• Handle, Handle, who got your handle?
• 'Friends of 50 Plus Home Page' changes
• 50 PLUS Logo Contest -- April deadline
• Friends of 50 Plus Master List of Members
• Grief counseling support group
• Alzheimer's and related dementias support group
• Regional Coordinators
• Zone Coordinators
• email Cookbook - a dream becomes realty
• Our very own "Cyber-Pastor"
• Members suggestions
• Mother nature at her worst - a members real story

FRIENDS OF 50 PLUS HOME PAGE
Thanks to the talents and efforts of Bill Dawes, our Home Pages continue to excel, and new items are being added. More on that in other sections of this letter. If you have not done so yet, each of you really needs to "bookmark" our Home Pages since you will be making frequent trips there in the future. For instance, as each of you will be informed by email, you will have to visit them to print out a copy of this letter for your files.
Bill Dawes is in the process of installing a counter and Net Minder an our Home Pages. The latter will let you list your email address for any page you would like to receive email notification for whenever a new item is added or a change is made. You will then be able to receive email notice when a new letter is added, or if you like a particular chapter of our cookbook you can receive email notice when new recipes are added to that chapter. I think you will like this feature once you have used it. And it sure will save lots of wear and tear (and time) on me. I do appreciate Bill adding this new feature for us. Thanks again Bill. You have done and are doing a fantastic job for us.
Our Home Page URL is shown below:
http://www.colorpro.com/-Color/50plus

FRIENDS OF 50 PLUS LOGO CONTEST
To each of you who are artistically inclined, now is the time to submit a Friends of 50 Plus Logo for consideration in our ongoing contest. The deadline for submissions is April 15, 1996. Don't miss out on this. Here is a chance to see your art work displayed in our Home Pages.
Bill Dawes suggests that you attempt to send him submissions either as JPG's or GIF's to "logo_AT_colorpro-com". If you use Eudora, you may attach your artwork to a message. Bill prefers files of 15K or less. A smaller version of 5K or so would be nice for use on non-title pages. Thanks to all of you in advance and don't miss this one.

FRIENDS OF 50 PLUS MASTER LIST OF MEMBERS
As soon as I have received all the email on changes to handles I will prepare an updated Master List of Members. At the end of that listing I will also try (no promises) to provide a listing showing old vs. new handles for each member. Each of you can help me by getting your email in to me as soon an possible. Thanks again.

GRIEF COUNSELING SUPPORT GROUP
The leaders of this group are BOOBERT and BELLE STAR. Any Friends of 50 Plus who would like to join this group please contact them. If you are aware of anyone that members of this group could assist, please contact them. Thanks.

ALZHEIMER'S AND RELATED DEMENTIAS SUPPORT GROUP
We now have an Alzheimer's and Related Dementias support group. This should be welcome news to the many of you who have shown an interest in this type group.
Jeanne in Juneau is the leader of this group. All of our members who are interested in this group please contact Jeanne.
This will be a very special group to many of our Friends of 50 Plus and Jeanne in a very special and caring person. Do not hesitate to contact her if you have an interest in this group. Thanks to each of you.

REGIONAL COORDINATORS -- USA
A listing of the Regions within the USA is shown below. If no Coordinator is listed by a Region it means we are still searching for volunteers for that Region. Now is the time to volunteer.

REGION          COORDINATOR

• Alaska
• Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi
• Arizona, Nevada, Utah -- BOOBERT
• Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas -- LADYNET
• California (Southern) -- GOOD GIRL
• California (northern part)
• California (central part)
• Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska -- GRANNY
• Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont -- EMMA
• Delaware, Maryland
• District of Columbia
• Hawaii
• Idaho, Oregon, Washington -- CAROL
• Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Tennessee -- E/T
• Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin -- JAYCEE
• New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania -- YANKEE PLUMBER
• Montana, Wyoming -- CAROLYN
• North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia

REGIONAL COORDINATORS          CANADIAN PROVINCES

• Alberta
• British Columbia
• Manitoba
• New Brunswick
• New Foundland
• Northwest Territories
• Nova Scotia
• Ontario -- DON
• Quebec
• Saskatchewan
• Yukon

COORDINATORS          INTERNATIONAL

• Australia -- TUBBY IN OZ
• United Kingdom -- BRIAN
• Sweden -- LOPPAN

ZONE COORDINATORS          USA

• Dallas/Ft. Worth -- BELLE STAR
• New Jersey -- NEWT
• New York -- ARIELLE
• Montana (Western Area) -- JUDY IN MONTANA
• Wisconsin -- TERRY

