In a sunny Tuesday morning ceremony, National Cowboy Museum president, board members and supporters broke ground on the newest phase of Museum expansions, the Meinders Event Lawn & Garden and additional parking structures.
“Phase II of our Capital Campaign has required a lot of hard work and coordination by many, many partners,” said National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum President and CEO Natalie Shirley at the ceremony. “First and foremost, we have to thank Herman and LaDonna Meinders for their support. Without it we would not be able to create this wonderful garden that will soon grace the front of the Museum. What you see now is asphalt, but in just a few short months, you are going to see something lush, green and beautiful.”
In addition to the new garden and event lawn, Phase II of the expansion plan includes a parking garage and terraced, uncovered parking spaces on Museum grounds, as well as a refresh of the Sam Noble Special Events Center.
“We have had a dream of solving several issues to bring this museum to a higher level,” said Larry Nichols, Museum Board Member and Chairman of the Capital Campaign, in a speech at the ceremony. “We need more parking, we need covered parking, we need a better entrance, and we need additional spaces for people to gather.”
The Meinders Event Lawn & Garden, made possible by a generous donation from Herman and LaDonna Meinders, will include walking paths, an event lawn and a butterfly garden.
Construction on the garden and additional parking is the second phase in a three-phase plan to beautify and improve the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. The first phase of expansions produced Liichokoshkomo’, the Museum’s 100,000 square foot outdoor play-based learning addition including native dwellings and STEAM learning opportunities.

Story by Darl Devault, Contributing Editor

Although this is July, seniors trying to make a decisive quality of life recovery from pandemic restrictions need to book now if they plan to use the two free entry days in our National Parks in August.
The National Park System is one option for outdoor experiences but booking early is critical because pent-up demand is creating a scarcity at premium destinations. Some parks accommodations may already be full.
One example is the lodges at Glacier National Park in Montana often must be booked a year in advance but there can sometimes be accommodations available outside the park.
Ranked fifteenth in size of all our parks and as close as the state next door, Big Bend National Park in far southwest Texas offers 801,163 acres of many things to do.
“I believe the best time of year to visit Big Bend is in the winter to avoid the heat, but it can be very warm even in winter and not too cold for camping under the stars. The spring and the two free dates in the fall are other options, but it can also be crowded then,” said Rob Walker, 66, retired Edmond kayaking and Jeeping enthusiast. “Some people will see free entry as tipping the scale toward going even in August. You should prepare for the heat for long hikes in the day.”
On two days in August, all National Park Service sites charging an entrance fee will offer free admission to everyone. Seniors without the Lifetime Senior pass need to be mindful of these entrance fee–free dates: August 4th, the one-year anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act and August 25th, the National Park Service’s birthday.
“Remember Big Bend is a desert park with summer temps over most of the park reaching 100 degrees by late morning,” Walker said. “The heat is at dangerous levels until after sunset. Hikers should stay off the trails in the afternoon, while carrying and drinking plenty of water any time they hike any distance.”
Tourists might want to join the group of people sitting on a bench watching Old Faithful erupt in the cooler climate of Yellowstone National Park, located primarily in Wyoming.
For two days in August entry to the park is free, but the place will be packed. Tourists might want to scale back their demand to make a decisive quality of life recovery from pandemic restrictions this August closer to home.
A ten-hour car trip from Oklahoma City, Big Bend is too big to see in a day. A one-day trip inside the huge park mostly in an air-conditioned car might include a trip down the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive and a visit to the Chisos Basin.
The scenic drive gives visitors ample views of the Chihuahuan Desert landscape and leads the banks of the Rio Grande River. There are scenic overlooks and exhibits along the way for the history buffs. The drive offers short walks to Sam Nail Ranch, Homer Wilson Ranch and a visit to the Castolon Historic District which affords a glimpse into the area’s past.
At the end of the road is a highlight of the trip—a short walk into Santa Elena Canyon—one of Big Bend’s most scenic spots. It is an easy 1.4-mile round-trip hike.
Visitors may also visit the forested Chisos Mountains and walk the 0.3-mile Window View Trail to get a feel for the mountain scenery. If time allows, consider hiking the Window Trail or Lost Mine Trail for a closer look at Big Bend’s mountain landscapes.
The Chisos Mountain Lodge is operating at reduced capacity, while the Panther Junction Gas Station and Basin Store are open daily. The Mountain View Restaurant inside the lodge offers lunch. Guests there must be registered in the park, and it is probably already full. They are currently providing sack lunches to go or deliveries to registered guest.
The award-winning Fossil Discovery Exhibit eight miles north of Panther Junction is another park highlight visitors often fit into a one-day visit. If grandkids are along, they will enjoy it.
Abandoned since the 1940s, the Mariscal Mine is isolated by its remote location in the middle of the park. It takes much longer to drive the rough road in a normal car. It is the best-preserved mercury mining site in Texas. The area is a listed historic district on the National Register of Historic Places. Best to avoid it if the day is windy and dusty, as it is a mercury contaminated site.
Black Gap Road is one of only two Jeep Badge of Honor Trails in Texas. The most remote un-maintained road in the park, Black Gap provides visitors scenic views of the Chisos Mountain Range as well as wide-open vistas of the Chihuahuan Desert.
Two more days in 2021 offer the same no-fee privilege, September 25, National Public Lands Day and November 11, Veterans Day.
After more than a year of pandemic-related restrictions and limited travel, surging attendance figures across US national parks show Americans are eager to get back on the road and explore.
Often described as America’s best idea, there are 432 National Park System parks available to everyone, every day. The fee-free days offer a great opportunity to visit a new place or an old favorite. This is especially true if it is one of the national parks that normally charge an entrance fee. There are only 10 national parks that charge no entry fees year round. The entrance fee waiver for fee-free days does not cover amenity or user fees for activities such as camping, boat launches, transportation, or special tours.
The surge to get outdoors after COVID-19 is why this article runs in July, as many seniors need to get busy planning if they are going to take advance of the August free days but do not be surprised if the parks have no available accommodations in the park and those outside the park may be filling fast.

