The Senior Scene

Last May, as one example of life in communities in a pandemic, freelance writer Joan Cronk reported to Senior Scene readers how residents and local government in the city of Puyallup were coping. Twelve months later, she has an update on how things are going there.

It has been a little over a year since the shutdown due to COVID-19, and life is slowly (and hopefully safely) returning to normal.

Linda Kachinsky, who a year ago was ordering groceries online and picking them up, is still doing so.

“I’m good at it, and it saves time and money because there is no impulse-buying,” said Kachinsky.

She and her husband have been vaccinated and are venturing out to smaller stores that have capacity control. “No big-store shopping and no groups of people,” she said, adding that they aren’t lowering their guard.

The couple orders takeout meals from local businesses and have hosted friends for an outside meal.

Steve Kirkelie, city manager for Puyallup, is delighted and encouraged by the vaccine and the president’s plan to get it into more communities.

“A light at the end of the tunnel,” he said, alluding to a recent vaccine distribution held at one of the Washington State Fair’s parking lots in his city. He said 3,500 folks were vaccinated during the event in which the city partnered with the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department and the county’s Department of Emergency Management.

“We have already had six of these events. By the time we get to June we will have had at least a dozen events at the blue lot. This is very encouraging,” Kirkelie said.

The City Council is still holding its meetings on Zoom, and Catholic Communities Services will continue the To Go program that offers a takeaway lunch service. The program provides a box lunch for pickup Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Pre-orders are required by calling 253-841-5555 one week in advance. Pickup occurs in the city’s Senior Activity Center parking lot at Third and Pioneer from 12 to 12:30 pm. The cost is $3.50 for seniors 60 and older and $6 for individuals under 60 years of age.

The summertime Concerts in the Park series is still up in the air, with no decision made as to a starting date.

The Puyallup Public Library opened April 1 for 34 hours a week Monday through Friday. Curb services will continue.

Puyallup Police Chief Scott Engle said his department is moving in the direction of returning to normal operations, with all employees back in the building due to having received their vaccines.

Engle said the officers were making sure when they engaged with the public that it was in an open air environment, but now it is safer to have in-home contacts.

“Over the last year we had to cut off a little bit of contact, and that created a barrier to community relations. We’re trying very hard to be able to interact one on one. We’ve missed that as much as the citizens have,” he said.

Engel said the community has moved to using city resources again, and school resource officers are seeing students in the buildings.

Puyallup schools are on a hybrid schedule, with most students in buildings two days a week.

Toni Gates, who works at the Costco depot in Sumner, said all departments have reopened except for the photo department. Employees wear masks companywide across the country, she said

“We still have sanitization crews that we have had for over a year, keeping surfaces clean for employees and customers, using special products that kill COVID,” she said.

As gun-control legislation wound its way through Congress last month, Grandmothers Against Gun Violence was cheering.

The Seattle-based group commended the House of Representatives for passing two bills March 11 that would tighten federal regulations of gun sales. House Resolution 8 expands background checks on people who buy or transfer firearms, and HR 1446 (also known as the Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2021) would amend the “Charleston loophole,” which lets gun sales proceed without a completed background check if three business days have passed. Under 1446, the FBI would have 10 days to finish checking.

Margaret Heldring, co-chairwoman of Grandmothers Against Gun Violence (GAGV), noted the loophole enabled a person, without a background check, to purchase the weapon that was used in the mass shooting that claimed nine lives at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C. in 2015. “It’s long overdue that this loophole is finally being addressed, and we urge the Senate to take quick action on this. Lives are at stake,” she said.

Welcome to GAGV’s world, one in which Holdring sees progress toward reduced gun violence. There also is foot-dragging, she laments.

Founded in 2013 after the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, Grandmothers Against Gun Violence has staked out a mission of grassroots advocacy supporting legislation, research, and education to reduce gun violence. Its 1,200-plus members in 30 states are among the older active participants in a gun-violence prevention movement that encompasses activists of all ages and backgrounds in a push for common-sense gun legislation at the local, state, and national levels of government. Among other things, they gather petition signatures for statewide gun-safety initiatives and raise money for anti-gun violence research.

GAGV also takes its message directly to elected officials. Members lobby lawmakers in–person and by mail and e-mail. And they’re political, supporting candidates who measure up to GAGV’s goals. For the 2020 election, GAGV endorsed 96 candidates, including the Biden-Harris ticket for president, Governor Jay Inslee for re-election, and a bevy of Washington legislators.