1. Hors d'oeuvres - Sylvia
2. Soups - Good Girl
3. Fish - Sylvia
4. Meat & Game - Good Girl
5. Poultry - Irene in Paris, TX
6. Vegetables - Carole in Upstate NY
7. Salads - Irene in Paris, TX
8. Sauces - Sylvia
9. Pasta and Rice - Irene in Paris, TX
10. Eggs & Cheese - Carole in Upstate NY
11. Pies & Pastries - Carole in Calif.
12. Miscellaneous Desserts - Carol in Wash.
13. Cold and Frozen Deserts - Carol
14. Cakes & Frostings -- Jane
15. Breads/Biscuits/Scones - Jennifer
16. Cookies & Sweets [inc all candies except chocolate] -- Carole
17. Drinks and Beverages - Sylvia
18. Light and Healthy (Low-Fat) - Carolyn
19. Quick Meals (5 minutes or less) - Irene in Paris, TX
20. International Dishes - Sylvia
21. Just Chocolate - Shelley

OUR VERY OWN "CYBER-PASTOR"
It may be comforting for some of you to know that we now have our very own Cyber-Pastor. His handle in "Charlie". Those of you who have chatted with Charlie know what a great guy he is and what a terrific sense of humor he brings with him. In case you didn't know, Charlie is watching over us from the shores of beautiful Lake Huron in Minnesota.

MEMBERS SUGGESTIONS
There have been several suggestions for the items shown below. I would appreciate it if all of you who are interested in any or all of these would email me so we can get them off and running if there is enough interest.

BIRTHDAYS, ANNIVERSARIES, SPECIAL EVENTS
How about members sharing their birth month and date (no year of birth required unless you want to brag a bit). *SMILE*
Would also be nice if our married members would share their anniversary dates with us. And how about if members cared to share special events in their lives with us, such as birth of children (don't laugh, it is possible), grand-children, great grand-children, etc.
This way other members of our group could send email best wishes if they were so inclined. Might also help remind your spouse of a date he had forgotten (But we don't do that do we??) Do let me know which of you are interested in this and who would be willing to lead this group.

HOLIDAYS
Now about sharing customs, traditions, suggestions, etc., for the major holiday&. This should be of interest to many of our members. Those of you who would be interested please let me know by email. Also let me know if you would be willing to lead thin group.

SINGLE 50 PLUS GROUP
I have received lots of positive responses to this. Members of this group could use email as their primary contact with each other. All interested members please let me know by email. We also need someone to volunteer to lead this group. Let me know if you are willing to be the leader of this group.

POETS FORUM
Many of our members have a love of poetry as shown from time to time in their postings on 50+. How about a group of our poets who could meet by email and exchange their ideas and work. They could also pick out the best one or two which would then appear in our group letter. Let me know who is interested in this group and which of you would be willing to lead it. Thanks.

