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March 19, 2015 - Young At Heart - Verona Press - 11

Senior games return to Dane CountyCompetition is open to

anyone 50 and older

BILL LIVICKUnified Newspaper Group

Whether your passion is in agood game of cards or somethingmore physically vigorous, likebasketball or track and field, Wis-

consin Senior Games has some-thing for you.

The senior games have grownfrom a daylong event in Middletonin 1983 to a two-week competitionheld in nine cities in Dane Countywith almost 500 participants.

The games are open to anyone50 and over, regardless of wherethey live, and take place June6-20. The deadline to register isMay 8.

The Wisconsin Senior Gamesshould not be confused with Wis-consin Senior Olympics, a sepa-rate but similar set of games heldthroughout the state later in theyear.

“We’re more of a community

organization that draws partici-pants from throughout the stateand even some from outside thestate, whereas the WisconsinSenior Olympics have a higherprofile and higher numbers,”explained Reggie Hennessey,president of the Wisconsin SeniorGames Board of Directors.

He said the senior games offerolder adults a chance to stay fitand compete against others in theirage range. The games are also away to meet others who are pas-sionate about staying active andcompeting.

“The camaraderie and socialaspects are very important,” Hen-nessey said. “The seniors arevery competitive in some of these

events, like the three-on-three bas-ketball. They give it their all.”

Planning for the senior gamesbegan in Middleton more thanthree decades ago, when a groupof older adults decided to hold a

competition for local residents.The following year, the gameswere held over two days andincluded track, golf, softball, bas-ketball free throw, jarts and a

What’s inside

Entertainment

Centers balance

offerings for new

generation of

seniors

Page 2

Nursing homes

bring in karaoke

Page 3

Lifestyle/

Health

Safety tips for

medication

handling

Ways to help keepmental health

strong

Page 4

Understanding and

preventing heart

disease

Page 5

Finance

Never to late toplan for retirement

Page 6

Avoiding phone and email fraud this spring break seasonJACOB BIELANSKIUnified Newspaper Group

It’s late and a number you don’t knowcalls your phone. He claims to be yourgrandson who just got into an accident.

Everything is fine, he says, but he just

needs to be wired some money for carrepairs or for a trip home. Also, please,don’t tell mom or dad. What do you do?

The call is almost definitely a scam.“It has become so cheap to call long

distance from anywhere in the world, it’seasy to sit in Africa or Southeast Asia oranywhere in the world and call people inWisconsin hundreds of times a day – so(scammers) do that,” said Sandy Chalmers,Assistant Deputy Secretary for the Wiscon-sin Department of Agriculture, Trade andConsumer Protection.

Chalmers said that while the elderly arenot necessarily more vulnerable, they aretargeted more frequently than anyone elsein the state. She said the office hears fromsome senior citizens claiming to get scamcalls as much as 20 times a day.

“(Senior citizens) are attractive to

criminals, they tend to have a nest egg,own their homes and have substantial sav-ings – there’s money to steal,” Chalmerssaid.

For all of these cases, the set up is thesame – you need to act now, and you needto give up personal information or even

money. Medicare enrollment season pres-ents a particularly heavy target for seniors,according to Chalmers. Scammers willclaim to be from the Medicare office dur-ing enrollment season – which stretchesfrom January 1 through the end of March– and ask callers to verify the number onthe back of their Medicare card. Accordingto Chalmers, that number is the holder’ssocial security number.

“Medicare fraud is huge,” Chalmers said.But with spring break on the horizon, the

department warns everyone with grandchil-dren to be wary of calls looking for help.According to a March 10 release, scam-mers will attempt to impersonate grand-children who are in need of help. Often, the“grandchildren” will ask to keep the call asecret.

“It’s surprisingly easy for a crook to

gather enough online information to imper-sonate a loved one,” Chalmers said. “Thisis a scam we hear about on a regular basisin Wisconsin.”

Other frauds include callers imperson-ating members of the IRS, FBI, and anynumber of state and federal agencies. The

representatives, however, do somethingthat a public would not, and cannot, everdo: ask for personal information over thephone. The same occurs frequently withemail, Chalmers said, and the same rulesapply.

