Hall Retirement Community residents are staying warm and keeping active with all of the social opportunities available on campus. Located in McLean, Virginia, our maintenance-free community covers the snow shoveling, gutter cleaning and other repairs -so you can spend the winter focusing on friendship and fun! Favorite resident activities include: Indoor fitness classes -including water aerobics in our heated pool -woodworking, art lessons, lifelong learning lectures, coffee meetups and happy hours. To make this lifestyle your own, schedule a tour to see all the activities that await!

Call 571-556-4136 or visit VinsonHall.org.

INDEPENDENT LIVING COMMUNITY

Introducing The Grandview 1-844-366-4206

6701 Democracy Blvd., Suite 150-B Bethesda, MD 20817 TheGrandviewSeniorLiving.com

The Grandview: Distinctive Senior Living in the Perfect Location

The GrandviewSM is the stunning new senior living community coming to Bethesda, Maryland scheduled to open in the fall of 2025. Construction is well underway and they are now accepting reservations for apartment homes. Active living in the ideal location, The Grandview provides easy access to the area’s shopping, dining, entertainment, and cultural attractions.

Your future with The Grandview is just a phone call away. Call 1-844-366-3267 to learn more or schedule a visit to the sales center where you can view floor plans, virtual tours, renderings and more.

The Grandview is pending approval from the Maryland Department of Aging.

INDEPENDENT LIVING COMMUNITY

Brooke Grove Retirement Village 301-321-8707

18100 Slade School Road Sandy Spring, MD 20860 www.bgf.org

You’ll feel it as soon as you drive onto our 220-acre campus of lush pastures and hardwood forest—all that makes independent living at Brooke Grove different. Beautiful cottages in a truly picturesque setting. Maintenance-free living, with more time for what you really want to do. Personalized fitness programs, meals prepared by talented chefs, clubs and social events. Neighbors who share your interests and passions. Come for a visit and see why Brooke Grove Retirement Village is one of the most soughtafter retirement communities in the state. Living here is simply different … because what surrounds you really matters.

Conceptual Rendering

Ashby Ponds 877-664-5445

44795 Audubon Square

Ashburn, VA 20147

AshbyPonds.com

Ashby Ponds. More of What You Want in Senior Living. There’s more to love at Loudoun County’s premier continuing care retirement community:

• More Amenities: Enjoy nine on-site dining venues, the fitness centers and pools, 100+ clubs and activities, a day spa, a gorgeous and gated 132-acre campus, and more.

• More Value: Most of your regular expenses, plus amenities, are included in your Monthly Service Package. This predictable monthly bill covers utilities, property taxes, home maintenance, and more.

• More Peace of Mind: In addition to an on-site medical center, the community offers higher levels of care should you ever need them.

Get your FREE brochure today! Call 1-877-664-5445 or visit AshbyPonds.com

ASSISTED LIVING & MEMORY CARE

18100 Slade School Road

Sandy Spring, MD 20860

www.bgf.org

This community hums with warm-hearted camaraderie and a zest for life shared by residents and staff alike. Experience all that makes assisted living at Brooke Grove extraordinary. Cozy, homelike dwellings with easy access to beautiful courtyards and walking paths. Caring staff trained in using memory support techniques, building independence and lifting self-esteem. Innovative LIFE® Enrichment Programming with meaningful activities and off-site adventures. Visit us to see why Brooke Grove Retirement Village is one of the most sought-after continuing care retirement communities in the state. Living here is simply different … because what surrounds you really matters.

Retirement towns

From page B-13

about 80 miles northeast of Las Vegas. In 2020, the population was 21,992. Singlefamily home values are on the upper end of $400,000.

Crime is low, the weather is hot and winters are mild. It is a growing retirement community that offers several casino resorts and golf courses.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 1.89

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 11.97

•Ages 65+ average retirement income: $39,396

•Single-family average home value: $406,306

•Livability score: 76

8.Lincoln, California

Lincoln is par t of the Sacramento metropolitan area in northern California. The city grew 282% between 2000 and 2010, making it the fastest-growing city in the U.S. for cities over 10,000 people. Its population in 2022 was 52,534, with just over 23% over the age of 65.

Lincoln is hot in the summer and cool and wet in the winter. Although home values are high, the Bay area and its abundant recreational activities and medical facilities nearby make Lincoln a top-10 city for retirees.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 1.43

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 6.91

•\Ages 65+ average retirement income: $47,966

•Single-family average home value: $646,552

•Livability score: 67

9.Prescott, Arizona

Prescott is a picturesque city located in

Aging in place

From page B-15

care, led by a skilled care manager who organizes virtual family meetings and provides a dashboard giving information about things like medical appointments.

Other websites like CaringBridge and Lotsa Helping Hands help family members coordinate caregiving or meals.

northern Arizona. Over the past several years, the town has grown and flourished, and home prices have skyrocketed in response.

Known as a vacation spot for tourists, Prescott has low crime, warm summers and mild winters, a welcoming change for people relocating out of colder areas of the country.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 3.51

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 14.42

•Ages 65+ average retirement income: $40,660

•Single-family average home value: $614,569

•Livability score: 72

10.Huntley, Illinois

Huntley is 48 miles nor thwest of the Chicago Loop. A bedroom community, the population in 2022 was 28,138. The average Chicago home value is currently $298,325, according to Zillow, while the average home in Huntley goes for over $400,000. However, the crime rate is quite low.

The city’s small downtown area has restaurants and shops designed to attract the over-50 age group, and commuting into the city of Chicago makes it easy to access amenities and healthcare.

•Violent crime per 1,000 residents: 0.42

•Property crime rate per 1,000 residents: 5.19

•Ages 65+ average retirement income: $30,962

•Single-family average home value: $400,135

•Livability score: 73

© 2024 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

EverSafe allows family members to monitor finances without having access to the funds, which provides added protection for the older person.

Everplans is a digital tool that helps avoid document and account clutter. This tool provides alerts, helps people store documents, videos, checklists and even passwords, making these things easy to find when the need arises.

1-877-211-6968

4595 Burke Station Rd. Fairfax, VA 22032 WoodleighChase.com

More Fun. More Value. More Peace of Mind. For distinctive retirement living, look no further than Woodleigh ChaseSM, the premier senior living community in Fairfax. Enjoy a variety of stylish floor plans, exciting amenities, and services to enhance your health and well-being—all in a location you love!

Stay active and enjoy countless opportunities to explore hobbies, entertainment, education, and more. The on-site medical center is just steps from your door and security staff trained in emergency response is just moments away.

Don’t wait to learn more!

Call 1-877-211-6968 or visit WoodleighChase.com for your free brochure.

“You can have a signup list for who’s going to bring mom dinner on Tuesday,” Goyer explained.

Tech for protecting finances

Caregivers can use apps and websites to monitor their loved ones’ finances to ensure they’re not being scammed and are paying their bills, said Genevieve Waterman, director of corporate partnerships and engagement for the National Council on Aging. They can monitor their email and set up alerts through banks to look for unusual activity. One company, EverSafe, gives financial caregivers the ability to monitor a loved one’s accounts, Waterman said.

EverSafe monitors all of a person’s accounts, including credit, banking and retirement savings. The service learns the account holder’s normal behaviors and detects changes, sending alerts to the account holder and their designated care team.

Looking ahead

While conventional wisdom said older people spurn technology, surveys show the gap in use is narrowing between generations.

According to Gallup, 61% of those 65 and older owned smartphones in 2022, compared to 96% of those ages 18 to 29, a difference of 35 percentage points. That gap was 53 points 10 years earlier.

Gallup also found 83% of those 50 to 64 own smartphones, suggesting older people’s technology use will continue to increase as the population ages.

Note: A longer version of this article appeared in Kiplinger’s Retirement Report, a monthly periodical that covers key concerns of affluent older Americans who are retired or preparing for retirement. © 2024 Kiplinger Washington Editors. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency LLC

How tech makes aging in place possible

By Elaine Silvestrini

Older adults may not have grown up with the internet or smartphones, but this generation of retirees is increasingly embracing tech solutions to help them age in place.

