story and photo by Bobby Anderson, Staff Writer

When Pearline Childress’ family circle in her lifelong hometown of Coweta started growing smaller and smaller, she knew she needed to make a change.
Her son, Dave, knew it was a decision she couldn’t make alone.
“I would see mom on average once a month and my sister would see her maybe once a week,” said Dave, an Edmond native who travels extensively for business. “Since her sister passed away her social interaction just wasn’t very much.”
Both children poured over brochures and facilities and options.
During the process, Tealridge Retirement Coordinator Kristen Moss urged the entire Childress family to come up for lunch one Saturday.
“It helps when they can come enjoy the community for a couple events before they move in,” Moss said. “We spent pretty much all afternoon on that Saturday sitting and talking with residents. I think we try to incorporate more of the activity of living here before they even move to give them a glimpse and give them that trial.”
The afternoon was one to remember.
“The staff, I just fell in love with these guys from the jump,” he said. “But it’s the residents that really make it.”
The decision to move to Tealridge meant Pearline Childress would leave behind 72 years of life in Coweta – a place where she had taught school and raised her children.
Moving would mean separation from all she had known.
But little did she know, moving would also prepare her heart for more people to move in.
“Everybody is just so nice and friendly,” Pearline said. “It’s really impressed me.”
Now just eight miles down the road, Dave Childress comes up most mornings to have coffee with his mom.
During the process, Childress told his wife that his biggest wish was to show up one day and his mother would be sitting out front surrounded by friends.
“I thought if we could ever get there that would make my heart happy,” he said. “I think it was middle of last week I popped up here and I walked in and she was out there with the ladies.”
“It made me feel really good.”
Elaine Rowton knows that feeling well.
Rowton spent 35 years as office manager for an Edmond pediatric dentist before moving to Tealridge.
She lived on the other side of Oklahoma Christian for 40 years before her and her late husband finalized plans for their next move. He passed last year but Rowton never wavered on her decision to come to Tealridge.
“Everything just clicked, clicked, clicked like it was a God thing,” said Rowton, who has lived at Tealridge for three months after following her neighbor of 25 years to the residence. “We looked at other facilities but this was my choice. I like that I have lots of neat friends.”
Daily housekeeping, laundry and trash service, three meals a day and welcoming staff all come together to make Rowton feel at home.
“I feel secure here. The place has a really special, comforting atmosphere to it,” she said.
Macular degeneration started working on Ruby White’s eyesight a few years ago. Her sister convinced her to move to Washington to come live with her but she didn’t feel right once she got there so she moved back to Oklahoma.
The 45-year nurse used an online search company and her telephone to find a home.
“I think I drove these people totally crazy,” she said. “I talked to every one of them because I didn’t know really what to expect. I chose this because they were so helpful. They helped me decide I could be OK here. I wasn’t sure of that.”
And in a short period of time at Tealridge, all three ladies know everything is going to be just fine. Visit: https://www.seniorliving-edmond.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIt-r01IeB6AIVjIbACh2dRgmrEAAYASAAEgIIS_D_BwE

