by Greg Schwem

“Hello! Thank you for downloading our app, which is guaranteed to take up valuable memory on your phone and ensure that, if you ever have a problem with our company, you now have the tools to solve it yourself. Which is why, on our website, you will not find any kind of contact information; only the sentence, ‘Most issues can be solved by downloading our app.’”
“First, we need a user name. Sorry, that name is not available. Nor is that one. Or that one. ‘Bootyliciousgranddad’? As weird as it sounds, even that one has been taken. ‘Greg79450854’ is available. Congratulations.”
“Now, please enter a password. It must contain one capital letter, one number, one special character you never knew existed on your keyboard, and another special character you create simply by pressing, simultaneously, ‘control/option/shift/return/command/function/tab/CAPS LOCK/>/<.’”
“That password is weak. Please try something stronger. May we suggest, ‘Pwb8*)@?!sV’?”
“Now, please re-enter the password. Sorry, the passwords didn’t match. Please check the spelling and be reminded that certain characters do look alike, particularly the ones we suggested for you.”
“Success! If you have not yet thrown your phone against a wall in anger, you are ready to use our app. Almost. First, we need to verify that you are you and not some robot that is capable of completing the user name and password steps. Please retype the following characters: 0oO1liImnmmnmnnOo0.”
“Please click here to request another series of characters that look like they came from an eye chart at your optometrist’s office. You have four more attempts.”
“Whew. You did it on your last try. Way to go! Now you just need to click on every square containing the color white.”
“Try this one. Click on every square where you see a road.”
“Close enough. You have successfully installed our app. Now, please download the latest version, 15.0.7.3.2, which we released while you were trying to find the roads. Please close all other apps on your phone while the installation takes place. The new version will be installed in approximately 13 minutes. Or three hours. Or two days if your internet connection sucks.”
“Your app is now up to date. You may sign in.”
“First, we need your credit card information and a scanned government issued ID. This could be a passport, driver’s license, Social Security card or anything else that could make your life a living hell if hackers stumble across it. But that isn’t going to happen. Rest assured; we NEVER share your personal information with outside sources. And we’re serious. That’s why we capitalized ‘NEVER.’”
“Now it’s time to link your credit card information to your digital wallet. Click here to establish a digital wallet. You might want to walk away from your phone for a few minutes, because establishing a digital wallet means creating another user name, password and avatar. Spend this time away from your phone by going to another device and Googling, ‘What is an avatar?’ Or just beat your head against a wall.”
“Make sure you store your digital wallet login information separately from where you keep your other password information. If you cannot access your digital wallet, you will NEVER be able to retrieve the funds you placed there during a night of drinking with your friends because Steve told you it was time to start investing in cryptocurrency. By the way, Steve did not offer to pick up the check. What does that tell you about crypto?”
“Please check your inbox for a verification email. Simply click the link and you will be able to use our app. If the email does not appear between 30 seconds and 24 hours, please check your spam folder. If you do find the email in your spam folder, please add our address to your ‘contacts’ folder so we can send you periodic updates about changes to the app. If you have questions, our chat bot is here to help.”
“Please be advised that our chat bot only knows how to say, ‘Refer to your app.’”
(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)