“Technology has an array of uses that are really going to help people retire in almost a different way,” said Kathleen Cameron, senior director of the National Council on Aging’s Center for Healthy Aging.

For family members, “technology is the one thing that has changed caregiving the most,” said Amy Goyer, a caregiving expert with AARP.

Tech can solve many problems

Beyond Zoom and other forms of video calling, technology is providing solutions ranging from remote health monitoring to financial tracking and automatic stove switches.

“Smart” homes incorporate the ability to remotely answer doors, turn on lights, control temperature, play music and contact loved ones.

Technology is also allowing older adults to socialize, learn and experience travel from the comfort and safety of their homes.

Robotic pets can provide companionship and a sense of purpose. The future could include robotic solutions to help with daily living tasks and potential uses for virtual reality, which has shown promise for dementia patients.

“Technology is absolutely going to help people stay in their homes longer for multiple reasons,” said Goyer.

“To stay in your home and be as active as possible, you need to have physical activity and mental stimulation, socialization. You need to take care of your health, and you need to be safe in your home. Technology can address all of those things.”

Most want to age in place

As the country’s resources strain to meet the needs of a swelling older population, tech solutions can’t come soon enough. The number of Americans over 65 has grown from 40.3 million in 2010 to about 56 million now. That number is projected to reach about 80 million by 2030.

At the same time, long-term care resources are declining. Between 2020 and 2023, one report found, 579 nursing homes closed, with 55% of nursing homes in the U.S. turning away prospective residents and 21% reducing the number of beds or units.

And surveys show nearly 80% of people 50 and older prefer to age in place. According to Pew Research Center, 27% of Americans age 60 and older live alone in the U.S., compared to 16% of adults in 130 other countries and territories studied.

The challenge becomes how to enable older people to stay home while minimizing the stress on family caregivers and, when necessary, making do alone.

Medical monitoring and care

During the pandemic, house calls from

doctors surged — but instead of ringing the doorbell, doctors called patients’ smartphones.

The availability of telehealth and remote mental healthcare exploded, enabling patients to have virtual doctor visits in appropriate circumstances.

Additionally, the Council on Aging’s Cameron said, the use of devices that enable remote medical monitoring has “really grown quite a bit over the last several years,” allowing medical providers to keep track of things like patients’ blood pressure, blood glucose levels and other health metrics.

“I think that we’re going to see even more of this as the technology continues to advance in that regard — and Medicare pays for it,” Cameron said.

Tech that keeps people safe

Caregivers who don’t reside with their older loved ones may use technology to keep track of their well-being. Many smartwatches, for example, can detect when the wearer falls and can send alerts.

Video doorbells and digital locks also enable caregivers to monitor visitors and remotely ensure people who need to get inside are allowed in, while others are kept away.

“If you have someone coming in to help your mother with bathing three days a week, but she is not able to hear the doorbell or might be asleep and miss the person, then you can give them a code to get into the house and set it up,” Goyer said.

Another option is a system that includes motion sensors, which allow monitoring a loved ones’ movements around the home, checking that they’re up and out of bed and haven’t fallen.

Another danger is leaving the stove on,

particularly when a person has some cognitive decline. Goyer said there are monitors for stoves and microwaves that can automatically turn them off when they’re left on unattended for too long.

One is called iGuard Stove and it can be purchased for about $500 at stores, including Best Buy, which can also arrange installation and setup.

For long-distance caregiving

Family members may live in different cities and states, or even just have different schedules and demands, and yet still want to keep track of and care for older members. Tech can facilitate coordinating appointments and connections.

A service called Wellthy enables family members to participate in a loved one’s

ENTERPRISE RESIDENTIAL

MOST COMMUNITIES ARE 62 AND BETTER

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY

The Greens at Hammonds Lane: 410-636-1141

Park View at Furnace Branch: 410-761-4150

Park View at Severna Park: 410-544-3411

BALTIMORE CITY

Ednor Apartments I: 410-243-0180

Ednor Apartments II: 410-243-4301

The Greens at Irvington Mews: 410-644-4487

Park Heights Place: 410-578-3445

Park View at Ashland Terrace: 410-276-6440

Park View at Coldspring: 410-542-4400

BALTIMORE COUNTY

Cove Point Apartments I: 410-288-2344

Cove Point Apartments II: 410-288-1660

Evergreen Senior Apartments: 410-780-4888

The Greens at English Consul: 410-789-3000

The Greens at Liberty Road: 410-655-1100

The Greens at Logan Field: 410-288-2000

The Greens at Rolling Road: 410-744-9988

Park View at Catonsville: 410-719-9464

Park View at Dundalk: 410-288-5483 • 55 & Better

Park View at Fullerton: 410-663-0665

Park View at Miramar Landing: 410-391-8375

Park View at Randallstown: 410-655-5673

BALTIMORE COUNTY (CONT.)

Park View at Rosedale: 410-866-1886

Park View at Taylor: 410-663-0363

Park View at Towson: 410-828-7185

Park View at Woodlawn: 410-281-1120

EASTERN SHORE

Park View at Easton: 410-770-3070

HARFORD COUNTY

Park View at Bel Air: 410-893-0064

Park View at Box Hill: 410-515-6115

HOWARD COUNTY

Park View at Colonial Landing: 410-796-4399

Park View at Columbia: 410-381-1118

Park View at Ellicott City: 410-203-9501

Park View at Ellicott City II: 410-203-2096

Park View at Emerson: 301-483-3322

Park View at Snowden River: 410-290-0384

PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY

Park View at Bladensburg: 301-699-9785 • 55 & Better

Park View at Laurel: 301-490-1526

Park View at Laurel II: 301-490-9730

Money Law &

For three good ways to help adult children financially, see story on page 14.

Ways to avoid or respond to identity theft

By Mallika Mitra

Eva Velasquez is president and CEO of the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), a nonprofit that supports victims of identity theft. Here, she talks about key identity theft problems to know about in 2025.

Q. What are the most common identity theft schemes?

A. Our most recent contact center data shows that 51% of personally identifiable information (PII) compromises — which take place when someone is trying to access your personal information — come from scams, with the most common types of scams being impersonation and employment scams.

Impersonation scams occur when whoever is on the other end of the interaction is not who they say they are. They may say they’re from Amazon and your delivery is delayed, or they may pose as a credit card representative, asking whether you authorized a purchase.

With job and employment scams, we’re seeing fraudulent postings on legitimate sites such as Indeed and LinkedIn, as well as unsolicited text messages and emails from phony recruiters.

Q. What trends in ID theft do you

expect to see in 2025?

A. It’s hard to predict the next global event, such as a pandemic or natural disaster, but that’s what the scammers love to leverage. During those events, consumers know something is going on but don’t have a lot of information, and then they get a bunch of requests for money or information from scammers.

Business impersonation, which occurs when someone claims to be from a company, such as Amazon or your bank, is going to continue to grow in 2025 because bad actors can easily purchase stolen personal information on the dark web and use it to seem credible when they contact victims.

There are also a lot of social media account takeovers, in which bad actors hack into someone’s account and then reach out to their connections and friends to ask for donations and information.

Social media companies aren’t responding quickly enough to these takeovers, so people end up walking away from hacked accounts. We have a proliferation of accounts that are no longer in the original owner’s control.

Q. What can people do to protect

themselves from scams?

A. Approach all digital communication with skepticism. If you didn’t initiate the contact with an entity that is requesting information or money from you, go to the source and verify that it reached out to you.

That may mean calling the phone number on your credit card if someone purports to be from your card company, responding to a voice message from someone who says they’re from your utility company by finding the company’s number online, or checking the message center in your Amazon account if you receive an email or text message from someone who says they work for Amazon.

Our recent data also shows that 16% of PII compromises were the result of lost or stolen items, so remember that your smartphone and other devices are just as important as your wallet, and you need to treat them as such.

Make sure that a lock screen is enabled on all your devices, and use biometric authentication of your face or fingerprint. Also, enable “location detection” for your device and the ability to remotely delete information from it if it is stolen.