Leah Campbell remembers the day she lost her vision. She was a sixth grader, in her bedroom one morning in Altus, when she heard her mother walk in.
“Will you please turn on the lights?” Leah, then 11, asked.
“They are on,” said her mother.
It would take 17 years before Leah and her family would learn what had caused her blindness.
In that time, the little-known disease that took her eyesight would also rob her of her mobility, leaving her confined to a wheelchair.
Neuromyelitis optica, or NMO, occurs when the body’s immune system attacks the spinal cord, optic nerves and, in severe cases, the brain. The illness affects about 4,000 Americans, 80 percent of whom are women. Over time, patients typically develop blindness, muscle weakness and paralysis.
“NMO was initially considered a subset of multiple sclerosis and is so similar to MS that it often gets misdiagnosed,” said Bob Axtell, Ph.D., a scientist at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation who holds a pair of grants from the National Institutes of Health to study the rare disease. “This can be devastating for patients.”
That was the case for Leah. For years, doctors treated her with a common MS medication called interferon beta-1a, or Rebif. But not only does this medication fail to help NMO patients; it actually worsens their conditions.
It wasn’t until 2006, years after Leah had become the first blind graduate of Rhodes College in Tennessee, that scientists developed a definitive test for NMO. The test revealed that she suffered from the disease, and her physician, Gabriel Pardo, M.D., immediately took her off the drug. Instead, he began treating her with rituximab, an immune-suppressing monoclonal antibody known to control NMO disease activity.
While rituximab is not a cure for the underlying condition, in the 13-plus years Leah has been taking the medication, she’s been free of the sudden, violent attacks that had plagued her life until that point.
“Her right side was fine, but on the left, she would sort of vibrate,” said Leah’s mother, Theresa. “Her foot would turn in, her leg would draw up tight, and her hand would clench. Her whole ribcage would spasm uncontrollably.”
Before rituximab, Leah would sometimes experience 40 to 50 of these episodes a day. Since going on the drug, said Pardo, “her disease activity has been fully controlled.”
Still, the disease had already run wild in Leah’s body for the better part of two decades. “She has deficits that date to before she was a teenager,” said Pardo, a neuro-ophthalmologist who treats Leah at OMRF’s Multiple Sclerosis Center of Excellence, where he serves as director. “The blindness, the paralysis – unfortunately, those are things we can’t reverse.”
Today, at the age of 41, Leah is confined to a wheelchair and lives with her parents in Mustang. She requires regular care at OMRF, as she is at constant risk for fractures, skin ulcers, and bladder and bowel dysfunction.
Still, each week, with her parents’ help, Leah also attends aquatic and equine therapy sessions and a Bible study class. This past summer, she started a new job with a company that provides voice-activated smart controls for operating lights, locks, thermostats and other home systems.
She’s particularly excited about her new service dog, a chocolate lab named Seaclaid (Gaelic for chocolate) her parents are training to help her become more independent.
Despite the hurdles she faces, Leah remains optimistic about her future. “I’m just a positive thinker. My cup’s always half-full,” she said.
For OMRF researcher Axtell, patients like Leah drive his search for answers. “The more we understand about NMO,” he said, “the better the outlook will be for people struggling with this horrible condition.”

The Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) Black Heritage Committee is organizing a tour of sites significant to the Civil Rights Movement in Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama. The week-long trip will depart Sunday morning, May 10, from the Oklahoma History Center and return Friday evening, May 15. There are a limited number of bus seats available. Visit www.okhistory.org/freedomtrail to view the itinerary and to register for the tour.
Tour locations will include Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Ark.; the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tenn.; the Legacy Museum and National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Ala.; Edmund Pettis Bridge and National Voting Rights Museum and Institute in Selma, Ala.; and the Natchez Museum of African American History and Culture in Natchez, Miss..
“I am excited to help provide this opportunity to see where American history and change actually occurred,” said Shirley Nero, OHS Board member and OHS Black Heritage Committee chair.
You can find more information including registration at www.okhistory.org/freedomtrail or by contacting Larry O’Dell at lodell@okhistory.org.
Founded in the 1970s, the OHS Black Heritage Committee is a committee of the OHS Board of Directors. Its goal is to share Oklahoma’s African American history. The mission of the Oklahoma Historical Society is to collect, preserve and share the history and culture of the state of Oklahoma and its people. Founded in 1893 by members of the Territorial Press Association, the OHS maintains museums, historic sites and affiliates across the state. Through its research archives, exhibits, educational programs and publications the OHS chronicles the rich history of Oklahoma. For more information about the OHS, please visit www.okhistory.org.

