President’s Message

President’s Message

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President…Ken Schieck
From all accounts, the AARP picnic (pictures below) on Sept.19, 2017 was an unqualified success for the approximately 65 people who attended; the parking was good; the weather was more than co-operative; the food was great and the companionship was awesome.  Many many thanks to Paddy Wray and her planning committee including Sue McMillin, Marilyn Clough, Veronika Phillips and Margaret Schieck.  Special thanks to Carlos Castaneda and Tina Wong-Erling at the City of Campbell for providing logistical assistance both before and after the event.

On Sept. 21, AARP participated in a senior’s resource fair at the Saratoga Senior Center. Approximately 30 people stopped by to chat and pick up a copy of the DISPATCH and the tri-fold information brochure. What surprised us is that most of them thought we were representing national AARP; now they know that there is a local chapter that will welcome them. Thanks to Gene Lennon, Paddy Wray and Margaret Schieck for (wo)manning the tables. We participated in another senior’s resource fair at Liberty Towers on Wed. Oct. 4. I believe that we will be participating in more of these, so please consider assisting at them. If you are interested, please contact me.

Birthdays in October include Jimmy Carter (Oct.1), Kate Winslet (Oct .5), Chevy Chase (Oct. 8), John Lennon (Oct. 9), Jerry Rice (Oct.13), Dwight Eisenhower (Oct.14), Angela Lansbury (Oct.16), Chuck Berry (Oct.18), Carrie Fisher (Oct. 21), Hillary Clinton (Oct. 26) and Bill Gates (Oct. 28)

President’s Message

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President…Ken Schieck Well, here it is, the month of September; most of us remember going back to school the Tuesday after Labor Day.  For probably the last 15 years, however, your children and grandkids have been going back to school in August, getting a 2 week holiday break in December and ending the school term in May. I think very soon the metropolitan states like California will vote to have year-round school. The buildings will be better utilized, and the students will remember school basics more easily than when they had 90 days off!   Famous people born in September include:  Lily Tomlin (Sept.1),  Beyonce Knowles (Sept.4),  Bob Newhart (Sept.5), Bill O’Reilly (Sept.10),  Oliver Stone (Sept.15),  Lauren Bacall (Sept.16), Yours Truly (Sept.18), Sophia Loren(Sept.20),   Bruce Springsteen (Sept. 23), and Barbara Walters (Sept.25).

Speaking of September, I hope to see many of you at our picnic on Tuesday, Sept.19 at Edith Morley Park, Campbell, from 11:30-2. Our chapter will also participate in a Seniors Resource Fair at the Saratoga Senior Center on Thursday, Sept. 21 from 2pm to 5 pm; We will probably have a table as well on Wed. Oct. 4 at Liberty Towers in Santa Clara from 10 am to 2pm; if you are interested in helping out at either of these two events, please contact me at 408-379-7820 or k1141@sbcglobal.net.

Our Community Service chair, Marilyn Clough is going to write a history of the Campbell AARP Chapter; if you would like to lend her your writing talents, please contact her at 408-377-6882.

Please keep the victims of Hurricane Harvey in your thoughts and prayers.

President…Ken Schieck

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This past week, Margaret and I have seen two different types of plays and enjoyed both. Sunday July 23, we went to City Lights and saw LIZZIE, a musical version of the life of Lizzie Borden (‘Lizzie Borden took an ax and gave her mother forty whacks……….you can’t cut your poppa up in Massachusetts’ as duly noted in the early 60’s by the Chad Mitchell trio). The roughly 2 ½ hour play was anchored by just four young actors, who played Lizzie, Emma (her sister), Maggie (the housemaid) and Alice (the next door neighbor). This play is featured until Aug. 20.

Saturday July 29, the Montgomery Theater featured ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ by Children’s Musical Theater. There were about 50 actors featured as statues, gypsies, townspeople, monks and soldiers; some of them had beautiful voices and some were aging out of this kind of venue (at 14 to 20 years of age). You would not believe the beauty of the props and the orchestral sound! This one is featured until Aug. 6. As they say in show biz, ‘The play’s the thing’ and ‘Break a leg.’

The social committee is looking forward to seeing you at the AARP lunch on Tuesday, Sept. 19 at Edith Morley Park in Campbell (see Pg 3); more information is coming at the general meeting on Aug. 15.

We wish AARP member Merrill Peevyhouse the best of luck as he moves to the Placerville area to live with his family.

