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For the past 7 weeks, we have played with and photographed fellow seniors ages 50 to 98, competing in the daily events at the 2013 Gwinnett Senior Golden Games. FYI, the initial Games were held in 2000, with just 76 Seniors competing in 15 events. Fast forward to today, and the Games have grown to 35 events and over 300 Seniors!

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Some of the games were pure fun, while others needed focused energy and skill. We volunteered to manage the 3 days of tennis events and participated in just a few of the other games. We wanted to be available to photograph the events and then create images capturing the spirit of this annual event, held throughout the Gwinnett County Parks and a few other local venues.

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Two reoccurring themes became obvious and consistent. Camaraderie flourished between the 300 plus participants as they made new friends and re-established previous friendships. Dedication and positive attitudes flowed from the event managers and their teams who volunteered their time and efforts to make the 2013 Gwinnett Senior Golden Games a success! With connecting and creating value both as key factors in achieving a successful healthy aging process, the annual Games are a pleasurable “must” for Seniors in our community!

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The 19 collage images we created and included in this article graphically tell the story. And as promised in our previous article “Spring Is Here – Let the Games Begin!” we included one of this year’s Torchbearer, Louise Howington. As you may recall, she is the 98 year old Loganville resident who is the avid bowler who still bowls every week…we want to be her when we grow up!

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For our full “picture story” here is the link to 2013 Gwinnett Sr Golden Games Album  containing the  135 collage images we created from the 2013 Games.  With over 300 participants, there is a good possibility you may recognize a neighbor, friend or family member. We hope to see your smiling faces at the 2014 Games next spring! Positively speaking and SINGING, Sheri & Bill Eppright

As photojournalists, Sheri and Bill of Positive Public Image, Inc. publish engaging articles, and colorful images, that champion Healthy Aging, and the value of seniors in America.

As entertainers and ambassadors of Healthy Aging, Sheri and Bill interact with their audiences using music, dance and multimedia presentations to encourage an Active Positive Lifestyle and connect with fellow Seniors. Hire us for your next event! Contact us at 678-672-7310, or by email: Contact Us!

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Over the past few weeks with guitar and keyboard in hand, we took our “Sheri and Bill Show” on the road.  As part of our healthy aging path, “Side By Side” became our current theme song. We visited with folks at adult living communities, tennis team parties, and senior organizations, where we played music and sang, enjoyed Healthy Aging Trivia, danced, and had fun with several hundred of our newest friends.

Our songs included Americana, folk, love and patriotic favorites. We had just enough variety to spark a few memories, get feet tapping and raise voices in song. It became just the spoonful of “sugar” we needed to help our Healthy Aging “medicine” go down.

Most of us already know the elements to healthy aging: good nutrition, stay fit, stimulate your mind, connect with others and create value…everyone just needs a “nudge” now and then, and we are the perfect duo to share a nudge! Our light-hearted trivia bundle of current information, newest health tips, and common sense was a fun way to think in a positive way about lifestyle choices. And of course the prizes were appreciated too!

Preparing for our performances is part of our personal healthy aging path: We learn new songs, create harmonies, play our instruments, align our songs in ways that tell and share stories, and do the necessary research to set up our trivia questions…so many aspects of learning help stimulate our brains too! The result is just plain fun as we share it with others! Remember this one: “You don’t stop playing because you get old; you get old because you stop playing!

At our last performance, we threw in a bit more “sugar.” We invited some of our senior friends to join us with a few dance demos to pleasure our audience. We then encouraged everyone to join us on the dance floor. Yes, seniors can Sing and Dance! It was happy time for us and our audience, and we plan to do this again soon!

Dance, a highly social activity…improves flexibility, strength, endurance and mood, just to name a few healthy aging benefits! Per the American Council on Exercise, dancing “provides cardiovascular conditioning, which lowers blood pressure and the risk of heart disease, in addition to aiding in weight control. Since dance involves weight bearing, it boosts bone density, along with muscle strength and coordination.”

It seems that both singing and dancing have a positive effect on dementia: In our “Healthy Aging Is Music To Our Ears” we noted that singing even helps dementia patients connect to long forgotten memories. Now, during our recent trivia question research we discovered that dance can actually help prevent dementia because of the mental challenge coupled with physical exercise. More evidence that we should all consider music as part of our healthy aging lifestyle…Healthy Aging Is Music To Our Ears!

Positively singing and dancing,
Sheri & Bill Eppright.