I love gardening and flowers. My front flower bed at my house I thought was pretty nice. Elaine Rowton

The biggest thing I like is the appearance of life and I love seeing everything growing and blooming. Ruby White

It’s silly but spring is my favorite time of year because I do wild turkey hunting. Dave Childress

The beautiful weather with all the flowers and trees turning green and children out playing and enjoying themselves. Pearline Childress

by Bobby Anderson, Staff Writer

It’s a scene that continues to play itself over and over again whenever folks taste Jerel Jalbert’s barbecue sauces.
The culinary-trained Jalbert has been making BBQ sauce for decades. He tweaked it here and there during his 20 years in the Air Force and brought his love for sauce to the Sooner State when they moved here 20 years ago.
“My two kids said ‘Dad you have this barbecue sauce and you need to do something with it,’” he said.
He decided to take his original sauce and started testing it on groups. The feedback recommended a medium and a hot version were necessary.
It took 18 months to come up with the right spice levels before Papa J’s BBQ launched August 2014.
“We did a lot of test groups and had a lot of people try it. We knew we had a good product but the challenge was getting it processed and getting it ready,” he said. “But everyone seems to really like it.”
FAMILY AFFAIR
Papa J’s is family-owned with Jalbert’s two sons pulling equal weight.
“We’re all part of the company and we’re all owners and each one has a job,” he said.
Eldest son, Jeffrey, serves as the finance officer.
Youngest son, James, is the marketing director.
James jokes there’s absolutely no pressure when it comes to marketing the family business.
“It’s an easy product to market to be quite honest.” Being that we’re such a rare sauce in the fact we’re a whiskey barbecue sauce make it that much easier to really sell and market it. I think it comes down to how you sell it, how you present it to your customers and really come up with a great sales technique to make that happen.”
James’ degree is in marketing. He’s a loan underwriter at a local bank during the day when he’s not hitting up customer’s about the family sauce.
“I knew it was going to be a challenge,” Jeffrey said. “Raising the capital has been difficult. We’re a pretty blue collar family. You don’t make much in the military and on a military pension so there wasn’t a whole lot.”
Jeffrey drew heavily on his contacts as a commercial lender locally. He’s now a chief financial officer for a highway construction company.
“I take a lot of the tools I’ve learned in my current role and try to implement in our small business, the barbecue business,” he said.
This year the focus is on expanding distributorships and getting onto more Oklahoma shelves.
Barbecue-focused businesses are a natural draw but the family would one day like to see the Papa J’s brand at stores like Crest and Whole Foods.
“This year we’ve shifted to try to go to greater volume to increase sales,” Jeffrey said, acknowledging forging those relationships takes time. “Some of those companies want to sell wholesale for $2 or $3. When it’s $4.50 to $5 a jar … I think they’re harder to sell on.
“So it’s trying to find those companies that are willing to specialize a little more and in the quality of that sauce.”
Papa J smiles when you ask which whiskey he uses.
“People always ask what we use and the analogy I use is if you go into a package store whiskey is on levels. The cheap stuff is on the bottom, there’s the mid stuff and your top shelf,” he said. “We’re up there.”
Matriarch Hope tries her best to support her boys in the venture as well as put a lovable face on the brand at the multitude of shows, bazaars and events the company markets at.
“I introduce people by letting them sample. I do hands-on stuff,” she laughs. “The majority of the people love it. I describe the flavor first.”
The original sauce has the most whiskey flavor. The spicy version is a warm spice. The smoking hot is a five-second delayed heat tingle on the back of the tongue.
Forget the syrupy sweet or vinegary tang most sauces leave in your mouth.
Papa J’s sauces have a smoothness that you can definitely tell took a while to arrive at.
Papa J credits that smoothness to the whiskey.
And as to where Papa J’s goes in the future, Papa J has high hopes.
“I hope it’s an inheritance for my kids,” Papa J said. “I want it to grow and really take off. Barbecue in Oklahoma is really competitive. There’s a lot of sauces out there and you have to find that unique niche.”
We think we’ve found that but it’s a challenge to get to those places and have the availability.”
You can find out where to find Papa J’s sauces online at papajsbbq.com or on Facebook.

