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by Lydia Agidius, Program Director 13 fellow members and I just returned from an unforgettable trip to the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta in New Mexico! The skies were painted with hundreds of stunning balloons, and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect — truly a breathtaking experience from start to finish.  If you and the people with whom you want to place a video call are all using Apple devices, then Apple’s Facetime software is the easiest option. (photo courtesy Apple) by Russ Alman, Communications Director Earlier this year, I was enjoying a video call with my two-year-old granddaughter, Naomi, and my daughter, Alexis, remarked that she has to make sure to keep her iPhone locked because Naomi has figured out how to access the camera. Just as she said this, Naomi grabbed her iPhone and ran off with it. I continued to see an interesting angle of Naomi as she held the phone below her chest and toddled across the room. I would have laughed harder if the wobbling view of her nostrils hadn't started to give me vertigo. I have affectionately named this view “NaomiCam.” This has gotten me to thinking... Naomi's generation is the first that would never know a time when you couldn't pick up a computer device and instantly connect with anywhere in the world by video call. My daughter and her family live in Yakima, and I can say with confidence that I have spent more time interacting with my granddaughter though live video than in person. Without the convenience of video calls, I would only be able to interact with her “face to face” when there was time to make the four-hour roundtrip. But thanks to video calls, she is just a button press away. Similarly, my son, Aaron, has been living in South Korea for the past 5 years, and while he can only rarely make it back home, we regularly video chat. The most difficult part of arranging a call is accommodating the time difference since Seoul is 16 hours ahead. Other than that, the call quality is just as good as it is to Yakima. While my son is in his late 20s and does remember a time before video calls, he doesn’t remember a time before cell phones. Or the internet. Or email. Or cable TV. (I am old enough to remember.)  At the other end of the spectrum, this fall I helped my mom and dad move from western Montana to Wenatchee. It took some patience, but I was able to get my 80+ year-old parents proficient enough with video calling that I could give them a live walkthrough of their new apartment, show them furniture and supplies that I bought, and tour the retirement community with them so that they were already familiar with the layout of the facility before they got here. We even did group calls with my brother in Minneapolis so the whole family was in the loop.
In each generation, new technology comes along that supplants previous tools. We have gone from smoke signals and semaphore to live video in less than 200 years, and each successive generation will continue to see more advanced and interactive communication tools. For those of you who have not yet made a video call, I encourage you to give it a try. Any smartphone, tablet or laptop manufactured within the last 5 years should meet the requirements. The only confusing part will be deciding on which platform to use. Unlike something like email, which uses a universal standard that can be read with any email application, video calling is generally application specific. In nontechnical terms, that means that all the parties involved in the call must be using the same software. It would be nice if all the companies that make video chat software would agree on one standard, but don't expect that anytime soon. If you and the other person/people you are trying to communicate with have iPhones, iPads or other Apple products, then you can use Facetime, Apple's proprietary application. If, on the other hand, your partners are using different brands of devices like Android phones and Windows-based laptops, then everyone will need to agree to use one application. For personal calls, I use Messenger (made by Meta/Facebook) because it's widely used and dependable. Anyone who uses Facebook will likely have this software already installed. There are many other video platforms out there, including WhatsApp, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams and Zoom to name a few, but for personal use, I recommend sticking with ones that are likely to be most widely used and designed for simple one-on-one or small group calls. Whichever software you use, I promise you that the first time you make a video connection with a loved one or a friend you haven't seen in person in a long time, you'll understand why video chat has become so popular. It will be worth the effort. 
by Russ Alman
Communications Director Erin Cass is a native of Wenatchee and has lived in the Valley most of her life. She graduated from Eastmont High School but her husband of 27 years, Shane, is a Wenatchee graduate. She earned a degree in recreation management at Central Washington University with a minor in geriatrics. Then, like many young adults from the area, she and her husband moved back to the Wenatchee area to raise their kids. The couple have two boys — the older is a 23-year-old working in sports media at Utah State University, and the younger is a senior at Wenatchee High School. Most of her family also lives in North Central Washington.  The Community Action Council has been delivering weekly donations to us from Costco, supplementing our lunch program. This month’s Director’s Message is going to look a little different than usual. Typically, I share updates about past and upcoming events at the Senior Center. But with Thanksgiving upon us — and following our recent Big Giving Week — I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to the many individuals, businesses and organizations that keep us going strong.
 Abandoned Houses in the Atlas, Tafraout, Morocco. Courtesy Wikimedia. by Lydia Agidius, Program Director Our travel program will tour Morocco the fall of 2026. Reserve your spot today! The weather is turning crisper and the days are getting shorter and grayer (mostly from the smoke, I know). With the feeling of fall in the air comes slower mornings, where the world is quiet enough to let me “figuratively” linger over a warm cup of tea. I find myself daydreaming more, and my mind inevitably wanders toward travel. Where will I go, what will I see, what will I taste? And—because I always want the best of both worlds—how can I be bougee on a budget? I dream of warmth, of a place where the sun still lingers when it has already disappeared from here.
