Life in the Later Lane
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?”...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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....
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...
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,...
Robert Wachter, the doctor who is pioneering the use of artificial intelligence to treat patients
Robert Wachter is the doctor who oversees all the other doctors at the University of California, San...
Couple beat ‘fast furniture,’ pandemic and other challenges to keep upholstery shop going for nearly 50 years
J & G Upholstery stretches back farther than it looks from the sidewalk on Balboa Street. Stacks...
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...
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Fire Department NERT training gets residents ready in case of an earthquake
We all know the “big one” is coming – an earthquake, a fire – some disaster that will wipe out a section of the city. We also know that when it does, emergency services will be overwhelmed. It may be three to five days before help arrives. The key to survival is being prepared. The ...
Neighborhood Circles create community for San Francisco seniors
Most seniors, 87 percent, want to stay in their homes as they age, according to the American Association of Retired Persons. Fortunately for San Francisco seniors, the San Francisco Village’s “neighborhood circles” help them do that. The nine-month-old Sunset Circle is one of 13 in San Francisco, including one for LGBT seniors, where neighbors meet ...
Miraloma Park Neighbor Fest focuses on safety, building neighborhood resilience
In late October, the Miraloma Park Improvement Club threw a Neighbor Fest. Some 450 neighbors came. Like other Neighborfests around the city, the purpose was to gather people together and turn “strangers into neighbors and neighbors into friends.” This Fest, however, also included extensive disaster preparedness information along with the hotdogs, coloring books, and camaraderie. ...
Art With Elders Program Harnesses Creativity and Yields Greater Health
Many of the students in the Art with Elders program have overcome significant physical and cognitive obstacles to produce their art, including the loss of the use of their dominant hand. “One of our objectives is to promote how our students use their wisdom and experience to overcome these obstacles. It’s tough!” said Mark Campbell, ...
Sunset seniors get pumped up putting their power into Taiko drumming
At the Cole Valley Fair in September, 11 members of the Kotobuki Taiko group demonstrated that seniors can drum energetically and with passion. They can also get healthier doing it. The Kotobuki (longevity) Taiko group was formed nine years ago at The Stonestown Family YMCA Annex, under the leadership of volunteer teacher Carol Ayers, 73, a longtime Taiko drummer. “I had some surgeries, ...
