Mountain Views News          Saturday, September 15, 2012

13

THE GOOD LIFE

 Mountain Views News Saturday, September 15, 2012

SENIOR HAPPENINGS

HOW TO SAVE ON PRESCRIPTION EYEGLASSES

Dear Savvy Senior;

What tips or resources can you recommend to help 
seniors with the high cost of prescription eyeglasses? 
I used to have vision insurance through my work, 
but lost it when I retired. 

Need New Specs

Dear Specs;

There’s no doubt that new eyeglasses can be expensive. 
You can easily spend $200 for a basic pair, and 
if you spring for add-ons like anti-glare lenses or 
designer frames the price can double. If you’re like most retirees, and are paying full out-of-pocket 
prices every time you get a new pair of glasses, here are a few strategies that can help you save. 

Consider Insurance

Depending on the amount of vision care you use in a year, one way to cut your overall costs could be 
to buy a standalone vision insurance policy, or a discount plan which could save you 20 to 60 percent 
at participating retailers. Most insurance policies run around $120 to $190 a year for individuals, 
while discount plans cost between $95 and $155 per year and usually provide discounts on both vision 
and dental, and sometimes prescription drugs. You can find both plan types at ehealthinsurance.
com. 

Or, if you’re a current or soon-to-be Medicare beneficiary, you may want to consider a Medicare Advantage 
plan. These are government approved, private health plans (usually HMOs and PPOs) sold 
by insurance companies that you can choose in place of original Medicare – which does not cover 
eyeglasses (unless you’ve just had cataract surgery) or routine eye exams. Many Advantage plans offer 
vision care, in addition to their health care coverage. See www.medicare.gov/find-a-plan to research 
this option. 

Shop and Compare

Shopping and comparing prices from discount retailers and eye doctors’ offices in your area that sell 
prescription glasses is another key way to save. 

Costco is considered by Consumer Reports as the best discount store for good eyewear and low 
prices, and you don’t have to be a member to use them. Walmart and America’s Best Contacts & Eyeglasses 
offer bargain prices too. 

Also ask about discounts. Many retailers provide discounts to membership groups like AARP and 
AAA. AARP members, for example, can get 30 percent off a pair of prescription eyeglasses as well as 
discounts on eye exams at any LensCrafters, most participating Pearle Vision, Sears Optical, Target 
Optical, JCPenney Optical and thousands of private optometrist offices.

Buy Online 

Buying glasses online is another way to save big over traditional retail stores. Some online stores like 
zennioptical.com, goggles4u.com and eyebuydirect.com sell prescription eyeglasses for as little as 
$7. Other good sites that offer huge savings and selections include 39dollarglasses.com, coastal.com, 
framesdirect.com, justeyewear.com and warbyparker.com.

Most of these sites will also let you do virtual try-ons. This lets you upload a picture of yourself, and 
the site simulates what you’d look like in different frames. 

To purchase glasses online you’ll need your prescription and pupillary distance from an exam, and 
your frame size (check the inside of an old pair). 

Look for Assistance

If your income is low, depending on where you live, there may also be some local clinics or charitable 
organizations that provide free or discounted eye exams and eyeglasses. Put in a call to your local 
Lions Club to see what’s available in your area. To reach your local club, visit directory.lionsclubs.org 
or call your local chamber of commerce.

You may also be able to get free eyeglasses through New Eyes for the Needy or the OneSight program. 

New Eyes for the Needy (neweyesfortheneedy.org, 973-376-4903) is a nonprofit volunteer organization 
that provides free eyeglasses through a voucher program to people in financial need. 

And OneSight (888-935-4589, onesight.org), a creation of the Luxottica Foundation, provides free 
glasses at LensCrafters, Pearle Vision, Sears and Target to people who have a letter of sponsorship 
from a local nonprofit or charitable organization stating your need.

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.

September Birthdays

Judie Cimino, Donna Anderson, Linda Knowles, 
Gwen Robertson, Nancy Shollenberger, Meegan 
Tosh, Geri Wright, Theresa Chaure, Esther Macias, 
Sheila Pierce, Denise Reistetter, Edwina Garcia, 
Yvonne Osti


SEPTEMBER 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!!

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.

Tuesdays: 

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

1:30 pm to 3:30 pm 

BINGO; NEW TIME 1-3PM 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.

Thursdays:

1:00 to 3:30 pm: Game Day. Join us for 
Poker and more. Wii - 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. Please call for more 
information.

Fridays: Intervale Lunch Café; daily reservations 
needed 355-0256

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

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

Meals-On-Wheels


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

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


YWCA SAN GABRIEL VALLEY 
EXPANDED MEALS!

INTERVALE SENIOR CAFE 

All seniors 60 years of age and up can take part in the 
YWCA Intervale daily lunch program held

at the Hart Park House Senior Center. Meals are 
served Monday through Friday at 12:00pm

(participants are encouraged to arrive no later than 
11:45am). Meals are a suggested donation of

$2.00 for seniors 60 and over or $3.75 for non-senior 
guests. Daily reservations are necessary, as

space is limited. Please reserve your lunch by calling 
626-355-0256 at least 24 hours in advance.

MUSEUM DAY 

Free Tickets for Two!

On Saturday, September 29,2012 you and a 
friend can visit participating museums for free! 

To register for your free ticket for two go to

www.smithsonianmag.org/museumday. 

