The Senior Voice - December 2007

8/14/2019 The Senior Voice - December 2007

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Ghost TownIn NortherColorado

LongsPeakPioneer

Climbers

OutlawIn Early

Colorado

SkiingSteamboa

Springs

FamousFrontie Trail

Platte Rive

in NorthColorado

Lindy inCheyenn

Charles

Lindberghin 1927

DocSusiePioneer

Doctor in thMountains

CoverPicture:

Geese NeaLongs Pea

V OICEThe Senior

D e c e m b e r 2 0 0 7

Local Attractions • Scenic Places • History • Money • Health • News



cember 2007 • The Senior Voice

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The Senior Voice • Decem

V OICThe Senior

Published Locally Sin

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Dr. William Lambdin, P

ill Lambdin

e South Platte River trail fromGreeley to Julesburg was one of

reat pioneer highways in the

was the route of the famous

land Stage Line and the locationajor Indian wars from 1864 to

Early travelers along the rivermany grave markers, burned-outesteads and other signs of howerous the West was.housands of covered wagonsd along in the dust near thee’s banks. Most of Colorado’sseekers and settlers followed thewhich they described as “a mileand an inch deep.” Although

ow, the Platte’s quicksands could

ow men and horses that tried toin the wrong place.amous people using the trailded Sacajawea’s son Baptistebonneau after the Lewis and

k expedition, explorers Stepheng and John Fremont, BuffaloCody and Kit Carson.he first white men known towas a small group of Spanish

ers led by Pedro de Villasur inThey came up from Santa Fe

e if the French were settling inwas then Spanish territory.stead of Frenchmen, they foundd of Pawnee Indians who killedsur and 45 of his soldiers, andthe remaining few running forlives back to Santa Fe.rench fur trappers were on the

at least by 1739, and theyd it the Riviere Plat (shallow), which gave us the name

e. They also named the Cacheudre River, the settlement of rte near later Fort Collins, themie River in Wyoming and

landmarks.t that time, millions of buffalooamed what the Indians calledGreat Pasture on the plainsnd Greeley. The Arapaho,enne and other tribes followederds, moving with the seasons.he tribes lived free, in harmonynature, and they were proud of 1863, when Colorado’s first

orial governor tried to convinceCheyenne to take up farming,chief replied: “We are not yet

ed that low.”ut things changed.

The few fur trappers who camein the early 1800s didn’t disturb theIndians. They built small outpostslike Fort Vasquez and Fort St. Vrainsouth of Greeley in the 1830s andtraded with the tribes. They oftenmarried Indian women and took upthe Indians’ way of life.

But the thousands of goldseekers and settlers who beganarriving in the 1860s changedthings. They took the tribes’ landsand introduced diseases the Indianscould not withstand. They killedbuffalo by the millions, wiping outthe tribes’ source of food, clothingand way of life.

Between 1864 and 1869, theIndians along the Platte River trailfought back. They burned ranchesand forts, attacked stagecoaches and

did everything they could to regaincontrol of their hunting grounds.

At one point, all but two rancheswere burned along the South Plattetrail. Several times between 1864and 1869 whites could not travel thetrail for fear of attack.

Pioneer George Bent said atnight Indian campfires along theriver glowed for miles. Drumbeatsechoed far across the plains, and thefear of death was everywhere alongthe trail.

But it ended.Cavalry troops eventually

stopped the attacks, and the federalgovernment sent the Indians toreservations. The Battle of SummitSprings in 1869 northeast of Greeleywas the last battle with the plainsIndians in Colorado.

“It was over,” recalled historianNell Brown Propst. “Never againwould a Cheyenne maiden shyly lifther tent flap to admire the plaintivecall of the flute. Not on the GreatBuffalo Pasture.

“Not there the heady triumph of a buffalo surround—the gathering of all the bands for the big summermeeting. Not there the cozy warmthof the lodge at night with the oldstorytellers passing on the heritageof the prairie people...”

The Old West was gone.All that remains to remind us of

that pioneer trail is the river—shiningin the sunlight as it winds across thevast, rolling prairie. The river stretchesfarther than we can see, and fartherback in time than we can know.________________COVER PICTURE: Geese flying at

sunrise east of Mount Meeker, whichis next to Longs Peak near Estes

Park. Taken by Fort Collins profes-

sional photographer Gregory Mayse. See his photos at Trimble

Court Artisans in Fort Collins, at

the Art Center of Estes Park, and at www.gregorymayse.com. ■

Greeley Area Pioneers

Greeley in 1870, with its first irrigation ditch.

Photo Hazel E. Johnson Collection.




indy in Cheyenne

or’s Note: Wyoming historiangaret Laybourn wrote the

wing story years ago.)

eyenne has been visited by pres-dents, kings and dignitaries of all

since its founding, but no otherr received the honor and enthu-

m poured out for Charlesbergh when he landed his Spirit

Louis at the Cheyenne airportptember 2, 1927.n May 21 of that year,

bergh had made aviation historye first person to fly alone across

Atlantic Ocean. To press for the

ncement of aviation, he under-a flight across the U.S.heyenne was then an aviationat the main division point of thecontinental air mail route withof the largest airports in then. Residents felt they were at theront of a soaring aviationtry.

All of Cheyenne was at the airportthat golden September day for the

scheduled 2 pm landing. At exactly1:58 the world’s foremost flyer zoomedinto sight, circled the field severaltimes, landed and taxied to a hanger.

Lindbergh emerged from thehanger ten minutes after touchdown.Although he appeared tired, he wasimpeccably dressed in shirt, tie andleather jacket.

He was whisked into an automo-bile for a parade, and the crowdstampeded for Frontier Park where theformal welcome was held.

When Governor Emerson intro-

duced “Lindy,” the grandstandsexploded with a tremendous ovationthat shook the stands. The young flyerspoke for about 15 minutes, inspiringthe crowd and speaking especially tochildren.

My father, Royal S. Reed, had apassion for airplanes, automobiles andbaseball.

Charles Lindbergh in Cheyenne. Wyoming History Mu

On that day, he and my mother,Kathleen, were driving to Denverfrom Casper in a brand new Model AFord to see the Denver Bears play asemi-pro baseball game.