Yellowstone hosted 483,159 recreation visits this May, an 11 percent increase from pre-COVID 19 May 2019 (434,385 recreation visits). This makes this May the park’s most visited May on record, according to a park news release. With the spreading of some of the new variants it is best to continue taking precautions.

Story by James Coburn, Feature Writer

Every day there is someone who has it in their heart to care for people helping clients of Excell Private Care Services, said Crystal Warner, CEO.
Excell Private Care Services is a home care agency providing private duty, Veterans Administration Services, a Medicaid Advantage program, and case management for the state. Certified nurse aides can provide 24-hour in-home care with bathing, cooking, cleaning, companion care, emptying a foley bag, meal prep, medication reminders, and shopping.
“We have RNs on staff. So, they would come in and do an assessment, and then we would find an aide that would work well with the family,” Warner said. “We don’t require a referral from a doctor. It’s just anybody who would need in-home care.”
Excell Private Care Services partners with home health and hospice services to help with skilled needs for an hour or two.
“Then they’re gone. They’re there to see them for that skilled need for a certain amount of time. Because our aides can be there for however long the family wants us there, having an aide there — they are less likely to return to the emergency room. They have someone to call. We have nurses on call 24 hours a day,” Warner said.
The CNAs may stay with the patient for up to 24 hours. Private care aides only clean the house but can be prepared by a CNA to go to CNA school to earn their CAN license. There are also educational opportunities for LPNs to advance within the company.
Compassion is an indispensable element for the staff. Screening includes several different background checks to make sure the aide can provide a safe environment and has not committed a crime, Warner said.
“We go through CPR training, lifesaver courses,” she added.
Family members can rest assured their loved on has a CNA or caregiver in the home with them if an emergency happens.
Sometimes a client does not need to go to an emergency room. It may be that they are scared during a storm or feel lonely. They may need to have somebody to ask questions to.
Having another set of eyes also helps hospitals that depend on Medicare to avoid unnecessary emergency room visits.
“We will also partner with communities and sit with the patient and do companion care,” Warner continued.
Many health care providers were short on staff during the COVID pandemic. Family members knowing their loved one was at risk of a fall were thankful to have a CNA sit with their aging parent.
A lot of long-term health policies will pay for Excell Private Care Services, including VA insurance and Medicaid.
“If you have insurance that says it will pay for the service, it will take care of everything,” Warner said.
The feedback that Excell Private Care Services has received has been exceptional. A recent family member wrote how much the family loves the CNA being so compatible and friendly.
“We love the conversation that we’ve had. ‘She’s helped us a lot with the house,’” Warner paraphrased a family member. “It’s always nice for us to hear that because until we call around to do our checks and ask if they like the aide, we may not hear. So, it’s nice when someone reaches out and lets us know.”
Patients and family members understand they can call Excell Private Care Services whenever they need a resource as simple as providing a wheelchair.
They can call Warner seven days a week at any hour of the day or night, she said. Warner has gone to be with families until an ambulance has arrived at a client’s home.
The company provides services throughout the Oklahoma City metro and also has an office in Tulsa. The staff also travels to Duncan and Lawton. There are not too many counties that Excell Private Care Services does not reach, except in the panhandle and the far southeast corner of the state.
“We’re going to be opening a new satellite in Chickasha,” Warner said.
The need for services is growing in demand as the population of older Americans continues to grow.
Many elders have no clue that they would be able to receive such a service.
“We’ll help them go through the process even if they don’t choose our company and they choose someone else,” she said. “We’ll help them get signed up so they will have somebody come to their house under the Medicaid program.”
Being able to bridge a gap by providing community services is personally enriching for Warner.
“It’s being able to help the people that need the help, and also help the families get through a tough time,” Warner said. “Allowing a mom to still live in her home independently, allowing a daughter to be a daughter and not a caregiver, or a son being able to be a son and not a caregiver — it’s being able to help those families.” For more information visit: www.excellcares.com

