Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, August 27, 2022

13

Mountain Views-News Saturday, August 27, 2022


Specializing in Placing

Seniors in Assisted Living and 
Memory Care Communities

A question came up regarding how 
will a person know if their loved 
one will be getting proper care at a 
facility. 

The Department of Social Services 
will give you information on all California 
licensed communities.

One can go to http://www.cdss.
ca.gov. Then go to “find License care” then go to ”search a facility” and go to ”elderly assisted living”. 
There you can find last visits by the state and possible citations. You can also call Safe Path for 

Seniors for these answers and more.

There are many reasons in working with us. At Safe Path for Seniors, we will assess the senior and 
depending on their care needs and budget, make recommendations. You will work with an experienced 
agent who knowsthe industry well and will give you recommendations. The good news is 
that there is no cost for this service.

If you have any questions about senior living options, visit www.safepathforseniors.com or call 
Steve at 626-999-6913

SENIOR HAPPENINGS


HAPPY BIRTHDAY! …August Birthdays*

Nancy Beckham, Karlene Englert, Juanita Fernandez, Jeanette Francis, 
Joseph Kiss, Jacquie Pergola, Pat Miranda, Jerry Burnett, Margaret Aroyan, 
Phyllis Burg, Beverly Clifton, Rosemary Morabito, Susan Poulsen, Joy Barry, 
Marcia Bent, Joan Spears, Ruth Torres, Jane Zamanzadeh. Helen Stapenhorst, 
Chandy Shair, Heidi Hartman, Erma Gutierrez, Margaret Switzer

 * To add your name to this distinguished list, please call the paper at 626.355.2737. YEAR 
of birth not required

SIERRA MADRE SENIOR CLUB Every Saturday from 11:30am-3:30 pm in the Hart 
Park House Senior Center. Join us as we celebrate birthdays, holidays and pay BINGO. 
Must be 50+ to join. For more information call Mark at 626-355-3951.

DOMINOES TRAIN GAME 1st and 3rd Wednesdays, 11:00 am— 12:30 pm Hart Park 
House The object of the game is for a player to play all the tiles from their hand onto one or 
more trains, emanating from a central hub or “station”. Call Lawren with questions that you 
may have. 

PAINT PALS 

Tuesday, 8/4 10:30 am—Hart Park House If you enjoy painting, sketching, water color, or 
making some other form of artistic creation please join our new program, PAINT PALS!!! 
Bring a project that you are working on to the HPH and enjoy some quality art time with other 
artists looking to paint with a new pal. 

TEA AND TALK SENIOR BOOK CLUB Tuesday Aug. 11 and Aug 24 — 9:00 am 

Staff has launched a new book club series, Tea and Talk, which meets twice a month to discuss 
the fun, suspense, intrigue, love and so much more that each selection will have in store!

FIBER FRIENDS Tuesday, 8/16 —10:00 am If you enjoy knitting, crocheting, embroidery, 
needlepoint, bunka, huck, tatting or cross stitch then we have a group for you! Bring your 
current project, a nonalcoholic beverage, then sit and chat with likeminded fiber friends. We 
meet in the Hart Park House

CHAIR YOGA Every Monday and Wednesday, 10-10:45 am Please join us for some gentle 
stretching, yoga, balance exercise and overall relaxation with Paul. Classes are ongoing and 
held in the Memorial Park Covered Pavilion or the Hart Park House..

HULA AND POLYNESIAN DANCE Every Friday, 10-10:45 am Bring a lei, your flower 
skirt or just your desire to dance! Hula in the Park is back and waiting for you to join in on all 
the fun! Memorial Park Pavilion.

BLOOD PRESSURE CLINIC - Tuesday, Aug 9 11:00 am - 12:00 pm

Methodist Hospital will be holding a free to seniors clinic once a month in the Hart Park 
House. Walk in are welcome - no pre-registration required.

BINGO: Aug 18 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Come down to the HPH (Hart Park House) for a lively round of BINGO. Prizes await!