For 45 years, Danny Cavett has been a compassionate and supportive presence for hospital patients and their families, helping them navigate difficult circumstances and create meaning from situations that seemed to have none. This month, Cavett officially retires as Director of Pastoral Care for OU Health, where his work as a chaplain has touched an untold number of people.
“I’m going to miss being there every day, but I will stay connected,” Cavett said. “It’s been my life and has helped me feel fulfilled. I love having relationships with families.”
Cavett is retiring from a program that he has significantly strengthened. The pastoral care department now has a staff of eight chaplains and two administrative assistants, along with several other chaplains who fill in as needed. They cover OU Health University of Oklahoma Medical Center, Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health, and OU Health Edmond Medical Center. Cavett also directed OU Health’s nationally certified Clinical Pastoral Education Program, which has four full-time chaplain residents in training.
Their work is often demanding. Last year, there were 6,500 trauma cases at OU Health’s Level 1 Trauma Center; someone from Cavett’s team was present for each one, keeping families updated and comforted. They also respond to all heart attacks and strokes that occur within the hospital, as well as every death. They help families find funeral homes, facilitate autopsies with pathologists, obtain signatures for death certificates, and more. In addition, they aim to visit every new patient within 24 hours of admission.
“We do that to the tune of about 95%. I’m proud of that,” Cavett said. “We know that if a person receives a visit from pastoral care, even if it’s to say, ‘We’re here if you need us,’ then studies show that patient satisfaction goes up quite a bit.”
Although patients may receive visits from their own clergy, the work of a chaplain is a bit different, Cavett said. Chaplains talk about the patient’s medical problems, ask what kind of help they may need, and work with the patient to move toward goals or find meaning in what they’re experiencing. They do so by honoring the patient’s own ideas about spirituality. “Our calling is to work with the patient’s own background instead of me placing my spirituality on them,” Cavett said. “We want to take their story and help them grow with it.”
Cavett and his fellow chaplains have faced additional challenges during the time of COVID-19. When the surge of cases has been at its highest, no family members could come into the hospital; instead, Cavett and his team would go find the patient’s family in their car to deliver news. If a patient was near death, one or two family members could go to the bedside.
“Danny’s dedication to our health system and the patients we serve has been invaluable,” said Jon Hayes, President of Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health. “He has been a kind and comforting presence for our patients as well as our healthcare providers and staff. As we have faced tremendous challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, Danny’s wisdom and compassion have never been more important. It is hard to imagine OU Health without Danny, but he has made us all better at what we do because of the example he has set.”
Since he began his career, Cavett has experienced substantial change in the medical profession and the evolution of hospital facilities. He began working as a chaplain in 1977 at Oklahoma Children’s Memorial Hospital, which was then located in Bielstein Center near the intersection of 13th Street and Stonewall Avenue. Soon, the hospital expanded with the construction of Garrison Tower, which now connects to the original Bielstein building.
When he started, the hospital had room for about 50 children who were in wards instead of private rooms. Cavett saw each patient or family three times a day, and quickly became known at the hospital. Unfortunately, he also conducted many funerals for children who could not be cured by medical treatments available at the time. As medicine advanced, life expectancy lengthened, and Cavett noticed a related phenomenon among young patients.
“It was wonderful that children began living longer, but we were still treating kids like they were going to die,” he said. “Everything was centered around them, and that gave some kids a victim mentality. I decided that we needed to start a camp to teach kids how to cope with their illnesses — to be a thriver and embrace their story.”
That was the genesis of Cavett Kids, a calling that has run in parallel to Cavett’s career as a chaplain. The first camp he organized was for children with kidney disease; it’s still going strong 44 years later. In 1997, Cavett Kids Foundation became a nonprofit organization, and today it offers seven camps and numerous other programs free of charge for children with chronic and life-threatening illness.
“I remember that first year, we connected all the kids because they didn’t know each other,” he said. “I still do all the teaching at the camps about not being a victim. Our motto is that the illness does not define the child. They get to have fun with other kids who have the same medical condition, and they learn what it means to be a thriver.”
Cavett’s career also has been shaped by communal tragedies. In 1995, when a bomb exploded at the Alfred P. Murrah Building in downtown Oklahoma City, he had just walked into Children’s Hospital. He never went to the bombing site because the need was so great at the hospital.
“We set up a place for the parents who were waiting to hear about their kids (who were in a daycare in the building), and we went into the ER and tried to match kids with their parents,” Cavett said. “By noon that day, it was pretty clear that there would not be many more children who survived. The parents kept coming back to me asking if there was any news. And there wasn’t. That still really haunts me. It’s a memory I have to deal with.”
In the aftermath of the bombing, Cavett helped start a support group for families who lost children. He also helped colleagues in psychiatry conduct research on the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder among survivors. Because of his experience with that tragedy, he was called upon to help after planes hit the World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11, 2001. He was assigned to the New York City Fire Department’s medical clinic, where he talked with each firefighter who came in, listened to their experiences, and recommended mental health services if needed. He also traveled to individual fire departments to further visit with firefighters who were working at the site.
Throughout his career, Cavett has given his expertise to two other important entities in the healthcare profession: the Medical Ethics Committee at OU Health and the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of the OU Health Sciences Center. Medical Ethics Committee members are on call to provide consultations anytime a healthcare provider, patient or family member has a concern about a treatment regimen. They thoroughly look at each case and make recommendations to physicians overseeing care. As an IRB member, Cavett is part of the group that reviews and monitors research involving human participants. He plans to continue serving on the oncology IRB in his retirement.
Although he is ready to step back from many of his duties, Cavett said he will stay connected to OU Health through committee work and filling in as a chaplain when needed. His decades of experience will no doubt continue influencing others as well.
“I try to teach people about how to handle the stories we see and hear because compassion fatigue, burnout and moral distress are very real,” he said. “Some stories are very dear, so I keep them in my emotional bag around my shoulders. But if I keep every story in that bag, it becomes too heavy to carry. Some stories I have learned to put on a shelf where I can retrieve them if I need to.
“During my career, I’ve seen a progression of myself becoming less stoic and more willing to show my feelings. I still remember a young girl at one of my early camps who loved to play golf. She got to play golf during the camp, and the next week she died. That’s very dear to my heart. The tears come a lot quicker now. I used to hide them, but now I don’t.”

