by Marise Boehs, staff writer

“While traditional stretching methods attempt to make you more “flexible,” we work to adjust the stretch reflex, gradually increasing your active range of motion,” explained Christian Hanly, General Manager of the Stretch Zone, Chatenay Square location.

Stretch Zone’s isolation of individual muscles breaks up tissue glue, unwrapping the stranglehold on posture and valuable energy. Proper stretching slows down the aging process. Improved posture, circulation, and range of motion can be achieved at the stretch studio.
Different from stretching at home, practitioner-assisted stretching is a personalized routine performed by trained practitioners. Using our patented strapping system and proprietary tables to position, stabilize, and isolate muscles, our certified staff delivers a life-changing stretch experience to help you move efficiently and effortlessly. Simply put, we do all the work, you get all the benefits.
Thanks to the modern sedentary lifestyle, starting our 30s we begin losing flexibility at an average rate of 1% a year. Strains and micro-stresses on muscles compounded over time can glue them together. This “glue,” or scar tissue, tightens the surrounding tissue and restrains how we are able to move. Over time, the snowballing loss of flexibility ages us. Stretch Zone’s isolation of individual muscles within a muscle group breaks up the glue, unwrapping the stranglehold on our posture and valuable energy. Proper stretching slows down the aging process. We can feel younger by improving posture, circulation, and increasing range of motion.
Due to sedentary lifestyles and overworked, stressed muscles, we develop residual tension in resting muscle, or “tonus.” When we flex a muscle, we create excessive tonus in the muscle. A certain amount of resting muscle tonus is necessary to keep form and posture. But when we have excessive resting tonus, it becomes harder to move. Many people walk around with stiff muscles, and it’s not from the gym. Working with an experienced practitioner at one of the Stretch Zone studios can reestablish a more ideal resting muscle tone, relieving stiffness and soreness through active stretching.
“Our goal isn’t to make you more “flexible” or “elastic,” it is to increase your active range of motion, so that you can move further without feeling a stretch by reeducating the nerve-muscle reflex, allowing you to move easier” Hanly said.
Call today to schedule a free demo.
Chatenay Square, 10600 South Pennsylvania Avenue Suite 5, 405-445-6700 North Penn, 5629 North Pennsylvania Ave, 405-242-3428
OPENING IN MAY
309 S. Bryant, Edmond

Visit us at our locations or online here:

https://www.stretchzone.com/locations/gaillardia-ok https://www.stretchzone.com/locations/chatenay-square-ok
https://www.stretchzone.com/locations/east-edmond-ok

SIDEBAR:
Pro-Athletes and Stretch Zone
Stretch Zone has enjoyed helping many pro-athletes reach their athletic best – in the NFL, NBA, MLB, & ATP. This includes sports celebrities from the U.S. Open Champion, the NFL’s Most Valuable Player, and even the IBF Light Heavyweight Champion of the world.
Athletes can improve spatial awareness, increase reaction time, and improve range of motion. Stretch Zone works with the nervous system to achieve lasting flexibility gains and has helped a variety of people from all backgrounds and ages, including pro athletes and celebrities, reach their athletic best. Practitioner-assisted stretching shouldn’t only be applied as a warmup or cool down exercise.
Athletes who are introduced to practitioner-assisted stretching learn their body’s limitations and increase spatial awareness. Increased spatial awareness allows you to better assess the state of your muscles and injuries, and also provides a sense of control and confidence, ultimately determining peak performance.