They arrived in Cheyenne andfound the town deserted. My fatherasked a man what happened, and the

man replied, “Lindy’s at thThey raced out in tim

Spirit of St. Louis touch doIn telling this story ye

father always said it was ahit.” He got to drive a nLindbergh and watch hteam in a winning game ■

By Margaret Laybourn

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06_GHA_002V




cott Burnsncial Writer

an you talk about the pros and

of creating your “Five-Fold”olio vs. investing in a targeted

ment mutual fund?

: The Five-Fold portfolio is onee Couch Potato Building Blockolios. It is constructed with

pensive index funds or ETFsepresents a moderate level of

olio risk that remains constant.he target retirement funds—available from many mutualcompanies—are an example of marketing replaces actual

ght in the financial servicesness. The common feature of e funds is that they suggestng lots of equities when yououng and fewer when you areThis is the conventionalom, but a growing body of rch suggests it is wrong.he assumption of the targetis that a cookie-cutter approach

be appropriate for every person.ct, there are gigantic differenceseen people during their careerst retirement.ow our savings are investeds to reflect the prospects of our

and age. You can’t do thata cookie-cutter target fund.ere are some examples:your 20s, you might be more

ervative with your investmentsuse your career is uncertain andare faced with expensive proj-

paying for education loans,ng married, buying a house, etc.s better to take a bit less risk ininvestments to support your

lity and career uncertainty.n your 30s and 40s youally should be most aggressiveyour investments because youroyment is relatively secure,ve bought a house, and yoube able to take more risk

your 50s you might need toback your risk because you are vulnerable due to possibleges in health, marriage,oyment and career.

your 60s the amount of risk

ake will depend on what retire-resources you have and when

you intend to use them. A workerwho will have a pension, forinstance, should be a more aggres-sive investor than a worker who has

only a 401(k) plan. A worker whoretires without paying off a homemortgage should be more cautiousthan one who has no mortgage.

The cookie-cutter target fundsdon’t take any of this into considera-tion. That’s why I favor theconstruction of portfolios that fityour particular circumstances andrisk tolerance.

I didn’t pull these ideas out of thin air. They are based on the bestresearch available, including work

by Nobel laureate Paul Samuelson.________________Scott Burns is a longtime financial

writer for The Dallas Morning News

and other papers. He does not sellstocks or investments. You can send

questions to: [email protected].■

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How confusing is it for somepeople to choose a Medicare

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“The more I studied the options,the more concerned I became that

making a mistake could have seriousconsequences. It can take days topick a plan that seems like the bestfit. The number of options and theircosts vary by region. In short, I wasdrowning in choices.”

In spite of such difficulties,Medicare officials advise partici-pants to look at several Part Dinsurance companies everyNovember and December, whenparticipants can change plans. For2008, some companies will increase

their Part D premiums by as muchas 70 percent; and only onecompany in Florida will cover brandname drugs for the so-called donuthole. Some others cover genericdrugs for that gap; some do not.

In Colorado, 55 different Part Dinsurance plans are available; in

Wyoming, 52 planspremiums range from$13.90 to a high of $9two states.

That’s a lot of cconsider, say analystsparticipants might nearound. About 20 percenpants will see a $120 a-yin premiums for 2008 if twith their current company. Others will seincrease, according to rethe Kaiser Family Found

It’s not always a gochoose the plan with monthly premium, saHayes with the MedicCenter. “Low premiumhand in hand with payments for each presc

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Choosing a Part D P

By Barbara Read

Imagine winning a sweepstakesyou didn’t enter and then being

told “not to tell anyone!”The Better Business Bureau

serving northern Colorado and east-central Wyoming has received anumber of calls recently fromconsumers inquiring about a sweep-stakes using a phony Fort Collinsaddress.

It turns out the sweepstakes isoriginating out of Toronto, Canada.

The enclosed sweepstakes check for$2,394 looks real and even carriesthe name of a bona fide bank, whichhas issued its own advisory on itsWeb site. Recipients are asked tocash the check and return a portionof the funds to cover taxes andhandling fees.

It’s another phony sweepstakesscam. How do you determine if asweepstakes is phony? In this case,red flags are many.

The check and official notice of

winning comes from NorthAmerican Claims, Inc., 306 West

Link Lane, Ft. Collins, No such company exiCollins.

And people familiarCollins will quickly diwhile there is a Link Lanot a “West” Link Lane; is known as “Fort” CollCollins.

The letter urges the call immediately for furttions on sending a monorder to receive the winto “not tell anyone.”

wrong with this picturaccording to your BBB:

Foreign sweepstlotteries are illegal in States. If you didn’tcan’t be a winner. Redon’t ask you to pay a have to write a checklottery prize, it’s a scam. any money for “processishare any other financition in order to claim a pr

Visit bbb.org or cal

1348 for further informconsumer scams. ■

Sweepstakes Sca

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hey Called Her ‘Doc Susie’ill Lambdin

ey called her “Doc Susie.”She was Colorado’s most

us, pioneer doctor—a beautifulan in a rough mountain townf lumberjacks and miners.

usan Anderson was born inin Indiana and was one of thewomen then admitted to theersity of Michigan medical

ol. After graduation, she cameripple Creek, Colorado, to beher father and brother.hen she moved to Greeley butvered she had tuberculosis and

ded to move to the mountainsee if she could regain her health.he chose the little town of er, a logging village north of is now Winter Park. In 1907

n Susie arrived, Fraser hady as many saloons as houses. Ithad some of the most severers in the United States, locatedarly 9,000 feet elevation and

uently recording the coldesteratures nationwide.usie first took a job as a groceryclerk, not telling anyone she

a licensed doctor. The residentsfound out, however; and she

n practicing medicine from hercabin, with virtually no equip-

and few supplies.er cabin had no electricity or

running water. She didn’t have drugsto ease patients’pain. She said that, if she kept drugs in her cabin, someonewould break in and steal them, andmaybe kill her to get them.

When one man cut his armbadly, Susie told him: “You can

scream and cuss if you want,because that’s the only pain killeryou’re going to get.” She hatedalcoholic drinks and wouldn’t givepatients whiskey for pain.