In the process of aging, many older adults bear the heavy burden of dementia and vascular cognitive impairment, conditions that can rob them of quality of life and put them at risk for falls and injuries. To explore a promising premise in aging research — that changes to the brain’s tiniest blood vessels may play an outsized role in cognitive decline — an OU College of Medicine researcher recently received a $1.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health.
Shannon Conley, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the college’s Department of Cell Biology and a research member of the Oklahoma Center for Geroscience and Healthy Brain Aging, earned the five-year grant, which will allow her to further explore how damaged micro-vessels in the brain may contribute to cognitive decline.
“It has become increasingly evident over the past 10 to 15 years that the smallest blood vessels are important in terms of contributing to disease pathology,” Conley said. “In the brain, this is especially important with aging. Because the brain can’t store any extra oxygen, the loss or damage of even a few tiny blood vessels means there’s not enough oxygen being supplied. In this project, we want to understand what is causing the damage or loss of blood vessels in the brain of an older adult.”
Specifically, Conley is focusing on the relationship between IGF-1, a common growth hormone that promotes blood vessel health, and smooth muscle cells, which surround the outside of blood vessels and help regulate blood flow by contracting and dilating. Researchers know that a person’s IGF-1 levels decline with age and that a deficit of the hormone can lead to defects in blood vessels. However, much less is known about the role of smooth muscle cells in that process.
“The research community has not really looked at the role of IGF-1 deficiency on the smooth muscle cells, specifically in the brain and in the context of aging and age-related cognitive impairment,” Conley said.
For this project, Conley has created an animal model that does not have a receptor for IGF-1 in the smooth muscle cells, resulting in a research model that mimics accelerated aging. Her first aim is to chronicle what happens when the smooth muscle cells can’t respond to IGF-1. Potential effects include damage or loss of blood vessels and impairment of the blood-brain barrier. She will also monitor to see whether the smooth muscle cells become impaired in their ability to contract as they normally do.
“One of the things that is important about smooth muscle cells in the brain is that they contract to protect the small blood vessels from the effects of systemic hypertension,” she said. “If you have systemic high blood pressure, you don’t want the tiny blood vessels in the brain to experience that. They’re very fragile and could have small bleeds or hemorrhages. So we’ll be watching to see if the smooth muscle cells lose their ability to protect the small blood vessels.”
Conley’s study will also seek to determine what is happening on a molecular level when smooth muscle cells cannot respond to IGF-1. “For example, do we see changes in the genes that are associated with cell contraction? Do we see early death of smooth muscle cells?” she said.
Ultimately, one of her goals it to identify targets that might be suitable for a therapeutic intervention. Treating an IGF-1 deficiency isn’t as simple of giving someone a supplement of IGF-1; because it is a growth factor, it could promote abnormal growth in other tissues and cells. However, some of the changes that occur because of IGF-1 deficiency could be a target for future treatments, she said.
Conley’s research is a component of the growing discipline of geroscience research, the study of the biology of aging. Aging itself is one of the biggest risk factors for disease, and many of the cellular mechanisms of aging are common across a wide range of pathologies.
“The things that go wrong in the blood vessel cells in the brain that can lead to dementia are some of the same things that can go wrong in the retina and lead to age-related macular degeneration. And some of those same cellular mechanisms can contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s disease pathologies or Parkinson’s disease pathologies. Among geroscience researchers, there is a lot of interest in what we call the basic cellular mechanisms of aging. We’re not looking specifically at the disease, but how the cells change as we age, and how that increases our risk for a variety of pathologies.”
As people live longer, research like Conley’s is especially important. Medical advancements may be able to keep people alive longer, but many will be diagnosed with conditions that significantly decrease their quality of life.
“As we have longer life spans, it’s really important to identify ways to simultaneously promote increased health spans,” she said. “It’s very challenging when you have loved ones who have severe illness or cognitive impairment, yet they are not dying; they are physically able to keep living. We want to help people stay healthier longer.”
Research reported in this news release is supported by the National Institute on Aging, a component of the National Institutes of Health, under the award number 1R01AG070915-01A1. Federal funds were secured with the help of seed grants from the Presbyterian Health Foundation, the OU College of Medicine Alumni Association, and the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology.