SENIOR CINEMA Wednesday, 8/17— Beinning at 1:00 pm Blue Hawaii PG 1h 42m

After arriving back in Hawaii from the Army, Chad Gates (Elvis Presley) defies his parents’ 
wishes for himn to work at the family business and instead goes to work as a tour 
guide at his girlfriend’s agency.

DAILY CHECK-IN SERVICES FOR SENIORS LIVING ALONE


Dear Savvy Senior:

Can you recommend any services that check in 
on elderly seniors who live alone? I live about 200 
miles from my 82-year-old mother and worry 
about her falling or getting ill and not being able 
to call for help. Worrywart Daughter

 

Dear Worrywart:

There are actually several different types of check-in services, along with some simple technology 
devices that can help keep your mom safe at home while providing you some peace of mind. 
Here are some top options to look into.

 

Check-in app: If your mom uses a smartphone, a great solution to help ensure her safety is Snug 
(SnugSafe.com), a free app that would check in on her every day to confirm she’s OK. This app 
is used by thousands of elderly seniors who live alone and want to make sure that if something 
happens to them, their loved ones will be notified quickly so they can receive help in minutes, 
rather than days.

 

Here’s how it works. After downloading the app, your mom will choose what time(s) throughout 
the day she’d like for Snug to check in. Snug will send a push notification at those times asking 
your mom to check in by tapping the big green check button on her smartphone screen. If she 
doesn’t check in within 10 minutes or respond after multiple pings, Snug will notify her emergency 
contacts and share her last known location so that she can receive fast help.

 

For extra peace of mind, your mom can purchase Snug’s premium plan ($10/month) where in 
addition to notifying her emergency contacts, Snug will request an in-person wellness check by 
a police officer who will visit her house to confirm she’s OK and provide assistance as needed. 
The app works with iPhone and Android smartphones.

 

Check-in calls: If your mom doesn’t use a smartphone, another option to help ensure her safety 
is a daily check-in call service program. These are telephone reassurance programs usually run 
by police or sheriff’s departments in hundreds of counties across the country and are usually 
provided free of charge.

 

Here’s how they work. A computer automated phone system would call your mom at a designated 
time each day to check in. If she answers, the system will assume everything is OK. But if she 
didn’t pick up or if the call goes to voice mail after repeated tries, you (or whoever her designee 
is) would get a notification call. If you are not reachable, calls are then made to backup people 
who’ve also agreed to check on your mom if necessary.

 

The fallback is if no one can be reached, the police or other emergency services personnel will 
be dispatched to her home.

 

To find out if this service is available in your mom’s community, call her local police department’s 
nonemergency number. You should also check with the Area Agency on Aging in your 
mom’s area – call 800-677-1116 for contact information.

 

If, however, her community doesn’t have a call check-in program, there are businesses like CARE 
(Call-Reassurance.com) and IAmFine (Iamfine.com) that offer similar services for under $15 
per month.

 

Technology devices: You may also want to invest in some simple technology aids to keep your 
mom safe. One of the most commonly used devices for this is a medical alert system that cost 
about $1 per day. These systems come with a wearable “help button” that would allow her to call 
for help 24/7.

 

Another option that’s becoming increasingly popular is smart speakers, like Amazon Alexa or 
Google Home. These devices work with third-party applications – AskMyBuddy.net and MySOSFamily.
com – that would let your mom to call multiple emergency contacts with a simple 
verbal command.

 

And be sure to check out Amazon’s Alexa Together (Amazon.com/AlexaTogether), a new $20 
monthly subscription service that helps families support and keep tabs on their older loved ones 
who live alone through an Alexa-enabled device.

 

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.

OUT TO PASTOR 

A Weekly Religion Column by Rev. James Snyder


THE HARMONIOUS MELODY OF 
HUMMINGBIRDS

A few months ago, The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage bought a 
harp and began teaching herself how to play it. She can play the piano, 
organ, flute, and sometimes me. Now she has graduated to the harp. So 
I guess she’s preparing for heaven, where she’ll play a heavenly harp.

She was quite quick in learning how to play and I could hear her play hymns in the 
afternoon. I knew every hymn she played, or most of them, and quietly sang along 
with her. But not loud enough for her to hear.