“Having embraced stretching as a vital part of my fitness regimen, Stretch Zone’s method proved to be the missing piece in my journey. It took my understanding of the benefits to a whole new level,” said Brees. “Stretch Zone showcased the transformative potential of their patented system. What truly captivated me was its universal applicability, tailored to meet the diverse needs of a variety of individuals.” Drew Brees, former NFL quarterback, as published in Franchising Magazine USA

Story and photo by Van Mitchell, Staff Writer

Faith has played a major role in Charlie McGregor’s life including several life-changing events that impacted him and his family.
Born on May 3, 1919, McGregor grew up in the small town of South Haven, Kansas, located 50 miles south of Wichita.
After graduating high school, he and his late wife Millie married before McGregor was drafted into the United States Army in World War II.
“My wife and I were going together, and we discussed whether we should get married now or wait until after the war? We decided to get married before the war in 1941,” he said.
McGregor served four years, four months, and four days in the war and was stationed in Marseilles, France.
He said that was an eye-opening experience.
“It was an education, that was for sure. I didn’t know anything. I was just a high school student,” he said. “I got promoted several times. I used to be a company clerk, then they made me a platoon corporal, and then they made me a platoon sergeant, then they made me a staff sergeant in charge of the supply room.”
McGregor traveled to Europe with about 18,000 other troops on the Queen Elizabeth ship.
“When they were going to invade France, they sent the Queen Elizabeth to pick up a bunch of us in New York. Picked up 18,000 of us,” he said. “We crossed the ocean in five days. My first child was born while I was overseas. The Red Cross let me know that I had a daughter named Judy. I wouldn’t get to see her for another year-and-a-half.”
After the war, McGregor and his wife returned to her family farm south of Honeywell, Kansas whose property extended across the Oklahoma state line.
McGregor took over his father-in-law’s farming operation after he passed away.
“He died of a heart attack, and I took over his land that he was farming, and I just stayed farming until I moved here (to Villagio of Bradford Village in Edmond).”
McGregor said he operated a versatile farming program. He had cows and sheep, and grew wheat and hay and barley.
“You have to be pretty smart to farm,” he said. “You have to know animals, you have to know grains, you have to know seeds, plants, and everything. I was free to make my own choices. I was my own boss.”
McGregor never farmed on Sundays.
“We always shut it down on Sunday. I had a very good relationship with God, and He showed me many things that I couldn’t believe, I couldn’t imagine,” McGregor said. “He taught me and blessed me.”
McGregor said prayer is a powerful tool. He cited the example of his daughter Diane who was born with heart valve problems, and wasn’t expected to live to be 7-years-old.
“We went to my mother’s place. She lived in Kansas City, and she had become a Pentecostal,” he said. “We went to church with her, and she came back, took Diane up to the front, to the pastor, to the people. Everybody in that church just rose up and went up there to pray for her. They all believed in healing.”
McGregor said the family asked for a family doctor friend to examine Diane a few days later.
“He was going over her with his stethoscope, and finally he said, “There’s nothing wrong with this girl. She’s 77 now and lives in Dallas,” McGregor said.
McGregor also recited a story about how prayer saved his wheat crop, while several around him had their crops destroyed from a storm.
McGregor and his wife raised four daughters, and has 11 grandchildren, 30+ great-grandchildren and one great-great grandson.
“My children and grandchildren treat me very well. Better than I deserve,” he said.
McGregor has lived through two pandemics, the Spanish flu pandemic that lasted from 1918 to 1919, and the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020.
McGregor said growing up in South Haven, his family was excited to be owners of new vehicles during an era when many people there didn’t own a car.
“Dad, my grandpa and three uncles all bought a new Ford in South Haven for $800 each,” he said. “It was a curtain top. You have to run the wipers a certain way. You had to crank the car to start it.”
McGregor spends each day reading his Bible, and says he always learns something new.
He also recites the same prayer each night.
“God, I’ll see you in the morning, your house or mine,” McGregor said.
McGregor said he has lived a great life, and he is not afraid of death. He said he looks forward to the day when he enters the Kingdom of Heaven.
“From what I read in the Bible, my mouth may fall open and I may not be able to close it for two or three days,” he said.

Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy are proud to announce rewarding an Oklahoma woman $2,000 for definitive information that led to the identification of the individual seen in a video published by media repeatedly stomping and killing a puppy in late March outside a business in southeast Oklahoma City.
Sarah Looney of Oklahoma City is receiving the reward for turning in her ex-boyfriend, Larry Don McMillan, 57, who was arrested last week for cruelty to animals and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Looney talked to Animal Wellness Action by phone from Oklahoma City.
“I love animals and I didn’t know [Larry] was like that. He was never mean to my big dog. But then he started getting that way (abusive) to me and then my puppy,” said Looney, who is a domestic abuse survivor. “People like that need to get help or not be let out of prison. I am glad he is locked up for what he did to animals, and for what he had done to me.”
Animal Wellness Action and Center for a Humane Economy will often offer rewards for critical tips to prosecute perpetrators of animal abuse that may be sent directly to [email protected].
“We are grateful to Sarah for stepping up because as you can see, anyone who would do this is a danger to animals and people alike,” said Kevin Chambers, Oklahoma State Director for Animal Wellness Action. “Animal Wellness Action wants to help the Oklahoma City Police identify perpetrators of this type of heinous animal cruelty and bring them to justice.”
“Cruelty to animals is despicable in its own right, but we also know that people who do awful things to animals often turn their violent instincts against spouses, girlfriends, children, or other members of the community,” said Wayne Pacelle, President of Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy. “Sarah Looney exhibited great courage in providing a service to the community.”
In this case, animal welfare officials and local officers said the man now identified had carried the puppy down the street by its back legs, dragging its nose on the pavement.
Following the beating, the video showed the man picking the puppy up and throwing it on the ground before he leaves. The city’s animal welfare superintendent broke down the video for local news stations after it was shared Tuesday by OKCPD.
Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy also provide rewards, up to $2,500, for animal cruelty tips, including for dogfighting and cockfighting. Tips go to [email protected]

By Marilyn Olson, Executive Director, VillagesOKC

During the 3,691 days that my mother lived with us, there were hundreds of really good days, a few bummers, two or three frightening days and a lot of just ordinary days. Sandwiched in between were some that stood out because they made us laugh until we cried. Today, we laugh all the more when the story is retold. It was one of those that made us say, “You can’t make this stuff up; you gotta laugh.”
It was near the year-end holidays. My friend had given me an “Alexa” for Christmas. (You know, that’s the electronic voice-activated gadget everyone was buying in 2009.) After opening, she was eager to tell me all of its amazing features. She wanted me to know all about how it helps her keep a grocery list, tells the weather for the day, and even orders on Amazon. She was so eager to set it up and show me that she asked my Amazon password and placed a “pretend” order, before submitting – or so I thought.
That next week a small Amazon Prime package arrived; it was a slender bottle of lotion. Although I do not use Avon, I decided to put it away because Mother always is looking for hand cream and it would make a good gift for Mother’s Day. And besides, I hate returning things.
Five months after my friend had made the erroneous Avon order, I presented Mother with the gift of hand cream. Since she already had bottles of lotion open, she put it aside waiting until fall to begin to use it in preparation for a doctor’s visit. It had a delightful fragrance. “I can always use another bottle of lotion,” she said.
The monthly appointment with the doctor was uneventful, and afterwards, we went to Braum’s as usual to celebrate having a good checkup. The doctor applauded that she was walking regularly outdoors even though the days were getting cooler. “Great for Vitamin D,” the doctor said.
We were very busy preparing for Thanksgiving when all the family would be there. Mother said, “I’m really concerned about what is happening to my hands, neck and face. I wonder if you’d call Dr. Craven and see if the nurse can work me in for an appointment.”
When I investigated, Mother was worried about her skin’s yellowish tinge on both hands. Looking more closely, the faint yellowish pallor was even more apparent in the daylight. Mother was a worrier and thought she was jaundiced. And even though I didn’t let her know, I had concerns too. (She stayed very aware of her healthcare lab reports and watched her kidney numbers meticulously.) But it didn’t make sense because there were NO other symptoms.
After two more days of “apparent jaundice” but no other symptoms, I began to seriously investigate yet trying not to worry her.
“Mother, what bottle of lotion have you been using?”
“That one,” she said as she pointed to the bottle on the nightstand.
I picked it up to read the fragrance. It was the Avon bottle I had presented on Mother’s Day. For the first time I read the label aloud, and we both burst out laughing.
“Oh, my goodness! Mother, this is tanning lotion, Avon’s Golden Tanning Lotion. You aren’t jaundiced, you just have a golden tan. Guess I’ll cancel that doctor’s appointment and buy a swimsuit fit for a 98-year-old instead.”
We couldn’t wait to tell the family. And we all laughed until the tears came.