After a national search, INTEGRIS Health is excited to share the selection of Brent Hubbard as the health care system’s new chief operating officer.
Hubbard comes to INTEGRIS Health most recently from Mercy Health System, Mercy Hospital Springfield Communities, where he serves as president and COO. Since 2016, his responsibilities were to lead the strategic direction of seven hospitals with administrative and operational oversight of 7,500 coworkers.
Prior to Hubbard’s current position, he served as the chief operating officer at Mercy Health System, Mercy Hospital Fort Smith Communities, and the chief operating officer at HCA, Medical Center of McKinney. Other roles he has held include associate administrator at HCA – Centennial Medical Center and executive director and director of marketing at Woodward Regional Hospital.
Hubbard received his Bachelor of Science in business administration from Oklahoma State University and his Master of Business Administration from Southwestern Oklahoma State University. He is an accomplished health care executive and brings to INTEGRIS Health a strong focus on performance metrics. He is a believer in continuous process improvement. Hubbard has extensive experience in improving physician and coworker engagement, quality measures and patient outcomes, and achieving operational excellence to include service line growth and expanding patient access to health care.
He and his wife, Hilary, were both raised in Oklahoma, Mooreland and Woodward respectively. They are excited to be moving, along with their three children, back to the great state of Oklahoma and joining the INTEGRIS Health team. Hubbard’s first day at INTEGRIS Health will be May 2.