I have no idea how to play a harp, and believe me, I will not try. Although I love music, 
music doesn’t seem to love me.

I could sit on the porch, listen to her play and recognize the hymn she was playing. I 
must confess there have been a few times when I got the hymn wrong, but nobody else 
needs to know that.

I’ve always loved hymns because they really encourage my soul to trust the Lord.

The other day something happened as I was sitting out on the porch. When I went 
out The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage wasn’t up yet, so I took a few moments to 
meditate and read my Bible.

Then I heard this strange humming sound. I couldn’t quite identify which hymn she 
was playing. I assumed The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage was at her harp playing 
that morning hymn. I wanted to sing along quietly, but I did not recognize the hymn.

Listening very intently, I still could not make out the melody she was playing on her 
harp. I have heard her play dozens of hymns, but I couldn’t recognize the one she was 
playing now.

Being such a hymn lover as myself, I was getting a little irritated. I have at least a dozen 
hymnals in my library, and have gone through them meticulously over the years. If 
there’s anything I know, I know my hymns.

Searching my mind, I could not come up with the name of any hymn I heard being 
played this morning. It could be that in my old age, I forget things. Am I beginning 
that slippery slope downward with my memory?

Concentrating as best I could, I was trying to understand the music. It seemed to be 
the same note over and over all the way through. Certainly, my wife is not starting to 
play contemporary music, is she?

I couldn’t even understand the note that was being played, and I started feeling a little 
bit sorry for myself.

The thing that troubled me at the time was, how do I deal with this with my wife. How 
do I confess to her that I’m going wacky? Well, wackier than I have been.

I would go over in my mind all the hymns I could think of at the time. Not one of 
them came close to the music I was hearing. Maybe my memory was getting a little 
creaky, or something else was happening.

A thought then danced in my mind at the time. Maybe The Gracious Mistress of the 
Parsonage is doing this to try to play me. Perhaps she knows I listen to her playing the 
harp and was seeing how she could mess with me. I wouldn’t put anything past her 
along that line.

As I contemplated on this, I saw The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage at the glass 
door looking out with a cup of coffee.

I was still hearing the harp being played. What in the world is going on? Have I lost 
my mind? How can I hear the harp being played when she is standing right in front 
of me?

She opened the door and asked me how my morning was going. I looked at her and 
said, “How can you be standing here and playing your harp simultaneously?”

Looking at me quizzically, she said, “What are you talking about?”

For a moment, I thought maybe she had recorded some harp music just to fool me.

“You know exactly what I mean,” I said. “I hear you playing the harp, but you’re standing 
right here in front of me. How do you explain that?”

Staring at me for a moment, she broke out in hysterical laughter. “You silly boy. I’m 
not playing the harp. What you are hearing are the hummingbirds behind you.”

Then she laughed a lot more.

I cautiously looked behind me and there at the hummingbird feeder were three hummingbirds 
doing their humming thing. It sounded like music to me.

It finally came together for me. Being in such a complex situation is most embarrassing, 
and I didn’t quite know how to escape it.

“Maybe,” I said, looking at her, “you could teach these hummingbirds the words of the 
song so they wouldn’t have to hum all the time.”

“Or, maybe,” she countered, “you could learn the difference between a harp and a 
hummingbird.”

I threw a sarcastic smile at her because I had nothing else to say, which was not the 
first time this happened.

Wallowing in my grief, I happen to think of what King Solomon wrote. Proverbs 
20:12, “The hearing ear, and the seeing eye, the Lord hath made even both of them.”

According to God’s word, the ear and the eye work together. If I only rely upon my 
ear, I probably am not hearing the right thing.

Dr. James L. Snyder lives in Ocala, FL with the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage. 
e-mail jamessnyder51@gmail.com, website www.jamessnyderministries.com.

177 East Colorado Boulevard, Suite 550, Pasadena, California 91105 
(626) 792-2228 | cliffordswan.com 
Providing Objective and Experienced 
Investment Counsel to Financially 
Successful Families since 1915 
Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com