Page 5 Let’s get acquainted S ince I’ve been asked to write for the Generations page on a monthly basis, I thought I would introduce myself starting with the time I was in my youth. I was born and raised in Ellis County to August “Gus” and Helen (Pfeifer) Befort. They named me Alberta. Since then, I’ve married and my name is Alberta Klaus. If my name sounds familiar, it’s probably because you remember me as the Ellis County clerk from lberta January 1997 Generations to January. Some of my childhood recollections consist of living on a farm southwest of Hays, making mud pies and playing with my doll. Taming the baby kittens and petting our cats and dogs was a favorite pastime. When I reached 8 years of age, I entered the milking business. This was done every morning around 6 a.m. and every evening around 5 p.m. This task of milking by hand is easy once you learn how to do it. We sat on T-shaped stools and hobbled the cows so we wouldn’t get hit by their tails or be kicked. This didn’t always work the way it was supposed to. Sometimes the tail came undone, and when that hard tail hit your head, it wasn’t too pleasant. Sometimes the cows kicked and our bucket of milk spilled. This was a family activity consisting of my parents, two brothers (George and Jim) and myself. Once done milking, we separated the cream from the milk, fed the baby calves, slopped the hogs, fed the chickens and gathered the eggs. By now, we’ve worked up A an appetite for breakfast. My mom was a good cook and made us a good hot breakfast and, if we wanted to eat cereal, there was Post Toasties Corn Flakes with cold milk. Do you remember when they put prizes, such as a package of marbles, into the cereal boxes? I still have a few of those marbles. I think I liked the prize as much as I enjoyed the cereal. After breakfast, it was time to go to our country laus school, which was open from September through April. First, we went to church at 8 a.m., then to school for religion class and finally our public school day began at 9 a.m. and ended about 4 p.m. There were four boys and three girls in my class. At recess, everyone in the eight grades went out to play. Remember outdoor toilets? We used them at school and at home until I was 12. One thing that sticks out about grade school was field day. We would go to Hays and visit different sites, such as Fort Hays State University’s Sternberg Museum of Natural History, Coca Cola Bottling Co. and XL Potato Chips House. Before summer recess, we would have a fun day playing games. Probably when I was 10 years old, my parents bought me a new Schwinn girls two-wheel bike. That was such a nice gift until I got caught in the sand row along the road and flipped the bike. I had scratches, bruises and a chipped front tooth. Ouch, that hurt. We did not have television until I was about 12 years K old. Our programs consisted of what was playing on NBC or CBS, but I remember once watching part of the World Series baseball game on TV at the Antonino Hall during part of our school day. We must have done that during noon recess. Of course, the Dodgers were playing the Yankees. We made homemade root beer when I was young. It was delicious. Root beer is still my favorite pop. Living back in the ’40s and ’50s in the country, our air conditioning consisted of opening the windows, so things got mighty dirty. Guess what? I was the duster. I also helped do the laundry with an old wringer washer, wash tubs and washboard. Remember that bluing agent we used to get whites white and lye soap? We hung the clean wash on an outdoor wash line. There was no automatic washer or dryer back than. When the clothes were dry, Mom or I brought the laundry back into the house to fold and prepare to iron. I learned to iron by ironing hankies, towels and pillow cases. Here’s another thing I remember. Dad and my brothers drove the tractor to cultivate the fields. Oh how I wanted to do that, so after much festering Dad let me drive the tractor while he ate lunch. It was exciting and scary. I think it also scared my parents. One other thing that stands out when I was in grade school, I took piano and accordion lessons. That is one of many good things my parents encouraged me to do. I still play both instruments. Life was simple and good. To be continued ... Alberta Klaus is a contributor to The Hays Daily News Generations advisory group. Today is Wednesday, June 19, the 170th day of 2013. There are 195 days left in the year. theory of evolution to teach creation science as well. In 1999, author Stephen King was seriously injured when he was struck by a van driven by Bryan Smith in North Lovell, Maine. Ten years ago: The U.S. Air Force dropped manslaughter and aggravated assault charges against two fighter pilots who’d mistakenly bombed Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan in 2002. (One pilot was later found guilty of dereliction of duty and reprimanded.) Five years ago: President George W. Bush surveyed the aftermath of devastating floods during a quick tour of the Midwest, assuring residents and rescuers alike that he was listening to their concerns and understood their exhaustion. One year ago: The Southern Baptist Convention voted to elect its first African-American president, Rev. Fred Luter Jr. Today’s Birthdays: Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi (soo chee) is 68. Rock singer Ann Wilson (Heart) is 63. Singerdancer Paula Abdul is 51. Alt-country singer-musician Scott Avett (AY’-veht) (The Avett Brothers) is 37. Actor Atticus Shaffer is 15. Thought for Today: Today’s Highlight in History: On June 19, 1953, Julius Rosenberg, 35, and his wife, Ethel, 37, convicted of conspiring to pass U.S. atomic secrets to the Soviet Union, were executed at Sing Sing Prison in Ossining, N.Y. On this date: In 1862, Congress passed, and President Abraham Lincoln signed, a measure abolishing slavery in U.S. territories. In 1865, Union troops commanded by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, with news that the Civil War was over, and that