Edmond Mobile Meals is proud to announce its 50th anniversary of serving the Edmond community this month.
Established in 1974, Edmond Mobile Meals delivered its first six meals on April 22. Seven local churches donated $25 each and provided volunteer support to help the program get started. Since that first day, the nonprofit organization has delivered over 1.2 million meals to the homebound elderly and disabled residents in Edmond. Today, Edmond Mobile Meals delivers an average of 275 meals each weekday, 120 weekend meals, and an average of 50 meals for the Edmond Senior Center’s congregate lunch. Over 400 dedicated volunteers assist in preparing and packaging meals each weekday and delivering meals across 100 square miles of Edmond. A program record of over 73,000 meals were delivered last year.
Edmond Mobile Meals is the only organization that provides daily nourishing meals and wellness checks to the homebound residents of the community. The organization provides these services regardless of an individual’s ability to pay for the service. Clients are accepted into the program based only on need.
“Our primary mission is to make sure that no senior in Edmond ever goes hungry or feels forgotten,” said Executive Director, Cristi Twenter. To prepare for the anticipated increase in need for home-delivered meals for seniors, the organization in partnership with the City of Edmond is in the midst of an infrastructure expansion that will result in triple the capacity of meals that can be prepared each day. Twenter continues, “The aging population is surging and will double in the next decade. We are determined to make sure Edmond Mobile Meals is ready to meet the needs of Edmond’s seniors now and in the future.”
“We provide more than just a meal,” Twenter says. “The friendly volunteers who deliver our meals may be the only human contact some clients have each day. We know that social isolation and loneliness are extremely detrimental for homebound individuals. Real friendships are developed between our volunteers and clients. These relationships have a dramatically positive impact on our clients’ health and allows them to remain living independently in their own homes for as long as possible.”
In honor of this milestone anniversary, Edmond Mobile Meals asks for support of their endowment fund held at the Oklahoma City Community Foundation. Any gift made to this campaign will receive permanent recognition on a Legacy Wall that will be featured in the organization’s renovated building. Twenter says, “When you donate to our endowment fund, you are giving a gift to our future. Your contribution today will give back to Edmond’s most vulnerable residents forever. It is a wonderful opportunity to honor loved ones, current or former clients, or volunteers.” To donate in celebration Edmond Mobile Meals 50th Anniversary, visit https://edmondmobilemeals.org/donate, or mail a check payable to the Oklahoma City Community Foundation with “fbo Edmond Mobile Meals” on the memo line. The address is 1000 N. Broadway Ave, Oklahoma City, OK 73102.

Planned gifts can also be made to the Edmond Mobile Meals endowment fund. Commonly, these are donated through a will or trust. For more information about planned giving to Edmond Mobile Meals, please contact Cristi Twenter at [email protected].

The 2024 Oklahoma Senior Follies is being reimagined this year! There will be lots of glitz and glamor as well as some new faces on stage. We will be opening with OKC Chorus (Sweet Adelines). Our variety show will also include Tarpley Tappers, Barbara DeMaio (opera star), our gorgeous beauties, and Mark and Patti Mellow as our Dynamic Duo! This year the beauties will not only be announced but will also participate by singing and dancing in the background in some of the numbers.
Gina Bramlett and Michael Pone are our Co-directors this year. Dr. Matthew Jones is our talented music director. They will be working their magic to make this a show to remember for the entire family!
The show will be at UCO Mitchell Hall on Saturday, June 8th at 7:00 p.m. and Sunday, June 9th at 3:00 p.m. Ticket prices are $30.00 each or $25.00 each for a group of ten or more. Tickets are available on our website at www.oklahomaseniorfollies.com by clicking on purchase tickets, or by calling the box office at 405-974-3375.

