AARP Life@50 and Beyond - National
Expo November 2013 - "New Tech with a Personal Touch. Learning new skills. "
Speaker: Tuscaloosa Public Library, September 2014
Hard copy in be published in PrimeLife Style of Alabama Magazine, October -November, 2014, "The latest Tech and what you need to know."
Speaker: Tuscaloosa Public Library, September 2014
Hard copy in be published in PrimeLife Style of Alabama Magazine, October -November, 2014, "The latest Tech and what you need to know."
By Carolyn
Rhodes
Arm yourself with the tools and information you need to build
the life you want, says AARP CEO Barry Rand.
Whoopi Goldberg and Tyler Perry in Q&A |
Whether you are a boomer crossing the bridge
to eligible member, newly retired or a senior who has lived well into the
generations beyond, it has never been easier to live your best life and create
a life reimagined with real possibilities,
as AARP suggests. Paint
a legacy, write a journal or a personal memoir; become an entrepreneur, or,
stay sharp with brain games.
The list of ideas goes on and as AARP CEO, Barry Rand says,
“Arm yourself with the tools and information you need to build the life you want.”
The list of ideas goes on and as AARP CEO, Barry Rand says,
“Arm yourself with the tools and information you need to build the life you want.”
Celebrated
each year in a different city, AARP Life@50 and Beyond annual events never disappoint
and this year delivered plenty of fun and information to mull over until the
next time. Planning ahead is necessary
because of the number of activities and sessions. You might have to plan a workshop, for
example, for the following day or miss it entirely. The AARP website has clear
instructions on how to proceed and for a $25 entrance fee for 3 full days and
nights -- it’s worth every dime of it.
A special
feature session honored the 50th Anniversary of Martin Luther King,
Jr.’s I have a dream speech.
Celebrity
speakers and experts in every field conducted seminars, workshops and sessions
on topics which touched on faith, health, science, travel, retirement villages,
even gadgets which claim to make you feel
better! Silver Sneakers instructors offered
exercise classes and tips on how to stay fit.
Small group
training at the TEK (technology, education, knowledge) Pavilion took center stage
for 2013 with tablets and apps. Seniors
signed up to learn how.
AARP TEK, Experience Tech with a Personal Touch, theme
did just that –offered attendees time to learn to use gadgets and devices
during training workshops. The lessons
were two-fold – to connect and communicate.
Young Tech
Wizards taught hourly classes to groups of seniors whose skills ranged from
beginner to expert users. The project, MentorUp, is designed to inspire younger
generations to a life of service and volunteerism and giving back to their
community’s older adults.
Throughout the days, smiling faces travelled
through the halls of Georgia’s World Congress Center in Atlanta as buses rolled
in and out of designated stops, picking up and dropping off attendees with the
red badges to and from their hotels to the Congress Center. All aboard – no charge!
·
Whoopi
Goldberg and Tyler Perry; Travel Channel’s Samantha Brown; swimmer Diana Nyad; tennis star Martina Navratilova; Emilio Estefan, AARP’s Life Reimagined Ambassador and NFL Quarterback, Dan Marino is a short
list of renowned famous people who showed up on the star studded runway.
·
Film
festivities showcased several pre-release screenings followed by Q&A. Andy Garcia’s romance film entitled Middleton, along with film makers and
cast members of Nebraska and My Father and the Men in Black.
After some
R&R time and dinner most returned for the evening entertainment.
·
Gospel
concert opened Thursday night featured the legendary Regina Belle, Dottie
Peoples and Sister Cantelope.
Regina Belle |
·
Friday
evening, The Happy Together Tour, dosed us with a blast of rock and roll from
the 60s to 70s. Gary Puckett and the
Union Gap; Flo and Eddie from the Turtles; Chuck Negron, formerly from 3 Dog
Night and Gary Lewis.
·
Gloria
Estefan sang to a sold out house on the last night’s entertainment.
AARP’s theme
is clear – a life reimagined with real possibilities – and their mission to
enhance the quality of life as we age serves as a good reference for “us” as we live life@50 and beyond to the
fullest . Go to www.aarp.org for future events. For more info on
exercise classes, go to www.silversneakers.com . You can download apps as well .
Hard copy spin off in Prime LIfeStyle of Alabama.