“In this partisan political era, it’s more vital than ever that we elect leaders who are informed and committed to passing responsible and enforceable gun laws,” Heldring said.

Last year’s state Senate and House election incumbents and challengers were evaluated on their voting records and public statements, respectively, on five pieces of legislation during the 2020 session of the Legislature:

• Establishing a single point of contact for background checks.
• Eliminating firearms in childcare centers.
• Continuing background checks for purchasers of gun parts.
• Allowing the State Patrol to destroy guns used in crimes.
• Establishing a state office of firearm violence prevention.

For this year’s Legislature session, GAGV’s priorities included restrictions on ammunition for high-capacity guns and a ban of open-carry weapons at public demonstrations and the state capitol.

People are listening. Three statewide gun measures were passed by voters in 2018, an indication of broad public support for what GAGV and others are saying, according to Jennifer Dolan-Waldman, a leader of GAGV’s legislative committee.

“When people go to vote and they have a choice as to what kinds of regulation they want to allow in, they’re pretty clearly saying that they want to have things tightened up,” Dolan-Waldman said.

 

A CONVERSATION WITH ‘GRANDMOTHERS’ FOUNDER

Margaret Heldring, founder and co-chairwoman of Grandmothers Against Gun Violence (GAGV), believes she and the other grandmas involved with the group have some moral authority to speak about the issue.

“There’s this sense of wisdom, life experience,” Heldring said. “None of us is building a resume at this point in life. We’re not interested in personal gain. We are truly blessed to be at a point in life where we can think about what’s good for everybody.”

Heldring was a retired clinical psychologist (after serving on the clinical faculty at the University of Washington School of Medicine Department of Family Medicine for 30 years and on the staffs of Swedish Hospital Medical Center and Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle) when she and a small group of friends launched GAGV. They were moved by the mass shooting of students and staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. In 2013.

Nearing a decade later, in a conversation with Senior Scene, Heldring talked about her group’s work, its successes and dreams, and the fear she feels for her grandchildren and all children “in a society of violence.”

 Do you have to be a grandmother to join Grandmothers Against Gun Violence?

No, you don’t. Many women and some men, mostly of a certain age, are active members and board members.

Is there a particular age range or demographic of volunteers that seems easiest to recruit to your movement?

Yes, we appeal mostly to women 60 and older. We have about 40 men who are members and quite a few women in their 80s. Were so proud of them. However, there is room and opportunity for all ages in the gun violence prevention movement.

Regardless of whether they join your group, how would you rate the level of activism and awareness of seniors in the gun violence issue compared to the public as a whole?

I would rate the level of activism as high and effective. On Jan. 28, 2020, GAGV had its annual Lobby Day in Olympia. Seventy-rif3 members traveled in two buses and met with many of the state legislators to push for common-sense gun reforms. Many more e-mail, call, and write their state and federal representatives. They participate in post card-writing parties to sign and send their opinions to elected officials. We’ve marched in the streets, hosted informational gatherings, written letters to editors, and given public testimony to local and state elected bodies.

What’s your advice to anyone who isn’t a “joiner” but wants to help?

Just joining is a huge help. When we can say to elected officials that we have 1,200 members and are continuing to grow— that is powerful. Every voice adds to the movement and strengthens public opinion. Not everyone needs to do something. Simply being a part of the organization is a good contribution.

What keeps you awake at night?

I worry that too many state and federal elected officials are steps behind public opinion, and that while they dawdle, more tragedies will occur. Naturally, I worry about my grandchildren —all children—growing up in a society of violence.

Are there successes or advancements so far that give you hope?

Yes, indeed. I’m encouraged by the growing numbers of people in the movement, legislative successes on state levels, changes made by private companies to help reduce gun violence, new—but still way too little–support for research into gun violence causes, prevention and remedies, increased awareness and accuracy of the media, the diminished influence of the NRA (National Rifle Association), the openness of some people on both sides to look for common ground, the multi-generational nature of the movement, growing understanding that gun violence impacts communities of color in different, profound ways, and the most essential: Growing confidence that, eventually, we can win this struggle against gun violence. Change is necessary in our social norms, as well as our laws. It must become universal habit to lock up firearms and ammunition in homes, to applaud responsible gun ownership and use, and for all people to learn truth, not fiction, about guns.

