Mountain Views News          Saturday, April 14, 2012

10

THE GOOD LIFE

 Mountain Views News Saturday, April 14, 2012 

SENIOR HAPPENINGS

THE JOY OF YOGA

Pranayama: just breathe.

April Birthdays

Blanca Martinez, Lillian Snyder, Dorothy 
White, Freda Bernard, Beth Copti, Terri 
Cummings, Marilyn Diaz, Virginia Elliott, Elma 
Flores, Barbara Lampman, Betty Mackie, Elizabeth 
Rasmussen, Maria Reyes, Ann Schryver, 


APRIL ACTIVITIES

Senior Programs have returned to the Hart 
Park House enior Center, 222 W. Sierra 
Madre Blvd. in Memorial Park - Come by and 
see the changes!!

ene
By Rene Quenell, Founder/Owner

Yoga Madre - Sierra Madre 

Meals-On-Wheels


MondayS: City Hall & Lunch Café 

12 noon: Intervale Lunch Café: Come enjoy 
a hot meal with others. Donation for seniors 
(60+) of $2.00; visitors $3.75. Call 355-0256 
to make your daily reservation.

1:00 pm to 1:45 pm: Strength Training with 
Lisa Brandley. FREE class of stretching with 
light hand weights while you sit.

Tuesdays: 

 FREE blood pressure checks by Methodist 
Hospital Nurse; 11 am to 12 noon.

1:30 pm to 3:30 pm: BINGO; cards are only 25 
cents each so stop by & play

5:15 pm to 6:45 pm: Yoga; $6.00 - 50 & over. 
Please call 355-5278 for more information

WednesdayS:

11 –11:45 am: Balance Class with Teryl. FREE 
class designed to improve balance & refresh 
the joints

12 noon: Intervale Lunch Café; daily reservations 
needed 355-0256

2nd Wednesday of the month: FREE Legal 
Consultations: 10-11:30 am. Appointments 
call 355-7394

Wii Wednesday - 1:00 pm or call the senior 
desk at 355-7394 to arrange another time & 
day to learn how to play. No previous experience 
or skills required and it is great exercise.

Thursday:

1:00 to 3:30 pm: Game Day. Join us for Poker 
with Bridge on the 2nd & 4th Thursdays; so 
please call for more information.

Friday: City Hall closed on Dec. 16, 23 & 30 
and Lunch Café closed on Dec. 23

 12 noon: Intervale Lunch Café; daily reservations 
needed 355-0256

Saturday: 11:30 am: Senior Club brown bag 
lunch and BINGO at 12:30 pm. 

Meals are delivered to home-
bound seniors by volunteer drivers 
through the YWCA Intervale 
Lunch Program M-F (with frozen meals for the 
weekend.) 

Meals are delivered to the home-bound seniors 
by drivers through the YWCA Interval Lunch 
Program M-F (with frozen meals for the 
weekend.) 

 Call the YWCA at (626) 214-9460 for more 
information. 

Take a breath. Fill your lungs with a deep inhale, hold your breath 
for a few seconds. Then, slowly, mindfully, exhale. There you have it: 
Pranayama, literally, breath control. Prana means life force energy 
and ayama means to extend or draw out.

Breathing is a simple act that we do without thinking about it. We 
breathe because we are alive, and we’re alive because we breathe. 
Therefore, pranayama is life. 

In your yoga class, your teacher will explain for you the various breathing exercises that are 
an integral part of your yoga practice. There’s Ujjayi, the ocean breath, and that one will see 
you through a lot of poses. There’s Kapalabhati, the fire breath and you’ll love it. There’s 
Dirga, the three-part breath, soothing and relaxing. And still more...

Why do we need breathing exercises with fancy, exotic names? Because we don’t pay enough 
attention to our breath. We hold it, we shorten it, we run out of it, caught up as we are in our 
ever-increasing pace of life. So, come to a yoga class. Sit down on your mat, close your eyes 
for a moment, and take a deep breath in. Do you feel it? Your life. Your breath. Pranayama.

Namasté, René


LUNCH & LEARN 

Join the Senior

Community Commission

at the 

HART PARK HOUSE

 for a FREE presentation. Lunch is 
available for a 

$2 donation 

Call (626) 355-0256 by 

12 noon the day before. 

2012 EXCURSIONS

SAVE THE DATES

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN 

Thursday, April 26TH - Palm Springs Follies. 
Spend the day in sunny PS and see the 
new show Hot! Hot! Hot! celebrating those 
memories of endless summers with music 
and dance. COST per person is $58 (includes 
transportation, tip & show). Lunch will be 
on your own at one of the many restaurants 
next to the theatre. The bus will leave the Senior 
Center at 8:30 am and return at 6 pm. 
The featured guest stars are The Diamonds 
(“Little Darlin’ and Why Do Fools Fall in 
Love”). Space is limited to the first 30 persons 
to register.

