Newsletter – Senior

As events may be canceled or rescheduled at the last moment, please first check with the host or venue when making plans to attend an event. Ongoing Jacksonville Festival of Lights Through-Dec. 31, 5-9pm. This magnificent drive-thru experience will be the festive highlight of the holiday season. Food pantry donations accepted. $10 per car. Morgan […]

Ross and Sheila Hodel started with water parks, graduated to ski trips and national parks and this summer upped their muti-generational family trip game with hiking in Switzerland. They say such trips give them quality time with their children and grandchildren. They are not alone. According to several travel magazines and travel agents, family vacations […]

If it’s too cold to leave your house or your pajamas are glued on, you can still enjoy the season. Exercise, take a class, learn a craft, visit other locales and find new friends through your laptop or cellphone. While these activities are often better in person, the weather, illness and other conditions can make […]

Ron Michaelson had a long and distinguished career in Illinois state government, first moving to Springfield to work for Gov. Richard Ogilvie. He still resides in Springfield and has always been physically active. Michaelson loves baseball. He started in Little League when he was eight and is still playing at 81. He competes in the […]

A recent scientific study published in Preventive Medicine showed a link between individuals who felt a greater sense of purpose in their lives with a decreased mortality rate, by about 20% in some cases. The study used around 13,000 Americans who were 50 years and older who were studied for two years with an eight-year […]

Above are the words pottery artist Simon Levin uses to describe himself professionally on his Instagram account. He could easily add Innovator, Clay Lover, Mentor, Teacher, Award Winner and Wood-Firing Kiln Builder.  Levin, 55, is a highly skilled and gifted creator of one-of-a-kind utilitarian pottery, including plates, cups, bowls, vases and jars. He explains that […]

Many of us choose to live the rest of our lives alongside another. Two lives intricately and intimately woven together into a fabric of family, hopes and dreams. But what happens when one dies before the other? What happens to the one left behind to grieve not only the loss of their love, but also […]

When you travel to Lebanon to experience its history and culture, you don’t need a passport or plane reservations – that is if you head to the town 86 miles south of Springfield, not the Middle East. Like its namesake, Lebanon, Illinois, long has drawn travelers. Since its founding in 1814, the town of 4,250 […]

The explosion of interest in pickleball in Springfield could see the number of available courts nearly double in the foreseeable future, with the opening of the Premier Pickleball Center late this fall and the possibility of adding a dozen or more outdoor courts at Centennial Park next year. “Springfield’s biggest need has been indoor play […]

Landscape architect Greg Pierceall started designing his “paradise garden” at his home in Springfield after he retired about 10 years ago. A decade later, it is a sight, and a site, to behold. “A stretch of land that goes back 300 feet from my house and was formerly vacant is now filled with hundreds of […]

If you’re in your 50s and 60s with no retirement savings in sight, you’re far from alone. According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Income and Program Participation, 49% of adults 55-66 in 2017 had zero personal retirement savings. But just because it’s common doesn’t make it OK – nor is it […]

The Half Century of Progress, which bills itself as the “premier vintage farm show in the U.S.,” celebrated its 10th anniversary Aug. 24-27 in Rantoul, at the former Chanute Air Force Base, now the Rantoul Municipal Airport. The event shows visitors “what farming was like 50 years ago.” The theme this year was “Heritage Tractors,” […]