As Photojournalists, Sheri and Bill of Positive Public Image, Inc. publish engaging articles, and colorful images, that champion Healthy Aging, and the value of seniors in America. 

As entertainers and ambassadors of Healthy Aging, Sheri and Bill interact with their audiences using music, dance and multimedia presentations to encourage an Active Positive Lifestyle and connect with fellow Seniors. Please hire us for your next event!  Call 678-672-7310, or by email: Contact Us!

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Today was a great day to be outside! We enjoyed our first picnic of the season at Ronald Regan Park with our new OASIS friends from Eastminster Presbyterian Church Stone Mountain..  It was appropriately named “Spring Fling”..we seemed to be tossing everything in sight!

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It was Spring outside the Bethesda Park Senior Center this last Saturday morning, but the “booty-full” weather was found inside, as the Gwinnett Council For Seniors held its 2013 Lifestyle Showcase.

This year’s event was sponsored by Coventry Health Care. A rainbow of smiles, hugs, businesses, organizations and prizes led the way to the pot of gold – a treasure of valuable lifestyle information for all!

First get your prize winning ticket and booty bag at the door. Next walk around greeting old and new friends, share stories, collect information about stuff vital for your chosen lifestyle. Then have a cookie, a cup of coffee, and get ready to give us a smile for a photo op…and winning a door prize isn’t so bad either. It turned out to be spring-like inside too!

We strolled around with our camera, video camera, and booty bag in-hand, as we greeted and hugged most folks we met…and then took pictures of all willing participants.

It was obvious that all the businesses and senior organizations with displays that day had a product or service to enhance the lives of Seniors. But what we would like to bring to everyone’s attention was the not so obvious: The Gwinnett Council for Seniors and many of the groups at the Showcase depend on Senior volunteers for that service to exist in the first place. We believe that Senior volunteerism should be encouraged as part of a healthy aging lifestyle.  (see our article “Charge – The Boomers Are Coming!” )

The hidden benefit for Seniors? Volunteering adds another reason for living, a purpose, a value, and self-esteem. It is a way to connect, a reason to stay healthy and a community benefit.

If you enjoyed the images we included with this article and want to see more, here is the full 2013 Lifestyle Showcase Album we created from the 2013 Lifestyle Showcase. We hope to see your smiling face in one of our images next year at the 2014 Lifestyle Showcase! Positively speaking, Sheri & Bill Eppright

As photojournalists, Sheri and Bill of Positive Public Image, Inc. publish engaging articles, and colorful images, that champion Healthy Aging, and the value of seniors in America.

As entertainers and ambassadors of Healthy Aging, Sheri and Bill interact with their audiences using music, dance and multimedia presentations to encourage an Active Positive Lifestyle and connect with fellow Seniors. Call 678-672-7310, or to contact us by email: Contact Us!

The post 2013 Lifestyle Showcase – A “Booty-Full” Event! appeared first on Positive Public Image.

It’s finally Spring and none too soon for us! We love warm weather and this year we have been teased way too long! This week the temperatures are rising just in time for the 2013 Gwinnett Senior Golden Games.  This volunteer organization works hard year round to make the annual 6 week event a rewarding and memorable experience for the volunteers, sponsors and the 300-400 Seniors ages 50 plus who come to compete in the 35 social and athletic venues, while renewing old friendships and making new friends.

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We attended the opening ceremony Wednesday at Rhodes Jordan Park and enjoyed the camaraderie of everyone around us. The Torchbearer for this year was Louise Howington of Loganville.  At 98 (yep, we said 98!) Louise is an avid bowler (she still bowls weekly!) and will be bowling in the Bowling venue. We will be sure to attend that venue so we can capture some great images of this very youthful Senior!

The Gwinnett Senior Golden Games organization also highlights another key element to Healthy Aging: find something you are passionate about which will help you create value–this will keep you young! These dedicated volunteers who work behind the scenes are passionate about what they are doing and they return every year to meet monthly, share ideas and plan the upcoming Games to ensure the success of each annual event.

We see an enjoyable 6 weeks ahead, as we visit and sometimes compete in the ongoing games which are held throughout the Gwinnett County Parks. Gwinnett Senior Golden Games are a good example of how Seniors in our local community are celebrating Spring. We’ll be sharing with you some images from the 2013 Games during the next few weeks.

