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4A Daily News – Saturday, March 24, 2012 Glory Days & maturity By Tina Susman Los Angeles Times (MCT) NEW YORK — Thirty senior citizens squeezed around a long table designed for about 20, the crush made tighter by canes, walkers and wheelchairs. As late arrivals wriggled between others in search of a seat, snippets of conversa- tion floated from the chatty crowd. "I don't have a computer. I don't have any of that Google stuff," one exasper- ated woman said. "Face- book? What's that?" another asked loudly, to no one in particular. "It's a program. It's a computer program," a man responded knowingly, displaying a confidence rarely seen in the 75-and- over age group when talk turns to laptops, PCs, iPads, smartphones and all that comes with them. That's why these seniors had gathered at the Hall- mark, their assisted-living facility in Lower Manhat- tan. They wanted to begin the task of catching up with a technical world whose rapid-fire evolution has left much of America's oldest generation isolated from its children, grandchildren and tech-savvy friends. "It's so hard to do. But at least I've stopped crying," said Roz Carlin, 92, speak- ing for many as she described breaking down in tears when she first tried using a computer. Like most of the students, Carlin ini- tially resisted the technolo- gy until her daughter forced the issue by giving her an iPad. Now, after mastering email, she was back to learn more. Their teachers were stu- dents from New York's Pace University who earn credits participating in a program to bridge the gap created by the computer age. "Let's face it — 20 per- cent of the population is going to be over 65 by 2050," said Jean Coppola, a gerontologist and informa- tion technology professor at Pace who launched the pro- gram after officials in Westchester County, north of New York City, asked the university to conduct a com- puter seminar for senior cit- izens in 2005. It proved so popular that Coppola expanded it, and it has become a model for similar efforts nationwide. She now has more seniors clamoring for the seven- week course, at senior facil- ities in Manhattan and in Westchester, than she has students to teach them. Like the seniors signing up for the once-a-week tutoring sessions, Coppola knows that it is best to look outside the family for some- one to teach elders the art of double-clicking, dragging and dropping, emailing, and ignoring spam that promis- es fabulous wealth or a free cruise. "A son or daughter can't teach the 80- or 90-year-old computers," said Coppola, who tried to teach her lifestyles Computer literacy for older generation Scam Watch: IRS warns of tax-refund schemes By Stuart Pfeifer Los Angeles Times (MCT) Here is a roundup of alleged cons, frauds and schemes to watch out for. TAX REFUNDS As the tax-filing deadline approaches, the Internal MCT photo Pace University students learn what it feels like to be older by wearing paper glasses the obstruct their vision. After training, they will take part in a pro- gram for New York seniors to learn computer skills from Pace students. grandmother computer tricks. "There's too much baggage there — emotional baggage. People get very funny —they don't have the same patience with their mom or their dad or older relatives that they have with a stranger." The gap between young and old quickly came into view as the seniors intro- duced themselves to their tutors, most of whom were in their early 20s. There was Dorothy, an elegant woman in a red vest, whose children had insisted she get a computer. She compared using it to trying to understand a second lan- guage. "It's that foreign to me," she said. "I'm completely comput- er illiterate, except to play solitaire," said a woman named Anita. "This gadget scares the living daylights out of me," said Frances, who was embarrassed to admit that she didn't know the make of her computer. "I'll tell you the truth, I almost got rid of the damned thing. It got a virus. Then it got frozen." Several had taken the course before but had for- gotten what they learned or were hampered by poor eyesight and other limita- tions, such as arthritic fin- gers and fading memories. Virtually all of them, though, said they needed to learn so they could keep in touch with distant relatives and friends, and see pho- tographs of children and grandchildren. "It scares me," Edythe Eisenberg said of her iPad. "But when I call my kids and grandkids they don't call back, so I have to use email." Before the one-on-one tutoring sessions could begin, students were put through what Coppola calls "sensitivity training," a class designed to give the young teachers an idea of the ail- ments facing their elderly charges. It is conducted by Sharon Stahl Wexler and Lin Drury, registered nurses and Pace professors who work with Coppola on the program. "We're going to have a lot of fun!" Wexler told the Democrats: "Salute to American Workers" Dinner and Dessert, Opportunity Drawings, and Auction Support Your Party Annual Fundraiser Red Bluff Community Center, 1500 S. Jackson Street Saturday, March 31, 2012 Doors open 5:15pm Keynote Speech at 6:00pm $ 25.00 person John Burton, keynote Speaker Chairman, California Democratic Party Meet elected officials and those running for office RSVP: Sue Gallagher @ 530-384-2945 or John Elshere @ 530-529-1238 or E-mail; tehamacountydemocrats@gmail.com Paid Political Advertisement slightly dubious-looking young crowd as she and Drury passed out props. They included earplugs to stifle hearing; unpopped popcorn to put into shoes to give the feeling of corns and calluses; tape to bind fingers into arthritic-like claws; glasses to emulate vision problems. There were boxes of Clementines to peel while wearing gloves; tiny pill boxes filled with fake med- ications to be carefully picked through; and a page of the telephone book, to be read while wearing the spe- cial glasses. For extra credit, there were adult diapers, which students were invited to dampen and wear for a few hours while seated in front of a computer. "They're fun for the first couple of minutes, but imagine needing those implements to walk," Wexler said as the trussed- up tutors meandered the hallways using walkers, crutches, wheelchairs and canes. The students included Alice Simmons, a theater major, who was being pushed in a wheelchair by Katie Allen, a history major. A few days later, both of the young women began their tutoring sessions back at Hallmark. One of Simmons' stu- dents, 91-year-old Pauline Lockman, had taken the course before but was rusty. She wanted to learn how to reply to incoming emails, and