March 1, 2025 | By Margaret Britton-Mehlisch
Jami Frazier Tracy says it was a love of thrifting that steered her into a career in museums. The teenage years she spent combing the racks at the Goodwill at 37th and Oliver nurtured a love for items of yesteryear. “In thrift stores, you never know what you’re going to find,” Frazier Tracy said. “It’s […]
| By The Active Age
Gale Engels of Wichita was the winner of our Feb. 10 drawing for a diamond necklace donated by Mike Seltzer of Mike Seltzer Jewelers. Engels and his wife, Laura, went to pick up the 14-carat diamond and aquamarine necklace after returning from a trip to Colorado. “It’s my birthstone,” Laura said of the aquamarine gemstone. […]
| By Joe Stumpe
Some veteran Wichita performers are trying to make sure the music plays on for a younger generation. And they’re having a blast doing it. Since February 2024, they’ve come together for three sold-out shows — two tributes to The Beatles and one to the Rolling Stones. The first one was just for fun. Joe Sauer, […]
| By The Active Age
Big Read kicks off Wichita’s 2025 Big Read gets underway at 6:30 p.m. Friday, March 14 at the Advanced Learning Library, 711 W. Second. Attendees will receive a free copy of this year’s book, “Sitting Pretty: The View From My Ordinary Resilient, Disabled Body,” by Kansas City writer Rebelah Taussig, who lost the use of […]
| By The Active Age
Don’t know about Kansas’ Army of Amazons? You can soon. They’re part of a new two-part documentary on Kansas PBS called “Great Women of Kansas.” Part 1, which originally aired in September, will be broadcast again at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 19. Part 2 premieres at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 20. Part 1 focused on […]
| By Ted Blankenship
Now and then I watch reruns of “Everybody Loves Raymond.” A recent show was mostly about whether a mother-in-law should be called “mom.” The show’s two mothers-in-law got into a big battle over it. That reminded me of some of the interesting things families do with names. Take my mother-in-law, who was born in 1898 […]
| By Diana Morton
Forum Theatre, at the Wilke Center, 1st United Methodist Church, 330 N. Broadway. Bridges of Madison County. Musical based on the best-selling novel. Now – Mar 2. 8pm; Tickets $34 – $44 each; 10% military discount and 1/2 price student tickets with a valid student ID. 316-618-0444 Mosley Street Melodrama, 234 N. Mosley. Desperate Housewives […]
| By Jim Miller
Savvy Senior – February Columns Driving with Dementia and Knowing When to Stop How to Choose and Use a Home Blood Pressure Monitor How Much Do You Have to Make to File Taxes in 2025? Service Dogs Can Help Seniors with Disabilities Driving with Dementia and Knowing When to Stop Dear Savvy Senior, When should […]
| By Cecilia Green
“Phishing” is the practice of scammers trying to obtain victims’ personal information in order to rip them off. Despite efforts of the Federal Trade Commission and local authorities to warn consumers, it and other fraud threats are on the rise. Chief Attorney Avery Elofsson, from the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Economic Crimes Unit, said that […]
| By Ted Ayres
“Kansas Baseball,” by Michael J. Travis (The History Press, 2025, 158 pages, $24.99) Wichita leads off “Kansas Baseball,” Michael J. Travis’ look at how American’s favorite pastime has been played in the Sunflower State. The book begins with a discussion of League 42, the youth baseball program named for Jackie Robinson (No. 42 for the […]
| By Nancy Wheeler
Use these clues to name popular snack foods. The answers appear below. 1. What company laid out one of the greatest dares in advertising when they said, “Betcha can’t eat just one”? 2. In hot competition with Peter Pan and Skippy, Grey Advertising remembered that mothers know best, coming up with the slogan, “Choosy moms […]
| By Jennifer Lasley CPAAA
The Kansas Silver Haired Legislature is a dedicated group of advocates who represent the interests of Kansans aged 60 and older. KSHL delegates develop bills and resolutions that are presented to the Kansas Legislature and governor. The 2025-26 delegates for Butler, Harvey and Sedgwick Counties are: Dennis Bender, Sedgwick County, District 1. Bender, a new […]
| By Joe Norris