by James Coburn, Staff Writer

Yvonne Roeeiger is full of smiles knowing she made the right decision 18 months ago when choosing to live at The Wolfe Living Center at Summit Ridge She’s made several friends at the living center and said it’s a friendly place to be, she said.
“All the nurses and the staff are sweet and nice, and the people that are around are really good people and they treat them all the same,” Roeeiger said. “I have a fiancé here. He lives here.”
Almost every day Roeeiger can be seen going into the lush and green atrium that greets residents and visitors near the entrance of the center.
“It has turtles in it,” Roeeiger continued.
The Wolfe Living Center at Summit Ridge was inspired by Christian principals of the Seventh-day Adventist Church on its campus in Harrah, said Felicia Jones, RN staffing coordinator.
Families can be confident that Wolfe Living Center has every service available that is expected from a skilled nursing and rehab center. The quaint setting is tucked in a wooded landscape surrounding the community with an independent living center. Many of the residents know each other from the past and remain attendees of the church.
Roeeiger was the first resident that Jones met when coming to work at the center.
“We bonded right away,” Jones said.
The Wolfe Living Center is very intimate and the best kept secret in long-term and rehab care, she said.
“It’s the atmosphere. It’s very pleasant and you can feel the Holy Spirit here because it’s very Christian oriented and I loved it from the moment I walked in,” Jones said.
She has had a number of roles as a nurse and before the pandemic brought her out of retirement to workout Wolfe Living Center. Jones is a former director of nurses at Belfair Memory Care, located in Shawnee. She began her nursing career 22 years ago at then-Oklahoma Christian home in Edmond.
“Everywhere I work I took a bit of skills with me and it grows,” she said.
Infection control nurse Adella Owen, RN, had never considered working in a nursing home, but when Wolfe Living Center opened, she was attracted to the family-like setting. Employees go over-and-beyond to make residents know they are being taken care of. It warms Owen’s heart that the residents recognize everyone on staff. Residents see how the nursing staff bonds in a joyful team effort to offer exceptional nursing care, she said.
“There’s nothing perfect, but this place is doing the best they can do to let these people know this is their home because they miss their home,” Owen said.
The women’s group of the church help by making cards for the residents and treat the staff like they are part of the church.
Administrator Valarie Smith-Hubbartt tries to make all in-services special, said Jones, adding that everyone there loves Hubbartt.
“We have devotions in our meetings every morning,” Jones said. “We discuss business, and she reads a devotional — we pray. That is so neat to have that.”
A major factor for the success of Wolfe Living Center is it’s in a rural setting with a mom-and-pop character for the home, Hubbartt explained.
The leadership and members of the church have bought into the community as reflected in Wolfe Living Center. The Seventh-day Adventist Church’s expectation is having a nursing home sharing their values, Hubbartt said.
“Not necessarily their same beliefs, but their same values,” she explained. “So, we try to bring residents in that have those same values, too, who want to be in a small, Christian, rural community.”
The facility was originally designed with the intent of having enough independent living to fill the building.
Twenty-five years ago, Wolfe Creek Living Center became Medicaid and Medicare certified and expanded into rehab care as part of its long-term skilled nursing practices.
“There’s more of a purpose here that just having a job. We are here to serve our residents,” Hubbartt said. “And we want them to have the most dignified life they can have at this time because this is their final home except the ones that are going to go home for rehab. For long-term care this is going to be their final home until they go to heaven.”
Hubbartt said the staff feels a sense of a bigger purpose by working in a Christian facility while having a personal connection with the Lord.
For more information visit: https://www.wolfelivingcenter.com/ or call (405) 454-1400.

