Yorkton This Week Seniors 2023-05-31

SENIORS

Our Monthly Feature

...For Seniors and about Seniors

Local author has sixth story published in book series

By Tyson Off Staff Writer

YORKTON – A local author had her sixth story published in the popular book series Chicken Soup for the Soul

Brenda Leppington of Yorkton said the first time she had a story published in the series was in 2016 and recounted her experience in an interview with Yorkton This Week

“It was actually a friend of mine — who is an author and has several published books — that told me to write a story about one of my cats,” said Leppington, “I didn’t know why she wanted me to but I wrote a story and I sent it to her and she said, ‘now send it to Chicken Soup’ and I thought ‘I don’t want to do that’.”

“But anyway — I did — and they rejected it and then that made me mad so I re-wrote it and tried again and the next year they published it,” said Leppington, adding, “since then I’ve had [other stories] that I’ve submitted and they haven’t acknowledged and haven’t been published and then other ones that they do.”

Leppington’s most recent story, ‘Living Life at 90-9’ appears in Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Advice That Changed My Life and centres around a neighbour of Leppington’s, Kay Bortnack, who’d passed away but taught Leppington to appreciate the little things about life.

“It was about my neighbour — she passed away 20 years ago — but

it’s now that I’m 20 years older I’m sort of understanding the things that she was saying and realizing how true that was — her little words of wisdom.”

Though Leppinton had written plenty of published stories for the book series, she said this was her first endeavour into writing about someone that wasn’t close to her.

“This is the first time that I’d written a story about somebody else,” said Leppington, “my stories up to that point were about my life, my family, my past...I had no idea if any of her family was still around.”

“As the way life happens sometimes — a friend of mine recognized who I was writing the story about and happens to be best friends with her grand-daughter [Sharon Loster].”

Leppington said her friend was able to get a copy of the book into Loster’s hands through their mutal friend.

“She was so thrilled that a total stranger had that many fond memories of her grandmother,” said Leppington, “to me that was almost more exciting than having the story published — was the fact that I was able to connect with her family and got to share some of that.”

“Then I was worried and I thought, ‘what if she thinks I misrepresented her grandmother’, but she said I nailed it,” said Leppington, adding, “she said it was so nice to read and know that it was somebody that was special to her had that much of an impact on somebody else’s life.”

Leppington remarks in the story that Bortnack, a woman in her 90s, would spend time at a park on a swing, stating that the wind felt the same on her face at 90 as it did when she was nine, something that reminded her of youth.

Leppington said she’s taken that wisdom in her senior years and opts to go kite-flying, something she enjoyed doing in her own youth.

“I don’t care what people think...it’s my life and if it makes me feel good and young again — go for it,” said Leppinton.

Leppington said that writing about a person, outside of family, who touched her life was something new to her.

“I guess it was a little more meaningful to me from that perspective,” said Leppington, “the fact that my other stories primarily impressed my family...this one sort of has made a difference in somebody else’s life.”

“That’s the whole thing of writing and communication — to know that you’ve been able to connect with somebody,” said Leppington.

“Previously — the book before this one — it was called Navigating Elder Care and Dementia,” said Leppington, noting that she had two stories published in the book that centered around her mother.

“I couldn’t believe how far that went,” said Leppington, noting she was asked to appear on a podcast and write an article for the Sask. Alzheimers Assocation due to the success of the stories.

“You appreciate how

much just getting the information out there can make a difference to other people,” said Leppington, “you may not realize it at the time, but just knowing that getting information out there really helps other people.”

However, Leppington

said she isn’t interested in self-publishing anything on her own for the time being.

“I’ve kind of toyed with that idea as one of my friends said, ‘I keep wondering why you don’t write a story of your life, but on the other hand I guess you are, one

story at a time’”, said Leppington, noting it’s easier to submit her stories through established book series. “They put out titles and if you think you’ve got a story that fits with their title — and it has to fit very closely to their theme — then I submit it.”

Low vision: what it is and what you can do about it

vision, you may have trouble seeing things in the centre of your vision, out of the corners of your eyes or at night and in low light.

CAUSES OF LOW VISION

Low vision is a symptom of one of several eyerelated diseases, including:

• Cataracts

• Diabetic retinopathy

• Glaucoma

Older adults are more susceptible to low vision because the diseases that cause it are more common in older people.

LIVING WITH LOW VISION

you see better. Moreover, wearing polarized lenses when it’s bright can help filter glare, improving your vision.

Talk to your doctor or optometrist if low vision is preventing you from doing everyday tasks. They may advise using

a magnifying glass for reading and other activities or rearranging your home so you can move about easily.

Low vision is an agerelated eye condition that can make doing everyday tasks like driving and reading difficult. There’s no treatment or cure for low vision. However, there are things you can do to adapt and continue doing the things you love.

SYMPTOMS OF LOW VISION

Low vision can’t be fixed with glasses, contact lenses, surgery or medicine. You may have low vision if you have difficulty:

• Reading

• Driving

• Recognizing people’s faces

• Telling colours apart

• Seeing your television or computer

screen clearly

Besides blurry or hazy

• Age-related macular degeneration

If you have minor low vision, using bright lights at home or work may help

Brenda Leppington’s most recent published work centres around the wisdom of her former neighbour.

