Women Over 70: Aging Reimagined

Imagine what it might have been like to be a serious female science student in the early 1960s only to be barred from a doctoral program after receiving a masters. Bebe (Beatrice) Magee, age 81, provides a glimpse into her early history. In 2007, Bebe retired as a Senior Scientist in the College of Biological Sciences at the University of Minnesota. For more than 45 years, she and her husband, Pete, collaborated on scientific research that led eventually to ground- breaking work having implications for debilitated patients with potentially deadly infections. In retirement, Bebe expanded her engagement in rowing (which she started at age 54) to include teaching and officiating at rowing regattas. She has been able to spend more time in choral activities, singing with the Calliope Women’s Chorus--the 2nd oldest feminist chorus in the U.S.-- and with the Voices of Experience (singers over age 55). Married for 56 years, Bebe and Pete live in a big old house in St. Paul, MN, with no plans to downsize.   "Although I am not much in favor of getting older, I am very happy with this stage in my life." - Beatrice Magee   Contact information Magee002@umn.edu   Connect with Gail & Catherine: Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Wo70AgingReimagined Instagram: WomenOver70 Website:https://womenover70.com Email: info@womenover70.com Show: Women Over 70 – Aging Reimagined Listen on: Apple Play, Stitcher, Please rate our show and subscribe wherever you listen. This is how we grow.

  Women Over 70 is celebrating its 100th episode by featuring Jean Ketcham, affectionately known as Aging But Dangerous. Jean has a laserlike focus on living life with fun, spirit, and style. She is a former small business owner, talk show host, proud parent, avid skydiver, and cancer survivor, up for any challenge thrown her way. At 81, Jean is convinced that aging can be exciting. From skydiving to retreats and fashion shows, she continues to create opportunities for women to empower each other. "Nobody can put us in a box because of our age.” - Jean Ketcham   Connect with Jean: Website: https://agingbutdangerous.com Facebook Group:/https://www.facebook.com/agingbutdangerous Email: jk@agingbutdangerous.com Connect with Gail & Catherine: Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Wo70AgingReimagined Instagram: WomenOver70 Website:https://womenover70.com Email: info@womenover70.com Show: Women Over 70 – Aging Reimagined Listen on: Apple Play, Stitcher, Itunes, Podopolo Please rate our show and subscribe wherever you listen. This is how we grow.

With her background in dance and social work, Sheila K. Collins, Ph.D., brings embodied practices to many forms of self-care, particularly for healing. Sheila’s key tenet is that the body is our center of wisdom and at the root of self-care. Our body holds our stories, tells us what we need, and expresses what’s in our hearts. As a teacher-trainer and award-winning author, Sheila offers ways to find the gifts within the pain of loss. Her forthcoming book is The Art of Grieving. Contact Information: sheilacollins@gmail.com https://sheilakcollins.com/about Sheila K. Collins Warrior Mother: A Memoir of Fierce Love, Unbearable Loss, and Rituals that Heal (2013) Sheila K. Collins & Christine Gautreaux. Stillpoint: A Self-Care Playbook for Caregivers to Find Ease, and Time to Breathe, and Reclaim Joy (2018) Connect with Gail & Catherine: Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Wo70AgingReimagined Instagram: WomenOver70 Website:https://womenover70.com Email: info@womenover70.com Show: Women Over 70 – Aging Reimagined Listen on: Apple Play, Stitcher, Please rate our show and subscribe wherever you listen. This is how we grow.

In semi-retirement, at age 79, Hedy Ratner imparts her prodigious wisdom on women’s issues to high level policy makers. For over 50 years, as an advocate for intersecting civil rights and the second-wave women’s movement, Hedy has confronted inequalities of gender, race and class, e.g.,: working with Jesse Jackson, directing the YWCA-Chicago; founding Women in Film-Chicago; and, co-founding the Women’s Business Development Center (WBDC). Under new leadership and with Hedy as President Emerita, WBDC continues to thrive in its 4th decade, promoting entrepreneurship for low income women and women of color. Hedy credits her sustainability for social justice to the unwavering support of her life partner (recently deceased) and conscientious attention to maintaining balance--physical, mental, and spiritual. "With so much more to be done, nothing in my heart and mind says I should stop now." - Hedy Ratner   Contact Information: hratner@wbdc.org More about Hedy at https://www.thechicagonetwork.org/members/hedy-m-ratner/ Connect with Gail & Catherine: Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Wo70AgingReimagined Instagram: WomenOver70 Website:https://womenover70.com Email: info@womenover70.com Show: Women Over 70 – Aging Reimagined Listen on: Apple Play, Stitcher, Itunes, Podopolo Please rate our show and subscribe wherever you listen. This is how we grow.