She also wouldn’t put up withthe crude jokes some men tried toplay on her, like the time a biglumberjack walked into her cabin,unzipped his trousers and said toSusie, “Take a look at this.”

She asked what the problem was,and he answered, “Nothing, but isn’tit a beauty.” Susie replied furiously,

“This examination just cost you$10—payable now!”

She usually charged $1 for anexamination. Or sometimes shereceived a dozen eggs, butter or what-ever the patient could afford to pay.

In the winter, she trudgedthrough deep snow and 30-belowtemperatures to reach some patients,wearing long underwear, long wooldresses and miner’s boots. Insummer, she wore cotton dressesand button-down shoes.

Susie was a very attractive woman,and locals said she had numerous

romantic affairs. But she nevermarried. When in her 80s, she told aninterviewer she could have married “if I hadn’t flown off the handle so muchand said ‘pooh’so many times.”

The local people loved andrespected her, even though she

became eccentric as she grew older.Some said she became a fanaticabout saving things—pieces of string, old magazines, even grape-fruit seeds.

When she was nearly 80, theUniversity of Michigan honored her,and Fraser residents took up a collec-tion to pay for her trip. She continuedto serve the little mountain town allher life. She died at age 90.

A street in Fraser keeps thememory of this pioneer dIt’s named Doc Susie Str

Susan Anderson as a you

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The protection of water infrastruc-ture is a key component of thiscompromise legislation. If we do notrecognize and protect the waterprovided by the Grand Ditch, this billcannot move forward.

Protecting this water is vital topreserving the area’s agriculturalheritage and its future, as well as greenacres and preserved habitat outside of Rocky Mountain National Park.

Specifically, the bill designates249,339 acres in Rocky MountainNational park as wilderness. It guaran-tees that the backcountry of Rocky

Mountain National pamanaged so that future gen

experience the park as we kThe bill also allow

National Park Service to cbeetle and fire mitigatiowell as emergency responensures that wilderness will not affect water rightto the Colorado Big Thomor the Grand River Ditch. allows possible constructiotrail near Grand Lake.

A map showing the arfor wilderness designationon the Internet at htsenate.gov/_ files/RMNPbi________________You can call Senator Waylocal Colorado office in 970.461.3530, or email hwebsite: www.allard.senacan also get more informthe wilderness designatwebsite. ■

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a letter to Ansel Watrous that ispreserved in the Watrous 1911“History of Larimer County,Colorado.”

The only known photo of Janis isone from the old Fort Collins PioneerMuseum, now in the local historysection of the Fort Collins Library. Itshows Janis, in top hat, with Oglala

Sioux chieftains and frienddate that can be assigned is “before 1877” as it wain an 1877 catalog.

Janis died at Pine Ridand was buried there. But lives on in the Cache la Pothat he called “the lovelearth.” ■

Fort Collins’First Settler

or’s Note: Fort Collins historianphine Clements wrote the

wing story years ago.)

sephine Clements

toine Janis, the Frenchman fromt. Charles, Missouri, creditedbeing Larimer County’s first

anent non-Indian settler, staked ain the beautiful Cache la Poudre

y above LaPorte in 1844.e continued to roam the West astrader, scout and interpreter, welln at Fort Laramie, Wyoming.1858 he returned to the Cache

udre Valley with others fromLaramie and founded the town of na. The little town was soond a short distance downstream

enamed LaPorte.n his claim on the river about awest of the old trail that becameverland Trail of the 1860s, Janisrude log cabin. Here he lived

his Sioux wife, whom he called, and their children.he next 20 years saw the routingen Holladay’s Overland Stagethrough LaPorte and the progres-

destruction of the Sioux society,g with Custer’s defeat in 1876.wing the Battle of the Little Big, the Sioux were forced onto

vations.ountain men who had Siouxfaced the traumatic decision of

g to the reservations with theiries or parting from them. Nearlyose to go to the reservations.nis accompanied his family toine Ridge Agency in Dakota

Territory in 1878.In 1937 my grandfather, John H.

Payson, rented the old trading postbuilding in LaPorte. In the old store,he found a letter Antoine Janis hadwritten to E.N. Garbutt in 1879.

Garbutt was then postmaster andstorekeeper in the trading post. Fromthe letter, we must surmise that he wasin charge of Janis’ LaPorte property.Janis wrote:

“Dear Sir, I have just receivedyour letter of July 30. You can sell thehay for what you think is right. I amglad you fixed the fence all right. I amglad to hear you are all getting on

well.“John Palmier, Morrisette andClaymore are all well and wish to beremembered. Palmier has lost a littlegirl since he came here. I have just gotback from a trip up north.

“Shall be glad to hear from you atany time so I can know how you allare. Everything quiet here. Everybodybusy freighting and haying. Yourstruly, Antoine Janis.”

The letter was written in ink, in afine flourishing hand. It was headed“Pine Ridge Agency DT (Dakota

Territory), August 8, 1879.”John Palmier was Janis’ son-in-law,having married one of the Janis daugh-ters. Palmier had a place in PleasantValley. The little girl “lost” was Janis’granddaughter. Morrisette andClaymore were other French settlers of LaPorte who had gone with the Siouxfamilies to Pine Ridge.

Other letters from Janis were oncein the possession of Larimer Countyresidents. In March, 1883, Janis wrote

1525 Riverside, Suite-BFort Collins

Antoine Janis, seated left in tuxedo and top hat.

Colorado Historical Society.

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ecember 2007 • The Senior Voice

Questions About Estate Planninon Rutzl Correspondent

o I have to pay taxes on gifts

make?

. Yes, giving is a taxable event.tax burden is on the giver, not

eceiver. Thus as a general rule,eceiver does not have to includeift’s value as income. The giverany tax liability.

ut there are exceptions. Onese can give any amount to thespouse tax free.ut for gifts to anyone elseuding children), the first

000 will not be taxed and thedoes not have to file a gift tax

n to report any such transfers.he $12,000 can be given to any

ber of people with no limit as tonumber of recipients or theber of years that the gifts aree, as long as in any calendarnot more than $12,000 of valuensferred to each person.is possible to give a non-

se tax free more than $12,000

of value in any particular year, but atax return must be filed deductingthe excess over $12,000 from the $1million lifetime exemption that eachgiver has. Unlike the $12,000exemption, there is no restriction onthe amount given to an individual as

long as no more then the cumulativeamount of $1 million is given awayin the giver’s lifetime.

