Newsletter November/December 2019
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Dear Skyliners,
Skyline President Phyllis Mitzen’s lifelong work in advocating for older adults has earned her an appointment by Governor J.B. Pritzker to chair the Illinois Council on Aging. This 31-member Council makes recommendations to the Illinois Department of Aging, the General Assembly, and the Governor.
Under the leadership of Director Paula Basta, the Department’s focus is on 1) isolation and loneliness, and 2) dementia. The Department will also work toward maximizing participation in the upcoming 2020 Census. Under Phyllis' leadership, the Council will also focus on her primary long-range goal for Illinois: To adopt a Master Plan on Aging.
Currently, only five states have such plans.
Skyline Village board members attended the annual Village to Village National Network convention Sept.18-20. After the three-day conference, Skyline hosted a Chicago Area Villages gathering on the Riverwalk for attendees to share what they learned in the areas of Enhancing Member Services, Grassroots Fundraising for Sustainability, and Collaboration to Promote Wellness.
In his popular keynote address, “How to Live Forever,” Marc Freedman said that living forever means focusing on one’s legacy: our generation making a difference in the lives of younger people. “Rather than connecting generations, our society separates them with age-centered housing and programs,” he explained. “The
real
fountain of youth is the fountain
with
youth; the only way to live forever is to live together,” he said, which resonated with Chicago Area Villagers who’ve created intergenerational programming.
Read further in this newsletter for information on Medicare Part D, Pedestrian Safety and Livable Communities.
Cheers,
Skyline Village Chicago Board
PS. Phyllis' rehabilitation is progressing after a truck ran over her foot on Michigan Avenue in June. She posts updates on
CaringBridge.com
. Sign in, read her blog, and leave her a message. She’d love to hear from you.
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Join Skyline Village Chicago
Annual Dues $75 per individual, $100 per couple
Mail check: Skyline Village Chicago, PO Box 81334, Chicago, IL 60681
Our 501C3 status affords members tax deductions to the extent allowed by law.
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SVC's Friday Forum
(Last Friday of the month)
1:00pm - 3:00pm
Mity Nice Grill
835 N. Michigan Avenue, Mezzanine
Dutch Treat Lunch
$5 room fee payable at event.
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Friday, November 22 1:00-3:00 pm
What's the Illinois Legislature Up To?
Two Skyline-land Illinois Representatives Lamont Robinson (left) and Kam Buckner (right) will talk about a Trial Plan of Low-Cost Loans for Deferred Maintenance Projects on Older Buildings, Chicago Casino, Money for Chicago Public Schools, Implementation of Recreational Cannabis, Street Crime, Pension Reform and the Fair Tax.
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Friday, December 27 1:00-3:00
Friday Forum Brainstorming Roundtable
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Grab your lunch at Food Ease or Food Life on the Mezzanine level of the Water Tower and join us in the party room at Mity Nice Grill. SVC’s Friday Forums are programmed with your suggestions. Join our informal advisory committee to brainstorm our 2020 luncheon events. Bring your ideas and suggestions. All are welcome
or
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November Salon
November 12
3:30pm - 5:00pm
Address:
900 N. Lake Shore Drive, Apt. 1605
Discounted parking available upon request.
Host: Jana Vander Lee
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December Salon
December 10
3:30pm - 5:00pm
Address TBD
Host: TBD
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SVC Memoir Writing Class - Winter Session
Thursdays, Jan. 16 – Thursday, Feb. 20,
10:00 - 11:30am
Wintrust Bank, 100 W. North Ave.
We're proud to announce the upcoming Memoir Writing Class Winter session. The class, led by Sharon Kramer, a Beth Finke Master Teacher ™, will be held from 10:00am - 11:30am :Thursdays for six weeks January 16 - February 20.
For a $75 per year Skyline membership, you can finally start to write those stories down. Spaces are limited so sign up soon!
If you are already a member, click on the link below.
If you are not yet a member of Skyline Village Chicago, go to the home page at
www.skylinevillagechicago.org
and click Join to sign up. Then you can register for the workshop.
or
Write MEMOIR on the Subject Line
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MOSTRA Brazilian Film Festival
November 1-17
Free Films
MOSTRA screens films that develop a greater understanding of Brazilian Arts & Culture, Environment, Social Issues and History through themes with social conscience. Check out the
Brochure
for dates, times and list of films.