Famous people born in August include Tom Brady (Aug.3), Barack Obama (Aug.4), Madison Bumgarner (Aug.21), Jerry Garcia (Aug.23), Lyndon Johnson (Aug.27) and Ted Williams (Aug.30).

Remember to check out the AARP summer of service at aarpfoundation.org/summer of service.

President…Ken Schieck

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I hope that you all had a safe and sane 4th of July. One of the more foolish (although fortunately harmless) pranks I was involved in took place on the 4th of July, 1961; while my parents and aunt were at the local bar, I helped my cousin put firecrackers in a couple of my mom’s flower pots and light them. For some reason, my cousin thought that all the sand we packed into the pots would prevent them from blowing up! Maybe some of the safety laws that municipalities have passed in the years since are due to this and more serious pranks. Oh yeah, my cousin asked me not to tell my mother what happened; as mothers so often do, she found out anyway!

July 20th marks the 48th anniversary of the moon landing, Apollo 11, with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin doing the honors. This was the first of six manned flights which ended in late 1972. Armstrong was quoted as saying ‘one small step for man, one large step for mankind.’ He died in 2012 at the age of 87; Aldrin is still alive at the age of 87.

Famous people born in July include Selena Gomez (July 22), Tom Hanks (July 9) Gerald Ford (July 14), George W. Bush (July 6), Malala (I am Malala) Yousafzai (July 12), and Jennifer Lopez (July 24). More importantly, July is the beginning of a lot of outside entertainment venues such as Campbell’s Music in the Park on Thursdays, Los Gatos Jazz on the Plazz and weekend entertainment at Vasona Park, as well as venues sponsored by San Jose Jazz; many, if not all of these are free.

Check out national AARP ‘Summer of Service to Seniors’ at aarpfoundation.org/summerofservice; the site gives you information about a nationwide initiative to help older adults across the U.S. who don’t have enough to eat; it shows how you can support these seniors.

President…Ken Schieck

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Some important dates in June: June 6, 1944 (D-Day invasion of France (our member George DePold was a participant); June 12, 1924 (birthday of 41st president, George H.W. Bush); June 14 (flag day); June 18 (Father’s Day); June 21 (beginning of summer); June 25, 1876 (defeat of Gen. Custer at the Little Big Horn, Montana); June 25, 1950 (America’s entry into the Korean War).

Last month, someone misplaced a set of keys in Marilyn Clough’s egg carton basket. If they might be yours, please contact Marilyn at 408/377-6882.

Last week, I had lunch with Wendy Sinclair, president of the South San Francisco AARP chapter; she was impressed with our newsletter and layout of our general meeting agenda. I have invited her to attend our general meeting on June 20. Also, the AARP Bay Area regional HQ office is moving from San Francisco to San Jose, and I hope to have the regional administrator attend one of our meetings as well.

I will be participating in a state chapter call on June 21; if you have any ideas or concerns that you want to share with other chapters please let me know.

As I mentioned in my first letter in January or February, I am looking for someone who would like to write a history of this chapter; it would be printed in the neighborhood newspapers like the Campbell Express and the Campbell Reporter.

We hope to see our legislative chair Daniel Nnorth in July; he is still going through rehabilitation for his rotator cuff injury.

President…Ken Schieck

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It is my sad duty to pass on the sad news that Sheila Gold died on Tuesday, April 25; she had been in hospice care for almost three months due to the recurrence of cancer. Sheila had a vibrant personality, and she was one of the most enthusiastic museum supporters you could ever meet. As our Community Service rep, she was very active in seeking our support for the services at Sacred Heart ministries. After she retired from teaching Spanish and French to high school students, she spent volunteer hours in a local program called Reading Partners, where she taught reading skills to below grade level students. If you wish to make a contribution in her memory, Reading Partners was her first choice. She will be missed. A memorial service is scheduled for Sunday, May 7, at 2 p.m. at Temple Emanuel, 1010 University Ave, San Jose, a few blocks east of the Alameda.

When he was California governor, Gray Davis, a Vietnam combat veteran, designated May as Veterans Appreciation Month. During this month, government agencies such as the Veteran’s Administration, county Veterans Services Offices, the California Employment Development Department and veterans organizations such as the American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America and Veterans of Foreign Wars pool their resources to provide an afternoon of celebration for veterans who served both in wartime and peacetime. Along with the celebration, companies interested in hiring veterans are invited to attend and provide job-seeking veterans with information about their companies and allow the veterans to interview with them. Because of logistical difficulties, this year’s event has been re-scheduled for the month of June at the San Jose Vet Center. If you know of a company that wants to hire veterans, please have them call Juanita Morales-Euresti at the San Jose Vet Center, 80 Great Oaks, San Jose at 408-993-0729. The expected date is either June 17 or June 24.