Creighton Gilbert (1924-2011), a scholar and connoisseur of Italian Renaissance art donated his extensive collection to the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art in 2011. Opening Thursday, June 24, A Life in Looking: The Creighton Gilbert Collection explores the thematic elements that make up this exceptional collection.
This exhibition is also important for the university, as two art history professors from the OU School of Visual Arts, Allison Palmer and Erin Duncan-O’Neill, served as curators. “This exhibition showcases some of the most exquisite pieces from an important gift to the museum, artworks that were carefully collected over Dr. Gilbert’s long and storied art historical career,” said O’Neill. “It was an exciting project, leading us to new discoveries from X-radiographs in conservation reports and treasures unboxed from storage.”
The show is organized into five themes: religion, architecture, allegory, portraiture and humor. Gilbert took particular delight in discovering works by major artists, such as Rembrandt van Rijn, Giovanni Battista Piranesi and Albrecht Durer, to name a few, hidden away in print shops. In 2005, then museum director Eric Lee, a former student of Gilbert’s, encouraged his mentor to leave his private collection to the museum. The bequest, totaling 272 objects, spans the 14th to 20th centuries with an emphasis on Old Master prints and drawings from the Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo periods. “While Dr. Gilbert
was a specialist in the Italian Renaissance, his collection encompasses a wide range of European artworks from the 1400s-1900s, and he seemed to delight in researching issues of attribution and dating,” said Palmer
An academic prodigy, Gilbert entered college at age 14, became a professor at 21 and eventually completed a doctorate from New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts in 1955. He was also one of the foremost authorities on Michelangelo. He authored numerous books and articles on Caravaggio, realism in Renaissance art and the Northern Baroque, as well as two seminal works: Michelangelo: On and Off the Sistine Ceiling (1994) and Caravaggio and His Two Cardinals (1995).
“Gilbert curated many exhibitions at museums and universities, developing a breadth of interests on clear display in his collection,” said O’Neill. “From illuminated parchment to sketches made on a cabaret table, we see discoveries made by a passionate and well-trained eye in a range of subjects and time periods.”
A Life in Looking: The Creighton Gilbert Collection is on display June 24 through Dec. 31.
The Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art is located in the OU Arts District on the corner of Elm Avenue and Boyd Street, at 555 Elm Ave., on the OU Norman campus. Admission to the museum is complimentary to all visitors. Information and accessibility accommodations are available by calling (405) 325-4938 or visiting www.ou.edu/fjjma.