Iru Daugherty

(Right) 100 years old. Tulsa – Moved to Tulsa in 1987 to work at Victory Church, her son Pastor Billy Joe asked her to “love on people.” She has had an interesting life with wonderful people & is so grateful for good friends. Her words of wisdom to younger people: “Follow the Lord. Trust in the Lord. Listen to Him. Believe in Him!”

Mildred Cox

(Left) 100 years old. Broken Arrow – Mildred was born in Kentucky but is now a Golden Okie. Mildred was the cashier at Ted & Debbie’s Flower & Garden before retiring in 2017. She loves God and her Family.

Dewey Muirhead

(Right) 100 years old. Wewoka – Served in the Army Air Corps as Military Police (MP) and loved his motorcycle. He cooks himself a big breakfast everyday, enjoys old Western swing music and likes antique car shows. His life advice to others: “Work hard; have fun; love your family and make memories!”

Velma Oliver

(Right) 100 years old. Claremore – Her husband was military so they traveled all over the country & lived in Jurupa Valley, CA for several years. She was a farmer, homemaker, mother & housekeeper, so she never really retired. She enjoys Mexican food & gardening & volunteered at the Salvation Army.

Care Providers Oklahoma recently sounded the alarm on an impending crisis created by the Biden Administration’s approval of a new staffing mandate. The new mandate requires nursing homes to significantly increase the number of nurse aides and registered nurses at each facility, without addressing 1) the financial impact of that new requirement or 2) the reality of an ongoing workforce shortage that has already led multiple facilities in Oklahoma to close.
“For months, the White House has been signaling their plan is to mandate that nursing homes hire staffers that do not exist with money they do not have,” said Care Providers Oklahoma President and CEO Steven Buck. “This is an impossible proposition that has gone from a bad idea to a federal rule with the force of law. We are sounding the alarm that this policy will absolutely lead to closures, displaced residents, and the loss of quality care for elderly and vulnerable populations.”
Care Providers Oklahoma estimates the new rule requires the average facility to hire two to three new registered nurses at a cost approaching $17 per Medicaid resident per day. Total costs associated with new hires for Oklahoma’s nursing homes will be as much as $76 million annually.
Currently, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority already estimates that nursing homes are funded at $44 per Medicaid resident per day under the projected cost-of-care. The Biden staffing mandate expands that funding gap to upwards of $61 per Medicaid resident per day.
“Oklahoma homes have already been closing at a rapid clip because we are not funded at the cost-of-care,” said Buck. “That is going to increase at an even faster rate, especially in rural areas, unless we can get some help.”
See the Oklahoma State Department of Health’s list of recent closures here.
Buck said that Care Providers Oklahoma was taking the following steps to protect its residents:
1. Asking the Oklahoma Legislature to increase funding to a level equal to the OHCA’s projected cost-of-care;
2. Supporting the federal “Protecting Rural Seniors’ Access to Care Act,” a bill that would block implementation of the new mandate;
3. Educating the public on the devastating impact that the Biden mandate would have on Oklahoma’s vulnerable seniors.
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has already signed a letter, along with 14 other governors opposing the mandate.
Senator Lankford has also spoken out against the mandate and its impact on rural facilities.