It was April 24, 1924. In Germany, Hitler had just begun the first month of a 5-year prison term for the treasonous Beer Hall Putsch. In Wichita, people were paying a quarter to see the new Buster Keaton movie. And in Lucas, Kansas, S.P. Dinsmoor was exchanging wedding vows with his second wife, Emilie. The […]
| By The Active Age
Donate at least $50 to The Active Age, and you could win a family membership to Botanica. The Active Age holds a drawing for a family membership each month from among people on our Honor Roll list of donors. This month’s winner is Virginia Dean. Donations may be made by calling 316-942-5385; through our website, […]
January 31, 2025 | By Amy Geiszler-Jones
DERBY — On a cold January morning, it didn’t take long for Cleda Justice to make a heartwarming connection with the young male visitor seated next to her in the lounge of Brookdale Derby senior living community. “He’s marvelous,” Justice said as she ran her hands along the soft, fluffy fur of Jax, a 2 […]
| By Carl Williams
Bucky Walters has been making people laugh since his days as a wise-cracking student at Wichita’s East High School in the mid 1950s. The recently retired hairdresser went on to tickle funny bones in comedy clubs, theater productions and the annual Gridiron show staged by local journalists. But his first foray into show business was […]
| By Tammara Fogle
If you remember shopping at Henry’s department store, you’ll probably enjoy an exhibit and sale running through Feb. 7 at The Workroom. The show features drawings by Della Riley, who was a fashion illustrator for Henry’s, Shepler’s and other Wichita clothing stores during the 1960s and 70s. In December, Autumn Fortune, who has a booth […]
| By The Active Age
Scott Phillips is one of the most acclaimed writers to emerge from Wichita — a place featured prominently in some of his fiction. The author of eight novels and a short story collection in the noir literary genre, Phillips is probably best known for “The Ice Harvest,” which won several awards and was turned into […]
| By Tammara Fogle
Gardening workshop The 2025 Design & Grow Workshop will be held Saturday, March 1 at the Sedgwick County Extension Center, 21st and Ridge Road. The morning session will cover native plant design, floral arrangements, resilient plant varieties and planning food gardens during droughts. Registration is $10 through Feb. 21; after that, it’s $15. Separate registration […]
| By The Active Age
Kathy Campbell says a group that honors deceased nurses is not unlike some American Legion groups that pay tribute to fallen veterans. “We just don’t have motorcycles,” she said. What the Nurses Honor Guard of Wichita does have are outfits that recall Florence Nightingale and a belief in the importance of nursing. “I think it’s […]
| By Joe Stumpe
As I write this, Wichita is flirting with its record for most consecutive days with snow on the ground. At least one local family has erected a working igloo. Soup weather, in other words. The accompanying soup recipe is hearty enough to serve as a meal and guaranteed to warm your insides. It’s similar to […]
| By Jim Miller
Savvy Senior – February Columns How Long to Keep Tax Records and Other Documents How to Help a Hoarding Parent Does Medicare Cover Talk Therapy Services? The Surprising Dangers of Earwax How Seniors Can Get Help Lowering Their Grocery Bills How Long to Keep Tax Records and Other Financial Documents Dear Savvy Senior, Is […]
| By Nancy Wheeler
See if you can name these actresses who lit up the big screen in Hollywood hit movies. 1. What strong-willed, sophisticated actress won four Academy Awards for Best Actress, a record for any performer? 2. What trained ballet dancer rose to stardom in the romantic comedy “Roman Holiday” and then dazzled audiences in “Breakfast at […]
| By Diana Morton
Forum Theatre, at the Wilke Center, 1st United Methodist Church, 330 N. Broadway. Bridges of Madison County. In this musical based on the best-selling novel, Francesca builds herself a home in Iowa, raising two children and settling into a steady but unremarkable routine. Then, one day, she meets a charismatic photographer who awakens her passion […]
January 29, 2025 | By Joe Stumpe
The first history Gerald Norwood got interested in was his own family’s, and who could blame him? Norwood’s grandfather, Henry, spent his childhood enslaved on plantations in North Carolina and southwest Arkansas. Following the Civil War, Henry and his older brother made their way on foot about 130 miles north in Arkansas, settling near Fort […]