For example, as long as a gift taxreturn is filed, it is possible to giveaway $1 million tax free to oneperson immediately. But of coursethis gifting possibility would there-after be exhausted.

If a return is not filed, gift tax isdue. Then the giver would berequired to pay to both the FederalGovernment and the State of

Colorado a total amount of approxi-mately 43% of the value of the giftin excess of $12,000.

The major disadvantage in usingthis exemption is that, to the extentthat the $1 million exemption isused for gifting, then the estate taxexemption (currently $2 million)

will be diminished accordingly, thusreducing the amount that can be lefttax free at death.

In theory, any transfer of valuewould need to be added together indetermining whether the $12,000 taxexempt threshold has been exceeded.

For instance, the cost of familymeals, birthday presents, ticketsgiven so people can come to thegiver, even the $5 to each grandchild,etc., along with things like paying for

another’s college tuitidues, etc., would need tinto account in order to detotal gifting. If all of thesmore than $12,000 for a year, then there is a gift ta________________

Attorney Ron Rutz will ations sent to 2625 Redw

Suite 180, Fort Collins, email [email protected]

223-8388. ■

In 2007 over 4 million participants inthe Medicare Part D drug program

reached the coverage gap that requiresthem to pay all of their drug costs,

according to research from WoltersKluwer.

Many of them switched to genericdrugs, different drugs, or just stoppedtaking their medicines. The coveragegap for 2008 begins when a partici-pant’s drug costs reach $2,510. Fromthen until costs go over $5,726, a

participant must pay 100the drug costs ($3,216).

Beyond $5,726, Medipays 95 percent of drug

gap was intended to reduthe Medicare program anparticipants to be aware of

It has prompted mcheaper generic drugs. Bua problem for those whoseveral expensive, brand-They often reach the gap q

Coverage Gap in Part D P

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he initially titled “Lil’ People.” Thenewspaper syndicate changed the titleto “Peanuts.”

Schulz was a hardworking man.He did not employ the usual assistantsother cartoonists used, preferring todo all the work himself, including themany books and TV shows.

He was the fourth most popularAmerican author of the 20th century,even ahead of John Steinbeck, saysMichaelis. His numerous marketingproducts earned over $1 billion a yearand personally earned him over $1billion during his lifetime.

He lived briefly in ColoradoSprings but spent most of his adult lifein Santa Rosa, California. He wasmarried twice and had five childrenwith his first wife. He played hockey,golf and tennis. And he had an affairwith a much younger woman—whorefused to marry him—beforemarrying his second wife.

The Peanuts character Lucy wasbased on his fist wife, who could be abossy person, said biographerMichaelis. The character CharlieBrown was based on Schulz himself,said family and friends.

ggy Hunt

e Peanuts comic strip beganppearing in newspapers in 1950later made creator Charlesz a very wealthy man.

chulz died in 2000 at age 78 afterucing Peanuts for nearly 50s. Writer David Michaelistly published the first extensiveaphy of him titled “Schulz anduts.” It’s an interesting book thatppeal to many Peanuts fans, andeals the various sides of Schulz’snality and life.e was born in Minneapolis,

nesota, in 1922, the son of ar. In World War II, he served aschine gun squad leader. After thehe took a correspondence courset and began doing freelanceings and cartoons for variouscations, including the Saturdaying Post.chulz knew from an early agehe wanted to be a cartoonist. Hequiet and reserved; workingand putting his own ideas on a

as suited him. Finally, newspa-began buying his comic strip that

Schulz and Peanuts: a BiographOther Peanuts characters were

based on people Schulz knew.Biographer Michaelis said he wasusually very kind and shy, but some-what egotistical; and at times he couldbe difficult to live with.

Apparently Schulz had the sensi-tivity of an artist but also the explosivepersonality that sometimes accompa-nies creative genius. An unclenicknamed him “Sparky,” whichfriends and family always called him.

He received many hohis life plus the CongresMedal, the highest civigiven by Congress, awafter his death.

Biographer Michaelis was not the “simple guyhimself. “How could somup with a complex comic complex man?”

The book “Schulz andpublished by Harper Colli

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By Michael Hollis

Social Security Office, Greeley

If you’re a Medicare beneficiary who

has not enrolled in the new Medicare

Prescription Drug Program, you maydo so during the open season, which

began November 15 and runs through

December 31.

If you have limited income and

resources, you also may qualify for

help paying the premiums, deductibles

and co-payments for Part D. This

extra help—available through Social

Security—can pay part of your

monthly premiums, annual deductibles

and prescription co-payments. It could

be worth more than $3,600 per year.

To qualify for the extra help, youmust be receiving Medicare and have

annual income limited to $15,315 for

an individual or $20,535 for a married

couple living together.

Even if your annual income is

higher, you still may be able to get

some help with monthly premiums,

annual deductibles and prescription co-

payments. Some examples where

income may be higher include if you or

your spouse support other family

members who live with you and have

earnings from work; or live in Alaska

or Hawaii; and have limited resources.

Resources include such things as bank

accounts, stocks and bonds. We do not

count your house and car as resources.

Social Security has an easy-to-use

online application that anyone can

complete at www.socialsecurity.gov.

To apply by phone or get an

application, call Social Security at 1-

800-772-1213 (TTY 1-80

and ask for the Applicati

with Medicare Prescriptio

Costs (SSA-1020). Or

nearest Social Security off

To learn more about thprescription drug p

special enrollment per

www.socialsecurity.gov. ■

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vents and Exhibitsday Gift

Weld County seniors can make ahone call to anywhere in the U.S.December 10 to 14, 9 am toat the Senior Resource Services

e at 1802 16th Street, #1, iney. No appointment necessary.holiday service is sponsored byor Resource Services and New

ier Bank, according to DeeAnnes. For information, call 352-in Greeley.