https://www.mcmmedicare.com/

Photography and Text by Terry “Travels with Terry” Zinn t4z@aol.com

When one becomes a senior in age and experience, there comes a knowledge of what works for you and what doesn’t, which influences your choices for entertainment and travel. Recently returning from my first cruise of the new decade of 2020, I’ll share some reflections that might prove beneficial to fellow seniors. To add to my professional travel writer credentials, I was not given any special monetary discounts for my editorial evaluations.
As you recall from my Senior News and Living January edition, “To Cruise or Not to Cruise” (https://okveterannews.com/020215/travel-entertainment-to-cruise-or-not-to-cruise/), there were a number of choices one must make when booking a cruise, as it pertains to individual preferences. Even with the convenience of online booking, there is an educational learning time needed as to how each cruise line sets up their own online booking arrangements.
I found the Celebrity online website a bit daunting at first, but after using it first in September of 2019, and becoming familiar with its style, it is a fast and convenient way to book a cruise, with a down payment to reserve your choices. Of course if educating yourself with online booking is not your thing, you might set up a relationship by phone to help you out with many questions that might arise. When I started my booking it was during a bad weather period as some offices were shut down due to the September Hurricanes. With long wait times on the phone, this was not my preferred booking option.
On a peraonl note I chose the Celebrity Equinox Cruise ship as I had a college friend that was employed in their theatrical cast. This gave me a primal interest in the Equinox, so that I might not only enjoy the lux life of cruising the Caribbean but share in the talents of a friend, with his theatrical performances.
With that decision made, and the best specific January dates needed, I got serious as to cabin location and class. Here again many choices and many price levels. With past cruise experiences with upscale lines such as Regent and Royal Viking, I found paying a few hundred dollars more for a high class cabin is a good investment. I discovered Celebrity has an Aqua Class which is just a step down from their top tier of cabins in the suite category. Aqua Class offers the advantage of special boarding and departing options, no extra charge room service, which is so comforting when you are not up to going to one of the many dining options. It is convenient for your time and energy restraints, and Aqua class also offers other exclusive dining options.
Aqua class offers the dining option of the exclusive Blu Dining room with excellent service, gourmet food options and an elegant atmosphere. The only draw back is that it is first come first serve with no reservations, so picking an off peak dining time is recommended.
Other specialty dining options, with an up charge of from $30 to $40 above your cruise charge, includes: Italian, a continental, steak and sushi dining options. Timed reservation are taken there, which can adjust to your own schedule. When booking you are asked if you want early or late dining seating at the all ship option of the silhouette dining room where the menu changes each night. Luncheon options are also available in other venues which I will describe in more detail next month in part two.
You can explore and reserve and pay for shore excursions on line. The pre cruise online shore excursions are very limited, so you might wait on all your choices until you board where an extensive list of on shore tours are offered and can be paid for at the guest services desk several decks below your cabin level. Prepaid tours and dining options are non refundable.
Another choice to be made is your Beverage Package. It’s an economical no worry way to prepay your beverages. You probably already know if you want upscale wines and spirits, or if ordinary brand spirits and wines are more to your liking, or if you only want a soft drink package. This prepaid option goes along with your mandatory gratuity charges, which also can be prepaid so there is no shock at the end of the cruise with your bill, which is billed to the credit card you signed on with. A few days after returning home you will receive an email with an itemized list of your on board charges. I find this most helpful and eases any idea of undue charges. I found no undue charges in my bill. Celebrity is interested in how you evaluate your cruise and sends you a survey. Be sure and be honest for praises and short comings. I did.
Of course with the uncertainty of travel relating to weather and airline delays, you should consider arriving at your port of call city the day before the start of your cruise. An inexpensive hotel in the area is a good insurance policy against ‘missing the boat.’ Celebrity also offers their own travel insurance if you feel the need for health reasons. Requesting a wheel chair for getting on and off the ship is also offered and I recommend such, as there is a long walk up and down the gang way.
Next month I’ll explore my dining and activity and tour options. Feel free to check out the Celebrity website to explore the many ships and destinations Celebrity offers: (www.celebritycruises.com) or call 1-888-751-7804