So as the scammer wind down theirMedicare fraud efforts and turn to springbreak, now is maybe the time to give yourson, daughter, or grandkids a call – youknow, ask where they plan to be, in casethere’s any real trouble.

Avoiding Scams• Hang up, don’t press keys – many

of these calls come from automatedmachines that don’t know if the num-ber is valid. Pressing a key or respond-ing to a robo-call, assistant deputy sec-retary Sandy Chalmers said, assures

the system that yours is a real number– and that it should call non-stop.

• Never provide personal information. Ifyou find yourself talking to a live per-son, never give personal information,such as credit card numbers, socialsecurity numbers or anything else.

• Get on the Wisconsin’s “Do Not Call”registry. This won’t stop the scam-mers, but Chalmers says that thismakes it easier to filter them. “Anyonewho calls you unsolicited while you’reon that list is in violation of state andfederal law – and probably not some-one you want to do business with.”You can do this online at donotcall.gov.

• Remember it doesn’t cost money tocollect a prize. One common scamtells that you’ve received something –a family member has bought a medicalalert device, or you’ve won the lot-tery – and that the last step is to send adown payment or provide a credit cardnumber. No reputable business oper-ates in this way.

Photos submitted

Less strenuous than some sports, billiards is a popular sport at the Wisconsin Senior Games. The games take place from June6-20 in nine different cities throughout Dane County.

The senior games hold competition in a host of sports, such as tennis and racquetball.

If you goWhat: Wisconsin Senior Games

When: June 6-20

Where: Madison and sevenother Dane County communities

To participate: Register onlineat wiseniorgames.org or completea registration form by contactingReggie Hennessey at (608) 274-6842 or [email protected]

Registration deadline: May 8

Turn to Senior Games /Page 7



12 - Young At Heart - Verona Press - March 19, 2015

Centers balancingneeds for different

age groups

SCOTT DE LARUELLE

Unified News Group

M a n y s e n i o r c e n t e rmembers in their 80s and90s grew up listening tothe music like the GlennM i l l e r B a n d . “ N e w ”members in their late 60sgrew up listening to theBeatles.

The trick is finding awide range of program-ming to serve all peopleat senior centers , andaround the Dane Countyarea, that means chang-ing up a few things, fromente r ta inm ent to foodselection.

A c c o r d i n g t o t h eN a t i o n a l C o u n c i l o nAging , s en io r cen te rshave become one of themost widely used ser-vices among America’solder adults, with morethan 11,400 centers serv-ing more than 1 millionpeople . And while theage gap between young-er and older members isabout the same as in thepast, generational chang-es brought about by the“Baby Boomers” (bornroughly 1946-64) hasincreased the differencesbetween older and young-

er members.“There are folks herefrom 55 to 90 to 100,”said Verona Senior Cen-ter director Mary Hanson.“So you can imagine alot of variety in activi-ties people are interested

in. (We’ve) got to figurethat out and arrange pro-gramming that works for

everybody.”Oregon Senior Center

director Alison Koelsch

said in the past, differ-ent generations of seniorswould all be interested insimilar things.

“We’d have a lot ofseniors in their 70s comein with mom, who’s inthe 90s, and mother anddaughter would come intogether and there wouldbe som e kn i t t ing andcrocheting and quilting –very ‘old school’ that alot of senior centers prob-ably provided all over thenation,” she said. “Witheuchre, we used to have15 tables set up; it was

ju st pa ck ed . Ov er ti me ,(players) have just passedaway … now we’re downto around seven tables ifwe’re lucky.”

Ins tead, the youngerseniors are playing games

like cribbage, dominoes,Mahjong or Zumba Gold,which Koelsch sa id is“huge” at the center.

“Tha t ’ s wha t you’ regoing to see, from a lot ofthese people in their 60sand up,” she said.

Wha t you don’ t s eefrom that more tech-savvygroup is computer class-es, though.

