A Matter of Balance . . . . Managing Concerns about Falls

Greetings Blogger Buddies.  I want to tell you about my newest adventure.

I recently became certified as a Balance Coach and I am very excited to tell you about it.

You know the deal.  As we age, we are not as agile as we used to be.  Falling is a very real and serious concern.You hear about it all the time. Statistics show that folks who fall and break a hip are usually dead within a year.  Our pal Dewey Clower died from complications from a fall. My church friend, Ethel, fell and broke both her wrists.  Ron had some serious falls last year and I wanted to try and figure out how to help him.

The National Council on Aging offers classes on how to prevent falls.  I signed up here in Tucson with our Pima Council on Aging (PCOA) to take the class.  I learned so much and decided I really wanted to share my new knowledge, so I signed up for the Coaching Class.   We will be holding classes at my church, Oro Valley United Church of Christ during the month of March.

The foundation for A Matter of Balance started in the State of Maine.  Today, many other states offer the course.  Google it if you are interested in learning more.  In an effort to get you interested, here are a couple of tips:

TIP ONE, WRIST TWIRLS:  When you fall, you usually try and block your fall with your wrists.  Start strengthening them so in a perfect world they won't break like Ethel's did.    Twirl them in circles.  Clockwise and counter clock wise.  Wave at folks when you are out and about.  Do it a lot.  Some might view you as a little balmy, but most will just think you are a very friendly person.

TIP TWO, ANKLE TWIRLS: Our ankles hold us up.  Duh.  We want to keep them up to the job.  Circle them around.  Do it in both directions.  It's super easy to do.  You can do it from your favorite chair while reading.  I find that when my feet are cold, ankle twirls warm them up.  It's a really nice,  cuzzy feeling.

TIP THREE, SIT TO STAND:  The Matter of Balance folks say that if you can do this, it will keep you out of a nursing home. Doctors ask people to do this before referring them to an assisted living facility. (I think it is just a polite way of determining if they can get on and off a toilet without help.)  Sit in a chair that has no arms.  Stand up and sit down.  Try to master ten "sit to stands" every time you finish a meal. If you have to start small, I promise you will improve!

This is just a quick overview of a Matter of Balance.  There are many more useful tips and exercises. Staying active is key.  People are afraid of falling, so they stay home and become couch potatoes.  And get frailer.  That's not good.  We don't want to do that.  You don't have to move fast, but just move.  Let me know if you want more info.  Good luck and stay strong.

Nixon Alumni Reunion

We gathered at the NEW Nixon Library and Birthplace in Yorba Linda, California in February for a Nixon Alumni reunion.  It was a smaller group than the crowds on hand for the pre-grand opening last October. But smaller somehow made it seem more intimate and much more emotional for so many of us.

Ron and I were accompanied by two of our daughters, Lisa and Marja, and our two grandsons Hugh and Jake.  Alas, Lynne and Barry were frolicking in Hawaii at a beautiful wedding.
                                         

Hugh Hart, Jake Hart, Marja Walker, me, Lisa Walker Hart and Ron Walker in front of Norman Rockwell's portrait.

After watching the movie and taking a tour of the exhibits, Ron, as Chairman of the Nixon Foundation, took the prerogative of introducing the White House advance staff that were present at the luncheon in the East Room.  Red Cavaney, Alan Hall, Gordon Straughan, Julie Rowe Cooke, Bill Moeller, John Pitchess and Keith Kretchmaier.  Also on hand was Jack Brennan, the President's Marine aide, Chet Ward, the president's doctor,  and two men from the White House Communications Agency, (WHCA), Fred Swift and Tony Koppi.  These people had traveled the world with President Nixon, and were so happy to be together again, after so many years.

Then, as he so often does, Ron called on some in the audience to say what was their favorite part of the exhibits we had just seen.  Almost to a person, they said the movie.  (Oscars go to Frank Gannon, Dwight Chapin, and their brilliant team of consultants)

 Red Cavaney speaks to the group 

                                                     
The film didn't waste a heart beat, it started with Watergate, the resignation, and boom, it was over . THEN the movie talked about the man, his humble beginnings, and his many, many amazing accomplishments.  The walk through the exhibits after the movie was a walk down memory lane for so many of us.  Many could be overheard pointing out themselves in exhibit photos.  I think probably Hugh and Jake's favorite part was seeing who was first in finding GranGran in many, many photographs.  They soon found that he was most often in the back somewhere, doing his "staff job" with a passion for anonymity that was Chief of Staff, Bob Haldeman's trademark.

