Our Care, Our Choice

Before you panic about the new “Hawai‘i Aid in Dying Law,” it’s a great law but not for the reasons you may think. Governor Ige signed the Our Care, Our Choice Act on April 5, 2018 and it will become law on January 1, 2019. The new law’s purpose is to establish a regulated process whereby a mentally competent adult resident of Hawai‘i with a terminal illness and less than six months to live may choose to end life with a prescription.

Mastering Change

Class reunions are poignant reminders of change. With each passing year, our classmates grow a little grayer, perhaps a little balder, and maybe a little more expansive at the midsection. Good thing we are not like our classmates, right? Actually, we are. Father Time is catching up with all of us. That sobering fact should inspire us to reflect each year on our estate plans and whether they still do what we want them to do.

Parting With Treasured Belongings

Have you heard these questions before: “How do I get my Mom to let go of her things?”, “Why does my Dad not want to get rid of his junk?” and “I’m not making much progress with them, what am I doing wrong?” Most times the answer isn’t black and white, as it really depends on the emotional attachment a person has to those items. Every item has a memory or a story that tugs at their heart, and for those reasons, they can’t get rid of them.

Is Assisted Living a Negative?

Despite the great advancements in retirement community resident care in recent years — some through government involvement, but most through business owners seeking to create a better quality of life for seniors — one of the challenges faced when discussing senior living options is the negative stigma that immediately comes to mind about “assisted living.”

Stepping Down Pain Free

Knee pain while descending stairs is often due to the force on your kneecap (patella), which studies show is 3.5 X your body weight. If you weigh 140lbs, the force on your patella can be as much as 490lbs! That is a lot of stress on your knee, and the pain will be magnified if you have weak muscles or degeneration of the cartilage in the joint.

Beware of ‘Spoofing’

Telephone scams have been around for years, even before the birth of the internet, and they are just as dangerous as their online counterparts. Because modern telephone networks use digital technology, it is easy for cybercriminals to manipulate what appears in the Caller ID to trick you into thinking you are receiving a call from a trusted source. This tactic is called “spoofing.”

Singing Seniors — Project Giving Back

Giving back. That’s the theme and the name of a special — and talented — seniors group who entertain other seniors as a way of giving enjoyment back to their community.

Project Giving Back is a group of 36 singers, ranging in age from 60 to 87, who are now in their 8th year of performing. Wayne Uejo is the founder and administrator of the group, overseeing the singers and coordinating the concert schedule at venues across O‘ahu.

Annual Senior Classic Games

The day was a little cloudy, with soft winds — perfect for 87 teams of seniors ranging in age from 55 to 93 years old. After the competition, score cards were tallied and medals were presented to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners in the Senior (55 to 74) and Master (75 and over) divisions. For the past few years, Generations Magazine has paid for all the medals, which are always well received. First-place winners also received a soda-cap ribbon lei made by the founder of the Senior Classic Games, retired Hālawa complex supervisor Herbert Yasuhara.