New cycling program launching in Neepawa

By Miranda Leybourne, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter (Brandon Sun)

NEEPAWA — The Neepawa Kin Club is launching a new bicycle service aimed at helping seniors and people with low mobility by providing them with free rides around town, fresh air and socialization.

The club is opening a Cycle Without Age program, where volunteer drivers will cycle on a specialized three-wheel, electric pedal-assisted bicycle called a trishaw that can carry up to two passengers at once.

It can be difficult for seniors and people who experience mobility challenges to move around the community, which can lead to isolation and loneliness, said Kin Canada vice-president Amanda Naughton-Gale.

“It’s kind of a great way to get out and about and go for a coffee or go somewhere that’s a little bit different than where you might go on a drive,” she said.

Denny Phillips, who has volunteered with the Neepawa Kin Club for nearly 20 years and currently serves as its secretary, said the positive impact of getting outside and socializing for seniors and people of all ages can’t be understated.

The Cycling Without Age program, she added, is a great way to have those needs met.

“It’s contact with other people. The volunteer that’s riding the bike can have a conversation and discussion with the seniors,” Phillips said.

Getting outside and into green space can

ease depression in older adults, according to Active Aging Canada, a national notfor-profit organization that promotes healthy aging. A recent review of research that included older adults showed that outdoor-based activity therapies reduced depression and anxiety and enhanced a person’s positive experience, owing to a connection to nature, social support, physical activity and purposeful behaviour. Thanks to local donations, including $40,000 from HyLife Foods, the Kin Club was able to purchase the trishaw bicycle

and open a Cycling Without Age chapter in Neepawa. The bike itself cost around $8,000, and the Kin Club used the rest of the money for other programs, including their annual scholarship and seasonal activities.

A pair of volunteers who are former Kin Club members, Alex Jarema and Naughton-Gale’s husband Steve Gale, put the bike together this month. The program, set to launch in May, will be free of charge. Organizations like seniors residences and care homes can book the bike, as can private citizens of Neepawa.

All that is needed now, Phillips said, are volunteers to sign up to operate the trishaw.

“We’re going to be doing a display of the bike and having volunteers come out and hopefully sign up for times they can do that,” she said.

Naughton-Gale is encouraging people to come and check out the bike for themselves once it’s on display.

“It will be something that will be easy to ride and easy to navigate,” she said. “You don’t have to be a triathlete.”

Volunteers can sign up for regular times they

are available and be “on call” for those times, Naughton-Gale said.

Based on feedback Phillips has already heard from people interested in the Cycling Without Age, she is hopeful plenty of people will want to sign up to help take people where they’d like to go.

Cycling Without Age, a non-profit organization that runs chapter nonprofits worldwide, was started in 2012 by Ole Kassow of Denmark, who wanted to help elders get back on their bicycles. He began offering free bike rides on his trishaw to local nursing home

residents.

Since then, 39 countries have opened a combined 2,050 chapter locations, where more than 39,000 trained cycle pilots ride 4,900 trishaws. The program has offered more than three million rides and has served more than 650,000 people since its inception. The oldest trishaw pilot is currently Jørgen Hass, 90, of Denmark.

Currently, Cycling Without Age chapters exist in Thompson, Lundar, Pine Falls, Winnipeg and Morden, with the Neepawa chapter being the newest in Manitoba to open.

Vitamins and minerals for older adults

As you get older, your nutrition needs change. Your body needs more of certain vitamins and minerals. Here’s a list of some essential nutrients for older adults.

• Calcium is found in foods like dairy, tofu and dark-green leafy vegetables. Older people at risk of bone loss need calcium in their diets. Men between 51 and 70 need 1,000 milligrams daily, while women over 51 and men over 71 need 1,200 milligrams daily.

• Vitamin B6 helps your body form red

blood cells and is found in foods like bananas and potatoes. Men over 51 need 1.7 milligrams, while women of the same age need 1.5 milligrams.

• Vitamin B12 is found in meat and keeps your red blood cells and nerves healthy. Older adults may have trouble absorbing this vitamin from food and require a supplement. Aim for 2.4 micrograms per day.

• Vitamin D helps your body retain and use calcium and phosphorus. Only a few foods, like fish, contain it. Your skin also produces Vitamin D in sunlight. Therefore,

if you live and work indoors, a supplement may help you get the recommended amount. People between 50 and 70 require 600 international units (IU), while people over 71 require 800 IUs.

• Sodium in high doses can lead to elevated blood pressure, which can result in a heart attack or stroke. Men and women over 51 should limit their sodium intake to 2,300 milligrams per day.

Talk to your doctor before taking supplements, as some may have severe side effects.

Alex Jarema (left) and Steve Gale (right), both former members of the Neepawa Kin Club, put together a trishaw bicycle for Neepawa’s Cycling Without Age chapter on April 11.

(Miranda Leybourne/The Brandon Sun)