And that brings me to our role today.  Ron often asks me, "Why Me?"  Why am I the Chair of the Nixon Foundation?  I was always just a little guy, "Painting hand signs, blowing up balloons, and putting asses on seats."

I guess there is not an easy answer, but Hugh Hewitt, as a moderator of one of the panels about the Nixon presidency, said this:  When we were building the library, we called on Ron Walker for help and he came out and made things happen.  So much in fact, that we gave him a bull whip at the Grand Opening.  When we buried Mrs. Nixon, Ron Walker came and oversaw the funeral arrangements.  When we buried the President, Ron Walker came and again helped make all the arrangements.  When we needed new leadership in the disarray of the Taylor/Naftali time, Ron and Anne Walker, and their family and doggies,  moved to Yorba Linda and worked tirelessly to provide leadership and right the ship.

The docents, the heart and soul of the library, and just about every staff person, will often mention and second these opinions.

During this recent reunion, we were gathered in the lobby, when a group of High School students were about to start their tour.  They were standing around, looking bored, staring at their phones, when Ron walked into their midst.  He introduced himself and started telling them stories about the 37th President.  You could see the looks on their faces change dramatically as they were given an up close and personal history lesson.  I'll bet they will long remember their visit to the Nixon library, because of a close encounter with a man who lived it.

As a member of the Association of Presidential Libraries, I urge all of the other libraries, if you have anyone who was a part of your time in the White House, and who is still among the living,  invite them out, send them out among the visitors, and watch the magic happen.

 The start of the exhibits, visit and see it for yourself. 

Happy Centennial National Parks

The blog is written with Ron wearing his 8th Director of the National Park Service hat, and me wearing one as a member of the NPS Advisory Board, 1988-1990.

On August 16, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the act that created the National Park Service. (NPS). "The Organic Act" states that the fundamental purpose of the NPS "is to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations."

Yellowstone was established by congress on March 1, 1872, as the first National Park, not only in the United States, but in the world.

The NPS encompasses more than 84 million acres and generates over 32 billion dollars annually.  Parks are an economic engine for states, cities and communities, but the NPS budget is quite small by comparison at around 3 billion annually for park operations.

They've been called "America's Best Idea."  They are America's treasures, both God given and man made.  They are loved, sometimes abused, at times overcrowded and some facilities are falling apart.

When Ron was appointed Director in 1972 by President Nixon, there were 30 national parks.  After a careful review, he concluded that we should take good care of what we already have, and perhaps add a "prairie park" to round out the system.  Not so fast, said just about every congressman or senator who didn't have a national park in their backyard.  Today there are 59 of those precious gems that the taxpayers must take care of.

The maintenance backlog is 12 million dollars, and keeps growing, and getting more serious.  Back in the early 70s the few rangers responsible for law enforcement we're lovingly referred to as "pine pigs.  We wore the T-shirts and thought the whole notion was kind of funny.  Today it is far from a joking matter.  It was on Ron's watch, that the first park ranger was killed in the line of duty.  The culprits were poachers.  Today, law enforcement in National Parks is a very serious concern.

Back then, park visitation was 211 million annually.  last year, 2015, there were 320 million visitors loving their parks.  But, in spite of the large numbers of visitors, the agency worries about staying relevant to younger generations.  They are working hard to reach a wider diversity of people that more fully reflects our entire nation, which has changed dramatically in recent years.  You may have read about the NPS call to "Pick your Park" and the free pass for every fourth grader to visit a park.  If Americans don't know what parks are all about, they might not choose to visit or support parks.

If you have visited a National Park this centennial summer, you have experienced huge crowds, waiting lines everywhere, and traffic jams.   Park employees are jammed too.  In Grand Canyon alone, they have used one mile of toilet paper every day for every single stall.  Yikes.  How wonderful that we love our parks and want to help be a part of the birthday celebration, but just think about what this is doing to the system.