Finally, freezing your credit is one of the most robust measures you can take to prevent fraud.

Q. What should you do if your personal information is involved in a data breach?

A. You have limited options once your information has been exposed, but you can react quickly to news of a breach.

The most important first step is to understand what specific data of yours was compromised. If your username and password were stolen, you should immediately change your password on any account where you’ve used the compromised password.

We have a free tool on the ITRC website, idtheftcenter.org, where you can see whether a company has had a breach before you do business with it. You can also sign up to get an alert if a company you do business with experiences a breach in the future.

This item first appeared in Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine, a monthly source of advice and guidance. Subscribe to help you make more money and keep more of the money you make.

© 2024 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Use tax software or a tax professional?

By Marguerita M. Cheng

Many people find tax-preparation software to be very useful, and most tax software is simple to use, cost-efficient (especially when compared to the cost of hiring a certified public accountant, or CPA) and fast — some returns may be completed in just an hour.

The proof of its popularity: The tax-prep software market was valued at $17.9 billion in 2024 by Fortune Business Insights and is projected to grow to $47.9 billion by 2032.

As we approach a new tax year, you might be wondering whether you could ditch your tax professional and go with tax software. It depends on the nature of your financial situation.

Let’s consider some financial situations that are appropriate for tax software and some that might require the expertise of a tax professional.

When should you consider using tax software?

Tax-prep software is most appropriate when your financial situation is straightforward. In the world of tax, the following qualifies as a straightforward financial situation:

• You opt for the standard deduction, a fixed amount that is subtracted from your income to arrive at your taxable income, instead of itemizing your deductions.

• You earn only employment income and receive a Form W-2 from your employer.

• You invest only in traditional assets like stocks and bonds.

• You’ve resided in only one state all year.

In essence, the fewer your tax events and the fewer tax forms you will need to complete, the more you can rely on taxprep software.

When should you stick to a tax professional?

However, the financial situations of many people are more complicated. If any of the following apply to you, tax-prep software might not be entirely up to the job:

• You itemize your deductions rather than using the standard deduction.

• You have multiple sources of income, such as 1099 income (dividends, rental income, earnings from a side hustle, etc.), or you juggle two or more jobs.

• You are self-employed or own a business.

• If you are a partner in a business, you will need to report your share of income, losses, deductions and credits on Form K1. The form also applies if you have shares in an S corporation.

• You earn income in multiple jurisdictions.

• You own non-traditional assets such

as commodities, derivatives and currencies, among others.

• You are focused on retirement planning and estate planning and need help identifying tax-efficient strategies to maximize your retirement income and the estate you leave to your loved ones.

• You sold a business. The tax implications will depend on the business structure (LLC, partnership, S Corp, etc.) and whether it is an asset sale (selling the business assets) or stock sale (selling ownership). Tax professionals can help you minimize your tax liability.

• You received equity compensation. Different tax rules apply to the four types of stock (or equity) compensation — restricted stock awards, restricted stock units, non-qualified stock options and incentive stock options. Tax professionals

The best ways to help your adult children

By Evan T. Beach

There is definitely a sweet spot when it comes to family wealth. Not enough money comes with problems. Too much money comes with different problems. The numbers are different for everyone.

One thing I’ve seen among the wealthier families we work with is a hesitation to give money to their kids for fear they will run into the problems that come with too much.

I often tell these folks that money can be a rope, or it can be quicksand. It can help your kids up, or it can totally sink them. This depends on the amount, the method and, most important, the kid.

Below are three ways to help your adult

child get ahead without having to fear it will sink them. The common thread here is that each of these categories of expense lasts for a finite period.

In working with retirees, I am much less worried about one-time expenses than I am about smaller, ongoing debits. You can plan for something that has an end date.

As with all gifts, use the “airline oxygen mask” example: Make sure you put on your mask first to ensure you have enough money for yourself before you pass it down.

1. Education

When I was 22, I was sitting in an ING office in Philadelphia. One of the many people

I shared my “office” with asked our boss what stock he thought they should buy.

The boss said, “If you have enough money to buy stocks, invest in yourself instead and go get your CFP.”

The CFP (Certified Financial Planner™) certification is one of the less expensive professional development programs, but when you consider the cost of going back to school, taking a review course and paying for the exam, you’re probably spending about $10,000. The return on investment on this will be significantly more than what you can earn in the market.

ance, will help them instantly build equity.

3. Child care

If you study trends of income vs. expenses over a typical lifespan (as I realize almost no one does), you’ll find things are tightest, and most likely to cross into the red, in the early years of having kids.

You have all the one-time expenses: cribs, fancy strollers, car seats, etc. But the big one, the one that everyone complains about, is daycare.

The Career Gateway! features small classes, 30 hours of intensive training over two weeks, a long-term mentor, and valuable take-home materials

WHEN: 2025 Sessions: #3:January 13, 15, 17, 22, 23 (Interactive & Online)

#4:February 24, 26, 28 & March 3, 5 (Interactive & Online)

#4:April 7, 9, 11, 15, 16

#4:June 9, 11, 13, 16, 18

ALSO: Optional emplyment-related tech classes available

$75

*We have had great success conducting these sessions as an interactive, Zoom, online experience. The format for future sessions may continue to be offered virtually or may be offered in-person. Check, when registering, whether the session will be held virtually or in-person at our JCA facility, 12320 Parklawn Drive, Rockville, MD. All classes (virtual or in-person) meet from 9 AM until 4 PM daily. Call or Email to check program's status.

or e-mail

Made possible by Montgomery County Aging & Disability Services, The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation, and the Jewish Council for the Aging.® Jewish Council for the Aging (JCA)® www.AccessJCA.org ®

This is the example I use because it’s the industry I know best, but these programs exist for most professions and can be a great way to help your kids get ahead.

Your Millennial or Gen X children may be beyond this point, but they still may be struggling to save for their own kid’s college. Even a few hundred bucks a month into a 529 plan for your grandkids is a huge help.

2. Down payment on a home

Home ownership in major metro markets has been put out of reach of many Millennials and most Gen Zers. Demographic trends, shortage of supply and high interest rates are all working against them.

Much of this recent pain is a result of Covid. However, the shortage goes back to the global financial crisis in 2008.

The silver lining is that, with the inflation we have seen over the past few years, we have also seen wages grow significantly. Many of your kids can afford the monthly mortgage payment, just as they do their rent.

The problem is, the median home price in this area is about $600,000. A 20% down payment, plus $20,000 for closing costs, means your kids would have to scrape together $140,000 to get a home with a mortgage.

That’s tough to picture for someone in their 20s or early 30s. Helping your kids get to 20%, so they can afford the payment and aren’t stuck with private mortgage insur-

We pay about $16,000 per year for our 2year-old’s preschool. Fortunately, my wife’s schedule can support this, and we have the means to pay for it, but this is a real struggle for a lot of people I talk to.

Once again, the benefit to helping during this period is that it is finite. Once kindergarten rolls around, there is a free option.

A final note on contributing to your kids’ retirement

You may have noticed that I didn’t recommend putting money into a Roth IRA or other investment vehicle for your kids. I thought about it, and I don’t think it’s a mistake to do this.

But then I thought about my own situation: I didn’t have the wiggle room to save in my early 20s.

As a financial planner, I have seen a million versions of those charts showing how much you need to save per month, based on your starting age, to hit $1 million. The amount you have to save gets exponentially larger the later you start.

This forced me to create the capacity to save. It forced me to limit spending that I may not have limited if my parents were saving for me, for retirement.

I think the tradeoff of missing a few years of savings was worth a lifetime of better habits.

© 2024 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

can help you plan how to hold and exercise these options to minimize your tax liability.

• You got divorced. If you file taxes jointly with your partner, then a divorce can complicate tax matters.

One point that you should note is that the more complicated your financial situation is, the more tax planning you need to minimize your tax liability.

While tax software can help with tax compliance — filing the necessary tax returns and paying the right amount — it cannot help much with tax planning — making decisions that will help reduce your tax liability.

Which tax professional do you need?

Though we have used “tax professional” throughout this article to refer to experts in tax matters in general, there are some key differences among who does what.