We hope to visit other Senior Games around the country, so if there is one near and dear to your heart let us know.  And if you get a chance, please come join us!  Positively speaking, Sheri & Bill Eppright

As photojournalists, Sheri and Bill of Positive Public Image, Inc. publish engaging articles, and colorful images, that champion Healthy Aging, and the value of seniors in America.

As entertainers and ambassadors of Healthy Aging, Sheri and Bill interact with their audiences using music, dance and multimedia presentations to encourage an Active Positive Lifestyle and connect with fellow Seniors. Call 678-672-7310, or to contact us by email: Contact Us!

The post Spring Is Here – Let The Senior Games Begin! appeared first on Positive Public Image.

Born With music inside Me – Ray Charles from Positive Public image

“Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay, My oh my, what a wonderful day!”

Ah…the power of music—doesn’t it just lift your spirits! Boomers have been known to clock events in their lives by what song was playing at the time–first car, first job, getting to first base, first speeding ticket, first love—you get the picture!

We may be older now, but music is just as important today as it was in our youth.  It can soothe our emotions, provoke a lone tear, or put an extra spring in our steps and make everything seem possible.

Health Benefits of Singing – Positive Public Image

Per the Mayo Clinic, “Music has the ability to change moods, soothe nerves and energize your life.”  Playing an instrument can definitely keep your brain active, and you know those melodic outbursts you have in the shower each morning? Well, as per scientists in at the University of Frankfurt, Germany, here are just a few of the health benefits awaiting you:

• Releases endorphins into your system–makes you feel energized and uplifted
• Gives your lungs a workout
• Tones abdominal and intercostal muscles and the diaphragm and stimulates circulation.
• Makes you breathe more deeply, improving aerobic capacity and releases muscle tension
• Relieves stress and improves sleep
• Improves posture
• Clears your sinuses and respiratory tubes
• Increases your confidence

Yep, we love music! Add one guitar, one keyboard, and 2 voices in harmony plus some of our favorite songs; then stir in a few friends and you have the makings of a social symphony! It is a great way for us to connect with others so we have decided to spend more of our time this year sharing our love of music. Feedback we receive from our performances allows us to pick our songs carefully, hoping the songs will evoke good memories and/or get toes tapping and voices singing along.

Music To Our Ears – Sheri & Bill of Positive Public Image performing

We repeated our Valentine’s Day performance (see our blog “Valentines Day 2013 – Share the Love”) at the Evergreen Senior Club February monthly meeting. Singing our favorite love songs from the 50′s and 60′s, we had just as much fun the 2^nd time around, meeting more new folks whom we hope to see again very soon. What we really enjoyed was the number of people who came up to us afterwards and told us how much they enjoyed our performance. We know we aren’t Carnegie Hall material but we have such a good time and enjoy what we are doing, that we are truly gratified when our “gift” is well received!

With our focus on Healthy Aging (check out our blog “An ‘A-P-L a Day’ — Too Much To Ask” ?), we always choose to donate a portion of our musical performance proceeds to Alz.Org, an organization who helps in the research effort around Alzheimers and dementia. Just one more reason we enjoy singing for folks!          

We will be performing at the Duluth FAB (Fifties And Beyond) May meeting, and we’ve already lined up a return visit to Bethesda Park Senior Center on July 1^st for their summer kickoff event. We are working on an Americana/Patriotic theme which we are sure folks will enjoy. When we travel as in our recent trip to Arizona, we try and visit a few senior organizations and facilities and sprinkle a bit of our healthy aging “happy dust, ” and hopefully in the near future those visits will include some of our music. In any event, we would love to see you at our next event.  “Happy trails to you…til we meet again!”  Positively speaking, Sheri & Bill Eppright

As photo journalists, public speakers and seniors, we promote Active Positive Lifestyles and Healthy Aging in America.  If you would like us to speak with your group or organization on Healthy Aging and Active Positive Lifestyles, and/or provide a fun musical presentation, please contact us.   Call 678-672-7310, or to contact us by email: Contact Us!

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Presidents Day was a holiday initially established to honor George Washington. Since the early 70′s it has become a day to honor all Presidents past and present. In line with this year’s Presidents Day, we thought it would be fun to share a few of our favorite motivational quotes from some of our past Presidents and one First Lady. No denying there are many Presidential quotes more famous, but these particular quotes are special to us, since they align with our Active Positive Lifestyle message. We hope you enjoy them!

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As photo journalists, public speakers and seniors, we promote Active Positive Lifestyles and Healthy Aging in America.  If you would like us to speak with your group or organization on Healthy Aging and Active Positive Lifestyles, and/or provide a fun musical presentation, please contact us.  We would love to hear from you!  Call 678-672-7310, or to contact us by email: Contact Us!