she struggled for nearly an hour to tap out a few lines to a friend who had emailed her more than a month earlier. Lockman labored over details that the younger gen- eration often ignores when writing on computers. As she leaned in toward the screen, straining to read its 16-point text, Lockman pondered whether to capi- talize the start of each line, what to write in the subject line, and how to spell cer- tain words. When she was finished with her brief mes- sage, she didn't want to send it because, she told Sim- mons, it wasn't good enough. "No, that's not sendable," she said firmly despite Sim- mons' gentle prodding. "The hardest part for me is not touching the mouse or computer myself," Sim- mons said later. Like the other tutors, she has been $ 15 Off regular price With this ad! • Same Day Service • Free E-File • Check Our Price • Over 45 Years Experience P. Ralph Campbell, EA Enrolled Agent Daniele Jackson 530-529-9540 855 Walnut St. #2, Red Bluff advised to make the seniors do things for themselves. The challenge, she said, is helping people like Lock- man overcome their fear of computers and the Internet, while also teaching them the perils of pop-up ads and virus-carrying attachments. "It's hard to say, 'Don't be scared to click on anything, but be scared to click on these,'" she said. That's a comfort level that usually requires more than one pass through the course, said Coppola, whose oldest student was 101. "The third or fourth time, something clicks," she said. "By the second time, they're beginning to understand. By the third or fourth time they're comfortable with it. They're no longer confused. They're no longer afraid." That's how it was for Eisenberg, who met with Allen in her sunny, cream- colored 13th-floor apart- ment. She had been through the course twice — enough to feel comfortable flicking on her iPad and checking her email for the daily mes- sage whose subject line was "Thought for the Day." But Eisenberg, who moved to New York from Florida to be close to her daughter, a Broadway pro- ducer and actress, was stalled. Her son had set up an Amazon account for her so she could buy books online, but she had forgotten how to log in and did not want to call her son for help. "I hate to keep admitting defeat," said Eisenberg, who had yet to figure out how to view the family pho- tographs that she knew were somewhere on the iPad. Allen leaned in and guided her toward the flower icon, then showed her how to tap it to reveal pictures of her children and grandchildren on vacation. "I'm seeing these for the first time," Eisenberg said in wonder as the screen filled with photographs of a smiling little girl with dark, glossy hair. Then, Eisenberg clicked on another icon and fell into a trance-like silence as the voice of her daughter, Jana Robbins, belting out "I'm Still Here" from the Broad- way musical "Follies," floated from the iPad and filled the room. "At first I didn't know anything," Eisenberg said, "but I'm picking it up, piece by piece." LASSEN MEDICAL GROUP Expands Red Bluff Urgent Care to 7 days a week. www.lassenmedical.com 2450 Sister Mary Columba Drive (530) 527-0414 Revenue Service said consumers should watch out for scam artists who offer to help them obtain tax refunds through the filing of bogus returns. In one common scheme, companies offer to help victims obtain a tax refund by seeking an American Opportunity Tax Credit by claiming deductions for col- lege tuition payments, even if the victim did not attend college during the tax period, the IRS said. In recent weeks, the IRS has stopped thousands of bogus refund claims using that fraudulent deduction. Even if someone else files the return, taxpayers can be held liable for submitting false deductions, including penalties and interest, the IRS said. CHRISTIAN ROCK CONCERTS A Downey, Calif., woman who told investors she was raising money for a Christian rock concert but instead used the money for personal expenses and to pay returns to early investors has been sentenced to nearly five years in prison. Lauren Baumann pleaded guilty in October to wire fraud, admitting she falsely promised to use investors' money to finance a Christian "battle of the bands," and repay them with profits from ticket sales. Instead, authorities said, Baumann used proceeds from the scheme to rent a $10,000-a-month historic mansion in Downey and to pay private-school tuition for her children. U.S. District Judge Josephine S. Tucker sentenced Baumann to 57 months in prison. She was ordered to report to a federal prison by April 2 to begin serving her sentence. LOAN MODIFICATIONS Consumer groups are warning homeowners who have fallen behind on their mortgages to be careful when dealing with companies or individuals offering to modify home loans. Homeowners should be mindful of companies that ask for fees before providing services, guarantee they can stop a foreclosure or tell you to stop making mort- gage payments and pay them instead, NeighborWorks America and the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law said in a news release. "Scams present a real threat to homeowners who are afraid of losing their homes, especially now that new bank settlements and government programs are in the headlines," said Deborah Boatright, Northeast regional director with NeighborWorks America. "At times like this, we often see a spike in activity among companies who pretend to be authorized by the government but are in fact scams." Home builder offers a room in which to flee from a snoring LOS ANGELES (MCT) — Baby boomers' snoring has breathed life into the sales of mouth pieces, clips, strips, nose sprays and specialized mattresses. Now home builders have heard the roar. A so-called snore room is the latest offering from Del Webb, which builds communities for people 55 and older. Buyers whose marriages are plagued by a spouse who snorts, grunts and wheezes while he or she sleeps can opt for an adaptable bedroom plan marketed as the "owners retreat" at Sun City Shadow Hills in Indio, Calif. Designed for couples who start out in the same bed but end up apart because of ear-piercing snoring, insomnia or late-night TV viewing habits, this sec- ondary bedroom is connected to the bathroom of the master bedroom. "A nice enclave that shares the master bathroom pro- vides a civilized alternative to the family room sofa," said Jacque Petroulakis, corporate communications spokeswoman for PulteGroup Inc., the parent company of Del Webb. Many people "don't like the idea of having totally separate rooms, but before this, didn't have any other choice." 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