Participating L.A. area museums include: Autry

National Center, California Science Center, 
Skirball Cultural Center, L.A. Museum of the 
Holocaust and more! 

You can stop by the Hart Park House for assistance 
signing up for free tickets. 

Call 626-355-7394 for more info.

2012 EXCURSIONS

RILEY’S FARM AND HAWKS HEAD 
PUBLIC HOUSE COLONIAL LUNCH 
(OAK GLEN, CA)

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Departure: Charter bus leaves at 
9:30am from the Hart Park House

Lunch & Activities: 11:00am-2:00pm

Return: Bus will arrive back in Sierra 
Madre at approximately 3:30pm

Cost: $34 includes transportation, 
lunch and tip

For more information on Riley’s Farm 
please visit their website at http://
www.rileysfarm.com/. The deadline

for registration is Wednesday, 

September 5, 2012.

GRABER OLIVE HOUSE TOUR 

(ONTARIO, CA)

Friday, October 26, 2012

Departure: 9:30am from the Hart Park 
House

Lunch& Activities: 10:30am-2:00pm

Return: Sierra Madre approximately 
3:30pm

Cost: $10 (does not include lunch)

More Info: Call the Hart Park House at 
626-355-7394

Graber Olive House tour highlights

the tradition of grading, curing and

canning of Graber Olives! For more

information on the Graber Olive 
House please visit www.graberolives.
com. After the tour lunch will be 
eaten as a group at Molly’s Souper, a

fantastic brunch restaurant in Upland. 
All participants are required to eat at 
the same restaurant. 

The registration deadline is Monday, 
October 22, 2012.


TRADER JOE’S --AMBASSADOR OF FOOD

 You’ve gotta love Trader Joe’s! I go there at least once a week. Our relationship 
has had its bumpy moments (like when they discontinued bagged grapefruit). But 
for the most part, I usually leave the store satisfied. Besides reasonable prices and 
convenience, Trader Joe’s bridges the gap between unadventurous shoppers and 
“ethnic” food.

 Case in point: my family has Trader Joe’s to thank for my dad’s new love of dim 
sum, wasabi, and roasted 
seaweed. This is a big deal because my dad 
and I both love, LOVE, routines. We can eat 
the same four or five meals for years on end 
without complaining. So, you can imagine 
my dad’s resistance when I recommended 
“exotic” dishes such as sushi, hummus, and 
Japanese snacks.

 My dad claims he first came to appreciate 
hummus when one of his coworkers 
suggested they grab a meal at Zankou’s. Had 
it been my mom or I choosing our lunch 
destination, my dad would’ve undoubtedly 
refused. But he’s ever-accommodating to 
non-family members. Though he may have 
first tried hummus at Zankou’s, I believe it 
was my aunt’s regular inclusion of Trader Joe’s hummus at holiday gatherings that won my dad over.

 Trader Joe’s offers a safe haven for people to try suspicious, unknown non-American food. Some 
folks are intimidated by the thought of going to Super King to pick up pita bread and humus, or to 
go out for dim sum on Valley blvd. But if these foods are available at Trader Joe’s, in a nice, friendly 
container with English writing, it’s okay. Similarly, when I was dating a Japanese guy, my dad declined 
all the classic Japanese snacks like roasted seaweed. Now that Trader Joe’s carries it, my dad’s hooked! 
He even says the original flavor’s too bland, and prefers the wasabi. Recently, he also bought wasabi 
peas from Trader Joe’s, all on his own, without any prompting. I reminded him that, years ago, I 
offered him the same product (in Japanese packaging), which he strongly declined.

 I’m convinced that if Trader Joe’s came out with chicken feet, such as is served for dim sum, there 
would be a great demand for it from people who would’ve never before considered eating the stuff. 
At the end of the day, the majority of us like things that are fatty, salty, sweet, or all of the above. If 
something seems too weird to try now, don’t worry. Trader Joe’s will come out with a friendlier 
version of it for you to try soon. Until then, enjoy the humus, seaweed, and wasabi peas!

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 noon the day before. 

Fall Prevention Seminar • Sept. 5 @ 12:30pm 

September is Fall Prevention Month, and we are 
helping seniors “watch their steps” with a great fall 
prevention seminar by ComForcare Senior 

Services. We will look at personal risk factors for

falling and home safety issues that cause falls.

We will also discuss easy ways to correct these

problems so that our seniors can continue to live

actively and independently. This seminar will be

fun and interactive!

Kensington Q&A Session • Sept. 19 @ 12:15pm

Developer Billy Shields, a representative of the

Kensington Assisted Living Project, will be at the

Hart Park House to host a Q&A session. This is the

perfect opportunity to find out more about the

Kensington project that will be on the November

ballot which may impact Measure V. Kensington

proposes an assisted living facility at 33 N.

Hermosa Ave. and 245 W. Sierra Madre Blvd. in

Sierra Madre.


SENIOR MOVIE PROGRAM - SEPTEMBER

The Hart Park House Senior Center is 
expanding the monthly movie program 
to two movies in September. 

One classic and one contemporary

movie will be shown on the 2nd and 4th

Wednesdays of the month. As an added 
bonus, at the end of the movie the audience 
will get to choose the movies for the 
following month! All movies begin at 
1:00pm in the Council Chambers

and are absolutely free.


CHICAGO • Sept. 12

AFRICAN QUEEN • 
Sept. 26