Feather Lakes Library:

oing events: Knit & Stitch group;rs’group; watercolor society.cember 1, Santa visit at library,m to 3 pm; plus holiday chil-s stories and live music.cember 8, Dr. Janelle O’Boyleses children’s projects., 2-3:30 pm.ember 21, Christmas story hour

rafts for children, 10:30-11:30 am.

cember 28, free movie “Star, the Phantom Menace,” 2 pm.cember 29, free movie, “TheClaus,” 2 pm.

uary, travel photography exhibitindy Metsker in Ruth’s Artry.e library is seeking volunteers forprograms in 2008. For informa-

tion on that and events, call SarahMyers at 881-2664.

Historical Calendar

You can buy the WyomingHistorical Society’s 2008 calendar byemailing [email protected],or call 307-635-4881. It featurespictures of Wyoming women from

pioneer days to the present. Wyomingwas the first state in the U.S. to givewomen the right to vote, and somepictures celebrate that.

Greeley Libraries:

• December 7, movie and discussion,“Sketches of Frank Gehry,” FarrLibrary, 6:30 pm.• December 10, Centennial ParkEvening Book Club, Centennial ParkLibrary, 6:30 pm.• December 18, Farr Afternoon BookClub, Farr Library, 1:30 pm.

• December 20, Lunch Bunch,mystery novels discussion, CentennialPark Library, 11:30 am.• December 19, Farr Evening BookClub, 6:30 pm.• January 12, Erie Library grandopening, 10 am to 3 pm.

For information on events, callKellie Johnson at 506-8560. ■

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Pioneer House inWindsor Still Stands

eve Fancy

e oldest building in Windsor,olorado, is a small, two-room

den building that was operated

n inn, saloon, and post officeg the Overland Trail linkingey and Fort Collins.was the only house for miles

nd when it was built in 1873 byHilton, nine years before theof Windsor was established.

rip by wagon between GreeleyFort Collins took all day in thes, and the Halfway House atnville, as it was called, becamepular stopping point half-wayeen the two towns.

hn Hilton, a Civil War veteranWisconsin who had been shotth legs and lost all of his teethg the war because of scurvy,

not legally own the land onh he built the Halfway House.nning in November 1875, theacre parcel that later became

the Jacoby Farm was homesteadedby Julius Weller, who owned it for13 years, and the place becameknown as Weller’s.

Julius Weller died in 1888, and

his son Fred traded the 160-acrefarm to his friend and businesspartner Robert S. Dickey.

Dickey rented out the differentfarm parcels to various immigrantfamilies, including the Jacobys.Jacob Henry “Old Jake” Jacoby, Sr.,immigrated to Windsor in 1910 withhis wife Mary Katherine and hisinfant son Jacob Jr. (called YoungJake) from the village of Doenhof inthe Volga region of Russia. Heworked for a time at the Great

Western Sugar Company inWindsor, as did many otherGermans from Russia.

After R. S. Dickey’s death, hisdaughter Gladys and his grandsonsgave the farm to the Jacoby familyin gratitude for their many years of friendship and assistance. Norman

E. Jacoby, Jake Jacoby’s son, raisedsugar beets and other crops on the160-acre parcel where the HalfwayHouse still stands.

Norman died in 1995, and hiswidow, Margaret Jacoby Babcock,has a life estate on the remainingtwo-acre Jacoby Farm propertywhere the Halfway House and alater farmhouse stand. The farm-house and other buildings willeventually become a cultural and

historical park where thWindsor will tell the stoAgricultural Windsor.”________________

The Windsor Library has provides details and phabout the Halfway Hou

four families who have The book is titled “Winds

Building: the 1873 Halfand the Four Families

There,” by Steven G. Fan

Halfway House on the Overland Trail between

Greeley and Ft. Collins.

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. and Humana Insurance Company are not affiliates of State Farm. A Medicare approved Prescription Drug Plan available to anyoneitled to Part A and/or enrolled in Part B of Medicare through age or disability. Copayment, service area, and benefit limitations may

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“The entire staff at Kirk Eye Center is socaring. I have become friends with everyone here.”

— Claude Earl Kissack Berthoud

Earl Kissack doesn’t let his struggle with diabetes keep him fromexperiencing life. His home in rural Berthoud allows him to

enjoy gardening, farming and working with his horses. Making surethat his eye health is taken care of is an essential and regular process.

Another eye doctor who wasn’t experienced to handle the problemscaused by diabetes referred Earl to Dr. Kirk. Once a month Earlcomes in to have his eyes checked. He also meets with anotherspecialist who comes to the Kirk Eye Center to help keep Earl’seyesight stabilized.

“Dr. Kirk really takes time to get to the bottom of any problems that I

am having. He has done several laser surgeries for me, and takes the time to make sure that I have the best eyesight that I can. The staff calls to check on me regularly. The quality of treatment, the commitment tooptical health and the respect for patients at Kirk Eye Center is absolutely the BEST!”

If you’d like to see your future more clearly choose Kirk Eye Centeras your eye care provider. You’ll be glad you did.

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r e a t m e n t f o r D i a b e t i c R e t i n o p a t h y

ACROSS1. Weld County town founded by the Union

Colony in 18767. EMT’s ski ll

9. Avalanche goalie who helped team win twoStanley Cup trophies

10. Small Yuma County site between Wray andBurlington

12. Colorado shade tree whose varieties includeRaywood, Marshall’s Seedless and AutumnPurple

15. Vigoda or Fortas16. Theda Bara, for one17. Hiking and biking locale’ near Arches and

Canyonlands National Parks in eastern Utah19. Seasonal or replacement workers, slangily 20. Quaff for Marcello21. CSI evidence24. Baseball family name25. Popular older hotel in Aspen26. “Mop ‘n ___ (Popular floor cleaner and wax)28. “No” in Dresden29. Prefix for “cycle” and “sex”

30. Eric who hit the first home run in Rockies’history 32. At no time33. Ump’s call34. Group of 8 singers or musicians36. Name of a river, town and county in the cen-

tral mountains38. Friendly beginning?39. New Belgium Brewery of Ft. Collins trade-

mark brew: Fat ____42. Hat, slangily 43. Partner of rescue44. Cross letters?46. Bering or Caspian47. Musical composition often numbered48. ___ Field, home of the Rockies50. Weld County town named for homesteader

who warned a train heading for a burningbridge

51. Basillica section

52. Type of hat or coat

54. Half a fly?55. Colorado’s state tree is a blue on56. Output at Leadville or Central C57. Electronics company taken over

