What's New

Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

To honor Dr. King on January 17, The Johnson County Library System and Shepherd’s Center Central’s Coming of Age/RSVP Johnson County initiative have come together.   Informing and educating ourselves, our children and grandchildren is vital to understanding the legacy and passion of this brave man who ultimately lost his life in the struggle.   In so doing, we believe that we might also be re-inspired to give more of our time and talents to our friends, neighbors and communities.  We are inviting everyone in Johnson County and beyond to join us!

Please see the following list of outstanding books and DVD’s for all ages (click continue reading).  Parents and grandparents will enjoy the selected works and those who lived through these turbulent times will personally remember much of what they read and see.  In addition, sharing the books and DVD’s created for younger children can be a perfect opportunity to also add one’s personal memories and perspective to the events of that era.  Long before the printed word, the oral history was the primary way these priceless stories were passed from one generation to another.  

Won't you join us in taking the opportunity to “Borrow a Book or DVD” to help increase knowledge, understanding and awareness of this pivotal time in our history?  Sharing one’s own perspective from one’s own life’s experience will make the learning all the more exciting.  How about a special book group?  How about preparing to truly enjoy the experiences which will be available during Black History Month in February? (see "quilters" link)

Click here www.jocolibrary.org/findagoodbook for details about how to reserve and borrow these special works AND www.comingofage.org/kansascity to learn more about the opportunities through the Johnson County Libraries and Coming of Age/RSVP Johnson County.  

JUMP IN!!!

Read more and view the book list from Johnson County Library by clicking on the link:

HomeConnect books-by-mail service of Johnson County has a new phone number.

If  you are unable to visit the Johnson County Library, staff can help you select books and deliver them in the mail through HomeConnect, a free books-by-mail delivery service.  To register for HomeConnect, ask questions or make requests regarding HomeConnect, call the phone number (913) 826-4600, ext. 64384 -- or press 3 on your phone and identify your need for HomeConnect.  Please note that we have a new phone system featuring a centralized call center.  For an online application, visit the Johnson County Library website, www.jocolibrary.org/homeconnect.  Select “Print Application Form” under “Enroll in HomeConnect”.

New office for Coming of Age/RSVP Johnson County

Shepherd's Center Central's Coming of Age/RSVP Johnson County is pleased to announce our new office location in the Carlsen Center of Johnson County Community College.  

JCCC has been a strong supporter and is a Founding Partner of the Coming of Age initiative.  Adding the RSVP program of Johnson County to Coming of Age offers many new opportunities for those 55+ volunteers and strategic community partners to work even more closely together for the benefit of the community.    

Stay tuned, the best of COA/RSVP JOCO is yet to come!  For more information, please contact  Sandra Aust, Director, Coming of Age: Kansas City:  Sandra@sccentral.org or 816-444-1121 X 109. 

A New Year: Tips for Caregivers

As you make your plans for the next 12 months, keep these important tasks in mind:

• Everything in its place:  Designate a safe and secure location for your and your loved one's medications, health history and any other crucial personal information.
• When was that again? Note can't-miss dates like doctor's appointments, get-togethers with friends, and deadlines on a calendar you can easily access.
• Self-care:  Be the best caregiver possible by specifically scheduling some just-for-you time. Take a nap, see a movie, read a bestseller. Whatever you do, make sure to nurture your needs and watch out for your well-being.
• Use your resources:  Not only can you rely on the KC Caregiver Supportline for help, take advantage of kind family and friends who tell you to call when you need something. Accept their offers to pitch in and you'll both feel really good!

5 Financial Secrets to a Happy Retirement

Surprisingly, money isn't the key to contentment.

by: Lynnette Khalfani-Cox | from: AARP | November 17, 2010

What's your image of a happy retirement? Does it involve lazy days on a beach, traveling the world or pursuing a favorite pastime? Or maybe volunteering? Or are you finally planning to get to all those projects around the house that you've put off for years?

Is Your Organization Truly Effective?

By Pat Barber

Can you and your colleagues answer these five questions (and would you answer them the same way)?

1. What is our organization aiming to accomplish?
2. What are our strategies for making this happen?
3. What are our capabilities for doing this?
4. How will we know if we're making progress?
5. What have (and haven't) we accomplished so far?

Walmart drug plan for seniors may not be best deal

from: Associated Press Online | November 16, 2010

WASHINGTON (AP) — Consumer alert: A new Medicare drug plan with the lowest upfront cost in the country may not be for everyone, experts say.

Medicare's open enrollment season just started, and the plan from insurer Humana and retail giant Walmart is getting attention. At $14.80, the monthly premium is the lowest of any national plan, about half the average. And Humana and Walmart are advertising savings of more than $450 a year for the typical Medicare recipient.

Csonka among generation's sports icons feeling their age

From: USA Today | November 17, 2010 

Larry Csonka tells a story about a reunion of his 1972 Miami Dolphins some years back. They spent hours trading stories about their aches and pains and hobbled knees. Then they boarded a bus bound for a night game to be trotted out for halftime huzzahs.

Csonka enjoyed the illusion of time travel as he rode in that darkened carriage. "The same guys who had always jawed at each other were jawing at each other," he says. "The voices hadn't changed. And for an instant it was like we stepped back to 1972 all over again.

Carrots, Not Sticks, for Longer Working Lives

Posted 10/15/2010 - 11:28:24am by Terry Nagel

“There’s no need to force people to work longer by raising Social Security’s retirement age,” writes Civic Ventures’ policy expert David Bank in The Hill, a must-read for Washington insiders. Instead, Bank tells President Obama’s debt commission, “Making it easier and more appealing for more people to keep working could help balance the system’s books while minimizing any benefit cuts.”

How Can Boomers Strengthen Education?

Posted 10/06/2010 - 01:27:05pm by Terry Nagel

Two new papers from Civic Ventures help experienced professionals understand how they can help deliver services to young people, including working with schools to strengthen instruction in math- and science-related fields.

A New Equation: How Encore Careers in Math and Science Education Equal More Success for Students delves into a hot topic in education: how people in encore careers can help improve science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. Author Elizabeth Foster of the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future focuses on three individuals in encore careers to illustrate three model programs:

• Rick Marquart, a math teacher who coordinates activities for a NASA 21st Century Learning Studios program in a Maryland public school district.
• Alan Cleland, a mechanical engineer who is an apprentice teacher through California’s EnCorps Teachers Program
• Robert Abrams, a finance manager who is an EcO15 program facilitator