• CPAs are full-time accountants who

are very familiar with the tax code. They often work with businesses or those involved in long-term tax planning.

• Enrolled agents (EAs) can help prepare your tax return, advise you on tax matters, and even represent you before the IRS for a tax audit. The IRS issues the EA credential to those who have met the requirements.

• Tax consultants or advisers usually have the same expertise on tax matters as CPAs. You can rely on them for both tax compliance and planning, especially in more complex situations.

However, while taxation is only one area of expertise for a CPA (financial planning, financial statements preparation, etc., being others), tax consultants are laser-focused on taxation.

So, which professional should you choose? If you are looking only for tax preparation in situations that are a tad too complex for tax software, an EA may be all that you need.

However, if you are a business owner or you need long-term tax planning (especial-

MAXIMIZE YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY

Enjoy

your Social Security benefits. This free online session from AARP takes place on Mon., Jan 20 at 8 p.m. An expert on Social Security will be available to answer your questions. Sign in to your AARP.org account or create an account to register at bit.ly/SocialSecurityTips (AARP membership not required).

MEDICARE WEBINAR

This free webinar by Arlington County VICAP covers cost, coverage and ease of use to help you decide between Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage. Experts will consider your location, current and potential health needs, and financial situation. Join the conversation on Wed., Feb. 12 from 10:30 a.m. to noon. For more information and to register, email Medicarehelp@arlingtonva.us or call (703) 228-1725.

ly relating to retirement and estate planning), investing the extra bucks in tax consultants or CPAs may be appropriate.

Finally, choosing between a tax consultant and a CPA boils down to the scope of services you want. If you are a business in need of more than just tax planning, a CPA might be in a better position to help.

In sum, while tax-preparation software

BEACON BITS

Jan. 19

has revolutionized the world of taxation by providing taxpayers with a fast, cost-effective and simple way to file their tax returns, some complex financial situations still require the personal touch of a tax professional.

© 2024 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

HELP REMOVE INVASIVE PLANTS

Want to restore habitat and increase native species diversity in Arlington? Join a work party on Sun., Jan. 19 from 2 to 4 p.m. and make a difference in the return of ferns, wildflowers and the animals that depend on them at Long Branch, 625 S. Carlin Springs Rd., Arlington, VA. Register by emailing NaturalResources@arlingtonva.us. For more information, contact Barbara Farley at bfarley@arlingtonva.us or (703) 228-6535.

Arts & Style

Reads on U.S. presidency, UK monarchy

By Joshua Z. Rokach

Inauguration Day focuses our minds on leaders.

Two recent books enlighten on presidents Theodore Roosevelt, Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

A biography of Queen Elizabeth II of England illuminates the campaign-style maneuvering behind her 70-year reign.

The Loves of Theodore Roosevelt: The Women who Created a President, by Edward F. O’Keefe, Simon & Schuster, 2024, 464 pages

We think we know Theodore Roosevelt. A sickly child, he willed himself into a physically active man.

At 24, having lost his young wife in childbirth and his mother on the same day, he escaped to the Badlands of North Dakota, where he became a rancher, hunter and conservationist, leading a “strenuous life.” He then married a woman he had dated at Harvard.

president of the United States.

Three years after his landslide victory, he declared himself a lame duck. Disenchanted with his successor, he ran again as the Bull Moose candidate and lost. He died at age 60, a broken man.

All true. However, the full story fascinates. Historian Edward O’Keefe, president of the Theodore Roosevelt Library Foundation, uncovered documents lost for 70 years.

His thorough and excellently written must-read biography emphasizes that Roosevelt lived within a milieu of strong-minded women — his mother, Mittie; his sisters, especially his older sibling, Bamie; and his wives, notably his second, Edith.

Roosevelt became assistant secretary of the Navy, governor of New York, vice president and the youngest and first modern

At a pivotal point, Bamie used her connections to get him the job that made his career take off. Whenever he failed to take their advice, he regretted his unilateralism.

The Long Alliance: The Imperfect Union of Joe Biden and Barack Obama, by Gabriel Debenedetti, Holt Paperbacks, 2023, 432 pages

Roosevelt’s female family members influenced his forward-looking position on women’s rights. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, before women’s suffrage, Bamie and Edith gave Theodore the benefit of their insights. Astonishingly for that era, he took their advice.

Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign emphasized his vice presidency with Barack Obama. But when he became president, Biden criticized his former boss as timid.

Gabriel Debenedetti’s thoroughly researched book gives us the complicated, ever-changing truth about the two men’s friendship in engrossing detail. With this book, we now have a complete picture of this complicated subject. Debenedetti works as the national correspondent for New York Magazine.

the nominating process, Biden said publicly that he asked Obama not to endorse him, but reports persist that Biden remains furious.

Warmth clearly existed between the two, though. Obama offered to help with expenses related to Biden’s oldest son’s terminal brain cancer. The president also authorized a White House venue for the funeral and delivered a moving eulogy for Beau Biden.

Q: A Voyage Around the Queen, by Craig Brown, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2024, 662 pages

When Obama entered the Senate, he asked Biden, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, for a seat on the panel. Biden agreed, but viewed Obama as a lightweight. Indeed, after agreeing to join the 2008 ticket and promising not to run for president, reportedly Biden railed that he, not Obama, was qualified to be president.

Biden never stopped seeking the presidency. In 2016, when Biden wanted to run, he resented that Obama advised against it. In 2020, when Obama remained neutral in

Do monarchs need to court popular acclaim? Q: A Voyage Around the Queen, combining biography, social history and imagination, says yes.

Published in October, the comprehensive narrative by British author Craig Brown shows how an understated, self-effacing queen — an aspiring actress — kept her job through changing times.

Anti-German feeling in World War I left the Royal House, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, on shaky ground. With guile, King George V stabilized matters.

He changed the Germanic family name to the Shakesperean, Windsor, regularly addressed the Empire over the BBC, and became a beloved public personality.

Elizabeth’s father, King George VI, solidified the monarchy with his genuine

Betty Scott forged a second career mentoring young talent. Our cover story continues on page 18.

Carlos Miguel Prieto conducts Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances

Jorge Federico Osorio plays Beethoven

Outstanding Mexican artists treat the audience to timeless classics and stirring new music. Jorge Federico Osorio, hailed as “an imaginative interpreter with a powerful technique” (New York Times), takes on Beethoven’s intensely energetic Piano Concerto No. 3. Rachmaninoff’s lush and lively Symphonic Dances comes alive under the baton of Carlos Miguel Prieto—who returns following his “revolutionary,” “high-octane” 2018 NSO debut (Washington Classical Review).

Carlos Miguel Prieto , conductor Jorge Federico Osorio , piano

Jan. 16– 18 | Concert Hall

Opera in Concert: Noseda conducts Barber’s Vanessa

Immerse yourself in the passion of Samuel Barber’s tour de force in the hands of NSO Music Director and renowned opera conductor Gianandrea Noseda. Presented as part of the NSO’s annual Opera in Concert series, Vanessa is a tale of self-discovery, longing, and the raw pursuit of love. Nicole Heaston, J’Nai Bridges, Matthew Polenzani, Susan Graham, and Thomas Hampson join the orchestra as special guests. Leonard Slatkin , conductor Emanuel Ax , piano

Jan. 30 & Feb. 1 | Concert Hall

Stéphane Denève conducts Pictures at an Exhibition

Jean-Yves Thibaudet plays Khachaturian

Two phenomenal French stars return for a spirited evening of Russian masterworks. Stéphane Denève opens the program conducting Connesson’s Maslenitsa, written in celebration of the sunny Slavic folk festival. Then, powerhouse pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet performs Khachaturian’s pyrotechnic Piano Concerto. To close, Ravel’s majestic orchestration of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition carries us through a gallery of soulstirring emotion.

Stéphane Denève , conductor Jean-Yves Thibaudet , piano

Feb. 6–8 | Concert Hall

JAN.