1986. It’s slogan had been “ThName in Electronics”

58. Children’s toy and game fad beginvolving trading cards, stickers agames

DOWN1. Mesa County site of the first sug

ry in Colorado in 18992. With #9 across, a Scottish highw

drink made with Scotch whiskey3. Center of a hurricane4. Larimer County community wh

name from the partnership of AdLivernash and Stephen Moore, wcabin as headquarters for their prventures

5. A mild cheese produced in a roucoated with a red wax

6. River which runs through Steam

7. Berthoud neighbor which featurDay Adventist school

8. Transport for some small CSU s11. Record types first produced by #

(abbr.)13. What laundry soap bubbles turn

ing to animated ads14. Vietnam’s capital18. “It wa s___ ___ ___!” (Couldn22. Nuggets “one-named” star23. Redford film of 1992 which wo

Best Cinematography: ___ ___ _It”

26. Small settlement along Hwy. 14 Cameron Pass

27. Guitar forerunner30. Berra of baseball fame31. Waterway going through town o35. “___ Homo”37. It’s home to Adams State Colleg40. Data entered into a computer41. Former Disney CEO, now inter

CNBC: Michael ___45. Last phase of a battle48. What Herbie was of Disney lore49. Drug store chain52. Center for Broncos, ___ Nalen53. Gold, to Jose’\

ANSWERS

Colorado

Crosswords

are created ex for The Voice

Donovan, who lives in Lo

Colorado CrossworBy Tony Donovan




Christmas Goose

ears past, the goose was the

orite food served at holidayers, a tradition in England andold world countries.n Saint Martins Day in France,ed goose is the traditional

u. For the German yule feast,Michaelmas, goose is served.also served for the Jewishkkah.America, Thomas Jefferson’sbook had a recipe for roasted

e. Julia Child also had a goode for the big bird.

ccording to old recipes, it tookt two hours to bake an eight-d goose. It was usually stuffedsage and bread. In England it wasd with wassail and plum pudding.arly American settlers raisedgeese than they did chickens.

ay in northern Colorado, we

have wild geese that do not migrate.

A man named Gurney Crawfordwas behind the resident goose popu-lation in Fort Collins. In 1957 heand the state wildlife departmentbegan working to start the flocks wenow have.

Raising geese is more important inEurope than in America, especially inGermany and France. Their domesticbirds are larger than wild geese.

The meat and eggs are preparedin many ways. A pate called foirgras is made from the livers of

fattened geese that are force-fed.Goose grease with turpentineapplied to a person’s chest was anold-fashioned remedy for colds andthe croup.

And the bird became famous asthe subject of Aesop’s fable, “TheGoose That Laid the Golden Egg.” ■

By Arlene

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?

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Questions About Retiremencott Burnsncial Writer

y wife and I are 59 and about to

. We have a portfolio of $2.1

on. We currently own a water-

lake house that is worth about

000 with no mortgage, a housey mother worth about $75,000

no mortgage, and our main resi-

e worth about $300,000 with a

000 mortgage.

e have found a new house close

r daughter and her husband,

d at $650,000. Our question:

ld we pay cash for the new

? Or should we take a mortgage

work from the interest on the $2.1

n?

ur financial adviser wants us to

take the mortgage, but we are very

unsure how we should go. He says we

can earn 10 percent, pay the mortgage

and still have money to use.

A: If the decision is between

borrowing or paying cash, the more

prudent decision is to pay cash. I’ll

explain why in a minute.But the real decision is bigger than

that. It’s whether you should make

this change at all or whether you are

willing to sell your lake house along

with your primary residence and

consolidate into a more expensive

house close to your daughter.

You can understand by examining

the cash flow changes.In moving to a more expensive

house you’ll be increasing your mort-

gage from $100,000 to $450,000. At

current jumbo rates, that would cost

about $2,883 a month, or about

$34,595 a year. In addition, you’d

have higher expenses for real estate

taxes, insurance and operating

expenses. You’re likely to find your-

self “house poor.”

Your investment portfolio of $2.1million, meanwhile, can sustain a safe

withdrawal rate of 4 percent. Maybe 5

percent. Call it $90,000 a year. If you

withdraw at a higher rate, you have a

significant chance of putting yourself

in a downward spiral if there is a

significant market decline.

So if you withdraw at a safe 4

percent rate, the 7.7 percent a year

constant payment on the mortgage

(principal and interest) will cut deeply

into the income you have available for

other spending.

If you withdraw at a

rate, at least for the

payments, there is a ma

your portfolio won’t las

the mortgage.

Your adviser is corre

says that your investments10 percent a year. But yo

to be 100 percent invested

to do that; and that mean

Meanwhile, you will have

to making 360 monthly

payments, rain or shine,

market. That loads the d

you when you are retired.

A more prudent plan

sell the lake house and y

house for gross proceed

$650,000 and buy the $65

near your daughter.

Just remember that move, but daughters some

________________Scott Burns is a longtim

writer for the Dallas Mo

and other papers. You can

tions to: [email protected]

Rural ArHealth CImprov

To improve rural medi

the Federal Comm

Commission announc

provide $417 million i

create high-speed intern

6,000 hospitals and medic

in rural areas.

The high-speed lines wi

patients and doctors to ga

information from specialis

providers in urban regions.as videos of procedures, tes

other things that could not

slow, dialup lines can be se

speed lines. It will also al

and hospitals with expensiv

not available in rural area

chronically ill patients.

FCC chairman Kevin

“Not only will a telehea

connect doctors to patient

never had access to medic

but they can have acces

resources on the other country.” ■




to Baggs, the line went to stationswith colorful names like Perkins’Dinner, Muddy Station, and PeachOrchard Flats.