“We’ve got ten awayfrom that because ourcenter is Wi-Fi connect-ed, and a lot of peoplehave their own laptops,”Koelsch said. “We gotrid of all our outdatedcom pute rs and desks ,and now our computerroom is a learning center,if they want to do otherclasses because they areno t do ing th ings wi th

computer skills.”Younger seniors alsohave different tastes, aswell, Koelsch said.

“The older folks arehappy with roast beef andmashed potatoes and gra-vy, and the younger oneswould rather have a salador potato bar,” she said.“They’re not coming tothe site; it doesn’t interestthem as much.”

For senior centers, it’sall about providing thechange their patrons want.Koelsch sa id the t rendwill likely continue in thefuture, with more “boom-ers” reaching the age of

seniors.“ T h e f i r s t b o o m e r

turned 60 more than fiveyears ago, so it’s prettyrecently,” she said. “Ittakes a while for trends tosink in. Dane County in10 years is going to be 25percent of the populationover the age of 60.”

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Sienna Crest Assisted Living,The place to call home when you (or your

loved one) need help with cares, meals and medications. Our home is sta f ed 24/7, so

help is there when you need it.

www.siennacrest.com

Memory Care is Available at: 989 Park Street Oregon, WI 53575 (608) 835-0000

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Photo by Scott De Laruelle

Above, The Retro Swing Bandswung by the Oregon SeniorCenter Monday afternoon fora concert, playing a variety oftunes from the Big Band andother eras, much to the delightof a packed house.

Photo by Kimberly Wethal

At right, the Stoughton SeniorCenter celebrated Elvis’ birthdayin January with impersonatorAlan Graveen and his “StrictlyElvis” show on Tuesday. Witharound 75 in attendance,Graveen sang classic Elvis

songs and got the audienceinvolved with his act. GailRaymond is serenaded by theElvis impersonator.

According to

the Centers for

Disease Control,

the current life

expectancy in the

U.S. is nearly 79

years and rising.

Bridging the generation gap

Photo by Mark Ignatowski

Guitarist Richard Wiegel strumsand sings as audience membersat the Verona Area Senior Centerclap along in September.






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INDEPENDENT CONDOMINIUMSLow-maintenance residence designed for carefree

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ASSISTED LIVINGProviding assistance with the activities of daily living while offering the security of having a licensednursing staff available 24 hours a day.

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Medication safety tips for children and adults to avoid injuryPrescription and over-the-counter medi-

cations can save lives and help people ofall ages manage certain conditions.

When used correctly and under theguidance of a physician, medications arelargely safe. It is when medicines are usedoff-label, shared or taken in error that reac-tions and injury can occur.

The American Academy of Pediatricsand their Healthy Children Organizationwarns that more than 7,000 children visithospital emergency rooms every year forproblems related to medication errors.

Children are not the only ones in danger.Adults can make mistakes with their medi-cations as well.

For example, seniors who may be man-aging several different types of medica-tions can inadvertently cause dangerousdrug interactions by mixing the wrongpills.

Pharmacists work diligently to helpprevent medication errors. However, thegeneral public can also do their part. TheAmerican Society of Health-System Phar-macists and the National Association of

Boards of Pharmacy offer these medicationsafety tips.

• When a new medication is prescribed,

ask the doctor to explain more about it,including its intended purpose and anycommon side effects to be expected.

• Make sure your doctor knows aboutall the medications you are taking, includ-ing non-prescription products, herbal rem-edies, dietary supplements, and vitamins.Some medications do not mix with seem-ingly innocent ingredients.

Keep a running list of any medicines youtake so you can easily and accurately sharethis information with your physician.

• Question anything that you do not

understand. Check the prescription for dos-ing information. For refills, make sure therefill information conforms to the originalprescription strength.

• Fill all prescriptions at the same phar-macy and develop a rapport with the

pharmacist so that potential drug interac-tions will be flagged.

Pharmacists are well versed in medica-tions and may be able to inform you asto the safety or risk involved in taking anover-the-counter product at the same timethat you are on a prescription.

• Many pills look the same. If you areconfused and taking multiple medications,keep medications in the original packagingand double-check the labels before takingany medications.