Cody Fry & Friends featuring LANY and Sleeping

At Last

Cody Fry’s genre-bending fusion of pop and cinematic symphonic music has made him a global sensation— from American Idol, to TikTok, to the Grammys, and now to the Concert Hall stage. Following his sold-out 2023 concert with Ben Rector and the NSO, Fry joins more of today’s most innovative artists on a symphonic triple-bill with pop-rock group LANY and indie band Sleeping At Last.

Steven Reineke , conductor

Feb. 11 & 12 | Concert Hall

Vasily Petrenko conducts Tchaikovsky’s Manfred Symphony

Edgar Moreau plays SaintSaëns

Experience the torment and colorful beauty of Tchaikovsky’s four-movement symphony inspired by Lord Byron’s poem under the baton of Vasily Petrenko. Award-winning young virtuoso Edgar Moreau joins the program for Saint-Saëns’ First Cello Concerto—an impassioned departure from the standard concerto form.

Vasily Petrenko , conductor Edgar Moreau , cello*

Feb. 20, 22 & 23 | Concert Hall

*NSO subscription debut

Julia Wolfe’s Her Story with the Lorelei Ensemble

Marin Alsop conducts Scheherazade

Exceptional all-female vocal group Lorelei Ensemble joins the NSO to perform Her Story, Julia Wolfe’s large-scale theatrical work incorporating text from throughout the history of women’s fight for equality. Marin Alsop closes the concert with RimskyKorsakov’s Scheherazade, an exotic journey of love, peril, and intrigue inspired by the famous folktale about a clever young queen who spins 1,001 fantastical stories to outwit a murderous sultan.

Marin Alsop , conductor

Lorelei Ensemble

Feb. 27 & Mar. 1 | Concert Hall

& FEB. EVENTS

CARLOS MIGUEL PRIETOJORGE FEDERICO OSORIO

STÉPHANE DENÈVE

VASILY PETRENKO

JEAN-YVES THIBAUDET

EDGAR MOREAU

Betty Scott

From page 1

A change of direction

After teaching for 35 years at University Park Elementary School in Hyattsville, Scott decided it was time to find a new challenge.

She found it when she drove past the construction of the Strathmore Music

BEACON BITS Feb. 1

Center 20 years ago. Intrigued, she immediately asked if she could volunteer or work there part-time.

She created her first resume in 40 years, applied and was hired to launch their AIR program. Since the program began, there have been 118 participants, many of whom are still in contact with Scott.

Pop vocalist Be Steadwell, who was one of the artists in 2016, said, “All these years

LUNAR NEW YEAR MARKET

Visit the Smithsonian Arts + Industries Building to celebrate the Year of the Snake with hands-on activities, lion dances, food, artisans and makers, and more. This free event takes place on Sat., Feb. 1 from 3 to 7 p.m. at 900 Jefferson Dr. SW, Washington, DC. For more information, call the event organizer, the National Museum of Asian Art, at (202) 663-1000.

later, Betty is still looking out for us, helping us with gigs and making connections.”

Cellist Snedecor noted that Scott is “a force to be reckoned with. I adored meeting someone who expected as much of me as I did. She sets the bar so high and gives you all the tools to do what you want to do.”

Adventures around the world

Scott’s adventurous spirit gave her an edge as she shaped a brand-new program.

“Starting a new career at Strathmore tied into my sense of adventure and exploration. That’s really intriguing to me in all aspects of life,” said Scott, who bicycled across the country in her late 40s, and last year drove, mostly solo, from Maryland to Washington state.

Her husband, Jim, who passed away nine years ago, helped spur her adventurous travel. The couple’s cross-country bike trip was “life-altering,” she said.

“I loved every morning and was so ex-

Book reviews

From page 16

courage. He stayed in Buckingham Palace with his family during the Blitz and toured bombed-out neighborhoods. Brown’s portrayal reveals how Elizabeth, with a mixture of artifice and authenticity, mastered her own official persona. He cites anecdotes about Marilyn Monroe,

cited to see what was over the next hill or curve,” Scott said of that trip. “To my grave, that will be my best adventure because it was such a challenge.

“It was just the two of us, with no cell phones, pedaling 65 miles a day, seeing the country so up-close and personal.”

Scott, who is now considering a trip to Morocco, said her approach to life is something that she found reflected in a New York Times article titled “Three steps to age exuberantly,” published last year.

The article advises readers to think positively but accept setbacks, surround yourself with young people, and say “yes” whenever possible.

“That really captured the way I’ve lived my life,” Scott said. “In particular, a positive attitude is something fortunately in my DNA.

“I was raised in a house where that was the general MO. I do look at things through a very positive lens, and that has made a big difference.”

Paul McCartney and even the Queen’s governess. Brown mentions Elizabeth’s preference for her horses and corgis over humans.

Despite no table of contents, index or chapter headings, Brown’s vignettes reward the persistent reader. Considering his public outbursts and uneven relations with the Commonwealth, perhaps King Charles III should read them.

Tooling down memory lane in old cars

Taking a walk past the neighborhood elementary school is usually a benign affair. But one recent morning, as I sauntered by the faculty parking lot, I was brought up short.

Here was a Toyota. Then another. Followed by a Hyundai. Followed by another. Then a gaggle of Hondas. Then a cluster of Kias.

I decided to count. In all, 42 cars were parked in the lot. Not a single one was an American make.

acs? Remember Oldsmobiles?

Yes, I’m sure that all the cars in that lot ran just fine. Yes, I know that so-called foreign makes are now partially constructed in the United States.

Yes, I recognized that I was seeing the truth about teacher salaries. There wasn’t a single Mercedes or Porsche anywhere in sight.

But not even the exhilaration of a morning walk can keep this old guy from turning sentimental. So, as I turned a corner and headed home, I ruminated on the fate of the American car business in my lifetime.

Remember Studebakers? And De Sotos? Those worthy, hefty specimens have gone to the great boneyard in the sky.

So have several once-stalwart lines from the Big Three of Detroit. Remember Ponti-

Today, even the dumpiest Ford sedan is marketed as if it’s the greatest wind-in-the-hair experience.

But ads for Pontiac and Olds always showed the same scenes. There was Dad, behind the wheel, with a huge smile on his face and a hat on his head.

There was Mom, riding shotgun, in a prim dress. In the back seat — no seat belts — were one boy and one girl, each festooned with freckles and chortling as if this was the greatest experience of their lives. The entire tableau screamed Out for a Sunday Drive.

OK, some American models of yesteryear had a little more bee-bop-a-lula in their DNA.

The Mercury Cougar, as the name implies, had snarl in its V8 engine. The Chevrolet Corvette remains an icon for those who like to jackrabbit away from red lights. The Ford Mustang has been one of the most popular sports cars in the world for 60 years.

But the marketplace can be unforgiving, and it has not forgiven a few American products that didn’t come close to succeeding.

The Ford Edsel, of course, leads the

way. A commercial disaster from the very first, it has at least captured first place in one way. When today’s schoolchildren Google this — Car Trotted Out With Greatest Fanfare That Never Sold — Edsel pops to the top.

The Chevrolet Vega was supposed to be utilitarian and cheap to run. It proved to be neither.

I can speak from experience. I bought one in 1974, new. The salesman, bless his heart (did he have one?), never told me that the car had been built on a Friday just before a United Auto Workers strike began on the following Monday.

I owned a Sabotage Special.

It clunked and bucked and coughed and sputtered for about two years before I gave up on it. So did thousands of others. So, eventually, did Chevrolet.

But the no-longer-with-us car that I miss the most was my Nash Rambler.

This, too, was built to be a family car. It had a wide and deep back seat, an engine that roared when it didn’t purr and — wonder of wonders — a push-button transmission!

You want to go forward? Push D for drive. You want to go backward? Try R for Reverse.

No more awkward shifting of gears or fumbling for a clutch. These were the late

1950s, buster! You were in the space age!

Unluckily, repair bills were also somewhere in outer space. I quit on the Rambler right before it threatened to quit on me, yet again. Nash went out of business shortly afterward.

And if I want to go way, way back in the memory vault, I can still conjure up my mother’s 1957 Ford Fairlane. I learned to drive on this baby.