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CLL and SVC
Medicare Part D
Tuesday, November 5
2:30pm - 3:30pm
Center for Life & Learning
126 E. Chestnut
What’s new with Medicare? Should you change your Medicare Part D during Open Enrollment? Answer: Probably. CJE Senior Life experts Esther Craven and Kate Paz bring us answers every year. Following the presentation, they will help you sign up for your personalized plan. Esther and Kate have saved SVC members thousands of dollars on their prescription drug plans.
Following the talk registrants will have the opportunity to sign up for a free one-on-one consultation with Esther or Kate, who are SHIP trained volunteers and can assist you in selecting the prescription plan that best meets your needs.
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The Fall of the American Condominium
Tuesday December 3, 1:30-3:00 P.M.
Center for Life and Learning, 126 East Chestnut
High maintenance costs. Condo Board fights. Threats of De-conversion.
Has the 40 year-old Chicago condominium experiment failed?
Real Estate lawyers Ellen Beth Gill & Lisa Rogers tackle these and related issues in a roundtable discussion.
No registration necessary
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Sounds Good! and Good Memories Choirs
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Sounds Good! Choir
December 5 Combined Chorale Concert
2:00pm
Fourth Presbyterian Church
The Sounds Good! Fall season culminates in a combined chorale concert of 200 singers. Please join us at Fourth Presbyterian Church to kick off the holiday season with joyous music.
Sounds Good provides an excellent accessible artistic environment for older adults who seek arts education and performance opportunities under a professional artist. All are welcome, regardless of experience or ability. No audition. Join the Choir!
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Tuesday, December 10
12:00 Noon
Fourth Presbyterian Church
The Good Memories Choir members include people with memory loss, their care partners, and volunteers. No musical experience or training is needed.
Please join us for our Holiday concert.
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Holiday Sing Along
Saturday, December 14
4:00PM - 5:00PM
900 North Michigan Ave., Mezzanine
Free and open to the public
Songbooks provided
Choirmasters: Curt and Chris Powell
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Our Community Partners
The Adlai Stevenson Center on Democracy
Website
Beth Finke MasterTeachers™:
Website
Center for Life and Learning 4th Presbyterian Church:
Brochure
Rush Generations Center for Excellence in Aging:
Website
Sounds Good/Good Memories Choirs:
Website
Streeterville Organization for Active Residents:
SOAR
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Volunteer
Are you able to help an SVC member home from the doctor, dentist or hospital? Do you need
an SVC member to help you home from the doctor, dentist or hospital?
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SVC's Friday Forum
Follow-ups
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David Greising, President of the Better Government Association (BGA), spoke to Skyline Friday Forum on October 25, three days after Mayor Lori Lightfoot revealed her first budget. Lightfoot announced plans to refinance $1.3 billion in city debt, saving $200 million in interest next year. Unlike the previous two mayors, David explained, Ms. Lighfoot admirably will not include selling risky pension obligation bonds or scoop-and-toss borrowing, which lowers payments now while pushing higher costs off into the future. For more of David's analysis of the 2020 city budget, go to the BGA website.
The Better Government Association is Illinois’ only non-partisan, full-service watchdog organization. They shine a light on Chicago and Illinois government and hold public officials accountable. Read up-to-date information on ethics reform, property tax policy, City Council corruption, Casino gambling and keeping track of Mayor Lightfoot:
https://www.bettergov.org/about-us/
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September 27, 2019
Geriatric Emergency Department Initiative - Geriatric Nurse Practitioners Dwayne C. Dobschuetz and Nikki Petersen described to us an emergency department program focused on geriatric transitional care, which has reduced the risk of unnecessary admission of older patients at Northwestern Hospital by 33 percent. Ask for a geriatric nurse if you find yourself in the ER for either yourself, a spouse or a friend. Do not go to the ER alone. Contact Nikki at
nicole.Petersen@nm.org
to find out more about this program. Watch this
video
for more details.
August 23, 2019
Gavin Van Horn, Director of Cultures of Conservation at the Center for Nature and Humans (CHN) spoke to SVC on his new book,
The Way of Coyote
. The CHN website has information on expanding our natural and civic imagination in our current climate crisis. Here is the
latest issue
of Minding Nature.
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SVC Advocacy
Making Our City More Livable
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All-Ages/All-Abilities Park Equipment.
Skyline has long advocated for adult playground equipment in East Lake Shore Park to provide intergenerational interaction at play. On Wednesday, November 13, 2019, Phyllis Mitzen will represent us at the Chicago Park District Board meeting for a two-minute presentation on adult playground equipment. Join us on the 8th Floor of 541 North Fairbanks at 11:00 A.M. Let’s show our support for making our city more livable and fun.