By Nick Thomas

Joe Cornet never initially considered now 92-year-old Don Murray for a role in his 2021 western film “Promise.”
“I wanted an iconic actor for one of the roles and approached two other veteran western stars, but for one reason or another neither worked out,” said Cornet, from Los Angeles, who wrote, directed, and co-produced the almost 2-hour-long western drama.
Already acquainted with Murray’s son, Cornet explained his dilemma to the younger Murray who proposed a simple solution: “Why don’t you get dad?”
“So, I sent Don the script but wasn’t really expecting to hear from him – I just didn’t think he would do it,” explained Cornet. “However, he called the following day to say he loved the story, calling it a classic, and asked when the shooting started!”
Murray’s previous big-screen appearances had been a pair of 2001 films two decades earlier, but he required little convincing to dude-up in cowboy gear for Cornet’s film which depicts a desperate search for lost gold and lost love, both linked to the Civil War.
“It has elements of the classic western but it’s also not cliché-bound,” said Murray from his home in Santa Barbara. “It was just a great concept, very imaginative with good writing.”
Murray, on set for a week to shoot his scenes at a Southern Californian ranch, “was a gem” according to Cornet. “He has three large, important scenes, two with me. He added a lot of quirks and nuances to create an interesting character.” Currently available on Amazon Prime, “Promise” was entered in Tucson’s Wild Bunch Film Festival last October, receiving 11 awards including Best Picture.
Don Murray is no stranger to award ceremonies, having been nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his first film role in 1956’s “Bus Stop,” co-starring Marilyn Monroe.
“It was a total surprise, I couldn’t believe it,” said Murray of his reaction when learning that the film’s director, Josh Logan, insisted the producers cast him as a rambunctious cowboy alongside the notoriously difficult Monroe.
“I was aware of her reputation, but didn’t let that bother me,” recalled Murray. “I didn’t pay any attention to what people thought of her. I was just involved with the work and working with her which was a great experience. She was very supportive of me and we got along well, no problems ever.”
Murray also remembers Logan going to great lengths to put Monroe at ease. “He was always very supportive and made her feel comfortable,” he said. “He was very positive and didn’t criticize what she was doing.”
After “Bus Stop,” Murray went on to work in numerous TV shows and appeared in some 40 films, often tackling challenging roles that portrayed compelling characters. He appeared in several westerns and believes the genre, though far less common today, can still attract audiences.
“There’s always the classic theme of the western but there’s also room for creative changes in the screenplay, giving a better sense of western reality,” he says. “(Joe) actually took advantage of that and created a classic piece all its own and I was very proud to be part of it.”
Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University at Montgomery, in Alabama, and has written features, columns, and interviews for numerous magazines and newspapers. See www.tinseltowntalks.com.

On March 22, 2022, at 10 a.m. the Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) opened the Oklahoma State Capitol Museum, a state-of-the-art gallery space in the Oklahoma State Capitol. Created as part of the Oklahoma Capitol Restoration Project and located on the ground floor near the new primary public entrance on the south side of the Capitol, the Oklahoma State Capitol Museum contains 4,400 square feet of exhibit space and 13 exhibit cases, featuring more than 125 artifacts relating to the history of the Oklahoma State Capitol and the work of Oklahoma’s state government.
“The Oklahoma State Capitol Museum is a necessary addition to our Capitol Building,” said Lt. Gov. Pinnell. “No state can match our heritage and history, and these exhibits will provide Oklahomans and out-of-state visitors with a hands-on way to experience that history. I appreciate the hard work Trait Thompson and the rest of the Oklahoma Historical Society have put in to make this dream a reality.”
“The new Oklahoma State Capitol Museum provides a key educational component to our beautiful Capitol for visitors from around the world,” said Thompson. “The Oklahoma Historical Society has worked very hard to install exhibits that showcase the unique story of our Capitol and help people of all ages understand the important work that takes place within its walls. This museum is an integral part in making the Capitol a must-see destination when people come to Oklahoma City.”
Admission to the Oklahoma State Capitol Museum is free to all visitors. The museum will be open from Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Since 1951 the cannon used by William “Buffalo Bill” Cody and Gordon W. “Pawnee Bill” Lillie in their Wild West Show has been on display at the Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) headquarters in Oklahoma City. It was first displayed outside the original OHS building at 2100 N. Lincoln Blvd., and then at the new Oklahoma History Center at 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive. After more than 70 years in Oklahoma City, the cannon will return to the Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum in Pawnee.
According to Ronny Brown, the Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum director, the Model 1861, 3-inch ordnance rifle was cast in 1863 at the Phoenix Iron Company in Phoenixville, Penn. The gun reportedly saw service in several Civil War battles, including Missionary Ridge, before Pawnee Bill acquired it for use in the Wild West Show. After the Wild West Show, the gun found a home on the front lawn of Pawnee Bill and May Lillie’s mansion. Shortly before Pawnee Bill died in 1942, he gifted the gun to his longtime friend and publicist Frank Stuart. The carriage was in bad shape and continued to deteriorate as the gun sat in Stuart’s backyard in Oklahoma City for many years. Stuart died in 1950, and under his will the cannon was gifted to the OHS in 1951. The OHS had a new carriage built for the cannon, and has displayed it in Oklahoma City ever since. Now the gun is set to return home to the front lawn at the Pawnee mansion.
The OHS is providing $15,000 in matching funds toward the $30,000 needed to restore the carriage, build a suitable exhibit space, and move the cannon to Pawnee. “This has been a dream of the local community for many years, and we are so excited to be working on plans to make it happen,” said Mona Denney, president of the Pawnee Bill Ranch Association. “We are launching a fundraising drive to raise the $15,000 needed to complete the project. This will be a big attraction for the ranch, and we can’t wait to see it back home on the mansion lawn.”
“We are very pleased to be working with the community of Pawnee to bring the cannon back to the ranch,” said Trait Thompson, executive director of the OHS. “The project includes placing a flagpole near the cannon and lighting the front of the mansion and the cannon display. The cannon will be placed on a concrete pad with exhibit panels to tell the cannon’s story. Also included in the project is a new sidewalk to ensure the display is accessible to everyone,” continued Thompson.
“Come by for a visit and make a donation to the project to be a part of this opportunity,” said Denney. “If you can’t make it for a visit, give the ranch a call to make a donation at 918-762-2513.”
For more information about the Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum or directions to the site, please visit www.okhistory.org/pawneebill or call the ranch at 918-762-2513. The Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum is located at 1141 Pawnee Bill Road in Pawnee.

