FRAMINGHAM, MA - Callahan Center News for February, 2006.

Town of Framingham & Callahan Center Snowstorm Policy Notice: If the schools close due to snowstorms or other inclement weather days, there will be no activities at the Center. On these days, the Town of Framingham Staff will be available to you at the Center, unless the Town of Framingham declares an emergency closing.

Support Groups at Callahan Senior Center - Bereavement Support Group: Mondays, February 6, 13 & 27 at 10:00 am. No meeting on February 20—Center closed. Diabetic Support Group: Tuesday, February 14 at 1:30 pm. Grandparent Support Group: Tuesday, February 14 at 1:00 pm and Tuesday, February 28 at 6:45 pm. Low Vision Group: No meeting in February. Massage Therapy: Thursday, February 2 and Thursday, February 16, by appt. only. Parkinson’s Support Group: Tuesday, February 21 at 1:30 pm. Podiatry: Monday, February 13 from 12:30 pm to 3:15 pm, by appt. only. Stroke Survivors’ Support Group: Monday, February 6 at 1:00 pm.

BLOOD PRESSURE CLINIC FOR FEBRUARY - Wednesdays, February 1, 8, 15 & 22, from 9:30 am—11:00 and 12:00 pm—1:00 pm.

CARDIOVASCULAR CLINIC IN FEBRUARY - The Cardiovascular Clinic will be on Tuesday, February 7 at 10:00 AM until 11:30 AM. A doctor from the MetroWest Medical Center and nurse Kitty Mahoney from the Framingham Board of Health will be at the Senior Center to check your blood pressure, answer any questions and address individual concerns. For further information, please contact Kitty Mahoney at 508-620-4827.

“What To Do When Your Family Member Has Memory Loss” - Thursday, February 16, 2006 from 4:30 pm—7:00 pm at Callahan Center, 535 Union Avenue, Framingham - Designed especially for family caregivers, this program provides information about:

- how to receive a diagnosis

- how to understand and manage difficult behaviors and communication problems

- how to find and what to expect from local resources

This program is presented by trained Alzheimers’ staff and is free-of-charge. Since the group size may be limited, it is necessary to register with Ann Steacie at 508-532-5980, ext. 4113. Refreshments will be provided by Whitney Place. Please call if you have any questions.

NOT TOO LATE TO SIGN UP!! February 9th at 10:00 am at Callahan: Hawthorne’s Life and His Works: Hawthorne's Mystery Stories - Instructor: Mary Murphy, Ed.D.

Cost: $6.00 per person. Please call the Center at 508-532-5980, extension 4977 to reserve a seat. Please make your check payable to the Friends of Callahan . Advance payment is recommended. This program is provided by Framingham State’s Center for Lifelong Learners in Partnership with the Callahan Center.

Coming next month! “Shifting Gears” Presented by Michelle Ellicks of the MA Registry of Motor Vehicles. A program for elders on driving safety. Thursday, March 2, 2006 from 10:00 am - 11:00 am at the Callahan Center. Please call the Center at 508-532-5980 to reserve a seat!

“Debt Management” - Presented by Betsy Soule, Supervising Attorney of South Middlesex Legal Services on Wednesday, February 15, 2006 at 10:00 am at the Callahan Center. This talk on debt management will cover two basic topics: Judgment Proof - the concept that certain types of income are exempt fro being collected by creditors to satisfy debts and include most incomes that elders have (SSI, SSDI, SS, PN, VA, etc.) and Bankruptcy - how it works, the requirements under the new law and how it can be helpful to those in serious debt.

AARP Tax Assistance Program at Callahan Center - AARP will provide a qualified volunteer to assist with preparing income taxes, free of charge for seniors who need this service. You must schedule an appointment in order to see a Tax Counselor. You are required by the IRS to bring the following:

• income tax returns from last year 1099’s and other relevant tax documents
• income and asset documents
• Social Security Card (a must)
• 2 forms of identification (one photo ID and another form of identification)

Appointments: Please call Julie Chouman for an appointment at 508-620-4819. Appointments may be limited this year and are on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Book Club: Come and join our new book club at the Callahan Center led by Karolyne White! This book club will meet the 1st Thursday of the month and all Framingham seniors are invited to participate.

NEW!!! “BOOKS ON REVIEW” - Karolyne is a volunteer at the Center, a former teacher, and a long-time Framingham resident, who enjoys good reading material and would like to enjoy reviewing it with others. The group will meet on Thursday, February 2nd at 10:00 am to discuss “A Taste of Reality” by African-American author, Kimberla Lawson Roby. Her novels have frequented numerous bestseller lists, including those listed in Essence Magazine and Emerge Magazine. Kimberla received the 1998 First-Time Author Award from Chicago’s Black History Month Book Fair and Conference. The Framingham Library has copies or you may purchase this book at most bookstores or on-line at www.Amazon.com. Please call 508-532-5980 and let us know if you plan to attend.

February Friends’ General Meeting - The next Friends’ meeting will be on Monday, February 13th at 1:30 pm. This will be a Valentine’s Day party in conjunction with the Callahan Center. Please bring an anonymous Valentine card for the party and you will receive one. The entertainment will be with John Root. Refreshments will be served. Come and bring a friend!