It had a V-8 engine that seemed better suited to the Indianapolis 500. It had a radio that could bring in both AM and FM! It had tail fins trimmed in gold!

Too bad I backed it into a neighbor’s fence during my second stint behind the wheel. He was very understanding. My mother was less so.

So, as I make my usual plans to live forever, I plan to saunter past my neighborhood elementary school in about 30 years. What will be parked there?

Surely smaller cars. Surely hybrids and EVs. Maybe General Motors and Ford will still be in business; maybe not.

But I won’t care a whit. I will have found a Nash Rambler for sale on the Internet — beautifully maintained, beautifully restored. I’ll be pushing the D and the R button, with a big fat smile on my face.

Bob Levey is a national award-winning columnist.

HOW I SEE IT

By Bob Levey

Scrabble answers on p. 23.

Crossword Puzzle

Welcome to ‘25

By Stephen Sherr

Across

1. Set up tents for the night

5. Draft Kings data

9. Delivered a knuckleball

14. Ideal seven-card stud hole cards

15. Made a Silly Straw

16. Sew old rags into a new coat

17. 25th star

20. Many, many years

21. After expenses

22. The IRS’ Earned Income Credit, briefly

23. Uncommon Egyptian, born around 1341 BC

24. “You ___ me up a wall”

26. Put them on one leg at a time

28. 25th January big-game victor

34. Hamster’s home

36. ___ oil (unrefined bread dip)

37. The Barber of Seville, for example

38. NBC’s 1980’s-era alien

39. Minnesota senator during most of Obama’s terms

42. Toupee

43. More like indigo than purple

45. Open Government Partnership, in brief

46. 1958 Oscar-winner, Burl

47. 25th party

51. One of the Coen brothers

52. Killer whales

55. ___ Fridays, restaurant chain founded in 1965

58. President pro ___

59. The first one issued was 055-09-0001

61. Suffix King James probably used

62. 25th in a list of leaders

66. End of veterin- or humanit-

67. The second most visited eCommerce site in 2024

68. Summer Hebrew month

69. Jargon

70. Judi Dench, as appointed by QE II

71. Catch a glimpse of

1. Scoped out the burglary site

2. Cast member

3. Consequential

4. Anaheim time (in Feb.)

5. Member of the woodwind family

6. Dexterous

7. You get half of it from your dad

8. Scamper with all of your clothes in the hamper

9. Grip

10. Member of Foghorn Leghorn’s dating pool

11. Coating on an abandoned bike

12. Jacob’s big brother

13. Direction traveled by hopeful 49’ers

18. ___ York (Brooklyn ‘hood near Queens)

19. Face card

25. Geese pattern

26. This or that

27. The only ingredient in maple syrup

29. “___ durn tootin’!”

30. Female gametes

31. Neurons

32. Too good to be ___

33. Droops

34. Cars in an airport line

35. ___ Want is You (U2 song)

39. Acting distraught

40. Spy org. in Night Flight from Moscow

41. Prefix that is left of -center

44. The night before Christmas

46. End of cash- or cloth-

48. Actress Perlman, from a Boston show

49. Played improv music

50. Actress Anderson, from a Cincinnati show

53. Enjoyed immensely

54. Without boldness

55. “___ the night before Christmas”

56. Any member of The Supremes

57. Hip bones

59. Ponzi scheme, for example

60. Kind of terrier

63. PC linkup

64. Good degree for a CFO

65. Word on a high school reunion directory

Letters to the editor

From page 2

and fraudulent material such as CopperZap.

As the second letter said, shame on you.

Gabriel Goldberg Falls Church, VA

Dear Editor:

I am writing to offer a contrary viewpoint to those who criticized your publication for advertising the CopperZap.

For context, I have a graduate degree and have worked in healthcare myself.

I am, however, prone to upper respiratory illnesses, which often triggers migraines. Allopathic [conventional] medicine offers limited symptom relief for these conditions, but no cures.

The CopperZap ad raised red flags for me as well. But I have used zinc lozenges to good effect in reducing the duration of colds.

Copper is an essential mineral and an antimicrobial. There are many anecdotal accounts of the CopperZap’s effectiveness, and I found at least one ENT specialist who said he would be willing to give it a try.

I decided to try it as well. The reward of avoiding common colds and flus would be a huge upside to me, while the risks (and price of entry) seemed minimal.

I have only been using the device for a few weeks. It is too soon for me to claim CopperZap is a game-changer. But I can say it has caused me no adverse effects, and I have avoided getting sick at a time of year when that is very common for me.

Time will tell. But we readers of the Beacon are adults. I, for one, am not afraid to be exposed to alternative approaches to wellness that I can evaluate for myself.

Chris Zealand Springfield, VA

Jan. 16

ONE BIG HAPPY

By Rick Detorie

MUSIC AT FOLGER SHAKESPEARE LIBRARY

Explore the music of Black composer Edmond Dédé. Vocal artist, improviser and composer Mali Irene will lead a conversation with OperaCréole founder and artistic director Givonna Joseph, accompanied by selections from Dédé’s opera Morgiane. The free event takes place on Thu., Jan. 16 at 6:30 p.m. at Folger Shakespeare Library, 201 E. Capitol St. SE, Washington, DC, and online. Register at bit.ly/FolgerMusicTalk. For more information, call (202) 544-4600.

Ongoing

INTERNATIONAL FOLK DANCE

Learn dances from the countries of Southeastern Europe on Wednesdays starting at 7:30 p.m. International Folk Dancers meet at Glen Echo Park, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo, MD, in the Ballroom Backroom in January and February, and at the Bumper Car Pavillion during the rest of the year. The cost is $10 in-person (free online). For more information, visit dancingplanetproductions.com/folkdance. Register by emailing dancingplanet@erols.com.

FREE INFO ABOUT TRIP TO ICELAND

Jan. 29

Collette Tours has arranged a special trip to Iceland this fall, designed for Beacon readers and featuring JC Hayward as the trip’s celebrity guide. Learn about the trip and get your questions answered at a free meet-and-greet on Wednesday, January 29 from 2 to 3 p.m. in the meeting room at the Wheaton Regional Public Library, 11701 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring, MD. Refreshments will be served. For more information, or in case of inclement weather, call the Beacon at (301) 949-9766 and leave your name and phone number.

BEACON BITS

Ongoing

MAKE YOUR HOME ACCESSIBLE

Montgomery County’s Home Accessibility Rehabilitation Program makes houses more accessible for people with disabilities or people over the age of 65 by installing home improvements such as no-step entrances, walk-in or roll-in showers, wheelchair-accommodated kitchens, wider doors, stairlifts and more. Homeowners can apply for this program at rebuildingtogethermc.org/apply-for-services. For more information, email info@rebuildingtogethermc.org or call (301) 947-9400.

Ongoing

MENTOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

Volunteers 50 and over in the Maryland area are invited to work with high school students on workforce skill-building during their lunchtime enrichment program. These 10-week in-person sessions, which include small-group conversations about a variety of career topics, will take place on Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to noon from January through March at a Gaithersburg high school. Spanish-speaking volunteers are especially encouraged to apply. To volunteer, visit empoweringtheages.org/volunteer. For more information, call (301) 476-0186 or email eta@empoweringtheages.com

Ongoing

VOLUNTEER ON THE NATIONAL MALL

The National Mall in Washington, D.C., offers various volunteer opportunities, from orientation and visitor services to interpretation, beautification and receptionist positions. The suggested time commitment is at least eight hours or two shifts per month. To learn more and apply, visit nationalmall.org/become-a-volunteer. For more information, email volunteer@nationalmall.org or call (202) 407-9408.

BEACON BITS

CLASSIFIEDS

The Beacon prints classified advertising under the following headings: Business & Employment Opportunities; Caregivers; Computer Services; Entertainment; For Sale; For Sale/Rent: Real Estate; Free; Health; Home/ Handyman Services; Miscellaneous; Obituaries; Personals; Personal Services; Vacation Opportunities; and Wanted. For submission guidelines and deadlines, see the box on page 23.

CAVEAT EMPTOR!