Seems that everything old is new again, so we'll say it again.
*Let's stop acquiring new federal lands until we can adequately take care of and repair what we already have.
*States have good park systems, too.  Maybe it is time to send some entities back to their parent state for care and feeding.
*Maybe it is also time to sell some lesser quality land and use the funds where they will do the most good.
*And maybe it is time to consider more corporate or friends group participation to help with funding. We have seen first hand how vital these types of partnerships can be.
*And we know it is well past time to increase the federal budget so the NPS can do what needs to be done.

What better way to say Happy 100th Birthday to our National Parks than sprucing them up and making them look as beautiful as possible.  So, pause and think about our precious parks, or better yet stop and cherish one in person.  Take family and friends along with you if possible.  Make a memory of a very special time in a very special place.  Our memories of our family spending time in national parks are very special to to us.

Remembering John Whitaker

John Whitaker, as I first met him, on the other end of the phone.  He was the Tour Director on the 1968 Nixon Presidential Campaign.

Cheers is gone.  We will miss him.  A great American, patriot, father, grandfather, and friend has died at 89.

John Whitaker, whom we all called CHEERS, back in the day, was the voice on the other end of the telephone when Ron first got involved in the campaign of 1968, when Richard Nixon was running for his second try for the presidency of the United States of America. John was involved in the 1960 campaign as well, but we didn't know him then.  Cheers always signed every thing he wrote, with the word, "cheers."  And it stuck.

Years before, he had read a book about Richard Nixon while sitting on a beach.  He was completely caught up in his personality and accomplishments.  He told his wife, Betty, "I have to go to work for this man.  He needs to be President of the United States." Betty was not thrilled with the idea, and she never was as devoted to the president as her husband was.

Election night in November of 1968, at the Waldorf-Astoria, was the first time I got to finally meet the people that Ron had been working closely with for many months.  I knew most of them by their telephone voice and was very excited to finally meet them in person. It was a very long night. The election was too close to call.  We didn't know who had been elected until the next morning.

 Soon after we arrived at the Waldorf, I found myself sitting next to Betty Whitaker, Cheer's wife.  I introduced myself and she said, "Ten G. D. years for this."

I didn't know how to respond.  Perhaps I didn't, because I don't remember saying anything. I was pretty intimidated.  But, now in hindsight it is easy to understand her reaction.  She was raising their five sons by herself and dealing with a husband who was never home.  Presidential campaigns are very hard on those who are left behind.  I'd already had a small  taste of it, but it was still too new and exciting and Ron was really good at keeping me in the loop.  And, I hadn't been dealing with it for a decade like Betty.

We spent a lot of time with John and Betty over the next several years.  We didn't live very far apart in the Maryland suburbs.  Us moms would often come face to face in the Giant grocery store on Seven Locks Road.  We'd gab in the aisles and get caught up.  Betty looked and dressed like an Easterner. She was always sharp and well informed.  Cheers was Eastern too, but in a more rumpled, relaxed sort of way.  Flash forward many years to the Nixon reunion group photos where John, in the front row, wearing white socks, couldn't be missed.

During the horrendously stressful days of Watergate, Cheers had a heart attack.  We were all scared to death.  But our prayers were answered.  He survived and outlived Betty by fifteen years.

Dr. Whitaker and Ron worked together at the Department of Interior, Ron was Director of the National Park Service and John was Under Secretary.  They had a great deal in common and were good pals.  Always a true Nixon loyalist, John helped find the money and the means for the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Birthplace to become a reality.  Ken Khachigian said of John's help with the RN Library, "His perseverance, devotion and sheer doggedness were critical to creating the momentum that resulted in the successful opening in 1990.  All of it with the good humor and laughter that was the sunshine he brought to our lives."  Well said, Ken.