Pedestrian Safety Project
. A Chicago research study indicates that older and slower pedestrians have a higher likelihood of being injured on Michigan Avenue from Chicago Avenue to Oak Street.
“Vision Zero Chicago”
is a 2018 city traffic plan with a guiding principle to put pedestrians first. Skyline Village is planning a community forum for early 2020 to find out what pedestrian safety plans the city has for North Michigan Avenue. We all have the right to walk safely on city streets. We are committed to advocating for lengthening the east-west traffic lights as a first step in making pedestrians the top priority in our neighborhood.
Master Plan on Aging
California’s Governor Newson announced in his State of the State address in February their Master Plan on Aging. The plan will encompass every sector of state government. In her role as Chair of the Illinois Council on Aging Phyllis is advocating for Illinois to embark developing a Master Plan for Illinois which includes promoting Age Friendly and Livable Cities, Towns and Villages throughout Illinois.
CAPS and Beat Meetings
You can take an active role in helping the Chicago Police Department prevent crime in your neighborhood by attending your police district's Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy (CAPS) meetings. If you need assistance from the Police Department, Fire Department, or an ambulance please call 911 immediately.
The 18th District serves residents east of the River and south of Fullerton Lincoln Park, Old Town, River North, Gold Coast and Streeterville.
Beats in our area are 1831, 1832, 1833 and 1834. To confirm/identify your District and Beat,
use this map
.
Beats 1834 and 1833 meetings are held on the first Thursday of every odd-numbered month. Beat 1834, serving Streeterville south of Superior, and Beat 1833, serving Streeterville north of Superior, meet at 6:00 pm on the first Thursday of every odd-numbered month at Access Living, 115 W. Chicago.
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We would love to hear about your recent travels. Fall trip you didn’t get the chance to send for this issue? Visit to family or friends over the holidays? Please send an article along with a few pictures. When you attach the pictures to an email, and your computer asks for small/medium/large, choose large. Send your articles and pictures by the week of December 16th to
judy.karlov@gmail.com
.
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A trip to Alaska had been on my bucket list for a long time – the relatively untamed landscapes, the eerily blue glaciers and the teeming wildlife had been calling. I had heard that the best way to really see Alaska is on a small boat, and a large cruise ship held no attraction in any case, so I pondered … because I get seasick easily and, not being a strong swimmer, am afraid of the water. But then … none of these things were going to change with time, while the glaciers had been melting at an alarming rate and the drilling had been accelerated, so I decided to just do it.
The trip – through a part of the Inside Passage in southeast Alaska - was organized by the Sierra Club, of which I have been a member for over forty years. The boat was called the Snow Goose, and we were twelve brave travelers – one of whom had already done the same cruise thirteen times before ours - and four wonderful crew members. We boarded the boat in Wrangell, a small town of about 3000 residents, and twelve days later ended our trip in Juneau.
We saw perhaps a hundred humpback whales – and there’s something mesmerizing about them – loads of black bears, sea lions, otters, bald eagles, and of course, beautiful blue glaciers! And I learned sea kayaking and got to see beautiful, colorful sea creatures, in and out of sea caves. And, no sea sickness at all. It was one of my most memorable trips!
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Fall Colors
By Lenore Holt-Darcy
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Most of us think of fall colors and instantly want to drive through the northeastern part of the United States. However, you may be surprised by the beautiful fall colors in Upper Michigan. This year the colors came a little later than usual and were spectacular.
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Join Skyline Village Chicago
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New Members
John Baldwin
Roger & Jeanette Becker
Lyn Borisof
Susheela Dayal
Jill Lowe
Kristina Valaitis
Jana Vander Lee
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Renewing Members
Jack & Sandy Herman
Anna Kucinskis
Anne Rossiter & Jim Ross
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Annual Dues:
$75 Individual, $100 Couple
Send a check to:
Skyline Village Chicago, P.O. Box 81334, Chicago, IL 60681
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What Would an Age-friendly City Look Like?
Phone Scammers And 'Teledoctors' Charged With Preying On Seniors In Fraud Case
Guide to 2020 Medicare Enrollment and Best Insurance Companies
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Fill out your CENSUS Form
You will receive a postcard by April 1, 2020 directing you to fill out the census online.
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Do you have something you'd like to share with your Skyline Village friends in the next newsletter? A news story, a poem, blog, piece of art, photo, a Favorite Thing, a quote? We'd love to include you in upcoming newsletter and the website.
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The Skyline Village Chicago community of older adults engages
in cultural, educational and social programs. We are active, informed
and connected advocates within our unique, vibrant high-rise neighborhoods.
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Copyright © 2019 All Rights Reserved
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