July 31, 2024 | By Ted Ayres
“Love & Whiskey: “The Remarkable True Story of Jack Daniel, His Master Distiller Nearest Green, and the Improbable Rise of Uncle Nearest” by Fawn Weaver (Melcher Media, 2024, 355 pages, $28.00) As a young man, beer was my adult beverage of choice. In the autumn of my life, I am an inveterate whiskey drinker, […]
| By Ted Blankenship
Editor’s note: After taking a couple months off, Ted Blankenship reports that he is feeling much better and plans to resume his column on at least an occasional basis. The guy in charge of maintenance where we live is a nice guy (he changes light bulbs too high for us to reach), and […]
| By Nancy Wheeler
Wichitans take pride in the city’s aviation heritage. Take this test to see how far and wide your knowledge of aviation extends. The answers appear below. 1. What brothers are best remembered for making the first successful powered airplane flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, in 1903? 2. Who flew the Spirit of St. Louis […]
| By Joe Stumpe
As you might have noticed, The Active Age is in some ways an old-fashioned newspaper. For one thing, we still print and distribute many copies each month (about 57,000!) at a time when many publications are going online exclusively. Another way in which we are traditional is by keeping our editorial and advertising sides separate. […]
| By Garry Winger, Pastor
There is tremendous irony in The Active Age for June 2024. On the front page is the Spangles grannies article about the alcohol advertising. It makes it appear that alcohol is a good thing for seniors. On page 8 is the article about Myra Warren (McHenry) and the Kansas temperance movement. I have special interest […]
| By Jim Miller
How to Hire a Caregiver for In-Home Help How to Prevent and Treat Age-Related Macular Degeneration Kitchen Ideas for Aging-in-Place How Extreme Heat Affects Seniors: Tips to Stay Safe Dear Savvy Senior, My wife and I had our estate plan – including a will, power of attorney and advance directive – drawn up about 10 […]
| By The Active Age
For Donna and Arlin Connell, the best day of summer is the first day they find okra at the farmers market. That means it’s time to whip up a batch of Fried Okra Salad. “We have this for lunch the very next day and never admit to anyone the two of us ate the whole […]
July 30, 2024 | By The Active Age
For Donna and Arlin Connell, the best day of summer is the first day they find okra at the farmers market. That means it’s time to whip up a batch of Fried Okra Salad. “We have this for lunch the very next day and never admit to anyone the two of us ate the whole […]
| By The Active Age
The first three of 12 total solar benches have been installed at three parks and neighborhood resource centers in Wichita. According to a news release, this is an initiative by the Wichita Public Library to expand wireless access to residents. The solar benches are located at: Evergreen Park, 2700 N. Woodland Atwater Neighborhood Resource Center, […]
July 1, 2024 | By Bonnie Bing
Visit the Heskett Center on the Wichita State University campus, and you may come across a group of radicals. They’re the ones wearing colorful T-shirts with a slogan on the back — “Not Today Parkinson’s” — along with smiles and determined looks that prove they believe it. They’re also walking, taking aquatic classes, doing yoga […]
| By Joe Stumpe
Eighty years ago this spring, the Little Arkansas River spilled out of its banks in a way that spelled big trouble. Swollen by heavy rain, the river and nearby Chisholm Creek drove an estimated 5,000 Wichitans from their homes, washed out bridges and covered much of downtown. In Riverside Park, the historic Park Villa building […]
| By The Active Age
When Ann Enix saw a pine needle basket at the Kansas State Weaving Conference, she was fascinated enough to buy a book and teach herself how to make them. She collected pine needles from around her cabin in Colorado and, later in California, found the long, fine needles needed to make tiny baskets like her […]
| By Tammara Fogle
With area farmers markets hitting their prime, the hunt is on for recipes that use their produce and other products to best advantage. This recipe from the Tuscan Women Cook program does just that. You can find tomatoes, fresh herbs, artisan bread and cheese, prepared presto and specialty oils and vinegars at many local markets. […]
| By Susan Armstrong