If you are a veteran who wants to attend the celebration, of course feel free to do so; there is no charge. Also, look for local celebrations on Memorial Day, May 29. And don’t forget to thank a veteran for their service.

President’s Message…Ken Schieck

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April brings Easter and Passover celebrations this year. So happy Easter bunnies, egg hunts, and Easter parades, as well as Seders, charoseth and family stories. Remember, too, the deeper meanings of each of these feasts. With the recent defeat of the American Health Care Act in the House of Representatives, supporters of Obamacare can breathe more easily. If Congress or the president bring up this issue again, it will probably be at least a year before it happens. At the March meeting, one of the concerns that Liz Gibbons raised was the reduction of transportation outreach to seniors. There is an article in the March 24 issue of the Campbell Reporter which describes a pilot program for West Valley seniors that is sponsored by the County. The cities in the West Valley group are Los Gatos, Saratoga, Cupertino and Campbell. Look for this article on the front flag table at the general meeting. The Jewish Community Center of Los Gatos will host AARP mature driver and refresher courses in April, May and July. Look for flyers again on the flag table at the general meeting. I thank those of you who supported the Orchard City Community Chorus and the other choirs/ choruses who performed Mar. 10 at Campbell United Methodist Church for Next Door Solutions; the organization raised over $4000. Today was opening day for the SF Giants, and it seems like one of the problems they had last year is still with them. The bullpen blew a 4-3 lead in the eighth inning, leading to an eventual 6-5 loss in the bottom of the ninth to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

President…Ken Schieck

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Last month, we celebrated Valentine’s Day and wore red. Some of us may have received unusual gifts, like the blinking heart necklace we got from our granddaughter. We found out later that it cost 14 cents!

This month, we will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and wear green; even though our general meeting is Mar. 21, feel free to wear green anyway. Those of us who are Irish will be thankful for the gifts our immigrant ancestors brought to this country: the English language, a 75% literacy rate and a wonderful talent for organization. Immigrants who came to the big cities after the Irish were the beneficiaries of their gifts, as they went through the sometimes painful process of assimilation. Even people like me, who have no hint of Celtic or British Isles ancestry, can celebrate as well; I went to Catholic school for nine years in the ‘50s/‘60s!

Don’t forget to attend the 6th annual Next Door Solutions benefit concert on Friday, Mar.10 at the Campbell United Methodist Church, 1675 Winchester Ave. Campbell at 7:30 pm. Cost is $20 at the door or go to www.orchardcity.org.

March is Women’s History Month and every day the San Jose Mercury News will profile women who have helped their communities and their country. Sounds like a good read!

Look for people to talk with before and after our general meeting. That courtesy keeps them coming and allows you to share the magnetism of our group.

President’s Message

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President…Ken Schieck
I hope that many of you have had a chance to visit our new website at campbellaarp.org. Our treasurer, Rick Loek, has created this site and also offers training courses on how to publish articles on it.  If you would like to be on the team that publishes articles, contact Rick directly.
Valentine’s Day will be history when we convene on Feb. 21 for our general meeting, but wouldn’t it be fun to wear red? Speaking of Valentine’s day, our 8 year old granddaughter has combined this with another holiday and calls it “Valgiving” (for Thanksgiving!). She and her mom couldn’t celebrate Valentine’s day in their new house last year, so she wants to make it a yearly celebration at her new house from this point forward. (Funny how kids think.) Celebrate your grandchildren’s creativity, especially when it comes as a surprise.
On a more sobering note, there was an article in the Campbell Express a week or so ago about an ‘AARP SCAM ALERT’; you are offered a government grant which never has to be paid back.  The kicker is that you have to provide your checking account information. Never give that information to people you don’t know. Report scams to local law enforcement and go to the AARP Fraud Watch Network at www.aarp.org/fraudwatch for more information and tips on fraud prevention.
Happy beginning of spring cleaning. And be careful; Margaret and I are both victims of falling and tripping.

President…Marlene Hruby

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Now is your chance to really get involved with your chapter. The Nominating Committee is now looking for new board and committee members. You know your strengths better than we do, so won’t you step up and offer your services? Many of the current positions have been held by the same people for many years and they would love to step down. New “blood” would give new life to the group. For instance, we need a new publicity chair who could inform more seniors of our wonderful group. Just call any member of the Nominating Committee listed on page 4.