Christina Sibley, EMT/RMA
Bachelor of Science Health Studies-Gerontology emphasis

We’ve all heard it, “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”. The assumption being that learning or improving our brains is somehow behind us, past a certain age. The truth is, that’s a bunch of malarky. Our brains continue to grow new connections, reorganize connections, and prune unused ones, through our entire lives. This is called brain plasticity.
In short, the nerve cells in our brains look a little like trees. There’s nerve endings where roots would be, these receive signals. There’s a sort of trunk, that contains an axon and a cell body, signals travel through/over this, and finally there’s an area that looks like spread out branches, these are dendrites and they send the signal to the next cell.
These amazing cells are lined up end to end (axons to dendrites). There are tiny gaps (synapses) in between and chemicals (called neurotransmitters) move between the two ends, to send and receive signals. These individual cells line up, bunch together, and make up our brain, spinal cord and all our nerves.
The cells and connections between cells can be damaged by many things, but our brains are designed to attempt self-repair, to make new branches/connections or to make a new connection with a different neuron, and clean out damaging proteins/debris. This repair and reorganization, according to Dr. Sanjay Gupta in his new book Keep Sharp: Build a Better Brain at Any Age, happens best, it turns out, when we sleep.
We form new connections and memories all the time, especially in the areas of the brain we use often. The more we visit the information or skill, the more the area builds and becomes permanent. It has to go from short term memory, which we lose quickly, to long term memory.
This new cell growth is helped by good overall nutrition and moderate exercise. Get the blood flowing with plenty of nutrients and oxygen, and good things happen to our bodies. We’ve been told this for years. Easier said than done, but it’s worth a revisit and it holds true for all our cells.
Many of us have kids and/or grandkids that we have watched grow. As children they have to build massive amounts of brain cells/neurons that go all over their bodies. They are also building muscle cells and dexterity. How do they do it? They play of course.
They’re active physically. They are unafraid and learn new things and skills all the time, from us or in school. They’re mentally active. They laugh, dance, dream, and create for their own benefit, simply because it feels good.
So the next time you think “I can’t learn that” know that you absolutely CAN. If you feel intimidated or awkward, take a lesson from your kids/grandkids and play to learn. Within reason, of course, no rollerblading, and consult your physician. Be unafraid to learn. Don’t worry about how long it takes or that it’s a work in progress. The act of learning new things and skills is what helps keep our brains, and bodies, healthy and functioning properly. Your awesome brain will thank you!
Christina Sibley, with Sibley Insures, is a licensed health insurance agent who specializes in Medicare plans, all types, and Medicare education. Call (405) 655-6098 or visit sibleyinsures.com. See our ad in the Resource Directory on page 17.