The Beacon does not knowingly accept obscene, offensive, harmful, or fraudulent advertising. However, we do not investigate any advertisers or their products and cannot accept responsibility for the integrity of either. Respondents to classified advertising should always use caution and their best judgment.

EMPLOYMENT & REAL ESTATE ADS:

We will not knowingly or intentionally accept advertising in violation of federal, state, and local laws prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, familial status or handicap in connection with employment or the sale or rental of real estate.

Business & Employment Opportunities

3 POSITIONS AVAILABLE No Experience; Training Provided; Great For Seniors and All Others; WFH; PT/FT; No Selling; $2,125/wk/ptnl; EOE; Real Estate; No RE-License Req; Start Immediately; Paid Daily; Call: 1-703-398-1586.

A CARE AGENCY - Been in business for more than 10 years. Experienced nurses, CNAs, GNAs. Any hours you need. Flat rate for live-in. Duties include cooking, housekeeping, bathing, errands, etc. Tel: 667-231-8235

MOBILE HAIR & NAIL SERVICES - WE COME TO YOU. Professional Licensed Hair Stylist. Women and Men’s Services - All Hair Types. Cuts, Styles, Roller Sets, Color, Perms, Men’s Cuts & Facial Grooming, Manicures & more. Call 301-338-8251

COUGAR CARE HEALTH AND HOME SERVICES We are a long term health and home care agency serving the mature male and female adults in the Washington DC Metropolitan Area and beyond. We provide CNA’S, Nurses, Caregivers, Companions, Personal Assistants, Housekeepers, Personal Trainers, Drivers or any other live in or live out employee. For more information and to place an order call #240-432-8560.

SENIOR HELPING HAND, Compassionate caregiver to provide medical daily assistance for senior call Pam at Phone # 301-891-0001.

A HOME HEALTHCARE- Experienced nurses, CNA, GNA are available 24/7. Cooking, companionship, personal care, housekeeping, driving. Full/Part-time or live-in care. 15 years’ experience. 240-533-6599.

WE ARE LOOKING FOR A DEDICATED SUPPORT WORKER to assist an autistic adult male in navigating daily life and achieving personal goals. You will provide personalized assistance tailored to his unique needs and preferences. Contact Information: Please contact Fran Robinson at fest809@aol.com for more details and to apply. Together, let’s create a supportive and enriching experience.

PROBLEM WITH YOUR PC/MAC OR NETWORK? Computer Systems Engineer will come to you with help. Call David G. at: 301-3282112 / 301-642-4526.

UP TO $15,000.00 OF GUARANTEED

LIFE INSURANCE! No medical exam or health questions. Cash to help pay funeral and other final expenses. Call Physicians Life Insurance Company - 866-212-1092 or visit www.Life55plus.info/beacon

TAX PREPARATION. Licensed CPA 35+ years, reasonable rates; will travel within 20 miles. Located in Gaithersburg near Rte 270/370. DIANE CHRISTEN CPA; dianechristen@aol.com; 240-355-1135 cell.

WESLEY FINANCIAL GROUP, LLC Time share Cancellation Experts. Over $50,000,000 in timeshare debt and fees cancelled in 2019. Get free informational package and learn how to get rid of your timeshare! Free consultations. Over 450 positive reviews. Call 855-626-8703.

JACUZZI BATH REMODEL can install a new, custom bath or shower in as little as one day. For a limited time, waiving ALL installation costs! (Additional terms apply. Subject to change and vary by dealer. (Offer ends 3/30/25.) Call 1833-994-0538.

SLOWING DOWN AFTER 42 YEARS of contracting. Small to medium jobs mainly residential but will do some commercial work. Will work all over DC area. $45.00 from arrival on job. Andy 703-906-5429.

ELIMINATE GUTTER CLEANING FOREVER! LeafFilter, the most advanced debrisblocking gutter protection. Schedule a FREE LeafFilter estimate today. 20% off Entire Purchase. Plus 10% Senior & Military Discounts. Call 1-855-977-6078.

MOVING OR LIQUIDATING AN ESTATE?

Let Downsizing Specialists, LLC show you how our easy process helps you decide what to keep, gift, sell, donate, or discard. Services include estate liquidation, downsizing, estate sales, house and storage unit clean-outs, and junk removal. We buy estates, vehicles, & real estate. Free estimates. Local. Family Owned. Licensed. Insured. Downsizing doesn’t erase history, it shapes the legacy left behind. Call/Text Philip @ 301-2193600 ~ DownsizingSpecialists.com

MENDING FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS. I’m

Jane M. Connor, a licensed marriage and family therapist in Maryland, dedicated to helping families navigate these challenges. My goal is to support families in overcoming painful experiences and rebuilding relationships. Ready to take the first step? Schedule a free 15-minute consultation with me—no strings attached. Let’s explore if my approach is right for you. If not, I’ll help you find the right resources. Contact me at 202-658-5045 or janemconnor@gmail.com. Visit www.janemconnor.com for more information. Together, we can foster understanding and closeness.

GET DISH SATELLITE TV + INTERNET! Free Install, Free HD-DVR Upgrade, 80,000 OnDemand Movies, Plus Limited Time Up To $600 In Gift Cards. Call Today! 1-844-560-5837

DIRECTV - All your entertainment. Nothing on your roof! Sign up for Directv and get your first three months of Max, Paramount+, Showtime, Starz, MGM+ and Cinemax included. Choice package $84.99/mo. Some restrictions apply. Call DIRECTV 1-888-572-4953.

COMPUTERS, TELEVISIONS, CELL

PHONE Help For Seniors. We offer patient and thorough help for seniors with all matter of technology. We come to your home. We service MD, VA and DC. Call Senior Tech Pro at 301337-0028. Available 24/7 Ask for Philip.

NATIONAL MEMORIAL PARK, Two beautiful sites, Block F, Cemetery Price: $26,000. Both sites offered @ 50% off; $13,000 obo. Contact: 301-537-6086. Site visit can be arranged.

PREPARE FOR POWER OUTAGES TODAY with a Generac Home Standby Generator. Act now to receive a FREE 5-Year warranty with qualifying purchase. Call 1-301-960-3174 today to schedule a free quote. It’s not just a generator. It’s a power move.

NATIONAL MEMORIAL PARK- 3 choice burial sites in desirable Lilac Garden. Regular $9495 each, sale all 3 for $12,000 OBO. 804-400-6318.

NATIONAL MEMORIAL PARK. Four choice sites in desirable Block I (eye). Regular $9,495, sale $4,495 per plot OBO. Phone 703-256-0560.

EXTRA LARGE SELF PROPELLED LAWN MOWER. Excellent condition. Ten years old. $300.00. Call Joe — 301-216-2541.

NEW WINDOWS FROM WINDOW NATION. Special money saving offer - zero down, zero payments, zero interest for TWO years AND buy 2 windows and get 2 FREE! Offer is valid for select models. Labor not included. Other restrictions apply. Call Window Nation today! 855-909-2278.

STROKE AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE are leading causes of death, according to the American Heart Association. Screenings can provide peace of mind or early detection! Contact Life Line Screening to schedule your screening. Special offer - 5 screenings for just $149. Call 1-844-485-7035.

PORTABLE OXYGEN CONCENTRATOR May Be Covered by Medicare! Reclaim independence and mobility with the compact design and long-lasting battery of Inogen One. Free information kit! Call 855-851-0949.

DENTAL INSURANCE from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. Coverage for 400 plus procedures. Real dental insurance - NOT just a discount plan. Do not wait! Call now! Get your FREE Dental Information Kit with all the details! 1-844366-1003 www.dental50plus.com/320 #6258

MOBILEHELP, America’s Premier Mobile Medical Alert System. Whether You’re Home or Away. For Safety and Peace of Mind. No Long Term Contracts! Free Brochure! Call Today! 1240-650-9189.

HAND ARTHRITIS? Gripz, LLC is a small, local company of two seniors who experience hand osteoarthritis and seek solutions. We believe that people can maintain their independence and creativity without hand discomfort. To facilitate this, we have developed a series of adaptive devices for small handheld tools for eating, writing, painting, crocheting, guitar playing, and more. Our devices are multi-use and durable, and designed to fit a range of tool sizes. Visit gripz.biz!

