Musicians put heart into songs
A passion for music has defined Ted Zlatin’s life, from his days playing in a teenage band, to a career that has covered every aspect of the music business, from promoting records to selling pianos.Now retired, Zlatin is using that same passion to bring the joy of music to older adults throughout the Washington/Baltimore corridor through the Music and Art Traveling Heart... READ MORE
Three fellows fight the battle of the bulge
Three gentlemen of a certain age are yakking — not about women or the stock market for a change, but about fitness.Gentleman One is 71, as thin and agile as he was 50 years ago. He eats whatever he likes, exercises only once in a while. He bores his doctors with how healthy he is. He smiles a lot.Gentleman Two is 68. His spare tire inflates by an inch or so every year. To him, a major ... READ MORE
Tour guide sweats the details
It wasn’t until Zippy Larson lived in Iran for several years that she came to realize how much she still had to learn about her native Baltimore. Though she had spent her life here, she realized that the people she met in Iran knew much more about American — if not necessarily Baltimore — history than she did.“I thought I was an educated woman,” said the former ... READ MORE
Going back to school is cool
It’s back to school time, and for many students, that means butterflies in the stomach and first day jitters.But for adults going back to school after raising a family, there can be an added layer of initial self doubt.As Karen Parker Thompson recalled when she enrolled in a masters program at American University (AU) earlier this year, “I was looking at all the things we had to ... READ MORE
Musicians put heart into songs
A passion for music has defined Ted Zlatin’s life, from his days playing in a teenage band in suburban Baltimore to a career that has covered every aspect of the music business, from promoting records to selling pianos. Now retired, Zlatin is using that same passion to bring the joy of music to older adults throughout the greater Baltimore area through the Music and Art Traveling Heart... READ MORE
Buying into a 2nd (or 3rd) career
Earl Reed’s wide-ranging career took him from flying fighter planes in Vietnam, to setting up a chain of drug stores in Moscow, to advising the Department of Homeland Security on how to prevent nuclear weapon components from entering the country.But last year, at the age of 67 — a time when some other people might start counting the days until retirement — Reed took his... READ MORE
Broom sweeps across stages
One might call Maria Broom a Jill-of-all-trades, at least when it comes to the performing arts. The native Baltimorean — who saw her first ballet at the age of 6 and thought to herself, ”This is it” — has made a life, and a living, as a dancer, actress and storyteller.She is a familiar face from HBO’s renowned Baltimore-based crime series “The... READ MORE
If it’s so much fun, is it work?
Imagine spending half the year with roller coasters on the horizon, the smell of funnel cakes in the air, and Bugs Bunny as one of your closest friends. Ruth McDonald enjoys just that as a seasonal employee at Six Flags America in Upper Marlboro, Md. At age 84 she is the park’s oldest employee, showing workers one-fifth her age the ropes each year as the summer season swings into high... READ MORE
Mind your own business, kids
The little town has a lovely central square surrounded by shops with well-known logos above their doors. There’s a local bank, radio station, office supply, pizza shop, newspaper, insurance agency and more.Each day, the 100 or so “employees” who arrive around 9 a.m. to run the show in all these businesses are 5th and 6th grade students from public schools throughout... READ MORE
Centenarians club growing fast
Lois Leyda turns 108 next month, and yet she is only the second-oldest person living in the District of Columbia.Born in Saskatchewan two years before it became a Canadian province, Leyda’s roots in Washington go back almost 70 years, to her job as social director of Washington’s Wardman Park Hotel in the 1940s. There, she met political figures like Winston Churchill and Mamie... READ MORE