At age 76, Sunny Fischer (Evanston, IL) has advocated for women to be free from violence, exercise reproductive choice, afford their homes and possess financial stability. Sunny’s radicalization for women’s issues began in the 1970s while working directly with victims of rape, “the most dramatic form of sexism.” Over the past 40 years, Sunny has co- founded foundations focused solely on women’s issues, including the Sophia Fund which is now part of the Chicago Foundation for Women. Sunny’s work to promote affordable housing includes her current role as chair of the board of the National Public Housing Museum. Whatever the cause, Sunny’s approach is to listen, investigate, understand, strategize, and organize. There is a lot more work to do, and I still have the dreams to try. - Sunny Fischer Contact Information: Sunnyfischer10@gmail.com More about Sunny: https://www.thechicagonetwork.org/members/sunny-fischer/ https://www.futureswithoutviolence.org/about-us/board-and-staff- 2/board-directors/sunny-fischer/ Connect with Gail & Catherine: Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Wo70AgingReimagined Instagram: WomenOver70 Website:https://womenover70.com Email: info@womenover70.com Show: Women Over 70 – Aging Reimagined Listen on: Apple Play, Stitcher, Itunes, Podopolo Please rate our show and subscribe wherever you listen. This is how we grow.  

Two years ago, Diana Swezy, age 70, made a dramatic life change.  She left her home in the Midwest and her work as a professional educator to live in a laid-back beach village in Jamaica.  Diana’s professional life centered on students who are challenged, serving as an elementary school principal and as Director of Federal Programs. Having dealt with a long-term chronic illness and major back surgery, Diana searched for a place in which to heal, physically and emotionally. She chose Jamaica where the “thread of spirituality envelopes the realm of healing on many levels.”  Here Diana practices self-care--creating art, eating well, swimming-- and delights in life with her younger Jamaican husband. Contact Information: dswezy@gmail.com "I am learning to live well, with fun and less."

Audrey Peeples, age 81, from Chicago’s southwest side, is a history maker--the first Black woman to hold leadership positions in different kinds of organizations. Whether as CEO, board member, or community volunteer, Audrey is committed to raising awareness about racism and sexism and advocating for diversity and inclusion. “When different people are at the table, different decisions get made.” She calls out micro-systemic expectations with diplomacy and humor. Audrey intends to keep raising the hard questions and doing the hard work. "There are a lot of people like me, you just don’t know them." - Audrey Peeples Contact: Audrey.peeples@gmail.com More about Audrey’s background see The History Makers. https://www.thehistorymakers.org/biography/audrey-peeples-39  

Deborah Wood Holton, Ph.D., MFA, and certified transition coach discusses opportunities and realities that are essential to women’s self-preservation as we age. Gender and race inequities are realities in American society. Older women are more likely to be care-givers, live alone, and be limited financially. This is especially true for Black women, who also face a “kin-gap,” as they are often orphaned from family connections. Dr. Holton offers inspiration for older women to find our ‘inner guidance system’--to be caring, creative and compassionate about our own needs and wants. We are the heroines for ourselves and younger generations.   Contact Information: deborah@deborahwholton.com https://www.deborahwholton.com/   Deborah’s The Comfort Club is highlighted in the AARP 2019 annual report (2020) https://workforyourself.aarpfoundation.org/public-report/   Connect with Gail & Catherine: Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Wo70AgingReimagined Instagram: WomenOver70 Website:https://womenover70.com Email: info@womenover70.com Show: Women Over 70 – Aging Reimagined Listen on: Apple Play, Stitcher, Please rate our show and subscribe wherever you listen. This is how we grow.  

Nancy Fuhrman: Goals Drive Your Actions in Retirement Nancy has always worked hard to keep everyone in her large blended family connected. As she and her husband, Steve, looked far into the future, she brought the family together to discuss their estate plan and guidelines, ensuring they would all be comfortable with it and on the same page. A lifelong volunteer and learner, Nancy continues to be of service in her community and take classes. Her goals are to remain healthy, connect with friends and family and continue to expand her horizons. These deliberate actions are what makes Nancy who she is and why she remains vital and vibrant. "I plan every day around entertaining and enjoyable activities, continue to learn, to be of service and focus on good things." Connect with Nancy: nancysteve@pause.com Resource: Read to Learn Adult Literacy/Volunteer Program in the northern suburbs of Chicago (Nancy has worked with 12-14 students who wish to improve their language skills.)   https://www.ce.d214.org/readtolearn

In life there is always another way home. - Ronne Hartfield At age 84, twenty-some years beyond retirement, Ronne Hartfield continues to make a difference as her commitments and curiosities flourish. Ronne honed her executive management talents at Chicago’s Urban Gateways and in two leadership positions at The Art Institute. Post-retirement, she has embarked on a journey of study and consultancy that involves exhibition and interpretation of sacred art and world religions for a wider public. She also completed a labor of love--a moving family history, Another Way Home: The Tangled Roots of Race in One Chicago Home. Married for 67 years, Ronne has four adult children and eight grandchildren. Contact Information: Ronne.hartfield@gmail.com Hartfield, R. (2004). Another way home: The tangled roots of race in one Chicago family (in its 5th printing). The University of Chicago Press. For more about Ronne’s earlier work history, see: https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1991-05-12-9102120185-story.html Connect with Gail & Catherine: Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Wo70AgingReimagined Instagram: WomenOver70 Website:https://womenover70.com Email: info@womenover70.com Show: Women Over 70 – Aging Reimagined Listen on: Apple Play, Stitcher, Please rate our show and subscribe wherever you listen. This is how we grow.