REDZONE FITNESS STUDIO ask about our New Year Special. Start off your New Year right. Let us help you reach your goals. We come to you and have a proven track record of getting results. Call Anthony today at 410-739-3318 to get started.

THE BATHROOM OF YOUR DREAMS in as little as 1 day. Limited Time Offer - $1000 off or No Payments and No Interest for 18 months for customers who qualify. BCI Bath & Shower. Many options available. Quality materials & professional installation. Senior & Military Discounts Available. Call Today! 1-855-653-0087.

DON’T LET THE STAIRS LIMIT YOUR MOBILITY! Discover the ideal solution for anyone who struggles on the stairs, is concerned about a fall or wants to regain access to their entire home. Call AmeriGlide today! 1-866-3655170.

SAFE STEP. North America’s #1 Walk-In Tub. Comprehensive lifetime warranty. Top-of-theline installation and service. Now featuring our FREE shower package and $1600 Off for a limited time! Call today! Financing available. Call Safe Step 1-866-478-2363.

IF EVERYTHING YOUR EYES FALL ON in your living environment doesn’t bring you pleasure, I can help. I’m an organization expert who can make your everyday life run more smoothly through the art of permanent organization. Combining over 25 years of experience as a project manager with scientifically backed methods, I can help you unclutter and enjoy your living or work environment. See LemonAideConsultingLLC.com for details.

AMERICAN RESIDENTIAL HEATING & COOLING. As temps outside start to climb, the season for savings is now. $49 cooling or heating system tune up. Save up to $2000 on a new heating and cooling system (restrictions apply.) FREE estimates. Many payment options available. Licensed and insured professionals. Call today 1-877-691-0273.

ATTENTION: If you worked at NIH CENTRAL UTILITY PLANT, Bethesda, MD during 1962-1980, please contact Asbestos Investigator Sherry Day at (231) 625-2734 or sherry@SLDinvestigations.com. We are looking for people who worked with our deceased client.

ALERT ALERT FURUA ENGINE/TRANS SERVICES 202-840-9027 WE HAVE THE ENGINE and TRANSMISSIONS YOU NEED. Rebuilt engines, rebuilt transmissions, used engines, used transmissions. Check prices and installation costs, 202-840-9027.

CONSUMER CELLULAR - the same reliable, nationwide coverage as the largest carriers. No long-term contract, no hidden fees and activation is free. All plans feature unlimited talk and text, starting at just $20/month. For more information, call 1-833-742-1303.

BECOME A PUBLISHED AUTHOR. We want to Read Your Book! Dorrance PublishingTrusted by Authors Since 1920. Book manuscript submissions currently being reviewed. Comprehensive Services: Consultation, Production, Promotion and Distribution. Call for Your Free Author`s Guide 1-833-992-0110 or visit dorranceinfo.com/beacon

CASH FOR JEWELRY: Buying jewelry, diamonds, gold, platinum, silver, watches, coins, flatware, etc. Ask for Tom. Call anytime, 301654-8678 (Reg. 883).

WANTED: OLDER VIOLINS, GUITARS, BANJOS, MANDOLINS, UKULELES. Musician/collector will pay cash for older string instruments. Jack (301) 279-2158, leave message & phone number (please speak slowly).

CASH FOR RECORDS, CDS AND DVDS. Best price guaranteed. Free appraisals. All types of music {33, 45, 78 & CDs.} Also buying turntables and stereo equipment. Will make house calls with CURBSIDE PICKUPS. Call or text Steve at 301-646-5403

BUYING QUALITY ANTIQUES and mid-century items, including furniture, art, statues, lamps, old signs, military items, gold, silver, costume jewelry, collectibles, toys, tools, anything unusual, etc. Please call Chris at (301) 262-1299. MD licensed.

I BUY GUNS: Military/Civilian & MILITARY MEMORABILIA. I am a licensed Firearms Dealer and can legally purchase from you. Don’t risk selling to unlicensed dealers. Tim Frank 301-201-0241. historian1975@gmail.com. www.midatlanticmilitaryantiques.com

OVERFLOWING BOOKSHELVES? Donate gently used books, magazines, CDs & DVDs! Free same-day pickup, any genre. Declutter & support literacy! Call 703-980-7421 mdbookpickup@gmail.com

DOG FOSTERS NEEDED: Partnership for Animal Welfare has adoptable dogs in need of short- and long-term home stays. Pet necessities and health care provided. Vacation? PAW has you covered. Visit: www.paw-rescue.org, or email: volunteer@paw-rescue.org

ALWAYS BUYING OLD COSTUME JEWELRY, sterling silver flatware & holloware, school rings, unwanted jewelry, gemstones & broken jewelry, old comic books (pre-1990), old toys/games and other old items. Text or Call Alex at 571-426-5363 DMV area.

CASH FOR ESTATES; Estates, Moving, Downsizing, Etc. I buy Gold, Silver, Art, Quality Glass, Historical Items, Cultural Items, and a wide range of other categories. Collections, Accumulations. Website: TheAtticLLC.com, Gary Roman, 301-520-0755.

WILL BUY MILITARY, WWII, WWI, Civil War memorabilia items. Uniforms, weapons, helmets, photos, war souvenirs, medals, photos or any other items associated with U.S., German, Japanese or other military history. Call Dave (240-464-0958) or email (david.obal63@gmail.com).

BUYING ESTATES, FULL OR PARTIAL, large or small. Need a house cleared in a hurry, I can get it done. Also buying individual small, pretty things such as Herend, Royal Copenhagen and vintage holiday decorations. Call Susan (301) 785-1129.

Answer:

Employment Assistance

Career Gateway Classes . .14

Virtual 50+ Employment

Expos . . .

. . . .15

Funeral Services

Cremation Society of Maryland

Brooke Grove Retirement Village .

. .B10, B11, B13, B14

Cascades at Frederick . . .B7

Charles E. Smith Life Communities

Chevy Chase House

.6

Going Home Cremation . .18

MacNabb Funeral

Home

.B3

.B2, B10

Churchill Senior Living . .10

Culpepper Garden .

Grandview, The/ Erickson .

.6

Health Insurance/ Medicare Advantage

Humana – Giaraffa

Humana – Salmon

Home Health/

.9

.B8

Adult Day Care

Best Senior Care . . . . . . .B8

JCA Kensington Clubs . .14

Housing

Ashby Ponds/ Erickson . . . . . . .B5, B14

HOW TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED AD

All classified ads must be submitted and paid for online, via our website, www.thebeaconnewspapers.com/classifieds

Deadlines and Payments: To appear in the next issue, your ad text and payment must be entered by the 5th of the preceding month (for Baltimore and Howard County editions); by the 20th (for Washington edition).

Cost will be based on the number of characters and spaces in your ad:

• $25 for 1-250 • $35 for 251-500. • $50 for 501-750 (maximum length). The website will calculate this amount for you.

Note: Maryland contractors must provide a valid MHIC number.

• Each real estate listing qualifies as one ad. • All ads are subject to publisher’s discretion. Payment will be refunded if unacceptable for any reason.

To place your classified ad, visit www.thebeaconnewspapers.com/classifieds

Willow Manor at Colesville .

.B4

Woodleigh Chase/ Erickson . . . . . . .B5, B14

Legal Services

Farr Law Firm . . . . . . . . .15

Law Offices of Paul Riekhof

. .7

. .B5, B13

Greenspring/ Erickson . . . . . . .B5, B12

Homecrest House . .B6, B12

Housing Initiative Partnership

.B7

Inspīr Embassy Row .3, B10

Park View BladensburgB15

Park View Columbia . . .B15

Park View Emerson . . .B15

Park View Laurel .

Riderwood/ Erickson .

Vinson Hall .

.14

Medical/Health

Oh, DDS

Eye Center

Real

Services/Moving

.B15

.B5, B12

.B4, B13

Willow Manor at Cabin Branch

.B6