Kristi Cormack was at a Galentine’s event in February 2020 with a group of friends when she said it hit her; she was too exhausted to stay. The 30-year-old went home and slept for three days. She had no history of health issues and didn’t know she’d soon be diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.
“I couldn’t go to work on Monday and the only excuse I had was that I was tired,” Cormack said. “It was a kind of tired I’d never experienced before.”
She called her primary care physician and, at first, they thought it was a virus. Kristi had a gut feeling it was more serious and requested blood work. The test revealed her instinct was right. After a CT scan and biopsy, Kristi’s medical team at Mercy had a better picture of what was wrong.
“I’ll never forget that call at 4:45 p.m. March 26, 2020,” Cormack said. “They called to tell me that it was cancer. Nothing can ever prepare you for that phone call.”
She immediately grabbed a notepad and started writing down any words she could comprehend. It was an aggressive form of spindle cell sarcoma. A six-pound tumor was growing from her pancreas.
“You hear all these words and you don’t have a clue about the weight of them,” Cormack said. “You don’t know what walking through treatment and chemotherapy means.”
Because less than 40 people in the United States have been diagnosed with this type of sarcoma, the oncology team at Mercy collaborated with their peers across the country. They sent Cormack’s scans to MD Anderson Cancer Center and Harvard Medical School for review.
“Kristi is a special case,” said Dr. Christian Ellis, surgical oncologist at Mercy Hospital Oklahoma City. “She had a bad situation. The location of her tumor and the fact that she is so young are very rare.”
It was a lot to process, but the timing created an additional challenge. All of this was happening when the world was first learning of COVID-19 and everything began to shut down.
“I went in for my biopsy the day the Oklahoma City Thunder had the first COVID case, and the NBA shut down,” Cormack said. “I remember waking up that evening and thinking, ‘What world did I wake up in?’”
Her initial consultation about removing the tumor happened in early April via video conference. That’s when she met Dr. Christian Ellis. He was the first person to explain the gravity of the surgery and that it could mean life or death.
“I remember sitting with my mom at home, seeing the CT scans on the video and Dr. Ellis walking me through the scans, talking me through surgery, the impact on each organ – the colon, small intestine, my spleen, stomach and pancreas – and what that would mean for me post-operation,” she said.
She was overwhelmed and told him she couldn’t make her decision without meeting in person. He told her to come down to the office right away.
At an in-person meeting, Dr. Ellis encouraged her to seek a second opinion. He was confident he could do the surgery, but Cormack said he wanted her to feel confident in him and the plan of action.
“He said if it’s crossed your mind at all, I want you to get a second opinion,” Cormack said. “He told me you deserve to explore all of your options and feel confident before you step into something this big.”
Cormack said she was relieved the second opinion confirmed Dr. Ellis’ course of action and helped her remove all the ‘what ifs.’
Family and friends camped out in the parking lot of the hospital while she endured what could have been an eight-hour surgery. A nurse called them hourly with updates and after just four hours, the surgery was complete. Dr. Ellis removed her spleen, two-thirds of her pancreas and all of the tumor. He told her anxious family he was pleased with how well it went.
“I woke up in the ICU and just screamed, ‘I’m alive, I made it, I’m alive,’” Cormack said.
After she recovered from surgery, Cormack began six rounds of an aggressive form of chemotherapy that required a five-day inpatient stay at Mercy every 21 days. She was relieved she could have one visitor during her treatments.
On Oct. 29, Kristi finished her last round of chemo. The fourth floor nurses cheered and sang to her as she left the unit when she was ready for discharge. Her mom drove her around to the back of the hospital to the Coletta Building, where Mercy’s outpatient oncology services are housed. She pulled up to the building to shouts of “ring that bell.”
She rang the bell outside of the Coletta Building, surrounded by family and friends, to signify the end of her cancer treatment. They celebrated the end of a long, hard journey.
“Kristi had all the ups and downs of a young person who was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer, but our multidisciplinary team at Mercy walked her through the entire process,” Dr. Ellis said. “She did very well, and she is cancer free today.”

