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Thursday: Boomers & Beyond

Edna Johnson turns 100

MARQUETTE — Edna Johnson celebrated her 100th birthday on Dec. 16. Johnson was born in Toledo, Ohio, and is the eldest of eight siblings. She loved to bird hunt and met her husband of 50 years, John Johnson, while hunting. They were married in 1949 and had four daughters, who they raised in Temperance, Michigan. She loves children, and worked as a school janitor at Ida Elementary School for many years. She enjoyed gardening, quilting and horseback riding. She was, and still is, very fond of all animals. Particularly Buster, a Jack Russel Terrier, who held a special place in her ...

Angeline Spreitzer to mark 100th birthday in January

MARQUETTE — Angeline Spreitzer will be celebrating her 100th birthday on Jan. 7. Spreitzer was born in Calumet. She met her husband, Fred Phillips, when they sat next to each other in homeroom in school. Phillips was from Mohawk, but at the time Mohawk kids were bussed to go to school in ...

Fusing glass, one shard at a time

MARQUETTE — Shimmering shards of glass were the main attraction at the fused glass class hosted by Hot Plate Dec. 8. The innovative gathering was held for members of the Northern Center for Lifelong Learning from 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Fused glass is pieces of glass that are stacked on top ...

Living alone

MARQUETTE — Living alone is increasingly common throughout Michigan and the rest of the world, a trend worrisome for older folks, particularly during the pandemic. To reduce such concerns, Michigan has bolstered programs to help older people living solo to connect socially. More than 2.4 million of Michigan’s population is 60 and up, and 41% of them live alone, according to a state plan on aging. “Historically, social isolation has been a concern for our older population,” said Scott Wamsley, the deputy director for the Aging and Adult Services Agency of the Department ...

Gone fishin’

MARQUETTE — Superior Outfitters and the Northern Center for Lifelong Learning teamed up on Nov. 30 to present Fishing 101, an informative class all about fishing. Nick Symon, owner of Superior Outfitters, located at 209 S. Front St., put on the presentation to a dozen members of the NCLL. ...

Two projects for LGBTQIA+ elderly will help to combat diseases, isolation

LANSING — Elderly people from the Michigan LGBTQIA+ community who were raised in hostile environments and experienced health care discrimination are gaining health advocacy and community support. Southeast Michigan residents can build community connections through a TimeBank project and gain health advocacy for transgender people and gender-nonconforming older adults. TineBank is a worldwide project where people exchange hours instead of dollars. If you give a ride to somebody that took two hours, then you can use those two hours to learn Irish dance, get help in the kitchen or in ...