Category: August – September 2012

  • Message from the Editor – Aug / Sep 2012

    Welcome to all of you attending this year’s Senior Fair and enjoying the great exhibitors and presentations, full of resourceful information and contacts to living well. We all should thank the producer of this—the largest event of the year dedicated to our senior community— Mike Rossell and his associate Barbara Garofano who coordinates just about everything. This month’s cover…

  • Think Green . . . Smoothie

    The most important thing for our health is to get enough fruits and vegetables on a daily basis. It provides antioxidants, micronutrients, and phytochemicals to protect us from disease such as cancer and heart disease. These nutrients help us continue to function on a cellular level, keep our immune system strong and add a lot…

  • Talk It Out at the Mediation Center

    Mediation and family conferencing help families talk through difficult issues and create plans to support their Kupuna. “I’m so frustrated. I’m spending more and more time trying to help my mom and dad, and now I feel like I’m neglecting my own family. Of course my brother and sister are absolutely no help at all.…

  • Better Business Bureau: Scammers Take Advantage of Health Reform

    Con artists are always seizing on the public’s financial struggles and confusion in order to make a quick buck. Not long ago we saw them come out of the woodworks during the housing crisis and now we are seeing a pattern again as health care reform laws are upheld. Scammers are already trying to cash…

  • Social Security Goes for the Gold!

    Millions of Americans are following the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London. And just months before, Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, announced that in less than two months’ time, 1 million people have gone online, created a My Social Security account and viewed their Social Security Statement. If there was an Olympics for…

  • Now & Then: A Way of Harmony

    In 1957, brothers Al and Clayton Naluai attended Glendale Junior College in California where they befriended two other Native Hawaiians, Bernie Ching and Pat Sylva. They started to compile Hawaiian tunes together for the choir director and came up with a signature harmonizing style. They did concerts up and down the West Coast. While singing in…

  • AARP Hawaii: Driving to Fight Senior Hunger

    AARP Hawai‘i has launched an initiative to raise awareness and help non-profits meet the growing demand for food among Hawai‘i’s frail elderly population. The initiative, part of the national AARP Foundation Drive to End Hunger, supports the efforts of Lanakila Meals on Wheels and Hawai‘i Meals on Wheels — organizations that provide home-delivered meals to seniors unable…

  • Your Mind & Body: Controlling Cholesterol

    Cholesterol is a type of fat which occurs naturally in the body. It has both good and bad effects on the body. The body uses cholesterol to make hormones and to build and maintain nerve cells. However, when the body has too much cholesterol deposits of fat called plaques form inside blood vessel walls. The…

  • Medicare: What’s What and Who Pays For It?

    We at Sage PLUS Program/Hawaii SHIP (State Health Insurance Assistance Program) often get calls on our hotline from individuals who are confused about “who pays for what,” especially when it comes to care facilities (nursing homes, care homes, assisted living facilities and foster family homes). Let’s take a look at each care facility option, and…

  • What is The Office of The Ombudsman?

    The Ombudsman is an officer of the legislature who investigates complaints about actions of executive branch agencies of the state and county governments. Our office has the power to obtain necessary information for an investigation and to recommend corrective action if a complaint is found to be substantiated. The Ombudsman serves as a neutral, independent…