• Use the right dosing tools. A spoonfrom the kitchen is not accurate for mea-suring out a teaspoon of medication.

• If you take multiple medications, usea pillbox to keep pills organized. The boxmakes it easier to manage medications andserves as a reminder if you have or havenot taken a medication on a given day.

• Store medications as instructed on thelabel. The bathroom medicine cabinet may

not be an ideal place to store medications,as bathrooms get damp, and that can com-promise the integrity of the pills.

Also, bathroom cabinets are readilyaccessible by all, including kids. It’s bet-ter to store drugs out of sight and reachof children. Keep dangerous medicationslocked away.

• Routinely discard expired or unneededmedications. Medicine take-back programsfor disposal are a good way to removemedicines from the home and reduce thechance that others may accidentally takethe medicine.

• Consult with a doctor before beginning

or ending medication.

Medicines play important roles in per-sonal health. When used correctly, medica-tions are assets, but caution should alwaysbe taken to ensure safe usage and storageof any medications.

–Metro News Service

Simple ways to maintain your mental acuity with a routine of diet and exerciseMany people know that a

combination of a healthy dietand routine exercise is thebest way to maintain theirphysical health. But whatabout mental well-being?

Memory lapses are oftenassumed to be an acceptedside effect of aging, butsuch an assumption is incor-rect, as there are many stepsmen and women can take tomaintain their mental acuitywell into their golden years.

• Cardiovascular exercisecan help men and women

maintain healthy weights andreduce their risk for potential-ly deadly ailments like diabe-tes and heart disease.

But cardiovascular exer-cise also can boost brainpower. Cardiovascular exer-cise pumps oxygen-richblood to the brain, and thatblood contains glucose thatcan fuel brain cells.

Cardiovascular exercisealso strengthens blood ves-sels, which can help pre-vent potentially devastat-

ing diseases, such as stroke,that can have a lasting and

negative impact on cognitivefunction.

• Many people need noreason to socialize, but thosethat do can now cite boost-ing brain function as a greatreason to get together withfamily and friends.

Routine socialization cankeep a brain sharp by reduc-ing its levels of cortisol, apotentially destructive hor-mone brought on by stress.

Researchers also believe

that routine interaction withother people stimulates

structures in the brain’sfrontal lobe that are like-ly responsible for plan-ning, decision making andresponse control.

• Naps can have a reen-ergizing effect on men andwomen, but a study fromGerman researchers alsofound that naps also canimprove memory.

In the study, research-ers divided participants intothree groups: people who

would stay awake for 60minutes; people who would

sleep for six minutes; andpeople who would sleep for30 to 45 minutes.

After the hour was up, par-ticipants were given a wordrecall test, and those whoslept performed better on thetest than those who hadn’t.

But the development thatwas perhaps most interestingwas that those who slept for

just six minutes performed jus t as well on the tes t asthose who slept for far lon-ger, leading researchers to

suggest that men and womenneed not take long naps to

improve their memories.

• A study from researchersat Chicago’s Rush Univer-sity Medical Center foundthat people who eat fish onceper week have a 60 percentlower risk of developingAlzheimer’s disease thanthose who do not includefish in their weekly diets.

Researchers credit thislower risk to DHA, an ome-ga-3 fatty acid that is foundin both the brain and in fish

such as salmon and tuna. –Metro News Service




Keep your heart runningstrong into your golden years

Heart health should bea concern for people of allages, but especially so formen and women over 50.

That’s because, accord-

ing to the American HeartAssociation, even men andwomen who are free of car-diovascular disease at age50 are at a significant life-time risk of developing thedisease.

But heart disease does nothave to be an accepted byproduct of aging. For exam-ple, a 2014 study publishedin the AHA journal Circula-tion found that maintainingor increasing physical activ-ity after age 65 can improvethe heart’s well-being andlower risk of heart attack.

In addition to increasingphysical activity as they

age, older men and womenwho understand heart dis-ease and learn to recog-nize its symptoms have agreater chance of minimiz-ing its effects and loweringtheir risk of having a heartattack.