Story by Darl Devault, Contributing Editor

For Oklahoma senior bicycle riders who became serious riders during COVID-19 the 40th Anniversary Hotter’N Hell 100 (HHH) the weekend of August 26-29 in Wichita Falls, Texas can be a post COVID celebration.
As the largest century ride in the nation, for the retirement privileged crowd the event can be likened to the crowded spectacle of Woodstock in the 1960s. Participants select from several distances to ride in the August heat at one of best supported bicycle rides attended by more than 10,000 riders. It has seen 14,000 some years.
The event is so big no article can describe everything on offer for attendees to do and see. There are more than 100 committee members who put on the event. It features more than one thousand volunteers during the weekend. The HHH website offers a 51-page downloadable Ride Guide at https://tinyurl.com/z7633umv
Besides being the best attended, it is the safest, best supported and most robust century ride including the largest bicycle consumer show available every year. The booths feature new bicycle innovations and major manufacturers starting Friday, running through Saturday.
“If you have time, it’s fun to explore the area. You can ride to Lake Wichita on trails or explore Lucy Park,” said Dixie Duff, a retired OKC nurse who has ridden HHH nine times. “The HHH is not a time to try new food or drink, especially if you are doing it the first time, but they do a great job of offering many choices.”
Duff also said to not let the 100 miles in the event name scare riders off. The ride offers lesser mile courses with huge rest stops with medical support and Support and Gear (SAG) support throughout the courses. Info is available at Hotter’N Hell (hh100.org).
All this just a two-and-a-half-hour drive from OKC. The distance is 140 miles using I 44 through Lawton.
Beginning Saturday at 7 a.m., cyclists of all ages are welcome to ride the classic HHH endurance ride with 10K, 25-mile distances for younger cyclists, 50 mile, 100K, 75 mile and the namesake100-mile route. Adjacent to the HHH ride finish the organizers stage USA Cycling criterium races Saturday and Sunday.
While more than 10,000 cyclists descend on Wichita Falls the event offers tent camping close in where thousands of people camp out in tents the night before. Shower facilities opening Friday night for the campers are open 24 hours till after the event so riders can shower near the start/finish area before they begin their trip home.
Bicycle clubs from surrounding states often rent buses and stay as far away as Lawton, Okla. or closer-in cities, filling up those accommodations. They get up early Saturday to take their bus into Wichita Falls to stage for the start.
One thing does live up to its name being in Texas in August—so most of the riders shy away from the 100-mile course. Cycling skills, training, and resolve will be tested. This is not an ordinary ride. Fuel for cycling is available at a huge spaghetti dinner and a pre-ride breakfast buffet.
The start for the ride is staged by those riding the longest distances at the front. For some people, the start itself is a party where they meet with friends beginning at 4 a.m. They are soon joined by 10,000+ other riders who have trained to complete their chosen distances.
For those people who are riding the middle distances the start is just as exciting. Again its anticipation is the specialness of having attended the Woodstock music festival.
All that pent up human energy is unleashed after the National Anthem, U.S. Air Force Fly Over and cannon blast. Many say to experience the excitement of a start of a major organized ride, the best place to see it is at the HHH.
Seniors new to the sport will want to attend the 2021 HHH Science of Cycling Symposium: From Lab to the Road featuring tips for cyclists riding the HHH. Area experts will present 30-to-45-minute presentations designed to be easy to understand. The free Symposium runs from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 3 p.m. Friday in the MPEC amphitheater. No registration is required. A question-and-answer period will follow each talk.
The great routes; friendly, well-supplied rest stops; a staff of nearly 1,000 dedicated professional medical support; and a fleet of SAG wagons awaits. HHH provides riders with every chance to achieve their goals in the brutal North Texas heat and wind—while having a safe and memorable experience accomplishing them.
No matter how far seniors ride it is about the camaraderie of riding along with thousands of other bicyclists who are enjoying a lifelong sport providing a wonderful health benefit without the overuse injuries of many of the other endurance sports.

