Dutchess County Office for the Aging’s AGING NEWS For the week of February 13, 2016

 

Dutchess County Office for the Aging’s

AGING NEWS

For the week of February 13, 2016

 

Note: the Office for the Aging is closed today, February 13, for Lincoln’s birthday, which is a New York state holiday. The Office for the Aging will also be closed on Monday, February 20 for the national President’s Day holiday, which is observed in New York as the Washington’s birthday holiday.

 

Golden Living . . . News for Senior Citizens

Todd N. Tancredi, Director

Dutchess County Office for the Aging

 

COMING IN THE SPRING – THE CELEBRATION OF AGING

 

Do you know somebody who will have 100 or more candles on their birthday cake this year, or a couple who will be married for 70 years or more? If so, please call our office at (845) 486-2555 so we can send them a personal invitation to our annual Celebration of Aging, a luncheon which will be held on Monday, May 22 at Villa Borghese in Wappingers Falls.  Last year, over a dozen centenarians, ranging in age from 100 to 112, were able to join us and share their stories, along with advice as to how we could live such long and happy lives. The couples married for over 70 years shared inspiring stories of their lives together, often beginning with one or both of them serving in the military during World War II.

At the Celebration of Aging we also honor the Dutchess County Senior Citizens of the Year;  awards are given in three categories: male, female and couple.  Generally these are residents over the age of 60 who make a difference in Dutchess County communities through volunteerism, civic engagement, and other endeavors.  If you know of a senior citizen who deserves any of these special recognitions, please fill out a nomination form available from our office or on Page 4 of the winter edition of our quarterly “Spotlight on Seniors” newsletter, found at: http://www.co.dutchess.ny.us/CountyGov/Departments/Aging/SPOTLIGHTWinter2016final.pdf

 

HUDSON VALLEY HONOR FLIGHT TAKES TO THE SKIES AGAIN

 

Honor Flight missions 15 and 16 will again fly Hudson Valley veterans to Washington, D.C. this spring, allowing veterans to visit the nation’s war memorials on daylong trips.

The group is a national nonprofit organization with a Hudson Valley chapter and recently announced two scheduled flights for the spring.  On April 8, they will fly out of Stewart International Airport in Newburgh; and on May 20 they’ll leave out of Westchester County Airport in White Plains.  Hudson Valley Honor Flight serves Dutchess, Orange, Ulster, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, and Sullivan counties.  Veterans who would like to sign up for the trip should fill out the application at  www.hvhonorflight.com. Priority is given to World War II-era veterans, along with terminally ill veterans of any war.

Guardians are also needed for each Honor Flight to ensure every veteran has a safe and memorable experience. Duties include physically assisting veterans at the airport, during the flight and at the memorials. Guardians also subsidize the cost of the flight by paying their own way; the cost to be a guardian remains $400.  Since family members of veterans are given priority, there is no guarantee filling out an application will reserve you a spot on the upcoming flight. However, you will be placed on a waiting list, which will carry over to future flights.  For more information, call (845) 391-0076.

 

Golden Living is prepared by the Dutchess County Office for the Aging, 27 High Street, Poughkeepsie, New York 12601, telephone (845) 486-2555, email: ofa@dutchessny.gov website: http://www.dutchessny.gov/CountyGov/Departments/Aging/AGIndex.htm

 

Upcoming Office for the Aging events and presentations

 

Tuesday 2/14, 1 p.m. – “Successful Aging” at Stanford Town Hall

26 Town Hall Rd., Stanfordville

Snow date: 2/28

Tuesday 2/21, 11 a.m. – “Successful Aging” at Tri-Town Senior Friendship Center

55 Overlook Rd., Poughkeepsie (rear of the American Legion building)

(845) 486-6363

(rescheduled from 2/7 and 2/9 – snow date T/B/A)

Monday 3/6, 12 noon – “Successful Aging” at the Town of Fishkill Recreation Center

793 Route 52

(845) 831-3371 for information

Snow date: 3/13

Tuesday 3/21, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. – Senior Friendship Center Country & Western Day

All eight Dutchess County Senior Friendship Centers

Reservations required at (845) 486-2555

Monday 4/3, 2 p.m. – “Wills, Trusts and Elder Law” at Pawling Library

With John Wirth, Esq., Office for the Aging Advisory Board

11 Broad St.

(845) 855-3444 for information

Monday 5/22, 12 noon – The Celebration of Aging

Villa Borghese

70 Widmer Rd., Wappingers Falls

 

To request an Office for the Aging presentation for your senior, social and/or civic group, get in touch with outreach coordinator Brian Jones at (845) 486-2555 or bjones@dutchessny.gov. All you need provide is a venue that’s accessible and open to the public, and a space to set up a projector and screen – and this time of year, an alternate date in case your venue is closed by winter weather.