Heart disease is a blanketterm used to describe a hostof conditions, so symptomsvary depending on eachindividual condition. Thefollowing are some of themore widely known condi-tions and their symptoms:

HypertensionAlso known as high blood

pressure , hypertens ionis a largely symptomlessform of heart disease. TheAHA notes that the ideathat hypertension producessymptoms such as difficultysleeping, facial flushing,nervousness, and sweatingis a misconception.

Symptoms typically donot alert men and womento the presence of hyper-tension, highlighting theemphasis men and womenshould place on routine vis-its to the doctor’s office,where their blood pressurecan be taken.

Heart attack

The symptoms of a heartattack are different thanthe symptoms of heart

disease that may lead toheart attack. The formercan be found by visitingheart.org. Signs that youmay be heading toward a

heart attack include unduefatigue, palpitations (thesensation that your heart isskipping a beat or beatingtoo rapidly), dyspnea (diffi-culty or labored breathing),chest pain or discomfortfrom increased activity.

ArrhythmiaArrhythmia means your

heartbeat is irregular, andmen and women often mis-takenly believe arrhyth-mia only afflicts those whoalready have been diag-nosed with heart disease orhave had a heart attack. Butarrhythmia can affect even

those men and women whohave healthy hearts and nohistory of cardiovasculardisease.

Symptoms of arrhyth-mia can vary greatly, froma single premature beat toa series of premature beatsthat occur in rapid succes-sion. Arrhythmia that lastslong enough to affect heartfunction may include symp-toms such as rapid heart-beat, fatigue, dizziness,lightheadedness, shortnessof breath, and chest pain.

Changing habitsHeart healthy habits take

some effort, but men andwomen can protect theirhearts regardless of theirages.

• Get sufficient exerciseAt least 30 minutes of

exercise per day can protectagainst disease.

• Quit smokingSmoking increases your

risk for a host of ailments,including heart disease.Quitting is a great way tostart getting your heart andother parts of your bodyback on track.

• Include heart-healthy

foods in your dietA diet that is rich in fruits

and vegetables and low in

cholesterol, salt and satu-rated fat promotes hearthealth.

• Don’t drink alcohol toexcess

Like smoking, drink-ing alcohol to excess canlead to a host of problems,such as high blood pres-sure, arrhythmia and highcholesterol, each of whichincreases your risk of heartdisease.

• Lose weightBeing overweight or

obese is a major risk fac-tor for heart disease. Ifyou have already startedto exercise daily and eata more heart-healthy diet,then you’re on your way tolosing weight. Consult yourphysician if diet and exer-

cise don’t seem to be help-ing you to shed pounds.

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Exercise is one option that can help thwart heart disease, which kills millions of people across the globe each year – many of whom areover 50. Men and women who learn about heart disease and how to reduce their risk stand a far greater chance of f ighting the disease.




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Rebounding from a late start to saving for retirementSome people do not

have the ability to beginsaving for retirement earlyon.

O t h e r s m a y h a v ebrushed retirement sav-ings aside for so long that

they are now worried thatit’s too late to begin sock-ing away money for retire-ment.

While it’s best to startsaving for retirement asearly as possible, the goodnews is that it’s never toolate to start planning forretirement.

If your 40th birthday haslong passed and you’re

finally thinking ahead toretirement, consider thesecatch-up strategies.

Research tax advantages

in savings plansA f i n a n c i a l p l a n n e r

can point you in the rightdirection, or consult withy o u r e m p l o y e r a b o u temployee programs.

Deposit money into a401(k) or 403(b) plan oranother retirement vehi-cle.

Jump on any opportuni-ties when your employermatches invested funds.

Investigate an IRA andfind out if there are anygovernment incentives.

D e p e n d i n g o n y o u rage, you may be able todeposit more money intosuch accounts than other

investors.Cut back on expenses

Cutting back on unnec-essary expenses is a greatway to save more moneyfor retirement.

Figure out where youcan s ave som e m oneythat you can then allocateto retirement savings.