Medicare Prescription Drug Program Begins - Filling Prescriptions - MassHealth or Prescription Advantage Member - If you have MassHealth or Prescription Advantage, your drugs are now covered by Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (Medicare Part D). If you did not select a plan by December 31, 2005, you were randomly auto enrolled in a one on January 1, 2006. Some of you have experienced difficulty using your new plans. If you went to your pharmacy, without an identification card or an acknowledgment letter from your drug plan, your pharmacist may not have been able to verify your enrollment in the plan. Even for those with proof of enrollment there have been problems. The program is complicated and brand new. The good news is that our state officials on Monday, January 9th took steps to make certain that nobody on MassHealth or Prescription Advantage will have to leave the pharmacy without their necessary drugs or pay more than the required co-payments. The pharmacies have been told that if they cannot process your prescription through a Part D plan, they can bill the state, which will temporarily provide coverage for your drugs until the Part D program is successfully up and running. Filling Prescriptions - Not MassHealth or Prescription Advantage Member - If you are having problems getting your drugs using your Part D plan, contact your local COA to make an appointment with a SHINE counselor, who will attempt to resolve the matter for you. You can also reach a SHINE counselor by telephone. Call 1-800-AGE-INFO. Once you get the SHINE answering machine, leave your name and number. A SHINE volunteer will call you back, as soon as possible. Open Enrollment Continues - If you have not signed up for a Part D plan, you can sign up until May 15th. You will still be within the Open Enrollment Period and coverage will begin the month after you enroll. If you are not satisfied with the plan you selected or the plan you were auto enrolled in (Prescription Advantage members), you can change to another plan once between now and May 15th. MassHealth members can change plans any time during the year. Also, there is an Annual Open Enrollment Period each year (November 15 to December 31), during which anyone can enroll in a Part D Plan.

The next SHINE Volunteer Training is scheduled to begin soon. If you are interested in becoming a SHINE Counselor, please call Dorene Nemeth, Assistant Regional Director, at 508-532-5980, ext. 4109.

HERITAGE GALLERY, 535 Union Avenue, Framingham - Where you will find fabulous, unique and beautiful gifts for Valentine’s Day! Open Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 10:00am to 2:30pm.

TRAVEL WITH MARTY GRIFFIN - DAY TRIPS

FEBRUARY:

• 9 - Valentine’s Party at Ken’s - “Bobby Darling Show” $35.00 Thursday 11:30 am 3:00 pm

MARCH:

• 8 Foxwoods - Optional Indian Museum visit $23.00 Wednesday 7:45 am 5:45 pm
• 16 Dan Clark, the Singing Trooper at Danversport Yacht Club $56.00 Thursday 10:30 am 5:00 pm
• 23 Travel Presentation Part 2 - July-December Trips FREE Thursday 10:00 am Wrights Chicken Farm - with Cash Bingo $32.00 Thursday 10:45 am 5:00 pm

APRIL:

• 5 Newport Playhouse & Cabaret “Squabbles”, Buffet $65.00 Wednesday 9:30 am 5:30 pm
• 20 Capt. Jack’s Lobsterbake—A Visit to Bristol, RI $57.00 Thursday 9:00 am 5:00 pm Julius LaRosa sings at White’s in Westport $60.00 Tuesday 10:15 am 5:00 pm

MAY:

• 9 A Day at Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Tours & Lunch $58.00 Tuesday 8:30 am 5:30 pm Saturday Pops with John Williams, Pacific Buffet Lunch $55.00 Saturday 11:15 am 5:15 pm, “Damn Yankees” at North Shore Music, Lunch $73.00 Wednesday 10:30 am 6:00 pm

JUNE:

• 8 “A Tasteful of Fun” - Stoney Field Yogurt, Anheuser Bush Brewery, Common Man Lunch $55.00 Thursday 8:00 am 5:30 pm, Rodgers, Hart & Hammerstein program at Chez Joseph $66.00 Wednesday 9:30 am 5:00 pm
• 27 Odyssey Boat Cruise & Lunch - Boston Bus Tour $55.00 Tuesday 9:30 am 4:00 pm

OVERNIGHT TRIPS:

• FEB 18 - MAR 5, 2006 DAYTONA BEACH SUNSHINE (16 days, 15 nights) $ 1,299.00 pp (double rm)
• MAR 10, 2006 HAWAIIAN ISLANDS CRUISE (14 days - 32 meals) $ 2,399.00 pp (inside, double rm)
• APR 17 - 22, 2006 BRANSON MUSICAL GETAWAY (6 days, 5 nights) $ 1,199.00 pp (double rm)
• MAY 1-2, 2006 IRISH CATSKILLS (2 days, 1 night) $ 229.00 pp (double rm —includes bus & guide trips)
• MAY 25 - JUNE 4, 2006 NORWAY’S DRAMATIC FJORDS (10 days, 9 nights) $ 2,699.00 pp (double room)
• AUG 7-9, 2006 A TASTE OF VERMONT (3 days, 2 nights) $ 380.00 pp (double room-includes ALL tips)
• SEP 15-21, 2006 DISCOVER SEDONA (Arizona) (7 days, 6 nights) $1,599.00 pp (double room)

###