Ron and I serve on the Clemson University Institute for Parks board, and Ron, as Chairman, asked John to serve on the board with us.  It was great to be able to spend time with him, both in Washington and on the Clemson campus.  It was clear he was not hearing as well anymore, and I would sit next to him and he would ask me what had been said, or proposed, or who was talking?  We both had fun doing that.  Frequently, John would whisper that "Ron runs one helluva good meeting." Ron's proud of that accomplishment and says he learned from the best. Well, I guess so! His teacher was Chief Justice Warren Burger when they both served on the Bicentennial of the Constitution. Our friend, Lynne Cheney was a Commission member as well.

We cherish the good times spent with the Whitaker's. Numerous Washington social events where we were always thrilled to discover they were there too!  A trip to Disneyland, weekends at Camp Hoover, and many a long evening sharing cocktails and talking politics. Politics permeated our worlds.  I called him Cheers, he called me Dearie. I will miss him.

Put A Fork In It . . .

. . . . it's done!

And #1SIL (aka Bourbon Barron Barry McNees) has done it.  Well, at least one end of the Distillery District, "Where History is Brewing" in Lexington, Kentucky is done.  It's hopping with people, cars, exciting venues and great vibes.

Recently, Lynne, Barry, Marja and I had an incredible dinner at Middle Fork Kitchen Bar, named one of the top 100 restaurants in the nation on OPEN TABLE.  It's so popular that reservations are hard to come by, but my connections are the best.  We really did get the only open parking spot anywhere around. Rock Star parking is way too cool.

Readers of a previous blog, know that Barry saw the potential in the Old James Pepper Distillery District, in the shadow of the University of Kentucky campus, where Bourbon was born.  His vision just keeps on getting better and is growing each day, and with each new tenant who wants to be a part of the excitement.  Other businesses at the Middle Fork end of the district are Crank and Boom Ice Cream Lounge, where we had desert, Ethereal Brewing, Break Room, Barrel House Distilling Company, and Kentucky Knows.

This was our appetizer course.  Cheeses, pickles, salts and a candle made of renderings that melted and was sopped up with hunks from  a crusty loaf of bread.  Made me think that was exactly what our fore-mothers did as they made good use of everything the hunters brought home for the family table.


Chef Mark Jensen named his restaurant after two other forks.  His popular mobile food truck was "fork in the road" and his wood and brick establishment embraces the great Elkhorn rivers middle fork that runs nearby.  In Lexington, they call it the town branch, because the town was founded on it way back in 1775.   That's where the drink, Bourbon and Branch, came from.

As the old Pepper area fills with more businesses, we get more and more excited.  An Italian eatery is going into space on the bottom floor of the "five story" where Barry still has his office.  Rumors about boutique hotels and music venues come and go, adding to the anticipation and joy of wondering what tomorrow will bring.

If you plan to be in the area, go on OPEN TABLE and book your spot for an adventurous meal at Middle Fork Kitchen Bar.  You won't be sorry.

Presidential Home, Library and Scarf

Recently Ron and I went back to a special place that we first visited in January of 1973: The LBJ Ranch in the Hill Country of Texas.

President Richard Nixon had named Ron to be the 8th Director of the National Park Service right after his re-election in 1972.  President Johnson had decided he wanted to give his Ranch to the American People . . . . but first he needed to size up the new director, and tell him how he wanted things done.

Ron and I flew from our nation's capitol to Austin and were driven to the Ranch by the Secret Service.  We were really nervous, and sat in the back seat holding hands.  We fully expected to be shown to a guest house and told when the President would like to meet with Ron.  Instead, the driver stopped at the front door and we were told to go inside as everyone was expecting us.  GULP.  As we entered the living room, several people were getting up from a dining room table close by.  Suddenly, this larger than life man, who I had seen on TV most of my adult life, was hugging me, "You must be Anne," he said, "What are you drinking darlin?"  GULP again, but before I could say a word he added that he had Michelob on tap and I managed to tell him that would be perfect.  And, of course it was.

We were to stay in the "Kennedy Bedroom", so called because President and Mrs. John F. Kennedy had stayed there.  It was a cheery, bright yellow room, at the top of the stairs, first door on the right.

For four days, we toured the Ranch and the surrounding area.  The President sat on a log at his boyhood home, and told us about his growing up, in this very place.