Mr. Terry Zinn – Travel Editor
Past President: International Food Wine and Travel Writers Association
3110 N.W. 15 Street – Oklahoma City, OK 73107
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https://legendseniorliving.com/

by Greg Schwem

A deadly disease is nothing to joke about and, until a cure is found, should probably not be mentioned in the space encompassing a humor column.
Using that logic, I should be writing about bubonic plague, not coronavirus.
The latter is indeed serious. It has killed nearly 1,000 people in China while placing that country on virtual lockdown. According to The Washington Post, it has quarantined 3,700 passengers aboard a cruise ship anchored off Yokohama, Japan, after 136 of them tested positive for the virus so far. Imagine being trapped on a ship for an extra two weeks? With a magician? Not funny.
It has had a severe negative impact on stock portfolios heavily invested in Chinese-based companies, unless one of those companies manufactures surgical masks.
Yes, we should all take precautions, as, currently, that is the only way to avoid the virus. However, it does not mean we should, not so subtly, move far away from that guy in the hotel elevator just because a pesky nose hair caused him to sneeze between the 15th floor and the lobby.
Which is precisely what happened to me.
It occurred recently in an upscale Orlando hotel. I boarded the elevator surrounded by an assortment of conventioneers, sunbathers and families headed to Disney parks. I felt the tickle in my nose almost immediately and knew a sneeze was imminent. I raised my elbow to my face, as is my standard “pre-achoo” practice. I let it rip into my sleeve.
“Excuse me,” I said.
But this time there were no polite, “Bless you” responses. The other riders looked uncomfortably at me and then shifted their gazes to the floor. Most moved, not subtly, as far away as the elevator’s confines would allow. When the car stopped on floor two, a Disney mom emitted an audible groan. At last the elevator reached the lobby and everyone scattered. It could have been my imagination, but I sensed all waited to see which way I was headed so they could exit in the opposite direction. And here’s the kicker: I actually HEARD Disney Mom say to her husband, “He’s probably got coronavirus.”
Trust me lady, he doesn’t. Upon leaving the elevator, he doesn’t need to be sprayed with disinfectant by medical officials in hazmat suit, a scene that played out recently when passengers disembarked a flight from Wuhan, China, the virus’s epicenter.
He just needs some nose hair trimmers. Maybe you could take the 10 bucks you were going to spend on a Mickey-shaped funnel cake and purchase them for me.
We’ve seen this paranoid, accusatory behavior before. SARS, West Nile and swine flu come to mind. Even if we don’t have it, we assume anybody showing a single symptom undoubtedly does.
Now, I’m a guy who has consumed yogurt past its expiration date, sat on toilet seats without paper covers, shared bottled drinks with my kids and allowed dogs to lick my face. Yet I’ve still been prone to this “guilty until proven innocent” behavior. When I see someone in an airport or other public facility wearing a mask, I don’t assume they are taking precautions to avoid catching a disease; I assume they’re CARRYING one. China has, for the moment, been removed from my “places to visit” bucket list. I know this is silly as I long to scale the Great Wall and stroll through Tiananmen Square.
I need to stop this behavior, and so does everyone else. Want to avoid catching coronavirus? Wash your hands often with soap, as medical officials say that works better than shunning humanity. Have someone else push your elevator floor button if you must. Don’t sample those community dishes of nuts at bars. Avoid touching your mouth with your hands. It’s not that difficult.
Coronavirus is not going to stop me from indulging in my favorite pastime, human interaction, nor should it preclude anyone else from doing so.
Even if that human is a cruise ship magician.
(Greg Schwem is a corporate stand-up comedian and author of two books: “Text Me If You’re Breathing: Observations, Frustrations and Life Lessons From a Low-Tech Dad” and the recently released “The Road To Success Goes Through the Salad Bar: A Pile of BS From a Corporate Comedian,” available at Amazon.com. Visit Greg on the web at www.gregschwem.com.)
You’ve enjoyed reading, and laughing at, Greg Schwem’s monthly humor columns in Senior Living News. But did you know Greg is also a nationally touring stand-up comedian? And he loves to make audiences laugh about the joys, and frustrations, of growing older. Watch the clip and, if you’d like Greg to perform at your senior center or senior event, contact him through his website at www.gregschwem.com)

www.harborchase.com

Indian rhino calf due this fall – Zoo is committed to conserving this rare species

The Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden is proud to announce that its female Indian rhinoceros, Niki, is eating for two! Niki, 13, one of the OKC Zoo’s adult, female Indian rhinos–also known as the greater one-horned rhino–is expecting a calf with the Zoo’s male, Indian rhino, Arun, 29. This will be the first offspring for this breeding pair.

“Rhino births are significant events at the Zoo so we are thrilled to share news of Niki’s pregnancy and cannot wait to welcome this new addition to our herd,” said Rachel Emory, OKC Zoo curator of pachyderms. “The Zoo is committed to the conservation of this amazing species and recognizes the vital role this calf plays in helping ensure our world’s rhino populations survive for future generations.”
The Zoo’s veterinary team confirmed Niki’s pregnancy through hormone monitoring and ultrasounds. She is expected to give birth late October or early November 2020 following an approximately 16-month gestation. This will be Niki’s second offspring to be born at the Zoo and the sixth Indian rhino birth since the species became part of the Zoo’s animal population in 1981. Niki’s first calf, a male, Rupert, born in 2014, now resides at Mesker Park Zoo in Evansville, Indiana.
Rhino dad, Arun, arrived at the Zoo in February 2019 from the Fort Worth Zoo as part of a breeding recommendation by the greater one-horned rhinoceros species survival plan (SSP). SSP programs were developed by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) to oversee breeding management and sustainability of select animal species within AZA-member zoos and aquariums. The Zoo’s Sanctuary Asia is also home to adult, female Indian rhino, Shanti, 32 who also came from the Fort Worth Zoo with Arun.
At almost 4,000 pounds, Niki appears healthy and her pregnancy is going well. She is receiving excellent care and attention from her caretakers who are working closely with the Zoo’s veterinary team to monitor both mom and calf through ongoing exams and ultrasounds. Caretakers have been working with Niki through positive reinforcement training to ensure she is comfortable with these exams and voluntarily participating in her care.
Native to northern India and southern Nepal, Indian rhinos are currently listed as “vulnerable” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Through conservation programs, wild populations over the past century have recovered from under 200 animals to approximately 3,600 today. However, there is a continuing decline in the quality of their natural habitat and the species continues to be illegally hunted for its horn.
The OKC Zoo is helping save Indian rhinos by supporting the International Rhino Foundation’s efforts to protect vulnerable and critically endangered rhinos and their habitat in India with money from the Round Up for Conservation Fund. The Zoo’s Round Up for Conservation program encourages guests to donate their change from any Zoo purchase to help protect wildlife and wild places around the world. Plus, the Zoo’s American Association of Zookeepers chapter has raised more than $373,000 for rhinos in Asia and Africa through its fundraising efforts since 1990.
Stay in the rhi-KNOW and follow the Zoo on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and by visiting Our Stories for updates on Niki and her little one on the way!
The Oklahoma City Zoo is located at the crossroads of I-44 and I-35 in the heart of Oklahoma City’s Adventure District and is a proud member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the American Alliance of Museums and an Adventure Road partner. Hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Regular Zoo admission is $12 for adults and $9 for children ages 3-11 and seniors ages 65 and over. Children two and under are admitted free. Zoo fans can support the OKC Zoo by becoming Oklahoma Zoological Society members at ZOOfriends.org or in-person at the Zoo. To learn more about these and other happenings, call (405) 424-3344 or visiting okczoo.org.

www.arborhouseliving.com