 A portion of the mural on the north side of the Social Hall inside the Wenatchee Valley Senior Activity Center. William Fischer created this mural to represent the Wenatchee Foothills during all four seasons. by Lisa Blair, Executive Director About 20 years ago, the Wenatchee Valley Senior Center was lucky to have the incredible artistic talents of the late William R. Fischer. Back in 2005, William took on the huge job of painting a mural across the entire northeast wall of our social hall. That mural beautifully shows all four seasons in our valley and the surrounding foothills, highlighting the natural beauty and resources we have here. When he created it, William saw something many of us had not yet — he had a clear vision of who we are, where we live, and what we could become together as neighbors, friends, and family. He captured the heart of our community and our foothills in that mural. With that artwork in front of us every day, the inspiration for a new name for our center became clear. After lots of thought, input from the community, and a unanimous vote from our Board of Directors, we are excited to share that we are now officially the Foothills Community Center. Changing our name to better reflect who we are has been a journey. The Wenatchee Valley Senior Activity Center has actually gone through a few name changes since it was first established. Lately, we have become more aware of the changing needs and faces of the people who walk through our doors every day. As our community continues to grow and evolve, we realized it was time to take a fresh look at everything — including our name. While the center will always be dedicated to serving those 50 years and older, we also want to recognize the broader community that is formed here — a mix of cultures, generations, family, and friends, all with diverse needs and interests. Our new name is about honoring that growth and welcoming everyone who is already a part of what we have built together. Board Chairman Jim Tarbert says, “We will continue all programs and activities for our rapidly expanding NCW membership and increase opportunities for a more diverse population as space and funds become available.” While the Board of Directors and staff are excited to start the rebranding process, there will not be any major changes until after the new year. Fall is a critical time for community fundraising through campaigns like our annual Holiday Gift Fair in November and Give NCW — which we will be participating in this year — and we do not want to run the risk confusing anyone with a name change in the middle of this. Expect incremental changes as we move forward with the rebranding process. Russ Alman, Director of Communications, will keep membership and the public well informed of the changes as they occur. Thank you to everyone who has been part of this process so far — former and current staff, our members, and the public. Your 500+ name submissions played a significant role in inspiring and shaping the ideas that led to our new name. Lisa Blair Executive Director Get a peek into the history behind this incredible mural at the Wenatchee Valley Senior Activity Center. Willow Burts explains the painting and its artist, Bill Fisher, who spent countless hours detailing every inch of the work that now spans over the wall. We created this video segment for the Vibrant Living show in 2022. We are very pleased to rename our facility in part to honor Mr. Fisher and beautiful gift he left behind for us.
by Russ Alman, Communications Director One of the questions I’m frequently asked by members of the Senior Center is what type of computer to buy—Mac or Windows, laptop or desktop.
Now that Windows 10-based computers are considered “end of life,” those of you who have older Windows-based computers are faced with upgrading to a newer computer in order to have a supported operating system. 
Marco Martinez, Board Member at Large
Marco Martinez is one of our newer board members, having been voted in as a member-at-large in 2024.
Marco has been a Wenatchee resident for about 30 years. He grew up in Warden, a small farming town southeast of Moses Lake. Compared to where he grew up, he says that Wenatchee is a big city.  A number of volunteers braved the smoky, hot weather to staff a booth representing the Senior Center at the Chelan County Fair in September. Greetings, everyone! I hope October is treating you well. I can hardly believe it is officially fall. I know we all tend to grumble about the heat and dry weather during the summer, but I’m just not sure I’m ready for what is coming in the next three months. We will all probably grumble about the cold and snow until spring and summer roll around again. I am working on trying to be joyful in the moment, regardless of what is happening around me. I know it is a goal I will always be striving for and I encourage you to do the same.
 By Russ Alman, Communications Director
Weekend dances have been a mainstay at the Wenatchee Valley Senior Activity Center since it opened over 30 years ago. While people attending these live music events have historically been from older generations, there are signs that these family-friendly events are being discovered by younger groups. |
livewire PDFsMany of the articles in our News section are digital versions of articles in our monthly newspaper, The Livewire. You can view digital PDF copies of the newspaper in its entirety by selecting editions below:
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Wenatchee Valley Senior Activity Center
1312 Maple Street, Wenatchee, WA 98801 (509) 662-7036 (Office) (509) 888-9602 (Thrift Shop) Get Social!
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