 He spent hours giving Ron advice on how to be Director of the National Park Service.  Mrs. Johnson often told him to go rest, but he'd only be gone for a few minutes and then show up to give us yet another gift.  Books, pens, a cowboy hat for Ron and a scarf with the "Wildflowers of Texas" on it for me.

When he found out that we were the parents of three little girls, he invited us to come back as soon as school was over. He told us, several times, "I want those girls to ride my horses, swim in my pool, and see Bird's wildflowers."

We watched the Super Bowl together, and then left to return to Washington.  President Johnson died less than a week later.  Ron and I were his last guests at the Ranch.

Mrs.Johnson honored the invitation the President had extended to our family, and we took our daughters to the LBJ Ranch when school was out.  Mrs. Johnson was a warm and gracious hostess.  The park service was just beginning to bring visitors through the ranch on buses, and each time a bus would go by the house, Mrs. Johnson would jump up, open the front door and wave at the people on the bus.  She'd shout that she was glad they were there, and hope they were enjoying the ranch.  What a thrill that must have been for those early visitors.

And all these years later, Ron and I are honored to represent the Richard Nixon Foundation on the Association of Presidential Libraries.  Larry Temple, Ron's counterpart at the LBJ, hosted the groups meeting this spring.  Thirteen Presidential Libraries are represented.  Soon President Obama's Library, now deciding between two locations in Chicago, will join the group.  The Foundations meet, and then the next day, they are joined by their governmental directors from the National Archives.

On the first morning, we were thrilled to join the tour of the LBJ Ranch.  I wore the wildflower scarf that President Johnson had given me 43 years earlier.  Nobody had seen it before, except Luci Baines Johnson, the Presidents younger daughter, who joined our group and told many wonderful stories about the ranch as their family home.

One very moving story was about the hustle and bustle that went on when they were preparing for President and Mrs. Kennedy's visit.  A pecan pie was in the oven, and the delicious smell added to the festive mood anticipating the visit.  When word came that the President had been killed in Dallas, everyone and everything stopped.  Silence.  Finally, the sobbing cook howled and said, "What are we going to do with the pie?"  Luci told us that everyone in America, at that time, was dealing with their own version of the same question.  What are we going to do with the pie?  And to this day, a ceramic facsimile of a pecan pie sits on the ranch house stove.  Waiting.

At a lovely dinner at the LBJ Library, Luci and I decided that the scarf should be given to Lady Bird's granddaughter and namesake, Claudia, who was about to have her 40th birthday.

                                                My "Texas Wildflower" scarf, the morning
                                            we left for our trip to Austin and the LBJ Ranch

It was an emotional visit, but also a real treat to re-trace our footprints of a special place so many years later.

Today, the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park attracts visitors from all over the world.  The ranch house furnishings are the original ones that the Johnson family used before, during, and after the Johnson White House years.  It's interesting to note that there are telephones EVERYWHERE.  And the television sets are a bank of three; so the President could monitor ABC, CBS and NBC.  Mrs. Johnson would often sneak off to her own room, to watch her favorite program, "Gunsmoke."

The NPS Superintendent at the park is Russ Whitlock.  Larry Temple said he was right out of central casting, cause he looks just like a park service ranger and superintendent should look.  Larry was spot on.  Ron and I enjoyed meeting Russ and all the park service staff.  We have since sent them our pictures and letters, and are proud to add them to the other archival ranch documents.
               

Postscript: I received a lovely note from Luci with many thanks for the special time we shared.  I loved this quote, "It was a joy sitting next to you at dinner at the LBJ Library.  Hearing the story of how you met my parents and your subsequent visit, reminded me just how much the National Park Service family feels like family to generations of Johnson's."

     As she thanked me for the scarf, she said, "Claudia's 40th was a very special family event full of the irreplaceable gifts of precious memories, but no gift meant more than receiving the scarf her grandmother had given you.  Claudia is as sentimental as Daddy was.  She instantly decided to frame your scarf to hang in her bathroom so she will see daily this precious memory of her Nini, through the kindness of a remarkable fiend she has yet to meet."

Remembering Bob Dornan

We recently lost a good friend, a national treasure, and a local celebrity.  Bob Dornan died in Moose, Wyoming on September 3, 2015 at the age of 86.