 

SNOW SHOVELING HEART RISKS

The recent snowstorm brought with it a reminder from the American Heart Association that the risk of a heart attack during snow shoveling may increase for some, stating that the combination of colder temperatures and physical exertion increases the workload on the heart.

To help make snow removal safer, the American Heart Association has compiled a list of practical tips.

 

  • Give yourself a break. Take frequent rest breaks during shoveling so you don’t overstress your heart. Pay attention to how your body feels during those breaks.
  • Don’t eat a heavy meal prior or soon after shoveling. Eating a large meal can put an extra load on your heart.
  • Use a small shovel or consider a snow thrower. The act of lifting heavy snow can raise blood pressure acutely during the lift. It is safer to lift smaller amounts more times, than to lug a few huge shovelfuls of snow. When possible, simply push the snow.
  • Learn the heart attack warning signs and listen to your body, but remember this: Even if you’re not sure it’s a heart attack, have it checked out (tell a doctor about your symptoms). Minutes matter! Fast action can save lives — maybe your own. Don’t wait more than five minutes to call 9-1-1.
  • Don’t drink alcoholic beverages before or immediately after shoveling. Alcohol may increase a person’s sensation of warmth and may cause them to underestimate the extra strain their body is under in the cold.
  • Consult a doctor. If you have a medical condition, don’t exercise on a regular basis or are middle aged or older, meet with your doctor prior to the first anticipated snowfall.
  • Be aware of the dangers of hypothermia. Heart failure causes most deaths in hypothermia. To prevent hypothermia, dress in layers of warm clothing, which traps air between layers forming a protective insulation. Wear a hat because much of your body’s heat can be lost through your head.

 

OTHER AGING NEWS ONLINE

The widely used “A1C” blood-sugar test may be less accurate in African-Americans, and in people with anemia: http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/02/07/513891129/the-a1c-blood-sugar-test-may-be-less-accurate-in-african-americans

 

New York State’s Common Retirement Fund for public employees (teachers, police, etc.) is doing much better than pension funds in most other states: http://www.timesunion.com/allwcm/article/Unlike-many-New-York-mostly-avoids-risky-pension-10921352.php

 

The chairman of the US Senate Judiciary Committee says the Elder Abuse and Prevention Act has a good chance of passing this session:http://www.fa-mag.com/news/elder-abuse-act-has-good-chance-of-becoming-law-this-year-31325.html

 

Your pal, the robot? These seniors seem to like theirs well enough: http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/curr/seniors-welcome-new-robot-friends-20170206

 

Legendary comedian and character “Professor” Irwin Corey made it all the way to 102 before passing away last week at home in New York City: https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/irwin-corey-comic-who-styled-himself-the-worlds-foremost-authority-dies-at-102/2017/02/07/b39560ae-ed36-11e6-b4ff-ac2cf509efe5_story.html?utm_term=.d61fd06f20c9#comments

 

Just to our south in New Jersey, 97-year-old Kay Hodges is the state’s oldest practicing nurse and has no intention of slowing down:http://www.northjersey.com/story/news/health/2017/02/06/njs-oldest-nurse-97-rewrites-rules-aging/95777414/

 

Also not slowing down, unless the tempo calls for it: 100-year-old orchestra conductor and violinist Ed Simons of downstate Rockland County: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/10/nyregion/ed-simons-conductor-100.html?emc=eta1&_r=0

 

 

 

This week in senior birthdays:

Monday 2/13: American pilot/general Chuck Yeager (94)

Tuesday 2/14: American journalist Hugh Downs (96)

Wednesday 2/15: Actress/producer Jane Seymour (66)

Thursday 2/16: US Army Brigadier General Anna Mae Hays (97)

Friday 2/17: Actor/director Hal Holbrook (92)

Saturday 2/18: Nobel laureate Toni Morrison (86)

Sunday 2/19: Singer/songwriter Smokey Robinson (77)

 

 

Brian Jones
Outreach Coordinator

Dutchess County Office For the Aging

27 High Street

Poughkeepsie NY 12601

 

Phone: (845) 486-2555 Fax: (845) 486-2571

Email: bjones@dutchessny.gov

Author: Harlem Valley News