Senior Lifestyles

MARY LARSEN/TOWN CRIER
Franklyn Weiss demonstrates one of his portable ham radios at Moldaw Residences last weekend. He said it’s been “a great hobby for the past 20 years,” allowing him to connect with people both locally and around the world.

Since retiring in 2001, former Mountain View resident Franklyn C. Weiss has given back to the community in several ways through his expertise in ham radio. He’s volunteered at El Camino Hospital and with the Mountain View Police and Fire departments, making sure the emergency radios remained operable.

Now living at the Moldaw Residences in Palo Alto with his wife, Harriet, the retired electrical engineer and patent attorney has been an amateur radio aficionado since his college days.

Bruce Barton/Town Crier
Chester Santos impresses a Sons In Retirement crowd with his memory prowess during a recent Los Altos Hills appearance.

Memory expert Chester Santos wowed a lunchtime meeting of local retirees last week, first by remembering the names of all 50-plus people in attendance, then by asserting they could have great memories, too.

The self-described “International Man of Memory,” who appeared at a Sept. 4 gathering of Sons In Retirement (SIR) Branch 51, said his oft-performed feats such as memorizing names and decks of cards have been honed through training “that makes the most efficient use of the brain – everyone sitting here today, you are all capable of doing extraordinary things with your memory.”

My brother and I were hiking a few months after our mom, Carol Peters, died in 2009. We had watched her slow, inexorable decline over the last decade due to Alzheimer’s disease. It had been a tough, sad and painful process.

As we walked along the trail, we discussed whether or not we wanted to get genetic testing to see if we inherited the “Alzheimer’s gene.” I started the hike convinced that, yes, I would get tested. I wanted to know – learning is good, knowledge is power, etc. My brother was less sure. We discussed the possible outcomes, trying to visualize how we would react.

Seniors approached by someone who offers them free genetic testing or cancer screening should turn them down.

Medicare doesn’t cover such tests unless a doctor who’s treating you orders them and they’re medically necessary.

Los Altos Senior Program offers array of events

The following events are scheduled at the Los Altos Senior Program, located at Grant Park, 1575 Holt Ave. For more information, call 947-2797.

• 12:30 p.m. today, Room 4: Lecture by Neha Kabra on Ayurveda healing

Photo by Margaret Abe/Special to the Town Crier
Jim Jenson, a retired judge and World War II veteran, has lived near downtown Los Altos for 22 years, after 31 years in Los Altos Hills. He celebrated his 99th birthday recently with friends and neighbors.

With 99 well-lived years to reflect on, James “Jim” Jenson now leads a quiet life near downtown Los Altos.

Moving from Los Altos Hills with his wife, Helen, 22 years ago, Jenson maintained an active lifestyle until recently, and he still enjoys the company of friends and family, walks to DeMartini Orchard and has an excellent memory. Helen died in 2010, but his three children are frequent visitors from their homes in Houston, Sonora and Colorado. Jenson also has four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.