by Dot Liles, Contributor

John Ferguson turned 94 in February and is still counting. Yes, Oklahoma has counted on him many times. He has lent his talent, not only professionally, but to a host of charitable and fundraising events. This year the Oklahoma Senior Follies are counting on him to be our “King” and “Count.” He will be helping us raise money for the Alzheimer’s Association.
John will be surrounded by a bevy of beauties with elaborate show costumes and hats. Also, joining him on stage will be Jackie Short as “Elvira.” He has just one thing to laughingly say about this to all Oklahoma’s senior men, “Eat your heart out!” You will see him on stage as “John Ferguson,” the King, and as his most-remembered character, “Count Gregore.”
Also featured at this year’s show will be Vince Gill via video performance and Emmy and Grammy-nominated David Hooten on trumpet. There will be many new performers as well as a host of your favorites from past years! The OKLAHOMA SENIOR FOLLIES will be at Hudson Performance Hall, 2820 N. May, Oklahoma City, this year. The show dates are May 20 at 7:30 p.m., and May 21 and May 22 at 3:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased by visiting the website at www.oklahomaseniorfollies.com or www.TicketStorm.com or by calling Ticket Storm at 866-966-1777. This year we have added a seating chart with $25 seats, $30 seats, and $40 seats. You can also purchase blocks of ten and get a $5.00 discount.
We promise you-it will not be a draining experience! This year will be an overflowing, fun, and exciting show to remember. Count Gregore and the cast of the Senior Follies cannot wait to see you there!

Dear Savvy Senior, I need to find someone honest and reliable to look after my estate, health and long-term care when I’m no longer able to do it myself. I’m a 67-year-old recent widow with no children and one sibling I rarely talk to. Any suggestions? Solo Ager

Dear Solo,
This is big concern for millions of older Americans who don’t have a spouse, children or other family they can depend on to watch out for their well-being. While there’s no one solution to this issue, here are some tips and resources that can help you plan ahead.
Essential Documents
If you haven’t already done so, your first step, before choosing a reliable decision maker, is to prepare a basic estate plan of at least four essential legal documents. This will protect yourself and make sure you’re wishes are carried out if you become seriously ill or when you die.
These essential documents include: a “durable power of attorney” that allows you to designate someone to handle your financial matters if you become incapacitated; an “advanced health care directive” that includes a “living will” that tells your doctor what kind of care you want to receive if you become incapacitated, and a “health care power of attorney,” which names a person you authorize to make medical decisions on your behalf if you’re unable to; and a “will” that spells out how you’d like your property and assets distributed after you die. It also requires you to designate an “executor” to ensure your wishes are carried out.
To prepare these documents your best option is to hire an attorney, which can cost anywhere between $500 and $2,000. Or, if you are interested in a do-it-yourself plan, Quicken WillMaker & Trust 2022 ($129, Nolo.com) and LegalZoom.com ($179) are some top options.
Choosing Decision Makers and Helpers
Most people think first of naming a family member as their power of attorney for finances and health care, or executor of their will. If, however, you don’t have someone to fill those roles, you may want to ask a trusted friend or associate but be sure to choose someone that’s organized and younger than you who will likely be around after you’re gone.
Also be aware that if your choice of power of attorney or executor lives in another state, you’ll need to check your state’s law to see if it imposes any special requirements.
If, however, you don’t have a friend or relative you feel comfortable with, you’ll need to hire someone who has experience with such matters.
To find a qualified power of attorney or executor for your will, contact your bank, a local trust company or an estate planning attorney. If you need help locating a pro, the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA.org) is a great resource that provides online directory to help you find someone in your area.
Another resource that can help you manage and oversee your health and long-term care needs as they arise, and even act as your health care power of attorney, is an aging life care manager. These are trained professionals in the area of geriatric care who often have backgrounds in nursing or social work. To search for an expert near you, visit AgingLifeCare.org.
Or, if you need help with bill paying and other financial/insurance/tax chores there are professional daily money managers (see AADMM.com) that can help.
Aging life care managers typically charge between $75 and $200 per hour, while hourly rates for daily money managers range between $75 and $150.
It’s also important to note that if you don’t complete the aforementioned legal documents and you become incapacitated, a court judge may appoint a guardian to make decisions on your behalf. That means the care you receive may be totally different from what you would have chosen for yourself.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.