Maybe you can reduce

insurance coverage onan older car or raise yourdeductible?

Downsize cable pack-ages or skip that costlycup of coffee on the wayto work.

P e rhaps i t ’ s t im e tolook for a smaller, lesse x p e n s i v e h o m e o r acompact car instead of anSUV.

Any money saved nowwill benefit you when thetime comes to bid fare-well to the workforce.

Delay your retirement

Many people who retirefind themselves boredand looking for ways tofill their time.

As a result, more and

more people are delayingtheir retirement, whicha l so g ives them m oretime to save for that daywhen they do call it quits.

If you want to workless, discuss and negoti-ate a phased retirementwi th your bos ses tha tallows you to stick withyour employer but gradu-al ly work fewer hoursuntil you retire complete-ly.

You may be able towork part-time for sever-al years and retire whenyou’re most comfortable.

Consider more

aggressive fundsEven if you are 50 you

still have a few decades

before retirement, whichleaves lots of t ime togrow your re t i rem entsavings.

But you may want tocons ide r m ore aggres -sive funds that can help

you catch up more quick-ly than less aggressiveinvestments.

Just know that aggres-sive funds may also leaveyou susceptible to sub-stantial losses.

Don’t amass debtI f you’ re s av ing fo r

retirement but only pay-ing minimum balanceson your credit cards, thenyou’re not really saving.

Pay down credit carddebt before you beginto se t as ide money forretirement.

De lay ing re t i rem entplanning may mean you

have to work a l i t t l eharder to build up a solidreserve. But by followingsome financial tips andpersevering, you can stillen joy re t i rem ent wi thsecurity.

–Metro News Service

While it’s best to star t savi ng for

retirement as early as possible, the good

news is that it’s never too late to start

planning for retirement

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balloon toss.Hennes sey s a id thegames have grown steadi-ly over the past 32 years,although there were timeswhen participation haddeclined and it was hard torecruit organizers.

But the miss ion hasremained the same: to pro-vide an outlet for seniors tocompete against individu-als in a similar age group.

“It’s about competitionand camaraderie, and it’s asocial event,” he said.

Competition will takeplace in nine Dane Coun-ty communities: Fitch-burg, Madison, Middleton,Monona, Mount Horeb,Stoughton, Sun Prairie,Verona and Waunakee.

Hennessey, 72, sa idhe got involved with thesenior games in 2000, play-ing three-on-three basket-ball. He recalled that gameswere not well attended thatyear and there was talk ofdiscontinuing them.

From out of the blue, hegot a telephone call fromone of the organizers say-ing he had “been recom-mended to take it over asevent chairperson,” whichHennessey did in 2002.

He joined the board

of directors in 2004 andbecame board presidenttwo years later.

Hennessey said he ismotivated by a chance tocompete in a social andfriendly environment. Thisyear he’ll play basketballand golf.

“We’ve really grownover the years,” Hennesseysaid. “Back in the ’90s,they had like 26 events,and now we have up to 48events.”

He explained that eventsget added or removed fromthe annual games depend-ing on their popularity.

“We did have bocce ball

and co-ed volleyball, butwe dropped them last year

because we couldn’t getenough participation,” he

said. “We’re up to almost500 competitors, and we’ve

really upgraded our venueswhere the events are held.

“The seniors really doseem to enjoy competing

for Gold, Silver and Bronzemedals,” Hennessey said,

“and we try to pair them upwith comparable competi-

tion.”

Photos submitted

From left, volleyball is one of more than 40 sports included in the games; athletes compete in three-on-three basketball at the Wisconsin Senior Games

Team Events(team registration

required):

Basketball

Softball

Volleyball

Other Events

8-ball Pool

Basketball Skills

Bean Bag Toss

Bowling

Cards (Cribbage,

Bridge,

Sheepshead,

Euchre)

Dartball

Golf

Horseshoes

Pickleball

Swimming

Table Tennis

Tennis

Track and Field

Trap and Skeet

Wii Bowling

Senior Games: Two-week event grows over the past three decadesContinued from page 1

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2015 VP Young at Heart