Life in the Later Lane
As a teacher, playwright & screenwriter, Cary Pepper has lots of inside Hollywood info to share
You probably stream most of your movies. But if you happen to rent a film on old-style...
July 15, 2026
All-women punk band still on stage thanks to leader’s career, which started in a mortuary
Invite Klara Lux somewhere, and she’ll always show up early – except on the rare occasion when...
July 6, 2026
Playwright Lynne Kaufman, the author of two dozen plays and five novels, is still going strong, despite some hiccups
The day after Lynne Kaufman retired in 2005, she woke up in tears. “What had I done?”...
June 29, 2026
A win for people power: Supervisors and mayor restore millions of dollars in cut to services for city’s most vulnerable
A months-long campaign by advocates for seniors, the disabled and other vulnerable populations has convinced San Francisco's...
Following in the footsteps of heroes: My visit to the cradles of Civil Rights
SF SENIORBEAT COLUMN – March 17, 1886. A date you probably never considered. Carroll County, Mississippi. A...
June 4, 2026
Couple’s script for their own movie? Shared creative passions and a bent for banter
“I'm Chiquita Banana, and I'm here to say, bananas have to ripen in a certain way,” Margot...
May 28, 2026
Social justice lawyer and activist infusing others with her love of SF’s Great Blue Herons and dedication to conservation
One day in 1993, on her daily walk from her Richmond District home to Golden Gate Park’s...
April 29, 2026
Nonprofit director is happy to bug you, whether you’re 2 or 92, about saving the wild
If you grow up in Los Angeles, where do you find the wild? Norm Gershenz is not...
April 14, 2026
Bass playing lawyer takes on the landlords when seniors call for help
During the day, you’ll find Thomas Drohan in court or at his law office on Mission Street....
April 5, 2026
Former SFSU teacher shifts to helping union workers build leadership abilities
Like some people need coffee, Joan Wong needs to walk – and talk. Mornings, she puts in...
March 25, 2026
Joe Edley, a three-time national champion, has been racking up great Scrabble scores for decades
Joe Edley tucks his co-authored book, “Everything Scrabble,” under his arm and surveys the room. Around him,...
March 16, 2026
As the city’s older population swells, seniors who can no longer live at home face high costs, limited choices
EDITOR'S NOTE: See full profiles of the seniors interviewed by clicking links within the story. A panoply...
All Posts
Stanford business grads launch service so busy young adults can help aging parents
Mon ami is a matching service for older adults. But it’s not for romance; it pairs them with college students for companionship. The start-up launched on the Peninsula and recently expanded to San Francisco and the Bay Area. Founders Joy Zhang and Madeline Dangerfield met at an orientation for new students entering Stanford’s Graduate School ...
Vision loss ‘like moving to a foreign country’ – but plenty of help available to learn the language
When Susan Kitazawa started losing her sight 15 years ago, one of the first things she started to do was self-monitor her driving. She restricted herself to places she felt more comfortable driving: only in the daytime, not in the rain, not on the freeways. And she asked for help. “I asked three friends of ...
Get testing, counseling, training then go shopping at Lighthouse’s store for low- and hi-tech vision aids
I kept looking for the brightness button on my TV to lighten up scenes that seemed to be filmed in the dead of night. Unfortunately, there’s no “time for cataracts surgery” pop-up message on the screen, even on the smartest TV. Apparently I’m not alone. About 10 percent of adult Americans 18 and older (some 26.9 ...
Feistiness and array of support services keep senior active and independent despite damages of diabetes
Diabetes has ruled Marlene Hunn’s life since she was diagnosed at age two. But not wanting to become isolated or housebound, she has made a point of getting support from her friends – and the wide range of services available to her in San Francisco. She may have her bad days and crying jags, but ...
Smart phones and devices offer seniors new skills to thrive in the digital world
Tindy Lee, 66, learned how to use YouTube to connect to the TV so she didn’t have to pay to stream shows anymore. And now she’s an avid user – connecting with Facebook, calling family and friends on WeChat, checking the weather, taking photos and using calendar alerts to help her keep track of her ...
Chronicler of ’60s rock still nurturing a passion born at age 5
Richie Unterberger was only a child when the counterculture ‘60s were blossoming. But he had three older brothers who introduced him to the music. By the age of five, he was a Beatles fan, asking for their records at every gift-giving opportunity. He was seven when Woodstock took place. At eight, he bought his first ...