Story by Darl Devault, Contributing Editor

On Aug. 23, seniors 65 and older can begin to take scientists’ advice of adding years of robust emotional and intellectual development to their lives by auditing college classes for free at every public college and university in Oklahoma.
Auditing means enrolling in a college course because a senior is interested in the subject and wants to learn more for no grade and no credit. Called Senior Auditors by the schools, they do not have to be admitted to the school.
Seniors Auditors will attend class regularly, have access to all class materials, but will likely not need to complete homework or take any exams. Seniors may also be encouraged to participate in the class, but this is usually not required.
Some faculty may expect senior’s participation to be minimal to give more time and attention to normally enrolled students.
Seniors need to ask the faculty member about the level of engagement expected while auditing a course, including active class participation in class and completing assignments. Buying the book, course material and listening to the lectures is standard.
In Oklahoma, the procedure for signing up to audit these free classes is Pre-Internet (1994).
A Senior Auditor may enroll as an auditor by meeting the faculty member in the first class with an audit request form. Provided space is available and the faculty member approves by signing the form, the Senior Auditor files the completed audit request form with the Registrar’s office to be officially enrolled.
Initial enrollment in a course as an auditor may be completed only between the first day of class and the last day allowed for late enrollment for credit.
This privilege available for seniors 65 or older has become even more important since scientists are now saying the ability to learn new subjects helps seniors create and sustain their neuroplasticity well into old age.
It was once long believed—by the average person and by brain health experts—that each person had a finite number of brain cells, which decreased over time. Lose enough and neurological damage or diseases result, including dementia.
During the last decade researchers have learned brain health is improved by neurogenesis, the process by which new neurons grow in the brain. This results when seniors take college classes.
By learning new subjects, seniors stimulate new brain cell growth, creating neuro plasticity where existing neurons grow and form different connections with each other.
The brain is responsible for emotional health as well as memory function, remembering old memories as well as creating new ones. Because of this, neurogenesis is key for staying mentally sharp and emotionally balanced.
Fortunately for seniors, free college classes are as close as any Oklahoma institution of higher learning. This includes any Oklahoma public two-year college or four-year university.
The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education codify the privilege each year in a document. On page 52 of the FY2020-2021 Tuition and Fee Rates for the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education dated September 2020 the privilege of striving for neuroplasticity is spelled out: Auditing of Classes by Senior Citizens. State System institutions are hereby authorized to waive the tuition and fees for auditing of classes for residents of the state of Oklahoma who are sixty-five (65) years of age or older. Such students may be admitted without charge to classes on a space available basis.
The number of seniors taking advantage of this privilege varies greatly. Kellie Dyer, Registrar at the University of Oklahoma, provided the numbers for the last two regular semesters. At the University of Oklahoma in the Fall 2020 semester 10 seniors audited classes and in the Spring of 2021 12 seniors audited classes for free.
Senior Auditors wishing to enroll in a course as an auditor need to get an Audit add/drop form from Enrollment Services in Buchanan Hall, Room 230, get the faculty member’s approval, and return the form to Enrollment Services.
To find out the precise manner and method of auditing classes for free at seniors’ college or university of choice contact their enrollment office. The enabling legislation does not standardize the way they do this across the system. Seniors should contact them well advance of selecting classes they want to take.
Listing of local Oklahoma Public Colleges and Universities
* Langston University, Langston, OKC
* Oklahoma City Community College, Oklahoma City
* Oklahoma State University. Oklahopma City
* Redlands Community College, El Reno
* Rose State College, Midwest City
* University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond
* University of Oklahoma, Norman
* University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City