The Old West is gone now. But if you drive the back roads betweenRawlins and Baggs, you will see thesame vast expanse of plains pioneers

traveled—a high, lonescountry with a silent, rugJust don’t get stranded oustorm.________________You can read The Senior

each month at www.thesen■

arly West Near Rawlins, Wyominill Lambdin

She wore high-heeled shoes andoveralls—and she was mean asout!”

hat’s how pioneers described aan who lived at the Muddy

coach station between Rawlinsaggs, Wyoming, after the station

d in the late 1800s.he woman, who went by theof Jerrie Snodgrass, was a lonetute in the middle of nowhere—ch a remote place that settlersm heard birds sing, only thehowling incessantly across the

e.er most frequent customer wasCorlett, for whom the little

ge of Dad was named. It’s noer a village, only a few ranch

ngs; but it still appears on mapsof Baggs.rrie Snodgrass not only took hermers’ money, she also stole their

and horses. They did nothingit because “she had too much

em,” said local people.aggs is one of the oldest towns inming and, because of its remoteion, was a hangout for variousws. Some early residents saidgang rode in one day, gotred up and shot up the place. Theday, they sobered up and paid foramages.hat was probably true. Outlawsto remain on good terms withpeople, some of whom madey supplying fresh horses to thets when they were running fromw.awlins resident Peggy Huntmbered such stories and saidprompted the high school sportss to name themselves theins Outlaws.aggs was named for the first

esteader in the area, Georges. He arrived in the 1870s andwith his wife, Maggie. Actually,

was probably his common-lawsaid residents—and she was

than George could handle.aggie had a roving eye foroys who worked on their ranchventually ran off with a youngeaded wrangler. That was afternd George sold the ranch and

up.aggie got half of the money andoff for California with the red-

When the money was gone, soe.

The stage line from Rawlins toBaggs, Slater and other pioneercommunities in southern Wyomingwas very busy. Stagecoaches ran theroute daily, as did freight wagons.Communities in northwesternColorado also depended on servicefrom the line because Rawlins was atranscontinental railroad station fromwhich supplies had to be obtained.

Some stagecoach drivers werepaid nearly $100 a month, a highwage in those days; and they earnedit. They faced death from Indians andfreezing blizzards; they had to findtheir way through blinding duststorms, rain, hail and all the thingsnature could throw at them in thewide open spaces of Wyoming.

The stage driver was an absolutemaster, like the captain of a ship, andpassengers had to do what he said.When they didn’t, there were conse-quences.

One driver told passengers to getout and help push the stage through adeep mud hole. They refused. He

unhitched the horses and rode one tothe next station, leading the otherhorses and leaving the passengersstranded for some time.

Usually the drivers were seasonedfrontiersmen and overcame the obsta-cles, but not always. One drivercouldn’t see where he was going on adark night and drove the stage into alake, drowning some of the horses andscaring the passengers half to death.

Today, Twenty-Mile Road goingsouth of Rawlins follows the old stageroad much of the way to a spot on the

map called Sulphur Springs, wherethere was a stage station. From there

Looking northwest toward the Rawlins-Baggs stage route from the continental divide

west of Saratoga, Wyoming. Senior Voice photo.

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Laughter Is Sti the Best MediciApreacher asked for volunteers

to sell bibles door-to-door sothe church could make some

money.Jack, Bill and Ike volunteered.

The preacher knew that Jack andBill worked as salesmen; so hefigured they would succeed. ButIke was a farmer and had a speechimpediment; so the preacher haddoubts about him.

They met with the preacher aweek later, and Jack said he sold20 bibles at $10 each, making$200 for the church. Bill sold 30for $300. Ike said, “I s-s-s-sold oneh-h-h-hundred.”

“What!” said the preacher.“How in the world did you sell ahundred?”

“I d-d-don’t know. I just said w-w-would you like to b-b-buy thisbible, or do you w-w-want me to s-s-stand here and r-r-read it toyou?”

A b lo nd e w en t i nt o aStarbuck’s and ordered a cup of

coffee. There was a peel-and-winsticker on her cup. She peeled itoff and began screaming, “I’vewon a motorhome! I’ve won amotorhome!”

A waitress told her, “You can’twin a motorhome. The biggestprize is a free lunch.”

“But I’ve won a motorhome!”insisted the blonde. “It says righthere, ‘Winabagel.’”

A 7 year-old girl ran up to her

grandfather, who was tinkering inhis workshop, and confronted him

with the dreaded questis sex?”

He was surprised

such a question at hethought if she’s old enoshe’s old enough to geanswer. He proceeded all the variations of huality, careful to impresall the joys and responsi

When he finished, thstood frozen, as thougthe spot, and looked aher eyes wide in amazem

Seeing she was ovehe asked what caused curiosity.

She replied, “Grandinner will be ready in secs.”

A little guy was sittistaring at his drink wbiker sat down nexgrabbed his drink anddown.

The little guy startand the biker said, ”H

was just giving you a hdidn’t think you’d cry.”“This is the worst

life,” said the little guydo anything right. I ovwas late to an importanso my boss fired me. Wto the parking lot, I fouwas stolen and I don't hance. I left my wallet itook home; then my dSo I came to this barwork up the courage to

life – and then you showdrank the damn poison."

• Ato-do list is helpful, but a don’t-do list is also needed.

• Success comes from shifting from wishbone to backbone.

• When someone says they spent $300 for groceries, are they b

complaining? ■

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We wish you the gift of faith, the blessing of hopeand peace during this holiday season and always.

The Goes Family and Staff

Mommy and MeMommy and Me

Family Fitness and Massage TherapyFamily Fitness and Massage Therapy

Focus onFocus on!!FamilyFamily!!FutureFuture

Creating long lasting bondsCreating long lasting bonds

!!ParentsParents!!GrandparentsGrandparents

!!SiblingsSiblings!!CaregiversCaregivers

Connecting with our children for our health and theirsConnecting with our children for our health and theirs

Connection through Massage now for your childís future

ïGroup

Classes

Stimulate the mind/body connection through Fitness/PilatesStimulate the mind/body connection through Fitness/Pilates

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Bootcamp

ïGift certificates available-Call for Holiday packages

Niki Panetti,CMT Christy Theil, ACSM Fitness InstructorKacey Mcoig, AFFA Certified Trainer

[email protected]

ByGaylord

Morrison

MORRISON’SMEDITATIONS






Remembering theSinging Cowboys

ill Lambdin

ene Autry and Roy Rogers were

among the biggest stars in

ywood during the 1940s ands.

ogers recalled, “Years ago,

n we were both at Republic

ures, the studio concocted a

city story that we were always

ng. But the truth is we were

petitors, not adversaries. We

always good friends.”

utry was credited with bringing

inging cowboy to the movies,

wing the flashy costumes and

of a non-singing predecessor,

Mix. Autry was the Western

office king in the early 1940s,

ing to Rogers only after Autry

d for five years in World War

utry was among the biggest

office attractions along with

cer Tracy, Clark Gable, Bob

, Gary Cooper, James Cagney,

Abbott and Lou Costello.

rs followed Autry in making

for Republic Pictures and was

op box-office draw in Westerns

2 years.

ater Autry’s “Melody Ranch

ter” featured 65 Autry films

1935 to 1953 on the Nashville

e Network. “Happy Trails

ter” revived some of the 91

made by Rogers beginning in

eople later knew Rogers as the

e man for a hamburger fast-

chain. Autry later owned the

California Angels baseball team.

