Fifty Plus Advocate

By Bonnie Adams, Managing Editor When nearly a half a million people gather in Boston for the July 4 festivities each year, they know that they will be treated to a fabulous concert at the Hatch Shell, thanks to the Boston Pops, led by conductor Keith Lockhart. They also know they will see a thrilling display of fireworks, approximately 22...

By Jane Keller Gordon, Assistant Editor Worcester - There’s nothing retiring about Rosalie Olds. At age 90, she’s an active ceramic sculptor and art teacher, and two years ago, she became a published author. Love and admiration filled the Great Room at The Willows at Worcester this past April 1, when about 200 people, including her three children and three of four...

By Janice Lindsay Cranky Consumer Lady buys two nifty stainless steel water bottles with plastic sports caps from a popular outdoors-oriented catalogue company. She keeps one bottle by her bed for night-time thirst. Cranky Consumer Lady hates getting out of her bed once she is in it. She takes the other in her car, because people get thirsty during the day,...

By Mike Festa, State Director, AARP Massachusetts S.B. 2455: An Act Removing Fees for Security Freezes and Disclosures of Consumer Credit Reports Consumers are now one step closer to having meaningful protections from identity theft. On behalf of 800,000 AARP members in Massachusetts and as the largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization representing the interests of Americans age 50 and older and their families,...

By Alice Bonner, Ph.D, RN, FAAN Secretary, Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs Boston – One of the top questions I get in my travels around the commonwealth is this: How can I, or the person I care for, stay as independent as possible as we age? Providing answers to that question occupies the work we do every day at the Executive...

Region - Avidia Bank has announced that it has launched a partnership with Baypath Elder Services, a nonprofit organization that offers home care and related services enabling people to live independently and comfortably in their homes while promoting their well-being and dignity. As such, Avidia will be donating $105,000 over the next three years to support BayPath’s Family Caregiver...

By Ed Karvoski Jr., Culture Editor Hudson/Stow – Singer-guitarist Tom Yates of Stow has been performing professionally since attending Hudson High School, where he graduated in 1970. A then-teenage Yates debuted with his Sunny Down Snuff bandmates: drummer Glenn Evans, bass guitarist Ralph Lanigan and guitarist Dave Pontbriand. Gigs included a weekly booking at The Wreck Lounge in Marlborough (now Bolton...

By Ed Karvoski Jr., Culture Editor Arlington – New England Entertainment Digest praised Carol O’Shaughnessy as a “powerful singer, brilliant actress and zany comedienne.” A prolific career spanning over four decades earned her the Lifetime Achievement Award presented at Provincetown’s CabaretFest 2018. Growing up in Arlington, a 9-year-old O’Shaughnessy previewed her showbiz destiny via a recital song-and-dance number. “I fell in love...

By Ed Karvoski Jr., Culture Editor Waltham – The 50th summer season of Reagle Music Theatre of Greater Boston in Waltham is once again led by its founder and executive producer Robert J. Eagle. Having evolved from a community theater group to a nonprofit regional company, Reagle produces three summer musicals with casts consisting of local performers alongside about 10...

By Micha Shalev, MHA CDP CDCM Alzheimer's is a terminal disease. This means it has no cure and will end in death. However, there are various medications which can help slow down the progression of the disease, and others that can improve the signs and symptoms, such as sleeplessness, wandering, depression, anxiety and agitation. The doctor may prescribe cholinesterase inhibitors to...