The Metropolitan Library System is thrilled to announce the launch of its Strategic Plan Survey, inviting community members to shape the future of libraries across Oklahoma County.
“By participating in this survey, individuals have the opportunity to directly influence the evolution of their local libraries, ensuring they remain vibrant and responsive to the diverse communities they serve,” said Larry White, CEO of the Metropolitan Library System.
The Strategic Plan Survey aims to gather valuable insights from guests to better understand their preferences and needs regarding programs, services, materials, technology and future library locations.
“We hope to build four new libraries in the next decade, and we need to know where to put them,” said White. “We believe that involving our community in the planning process is crucial to building libraries that truly meet their needs.”
The survey, available in English, Spanish and Vietnamese, is available at metrolibrary.org/survey. Participants who complete the survey are eligible for a prize drawing, with ten Amazon Fire tablets and ten insulated tumblers up for grabs. The survey is open until May 10.
The grand opening for the new Almonte Library, located at 2727 SW 59th, is scheduled for May 15 at 10 a.m.

By Nick Thomas

Born and raised in West Virginia, David Selby’s extensive film, television, and stage career included prominent roles in two very different TV shows in different generations: ABC’s gothic soap opera “Dark Shadows” in the 60s and the prime-time soap “Falcon Crest” on CBS in the 80s.
“My mother (Sarah) loved that I was an actor,” said Selby from Los Angeles, but she had no background in the entertainment world. Her upbringing in a coal mining town was a tough one, being responsible for raising her brothers and sisters.
“She managed to graduate from high school and met my father who was raised on a farm,” recalled Selby. “Mom continued to work hard at various jobs including the local Montgomery Wards, in a bakeshop, and her last job was as a bookkeeper in an office supply place. But she never liked to talk about herself – at all. Her focus was always on the family. She was also a meticulous housekeeper and did not like messes.”
Tidying, says Selby, is a trait he inherited and for which his family has always ribbed him for his constant dusting, washing, and sweeping. “Sarah is among us!” he says his wife, Chip, will lovingly announce.
To honor his late mother and her influence on his life, Selby wrote “They Don’t Call Me Sarah for Nothing,” a short but compelling monologue he composed for Smartphone Theatre, a live stream digital performance platform presented via Zoom and created during the early pandemic months to showcase original productions. Selby’s reading streamed live in March 2022 and can be viewed on YouTube (https://youtu.be/cm7mFA_VF6c).
“I would act like my mother unconsciously,” he said. “The kids would say ‘grandma says that’ or my wife would say ‘you sound like your mother.’ So, I wrote ‘They Don’t Call Me Sarah for Nothing’ because it was cathartic for me to talk about her and realize, my God, how much she meant to me.”
Despite their loving relationship, young David found her constant working difficult to understand. Nevertheless, he recalled, “she always somehow managed to look like a million dollars! Even taking out the trash or going to the grocery store in our little community, she was always cautious about looking her best.”
As he grew older and with no initial interest in acting, Selby planned to enroll in West Virginia University but needed tuition funds. “So, I went to Atlantic City in the summer and worked at a restaurant, then returned with a pocket full of money to pay for my first half-year’s tuition. I lived at home so I could walk to class as a freshman, but didn’t really know what I was going to do.”
That’s when an adviser for students whose names started with an ‘S’ spotted Selby standing in the enrollment line for classes. “He said, ‘you look like you could be in theater’ and it turned out he was a theater instructor,” Selby remembered. “He talked me into it and, lo and behold, I began doing plays at the university right away.”
After completing his degree, Selby moved to Illinois where he completed a Ph.D. in the arts, but not before moving to the East Coast and accepting his first TV role.
“I didn’t finish my Ph.D. until after I was in New York doing ‘Dark Shadows’ – in fact, I copied my dissertation at the office where we shot the show,” he recalled. His wife even took a job as an editor and then as a college English teacher so David could pursue his acting career (see http://www.davidselby.com).
But what did his mom really think about his acting career?
“She watched every show I did, from the plays at university and summer stock to ‘Dark Shadows,’ ‘Falcon Crest’ and everything else,” he says. “Aside from my wife, my mother was my biggest fan. I loved her dearly.”

Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University at Montgomery, in Alabama, and has written features, columns, and interviews for numerous magazines and newspapers. See https://www.getnickt.org.