This Month's Features

A Mayan ruin   By Victor Block Much about the island says Mexico. Archeological sites hint of the rich Mayan civilization that once flourished there. Parts of...

Hudson resident Brian Martin, age 59, follows a regular exercise routine including cardio, weight lifting, and an hour playing pick-up hockey year-round Sunday mornings with longtime friends at Valley Sports Arena in Concord. There, he suffered sudden cardiac arrest the Sunday of last Thanksgiving weekend. He’s thankful that the facility is equipped with an automated external defibrillator (AED). His hockey buddies used the AED to save his life.

Region – When the Massachusetts Senior Games (MASG) are held at Springfield College this June, there will be hundreds of athletes age 40 and up participating in sports such as track and field, swimming, basketball, tennis, racquetball, table tennis and volleyball. Some participants have been lifelong athletes while others may be taking up a sport after a hiatus. And still others may be trying an entirely new sport for the first time. What they will all have in common is what Davis Cox, the group’s state ambassador, calls their unofficial slogan – “Get fit, have fun and make friends!”

It is well-known that as we age, our cognitive functioning begins to deteriorate. We forget names, get distracted more easily, and start to lack concentration. Physical exercise and natural supplements can help. But a new, rising trend has become a fun way to keep your mind sharp: brain-training smartphone apps.

The platter was covered with what resembled small piles of leaves from a fall lawn raking. The brown, green and black heaps hardly invited sniffing, much less tasting. Yet sniff and taste I did.

It’s as important to take care of your brain as well as your body. Here are 10 things that you can do to help keep your mind sharp as you age.

Brookline - Five days a week, Agnes Rogers, 96, volunteers at the Brookline Senior Center’s lunch program. Volunteer Director Patricia Burns, 72, said, “First Agnes has her coffee, and then she folds napkins, and sets the table for the 20 to 50 people who have lunch here.” Burns said that when she thanked Rogers for her efforts, Rogers replied, “I am the one who is thankful. This gives me a reason to get up every morning and get dressed. It gives me a good lunch, and I get to visit will all kinds of interesting people.”

Growing up in the 1940s and ‘50s, Yvonne Brown noticed that everyone around her had brown skin, like her. The doctor, the dentist, the shoe cobbler did, too. But the owner of the meat and fresh produce store was white, and the prices of his goods were higher and of poorer quality and less variety than what was available in white neighborhoods. She paid attention to the discrepancies.

Massachusetts residents living with memory changes and their caregivers are now offered more comfortable meeting places. They’re gathering monthly at memory cafés free of charge for refreshments, activities and comradery. Cafés are currently located in Andover, Brookline, Franklin, Lexington, Marlborough, Norwood, Topsfield, Waltham and Westwood.

Boston – According to the Executive Office of Elder Affairs (EOEA), Massachusetts is projected to have 1,178,852 residents over the age of 65 by the year 2020. As such, the department oversees program designed to provide support services, information, options counseling, and education/training to assist older adults in making decisions about things such as healthcare, housing, jobs, nutrition and the next stage of their lives.