Though some laugh at the idea of

singing cowboys, Autry and Rogers

made an impact not only at the

movies but also in music.Autry was born Orvon Gene

Autry at Tioga, Texas, in 1907. He

made the first phonograph record of

cowboy songs in 1929. He recorded

635 songs, including more than 200

that he wrote, and he sold over 40

million records.

In 1970 Autry was elected to

Nashville’s Songwriters Hall of

Fame. His “Rudolph the Red Nosed

Reindeer,” which he first thought

was silly, sold 25 million records

and ranked as the second best-

selling record ever, behind “White

Christmas.”

Rogers, born Leonard Sly in

1911 at Cincinnati, introduced two

film songs that became classics:

“Don’t Fence Me In” and “Jingle,

Jangle, Jingle.” In most of his films,

he appeared with the singing

cowboy group, The Sons of the

Pioneers, which he founded. He and

his wife, Dale Evans, recorded over

400 songs.

Autry later divided his time

between serving as chairman of the

board of the Angels baseball team

and directing construction of the

Gene Autry Western Heritage

Museum in Los Angeles. He also

owned four radio stations, four

music publishing companies, a

ranch in California and the Gene

Autry Hotel in Palm Springs.

Rogers presided over the opening

of Roy Rogers fast-food outlets. His

comic books and strips were syndi-

cated worldwide. He and Dale

Evans broke dozens of box-office

records at rodeos and state fairs

nationwide.

Commenting on the early

cowboy films, Rogers said they

were basically wholesome entertain-

ment and are still worthwhile for

children. “Kids every

horses and animals,” he

films focused a lot on ani

Although the films ro

cowboys, they conta

violence than many mod

for children. They also

cut distinctions betwee

wrong that children can

said Rogers. ■

Gene Autry singing on his horse Champion.

Roy Rogers kissing his horse Trigger.




More on Medicare Part Dere are some things to considerwhen shopping for a MedicareD drug plan, say consumer

cates:ake sure a plan covers theyou need. Some plans require

to get an affidavit from youror and plea for a drug. Some

the quantity of pills you canSome require you to try aper drug and prove it doesn’t

before allowing the one youRead the fine print.

onsider co-payments and other, not just the premium. A low

mium might mean high co-ments, cost sharing and othernses you don’t want. Be surean works at your pharmacy.ee what coverage the plans for the so-called donut hole

erage gap between $2,400 and0). Many people reach this gap

have to pay for 100 percent of drugs until their costs go over

50 and Plan D’s catastrophicage kicks in. Some plans coverap; some do not.here are at least 50 different plans

available in Colorado and Wyoming.Get help in choosing the one that’sright for you from local senior centersand other groups. They have peoplewho can use computers efficiently tofind the plan right for you.

Here are some helpful websitesand information sources:• Medicare’s website (Medicare.gov)offers the most comprehensive help.You can enter the drugs you take andthen see the amount each Part D plancharges for premiums, co-paymentsand deductibles.• BenefitsCheckup.org website fromthe National Council on Aging helpsyou determine if you’re eligible forgovernment subsidies that will payfor your drugs. The site also helpsyou find a cost effective drug plan.• The Medicare Rights Center

website lets you compare drug plansavailable at your local pharmacy.This group also provides free infor-mation and counseling on allMedicare issues.• Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugsincludes affordable treatment alter-natives. ■

Longs Peak Named for RelativeThanks for the Longs Peak article.

I’ve always considered Longs Peak tobe “my” mountain because it wasdiscovered by and named for my great,great, great grandfather, Col. StephenHarriman Long.

Col. Long also was the fist personto take a steamship up the MississippiRiver. That ship had a dragon’s headbow, which expelled steam and scaredthe Indians.

Thanks again for the article. I willbe keeping it among my Longs books.

Lu Hart Cheyenne

Michelangelo Book SigningAs a long-time Senior Voice fan, I

thought your readers would like toknow about a book-signing eventDecember 13 at 7 pm. I will be

signing books at The Reader’s CoveBookstore, 1001 East Harmony (byAce Hardware).The title is“Michelangelo: In the Footsteps of theMaster.”

The book is the fruit of two andone-half years of research and writingthat summarizes the artist’s life and

describes where to find hiin Italy. It is designed for Italy, Renaissance fans, stuhistory buff and arm-chaiMaps and pictures are inclbook as well as an extensiraphy and index. My

226-5493.Charles W

F

Oral History Project“Here Today, Gone T

Wyoming’s Boom and Buis the Wyoming State Society’s theme for its aHistory Project. Anyone inparticipating in the 2008 AHistory Project can obtain iby contacting Cindy Brow777-7036 or via [email protected].

Collections will be mathe American Heritage CenWyoming State Archivmembers of the committeHouze, Cody; BarbaraEvanston; and Laura Lake,

CiWyoming Historical

Colorado has had a 65% increasen residents over age 50 in the past

even years — the largest increasen the nation. (U.S. Census Bureau)

The Senior Voice has servedall of Northern Colorado

and Southern Wyoming since 1980.The largest senior publication in the area.

Fort Collins/Greeley (970) 229-9204 • Loveland/Estes Park (970) 482-8344

The BoomersHave Arrived!

LettersTo The Senior V

1471 Front 9 Dr

Fort Collins, CO

E-MAIL: thevoice




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The Senior Voice - December 2007