all remaining slaves in Texas were free. In 1910, the first-ever Father’s Day was celebrated in Spokane, Wash. (The idea for the observance is credited to Sonora Louise Smart Dodd.) In 1973, the rock musical “The Rocky Horror Show” premiered in London (it was later adapted into the movie “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”). In 1986, University of Maryland basketball star Len Bias, the first draft pick of the Boston Celtics, suffered a fatal cocaine-induced seizure. In 1987, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a Lou- “Free thinkers are generally those who never think at all.” isiana law requiring any public school teaching the — Laurence Sterne, English author (1713-1768). Monday, Community Tuesday, Arts Wednesday, Generations Thursday, Community Friday, Faith Generations Wednesday, June 19, 2013 To submit content for this page, email [email protected] How to spot and avoid fraud her include reminding her to never give out her Social Security number or financial information unless she initiated the contact and knows the institution. or large withdrawals. Also, see if your mother If, however, she doesn’t would be willing to let you want you looking at her sort her mail before she financial records, there are opens it so you can weed out Dear Troubled, other clues. Financial scams that target For example: Is she getting the junk. To reduce the junk mail the elderly continue to be a a lot of junk mail for contests, and email she gets, use the big problem in the United free trips and sweepstakes? Direct Marketing AssoStates. In fact, it’s estimated Is she receiving calls from ciation consumer opt-out some 5 million Americans strangers offering awards service at www.dmachoice. older than 60 are scammed or moneymaking deals? org. And to stop credit card out of approximately $3 bil- Also, notice if her spending and insurance offers, use the lion every year. habits have changed, if she Here are some tips that has complained about being Consumer Credit Reportcan help you spot a scam, short of money lately, or has ing Industry opt-out service and what you can do to pro- suddenly become secretive or at www.optoutprescreen. tect your mother. defensive about her finances. com or call (888) 567-8688. All these might be signs of They will ask for your mom’s Social Security number and trouble. date of birth. Register your mother’s Spotting a scam or a con home and cellphone numbers artist is not always easy to do. They range from shady The most effective way to on the National Do Not Call Registry, www.donotcall.gov financial advisers to slickhelp protect your mom is to talking telemarketers, from alert her to the different kind or (888) 382-1222) to reduce telemarketers. And help her professional caregivers to of scams out there. relatives who steal from the The easiest way to do this get a free copy of her credit report at annualcreditreport. very people they’re supposed is by visiting the Financial com to make sure she isn’t a to be looking after. Fraud Enforcement Task victim of identity theft. The most common scams Force website (stopfraud. targeting seniors today come gov — click on “Protect in the form of free-lunch Yourself ”), where you can get seminars selling dubious a rundown on the different If you suspect an older financial products, tricky/ types of scams making the relative has been the victim high-pressure telemarketrounds these days. of a scam, report it to your ing calls, and endless junk The Better Business mail peddling free vacation Bureau Scam Stopper site at state securities regulator’s office (see nasaa.org for packages, sweepstakes, phony www.bbb.org/scam-stopper contact information), or charity fundraisers and more. is another good resource. Adult Protective Services And, of course, there’s the If your mother doesn’t — call (800) 677-1116 for ongoing problem of identity have access to a computer, theft, Medicare fraud, doorprint out the materials your- contact information, which investigate reports of elderly to-door scams, credit card self and use them to start a financial abuse. Also report theft, and Internet and email conversation. the incident to local law scams. It’s also a good idea to enforcement. The best way to spot a keep close tabs on your scam is to help your mom mom’s social circle. Has she Send questions to: manage her finances — or at acquired any questionable Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, least monitor her accounts. new friends lately, or is she Norman, OK 73070, or visit Reviewing her financial seeing anyone who’s givSavvySenior.org. Jim Miller statements each month can ing her advice, financial or is a contributor to NBC’s “Toalert you to questionable otherwise? day” show and author of “The checks, credit card charges Some other tips to protect Savvy Senior” book. Dear Savvy Senior, Can you offer some tips on protecting seniors from financial scams? My neighbor’s elderly mother recently was swindled out of $10,000, and I want to make sure my own mother is protected. Troubled Daughter Scam watching Protect your parent Report it Reception After 35 years with the Kansas Forest Service, Jim Strine, northwest area district forester, is retiring. A public reception will be from 3 to 5 p.m. Friday at the Hays Agricultural Research Center auditorium. Mandatory retirement age for Pa. judges upheld HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania’s highest court this week unanimously rejected a challenge to a constitutional provision that requires judges to retire by the end of the year in which they turn 70. The state Supreme Court ruled on a pair of lawsuits filed by judges who argued the mandatory-retirement provision, part of a 1968 amendment, amounted to age discrimination. Robert Heim, the lawyer for three judges who filed the lawsuit, said he does not plan to appeal, but vowed to continue litigating a similar suit pending in federal court. The decision was the latest in a string of unsuccessful efforts to knock down the retirement requirement.