Bob Dornan was larger than life, even though, or maybe because, he lived most of his life in Moose, Wyoming, at the entrance to the Grand Teton National Park.

DORNANS, as any of  you who have visited us will know, was a Grand Teton National Park, family owned in-holding.  Nestled beside the Snake River, in the shadow of the Grand, it was a special place with rustic cabins, a camp store for supplies, a world class wine shoppe, a bar with a magnificent view, great pizza and soups, and a Chuck Wagon in the summertime where the buffalo burgers and Cowboy stew ruled.  Monday night Hootenanny's in the summer were foot stomping, jam packed, musical happenings that we all loved.

A favorite pastime for us Walkers, was sipping a bloody at the bar and watching for eagles out fishing on the snake river.

Ron and I spent many a happy lunch with old Bob, solving the problems of the world and the National Parks.  He was well informed, profane, irreverent, and funny.  We loved him.  Everyone loved him.  He held court every day, sipping wine and keeping an eye on the business.  He was an astute business man, significant in the way it always turned out that his guests bought lunch and the wine that everyone drank.  Bob knew what he was doing.

The Dornan family homesteaded in 1922.  His father and mother, John P. and Ellen, were the first couple married in the Chapel of the Transfiguration, the same little chapel where our daughter Lynne and her husband, Barry McNees were married.

Bob's father was so good to Ron when he was the 8th Director of the National Park.  He was his friend, his counsel and a great adviser.  Bob never forgot that his Dad and Ron shared such a special bond.  His face would light up with delight whenever we walked in to Dornans.  Happy to see us no matter how busy he was.  What a special greeting he always had for us.  Until this summer . . . . when the first words out of his mouth were, "Ron I'm dying."  That was in mid-July when he had just a few weeks to live.  When his sister-in-law, Tricia hugged me, she whispered, "We are just dealing with this one day at a time."

We had a birthday party for Ron's 70th at the Chuck Wagon.  I was so pleased to see that Richard and Maude Ferry were having dinner with Pat and Bob Dornan.  Here was one of the founders of  the world's largest executive search firm, Korn/Ferry International,  and a guy who'd spent most of his life in little, tiny Moose, enjoying each others company.

                                           Dick Ferry and Bob Dornan at Ron's 70th.

A few weeks ago there was an article in the Jackson Hole News and Guide about Bob giving a wine lecture in Napa Valley, California.  As he walked up to make his presentation, several of the local super sophisticates were tittering softly about the rumpled, round man, wearing a cowboy hat, and sporting a gigantic wad of keys on a belt loop, who was going to talk about fine wines.  Really?  This ought to be good, they thought.  Then the man from Moose started with his words about wines . . . and very soon, the tittering had stopped and the audience was caught up in the interesting and knowledgeable words about the wines of the world.  Dennis Johnson, the long-time manager of the Wine Shoppe at Dornans, often said that he learned all he knows about wines from his friend Bob, and that is a vast amount of knowledge, indeed.

That knowledge, and the often referred to Dornan's Wine Shoppe as the "Best in the West," speaks to just one aspect of Bob Dornan.  He was a pioneer of the recycling efforts in Jackson Hole, personally taking many loads of bottles, cans, and of course, wine bottles, to the recycling center.  He also loved to dance.  He and his wife, Pat, were life long square dancers and recently Bob hosted "Dancing with the Stars" parties.

As news of his illness spread, his many friends came from all over to see him.  Not wanting to miss anyone, and to accommodate them, he put a sign on his front door, "Don't knock.  Just come in, Bob"

Gabrielle Cruz, the darling and very effective Food and Beverage Manager at Jackson Hole Golf and Tennis, also happens to be the special lady in the life of Bob Dornan's grandson.  She choked up when we talked about Bob and said she didn't know how they were going to be able to handle his being sick and dying.  She told us that she never knew her grandfathers, and Bob had been like a grandfather to her for five years.  Our thoughts, prayers, and deepest sympathy are with Dennis, Gabby and all the Dornan family during this very difficult time.

The man from Moose, who made his mark, will be remembered in so many ways.