MOTHER NATURE AT HER WORST!
The following is a true story. It happened to our member, Gypsy, and her grand-daughter. They live in the beautiful Blue Ridge mountains in the Shenandoah valley of Virginia. It tells what happened to them after the blizzard left them with some snow drifts as high as 8 feet, and then the rain that caused it all to quickly melt and create flash flooding everywhere. This story was requested by the grand-daughters teacher, Ms. Kaufmann. Here then is their story.
Monday, February 12, 1996
Dear Ms Kaufmann;
In response to your request, here in what happened to our home when the rains followed the blizzard.
On Friday, January 19, 1996, Brandi and I awoke to the pouring rains that morning. While I prepared breakfast, Brandi took our dog, Buffy, down to the family room ha let her out for her morning "business".
Our house site atop a high hill - but being built on the side of that slope, the front and half of one side wall are underground as the foundation was dug out that way. There was no level place to build the house. This gave us what they call a walk-out-basement, because the other two walls are above ground. our house is pretty small and there is no dining room, so we used the living room for a dining room and our family room is on the lower level. We also have a play-room down there and a storeroom where we keep all our home-canned, frozen, and all other stored foods. We also keep a lot of other storage stuff, in there.
We had no thought of flooding at our house. We would have thought that it was impossible - utterly impossible From the lower back yard there was a loud roaring sound that almost hurt our ears where the flooding was coming across the Saint Luke Road and through the yard there. We have a large swimming pool down there. This area is about 200 foot from our back patio doors.... 200 foot in length, and about fifty foot (? how does one measure such things as a slopes, height) lower than our house.
Since our little dog is 18 years old and blind, we usually carry her down the stairs when she wants to go out. Brandi was carrying her then, and what a shock it was to her to step off that last step, in sock-clad feet, into ankle depth water. She rushed back upstairs to me almost in tears of shock and fear... saying 'Mommy, mommy, the floor, the floor is all covered with water down-stairs. At first, I just stood there in stunned disbelief. "impossible" I thought.... then remembered a time when our water pump broke and we had some flooding from that. I rushed down and was greeted by an impossible sight The water was actually rushing out from under the storeroom door like a small current stream!
When I went to open the door, it was rather difficult because of the pressure behind it, I pushed and then it opened inward and about I to 4 inches (depth) of water swept past rushing out of the storeroom. That was where it had collected first and deepest. This room is on one side of the stairway and the playroom was on the other side. Both of these rooms are on the underground side of the house.
I called for someone to come help and we used a shop vacuum to remove the water - judging by the numbers of times the cylinder had to be emptied, we removed about 1,00 to 1,200 gallons of water!
Ironically, as we were working, feet numbed by the icy water, the rains stopped and the sun came out as if it was spring. The roaring of the water below in the lower yard went on for hours.
So did our work. How heartbreaking to pick up beloved puzzles, toys, games, (many of them cherished 'oldies'), audio cassettes, art supplies, books, stored clothes, etc. sopping wet and in most cases - absolutely ruined.
The water smelled of mold. Brandi, who has a severe allergy to mold (I have this allergy too), had to remain upstairs alone away from the spores. It seemed strange that this smell could come from rain water. We learned later that the wall through which the pressure of saturation had forced such a quantity of water in a few hours of early pre-dawn morning rains - was and had been, leaking through the seams between some of the cinderblock, and this was the source of the mold being carried in. The wall had been sealed before, but we have lived here for 24 years and should, evidently, have been re-sealed again.
By that night, the mold spores were penetrating throughout the house even up to the top floor and Brandi began to have trouble breathing. Our doctor told us to get the carpeting (downstairs) and rugs out of the house as soon as possible - that nothing we could do would make it safe for Brandi again after the mold-carrying saturation. He also began her on Prednisone to help combat the effects she was suffering.
We ran our heat on high and set fans about to circulate and dry the air more quickly. The carpet people came right out. We called the insurance company and learned that we would not be covered for any of our loss. Even though there was no flooding around our house itself (being far above the waters of the flood), because the water was from the snow and rain saturated ground, it was considered a result of those conditions and therefore, technically, flooding.
Now there were many, many people who suffered much more in every way, than our family. We are grateful for our relatively small amount of damage and personal discomforts of mind, body and health.
Before we learned that there would be no insurance, we had made up a list of the following losses which we piled up in the back yard until the insurance agent could come to make his report. When they told us, by phone, that we were not going to be covered, we had to carry it all away. The following is a list of what was damaged/lost....
All floor coverings ($1,750-00)
Three cases of computer paper _AT_ $26.00 each.
Puzzles and toys approximately $325.00
An entire Zane Gray collection of books ... (unknown value)
Cassettes (music & dramatizations) 30 _AT_ approx. $10.00 each
Shoes - approx $50.00
Posters, other books and some miscellaneous under $100.00
Art supplies - approx $180.00
Electronic equipment - $800.00
Countless hours have been put in cleaning and disinfecting everything to salvage what we did and to protect Brandi. I slipped a disk working in the aftermath and was in bed for over a week. I am still recovering from this. There are costs that cannot be measured by financial loss alone.
We do not need anything from others - we filed no other claims for a share of disaster relief, knowing that we were blessed to have had so little loss compared to those whose loss was so much more devastating than ours.
We suffered no loss of essential things or basic necessities and feel thankful about that. We're sharing our story with you as a way of sharing what happened in our community. I'm sure there were many, many people like us who did lose a lot but did not report it because our insurance companies did not take reports from us as we requested? I believe that our community has many, many stories to tell. Ours is just one of the untold, unseen but now shared with you. If this is the kind of information that you were requesting, perhaps to know the community-impact of that blizzard and flood, please feel free to share it with anyone who may be attempting to record such a picture of this.
When we asked our insurance company (of 24 years in this house without a claim) what it would cost to include the coverage for something like this - they said they wouldn't sell us flood or ground water coverage because we don't live in a flood-plain!
Your Friend Gypsy.

THAT'S IT FOR NOW
Hope you managed to find one or two things of interest in this letter. There are still lots of things for our next letter, including Cassie's handy dandy tips on "HOW TO ANSWER 50 QUESTIONS WITHOUT LOOKING". As my favorite comedian in the whole world (Red Skelton of course who else?) always says, "Good night and God bless!