Thursday, May 17th - Adamson House in 
Malibu. Join us as we visit this historic 1930s 
home, view the largest display of Malibu titles, 
tour (walking) the Malibu Lagoon Museum 
and end your visit at a local restaurant 
for lunch. The bus will leave the senior center 
at 8 am (L.A .traffic) and return around 3:30 
pm (depending on traffic). COST is $20 per 
person (you will need additional money to 
pay for your own lunch) and the tour is limited 
to the first 20 paid registrations. Please 
note, if it rains the excursion will be canceled 
per the museum staff. City staff will know by 
7 am the morning of May 17th if it is canceled 
& will call all participants at that time.

SAVE THE DATE: Friday, June 8th - 
Nerthercutt Collection & lunch in Sylmar 
area

Registration can be done either in person or online at 
www.cityofsierramadre.com/onlineregistration

Registration can be done either in person or online at:

www.cityofsierramadre.com/onlineregistration

DIAL - A - RIDE TICKETS

Tickets can now be purchased at:

Sierra Madre City Hall

Sierra Madre Recreation Center

Sierra Madre Library


BINGO Tuesday - join us every Tuesday at 
the Hart Park House Senior Center at 1:30 pm 
for this traditional social activity. Bingo cards 
are only 25 cents each.

There will be a special intermission dessert 
& prize at the April 24th game provided by 
Angie Chen of Seniors Helping Seniors - In 
home services for seniors by seniors.

MEDICAL ALERT DEVICES THAT CAN HELP KEEP 
SENIORS SAFE

Dear Savvy Senior:

I’m interested in getting my mother, who lives alone, a medical alert device with a wearable SOS 
button that she can push in case she falls or needs help. What kinds of devices can you recommend 
and how much do they cost? Searching 
Daughter

Dear Searching:

 There’s a wide variety of medical alert systems 
on the market today that can help keep elderly 
seniors safe, while living in their own home. 
Here’s a breakdown of some different styles and 
prices to help you choose. 

Monitored Alerts

 The most popular medical alert systems available today are the ones that will connect your 
mom to a 24-hour emergency monitoring service when she needs help. These units come with 
waterproof “SOS” buttons – typically in the form of a necklace pendent or bracelet – and a base 
station that connects to her home phone line. 

 At the press of a button, your mom could call and talk to a trained operator through the system’s 
base station receiver which works like a powerful speaker phone. The operator will find 
out what’s wrong, and will notify family members, a neighbor, friend or emergency services as 
needed. 

 If you’re interested in this type of alert, there are literally dozens of services to choose from. 
One of the most widely used is the Philips Lifeline Medical Alert Service (lifelinesys.com, 800-
380-3111) which costs $35 per month, plus an $82 start-up fee. Phillips also offers a new Auto 
Alert option (for $48 per month) that has fall detection sensors in the SOS button that can 
automatically summon help without your mom ever having to press a button. 

 Some other major players in the industry that are a little less expensive (under $30 per month) 
include: LifeFone (lifefone.com, 877-849-8942), LifeStation (lifestation.com, 877-478-3390), 
Bay Alarm Medical (bayalarmmedical.com, 877-722-9633), Alert1 (alert-1.com, 888-919-
3692), LifeGuardian (lifeguardianmedicalalarms.com, 800-378-2957) and MedicalAlert (medicalalert.
com, 800-800-2537).

 One other unique product worth consideration is the MediPendant (getmedipendant.com, 
888-216-0039) which runs under $35 a month. This system allows your mom to speak and 
listen to the operator directly through the SOS pendant, versus the base station speaker phone, 
which often makes for easier communication.

No-Fee Alerts

 If you’re looking for a cheaper option, consider a no-fee medical alert device that doesn’t have 
professional monitoring services. These products, which also come with an “SOS” button and 
a home base station, are pre-programmed to dial personal contacts (relatives, friends, caregivers 
or 911) if the SOS button is pushed. Most devices store about four phone numbers, and the 
system dials each number, one-by-one until a connection is made. 

 If you like this style, the Freedom Alert made by LogicMark (logicmark.com, 800-519-2419) 
is a good product that allows you to speak through the pendent. The purchase price: $300, with 
no ongoing monthly fees. Also check out Telemergency (telemergencysystems.com, 888-558-
7420), which offers a variety on no-fee medical alert devices that cost under $190. 

Mobile Alerts

 If your mom is interested in a device that works outside the home too, there are several mobile 
products that will let her call for help anywhere. These pendent-style devices, which fit in the 
palm of your hand, work like little cell phones with GPS tracking capabilities. 

 To call for help, your mom would simply push one button, and an operator from the device’s 
emergency monitoring service would be on the line to assist her. And because of the GPS technology 
they would know her exact location, which is critical in emergency situations. 

 Top products to check out in this category include the new 5Star Urgent Response sold by 
GreatCall (greatcall.com, 800-733-6632) for $50 plus a $35 activation fee and $15 monthly 
service fees, and MobileHelp (mobilehelpnow.com, 800-800-1710) which runs between $37 
and $42 per month.

 You also need to know that Medicare and most other insurance plans don’t cover medical 
alert systems, although in some states Medicaid will if your mom receives Medicaid-funded 
homecare services. 

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.


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