During the summer, when I was a young girl, I peddled my bicycle to the city pool every day to escape the sweltering heat of the Kansas sun. From mid-July through the end of August, the world moved in slow motion. I would lie on my back and watch the clouds drift overhead or bury […]
| By Thomas Welk
When Jimmy Carter was taken under the care of a hospice program in February 2023, there were multiple news reports practically announcing that he had died. As of this writing, our nation’s 39th president is still alive. Electing hospice care is not a death sentence. Hospice takes care of someone who is living. Physical, social, […]
| By Nancy Wheeler
Think you know your American history? Try these questions about various important historical locations. 1. In what city would you find the Sixth Floor Museum, Dealey Plaza, and the grassy knoll where President John F. Kennedy was assassinated? 2. Pillaging the countryside and destroying property, Sherman’s March to the Sea in 1864 began in what […]
| By Diana Morton
Guild Hall Players, St. James Episcopal Church, 3750 E. Douglas. Hello, Dolly by Jerry Herman. Matchmaker Dolly Levi is a widow, a matchmaker, and also a professional meddler — but everything changes when she decides that the next match she needs to make is to find someone for herself. 8 pm July 18-20 and 7 […]
| By The Active Age
Master Gardeners Sought The Sedgwick County Extension Master Gardener program will hold new training classes starting in September. Interested parties are encouraged to attend an informational meeting 2-4 p.m. July 18 at the county Extension Center, 21st and Ridge. Applications for the training program will be available at the information meeting and must be returned […]
| By WSU Strategic Communications
Shielding the earth from the sun seems like a good idea, in theory, to fight climate change, Wichita State University’s Dr. Nickolas Solomey and graduate student Kelly Kabler agree. Good ideas, they also agree, must be grounded in science. In early February, the New York Times reported that Asher Space Research Institute Physics Professor […]
| By The Active Age
The Junior League of Wichita kicked off its 100th anniversary celebration early by donating $2 million for Water Play Cascades, a centerpiece of Exploration Place’s planned outdoor expansion. The planned water feature is described as “an incredible multisensory learning experience promoting teamwork and collaboration. Many of the pumps and water wheels must be activated by […]
| By Jim Miller
Long-Term Care Benefits for Veterans and Surviving Spouses Dreading a Colonoscopy? There Are Alternatives Can You Stop and Restart Social Security Benefits? How to Find Reliable Health Information Online Long-Term Care Benefits for Veterans and Surviving Spouses Dear Savvy Senior, I understand that the Veterans Administration has a benefit that can help veterans and spouses […]
June 25, 2024 | By The Active Age
Oenophiles, raise a glass to Wichita’s wine scene: The city has six restaurants on the new 2024 Restaurant Awards list released Tuesday by Wine Spectator magazine. They’re fairly scattered around the city: in College Hill, the Wine Dive, 4714 E. Douglas, and Vora, 3252 E. Douglas, made the cut; west Wichita is represented by 6S […]
June 24, 2024 | By Tammara Fogle
Sedgwick County and Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) Chairman Ryan Baty have declared a State of Local Disaster Emergency regarding the massive pallet fire that broke out last night and continues to burn uncontrollably outside Evergreen Recycle at 302 W. 53rd Street N. in Park City. This proclamation now allows Sedgwick County to access state […]
June 14, 2024 | By The Active Age
The American Red Cross is urging people to donate blood during the summer and sweetening the deal with a couple of rewards. This is the 17th year for the organization’s Red, White & You Blood Drive. Blood donations tend to drop in the summer as people travel for vacations and students leave school campuses that […]
June 10, 2024 | By The Active Age
Most City of Wichita systems used by the public are now back in service with some limited exceptions, the city said Monday. According to a news release, water metering, billing and payment processing systems are coming back online. Customers should expect to begin receiving updated statements this week. Auto-payments are functioning as normal, and customers […]