Mary Ann Pawless, like millions of Americans, wonders how Katie Thurston’s journey will end this season on “The Bachelorette.”
The dating show is one of several shows the Lawton woman looks forward to watching each week, but that hobby was at risk because of her struggles with macular degeneration, a common eye disorder among people over age 50 that causes blurred or reduced central vision.
Pawless sought help with her vision issues from the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services’ Older Blind Independent Living Program. The staff teach independent living skills, adaptive aids and alternate techniques. Areas of support include help with reading tasks, time telling, name signing, orientation and mobility for clients in their home and community. Clients are also taught money identification and management, recreation and leisure activities and multiple independent living skills.
Pawless demonstrated how she uses a handheld magnifier with a light to read an adjustable magnifying glasses that enable her to watch her favorite TV shows including the ABC reality series. Each week she follows along as the men wait to see who will not receive the final rose and are sent home.
“For a while there it was, poor me,” Pawless said. “I didn’t have the desire to try to do too much. I just kind of scooted around, but now it’s kind of like a whole new world they’ve opened up for me. I used to get kind of depressed, but that’s very rare now because I stay busy at home and doing the yard.”
DRS also helped in other areas of her life. Pawless has black tabs on her stove and microwave that help her identify numbers and has a pair of elbow length oven mitts to prevent accidentally burning her arm while using the oven. She also listens to audiobooks from the Oklahoma Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, a program associated with Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired that provides audio books and audio equipment.
The Oklahoma Older Blind Independent Program provides one-on-one teaching for Oklahomans ages 55 and older who are struggling with vision loss and blindness. A large percentage of the staff are blind or have low vision and are located in offices throughout the state to help individuals regain their independence in a safe and efficient way at no cost to the client.
Pawless’ rehabilitation teacher Pam Holloway is also blind. Holloway helped Pawless to be creative around her house, such as using a rubber band to identify her shampoo and conditioner. Pawless’ orientation and mobility specialist Liz Scheffe taught her how to navigate outside and use her white cane. With her newfound independence, Pawless is now able to live life to the fullest again and has recovered from the depression that came with losing most of her vision.
Pawless, her husband and dog, Biscuit, live in a cabin with a beautiful garden across from Mount Scott. Her hobbies include listening to audiobooks, cooking and working in her garden. She enjoys spending time with her grandson and neighbors.
“The Older Blind program means that our staff can give something to older blind individuals that they might not get anywhere else, and that is their independence to perform tasks for themselves,” Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired Field Services Coordinator Teresa McDermott said. “There is nothing more joyous than to hear a client say they never thought they would be able to read a piece of mail or a medicine label again, or cook a meal on the stove, but they can now, as a result of services from our staff.”
For more information about DRS services, call 800-845-8476 during business hours to be transferred to the nearest office or visit:
https://oklahoma.gov/okdrs/independence/blind/older-blind.html.
The Older Blind Independent Living Program is part of the Service for the Blind and Visually impaired division of DRS, a state agency that assists Oklahomans with disabilities through vocational rehabilitation, education, employment, independent living programs and the determination of medical eligibility for disability benefits. Last year, DRS served more than 76,000 Oklahomans.

By Nick Thomas

When British author Roald Dahl’s beloved 1988 novel “Matilda” was transformed into a fantasy comedy movie a decade later, the film became hugely popular. It remains an enjoyable family movie to watch with children and grandchildren today, 25 years after its release in July of 1996.
Filled with memorable characters including a callous and dishonest family as well as a tyrannical school principal, Matilda was portrayed by adorable child actor Mara Wilson who battles and eventually overcomes adversity. It was one of four films in the 90s that made Wilson famous. Matilda, she says, was a role she was thrilled to play.
“It was my first favorite book,” she told me in a 2017 interview. “The film became a touchstone for girls who grew up feeling a little awkward and out of place and could relate to the Matilda character. When I was little and people would recognize me at the airport, park, or mall, I used to think ‘Why do they care?’ But I’ve come to realize how important some films can be to people.”
Despite the popularity of the spirited little actress in the additional 90s hits “Mrs. Doubtfire,” the remake of “Miracle on 34th Street,” and “A Simple Wish,” Wilson had slipped from the public spotlight by the decade’s end – an exile that was largely self-imposed.
“I grew out of that cute stage and didn’t develop into the classic Hollywood beauty as I got older,” she explained. “I didn’t like being reduced to adjectives – you’re thin or short or tall or blonde – and was no longer comfortable going to auditions. I still do some fun TV or web projects for friends and I love voice-over work because no one is judging how I look or how many times a week I workout!”
One actor she fondly remembers during her early career was Robin Williams during the filming of “Mrs. Doubtfire” who she says was “kind and gentle, but rather shy which is not uncommon for actors.” Not surprisingly, he was usually hilarious on the set and responded in typical Williams’ style when she told him of her fondness for musicals such as “The Sound of Music” and “South Pacific.”
“So he started singing ‘Nothing Like a Dame,’ which was funny because there he was, a man dressed like a woman singing there was nothing like being a woman!”
While her films from the 90s were largely comedic or sentimental, Wilson remains proud that her Matilda character has helped kids overcome abuse.
“They were living in abusive families or with parents who didn’t care about them, and the movie showed them there was a way out and that they could find people who cared. So it’s a comforting movie about feeling powerless, then finding power. People write to me all the time about the impact it had on their lives and I love that.”
Wilson’s autobiography, “Where Am I Now? – True Stories Of Girlhood And Accidental Fame,” was published in 2016.
Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University at Montgomery, Ala., and has written features, columns, and interviews for over 850 magazines and newspapers.