The post Past Presidents Motivate Us Today! appeared first on Positive Public Image.

Valentine’s Day Event at Bethesda Senior Center gave us an opportunity this year to connect with others, an important element of our Active Positive Lifestyle and Healthy Aging philosophy.  We visited with old and new friends, and shared our love of music…Love songs of course!

We were happy to see lots of fruits and veggies being served at the event, since nutrition is the key component to our Healthy Aging philosophy:  it accounts for 80% of our healthy aging process!

Music is one of the ways we choose to connect with each other and create value, another aspect of our Healthy Aging philosophy – do something you love and your passion will keep you motivated. From teenage love, to true love, to lost love to lasting love, with keyboard guitar and voice,  we zipped down memory lane, ending on “Side By Side”,  a favorite that got hips swaying, fingers snapping and toes tapping.

We mixed in some Valentine’s Trivia to “stimulate our minds”…one more aspect of our Healthy Aging  philosophy: “stimulate your mind – keep learning!”

Thanks to Gwinnett Parks and Recreation Dept for the many Senior Centers throughout our Community where Seniors can have fun, stay active and connect with others–and thanks again to Kerri, Anne and Pam at Bethesda Sr Center for inviting us to share the “love” on this Valentine’s Day!   Positively speaking, Sheri & Bill Eppright

As photo journalists, public speakers and seniors, we promote Active Positive Lifestyles and Healthy Aging in America.  If you would like us to speak with your group or organization on Healthy Aging and Active Positive Lifestyles, and/or provide a fun musical presentation, please contact us.  We would love to hear from you!  Call 678-672-7310, or to contact us by email: Contact Us!

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We’ve added a fun new sport venue to the 2013 Golden Games…it’s Pickleball! You can try it at the 2 demo events comping up. Once your hooked, then go to the Gwinnett Senior Golden Games website and sign up to play Pickleball at the 2013 Games for Boomers and Seniors 50 and older! Here is info on the 2 Free Demos at

Lucky Shoals Recreation Center Gymnasium
4651 Britt Road, Norcross, GA 30093

Wednesdays Feb. 20th & Mar. 20th – 10am till noon

Hope to see you there!  Positively speaking, Sheri & Bill Eppright

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Are you ready for the 2013 Gwinnett Senior Golden Games? Our radar is always on “high alert” looking for Boomers, active seniors, and places to play as part of our Active Positive Lifestyle. We are happy to report on the upcoming Gwinnett Senior Golden Games! The games are open to all adults 50 and older and are a great opportunity to socialize, be active, meet a few new friends, and win a medal or two during the process.

In partnership with Gwinnett County Parks & Recreation since 2000, the Games are held each spring, as 300 to 350 participants compete annually in more than 30 different venues. Bridge, Billiards, Rummikub, Swimming, Darts, Archery, Tennis, Shuffleboard, Bowling, Golf, Horseshoes, and Table Tennis are just a few of the fun events available…something of interest for everyone! Folks are grouped in five-year age brackets, with gold, silver and bronze medals awarded to the best performers in each age bracket. We will be managing the Tennis events, and have set the Tennis event times for late afternoon/early evening in hopes that many of our Boomer friends working 8-5 will be able to join us!

Participants must pre-register for the individual events as well as the Opening and Closing Ceremony events. Information and the required registration form can be downloaded at the Golden Games website: http://www.gwinnettseniorgoldengames.org.  If you are interested in becoming a sponsor for the 2013 Games, please contact Alan Villavasso at 770-682-7416.

We’ve been meeting each month with the Event Manager Volunteers since last fall, enjoying and participating in their enthusiasm in preparing for the upcoming 2013 Games. The Opening Ceremony is set for April 3 at Rhodes Jordan Park in Lawrenceville, followed by daily events scheduled throughout the county for the next six weeks. The Closing Ceremony also at Rhodes Jordan Park will be held on May 15. We will be there, and we hope to see you there too…please join us!   Positively speaking, Sheri & Bill Eppright

As photo journalists, public speakers and seniors, we promote Active Positive Lifestyles and Healthy Aging in America.  If you would like to hire us to help promote your event from our Positive View or to speak with your group or organization on Healthy Aging and Active Positive Lifestyles, please contact us…we would love to hear from you!  678-672-7310, or to contact us by email: Contact Us!

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