On Nov. 9, 1963, The Kingsmen’s garage rock classic, “Louie Louie,” began its winter-long climb toward the top of Billboard magazine’s hit parade charts. But that rise was merely one leg of the journey that remarkable song was to make.

The “Louie Louie” saga actually began in 1957 when its author, the Los Angeles-based R&B singer Richard Berry, toured dancehalls through the Pacific Northwest. Sales of that record swelled in the wake of Berry’s tour, and several early local R&B talents, including the Dave Lewis Combo, The Gallahads, and The Thunderbirds, adopted it and established its popularity among young Northwest music fans.

Then in 1960, Tacoma’s seminal rock ‘n’ roll band, The Wailers (with their new singer, Rockin’ Robin Roberts), recorded a rendition of “Louie Louie” and released it as a single. The 45 became a radio hit, selling tens of thousands of units. From that point on, every teenage band in every Northwest town was expected to perform the song every night at every dance. It became no less than an ingrained regional social ritual for local teenagers.

Thus, it surprised few when a couple years later two Portland, Ore. bands, The Kingsmen and Paul Revere and the Raiders, opted to record their distinct renditions of that same song, at the very same recording studio (Portland’s Northwestern Recorders), the very same week. In April 1963, these two versions became concurrent radio hits in Portland. The upshot? Within weeks, the Raiders were “discovered” and signed to a major record deal with Columbia Records (leading to fame and two dozen big hits)

The Kingsmen, frustrated that their single had stalled without breaking out of Portland, split up. Their promoter, however, forged on, and by fall, he’d pushed the 45 into hit status on the East Coast. The band scrambled to reform (without, however, their original singer, Jack Ely) and were stunned to watch their recording debut in Billboard.

 

“Dirty” Lyrics or governmental hysterics?

 

But then, in early 1964, the media began carrying stories that The Kingsmen’s “Louie Louie” had been banned by Governor Matthew Welch of Indiana due to its allegedly “dirty” lyrics. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported that Welch “and broadcasting officials took immediate steps to have the record banned from Indiana radio stations. An investigation also was promised by the National Association of Broadcasters, and the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) were informed. James J. McManus, press secretary to the governor, said the words were ‘indistinct but plain if you listen carefully.’ ”

The initial outcry escalated to the point that U.S. Attorney General Bobby Kennedy took notice and the FCC and J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI launched investigations. The FBI’s dogged sleuths tracked down Richard Berry, The Kingsmen, the song’s publishers, the record company’s executives, all in a relentless effort to root out the presumed musical pornographers.

The Kingsmen were aghast. The “Louie Louie” they knew contained nothing more than the harmless original lyrical tale of a lonely sailor who was leaning on his bartender, Louie. But that’s not what a smattering of schoolkids — and their parents, principals, and preachers — figured they heard on the recording.

Ultimately, the FBI’s two-year investigation resulted in a 120-page report that — as it compiles all the various purported dirty lyrics that citizens provided the investigators — is not much more than a compendium of imagined filth. In the end, the entire brouhaha fizzled out when the FCC concluded — after conducting various technological analyses of the record — that it could not be considered pornographic because Ely’s vocals on the record were simply “unintelligible.”

In no small measure due to the publicity surrounding the controversy, teenagers rewarded ”Louie Louie” with “top of the charts” status and ongoing sales figures that have topped 12 million. Beyond statistics, though, “Louie Louie” has achieved a naughty reputation that has ensured its status as the Northwest’s unofficial rock song, and its enshrinement in pop history. A major display about the song and its history was included in Seattle’s Experience Music Project’s (EMP) inaugural Northwest Passage exhibit upon opening in 2000.

 

This article, written by Peter Blecha,

originally was published at historylink.org, an online encyclopedia of Washington state history. Sources: Joel Whitburn, Top Pop Singles 1955-1993 (Menomonee Falls, Wis.: Record Research, Inc., 1994); Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 1964; Peter Blecha interviews with Richard Berry (1985), Dave Lewis (7/83, etc.), Ron Holden [Playboys] (9/83, etc.), “Tiny” Tony Smith [Gallahads] (9/84), Jack Ely [Kingsmen] (1982, etc.), Paul Revere [Raiders] (1986, 1999, etc.), Rich Dangle [Wailers] (1986, 1999, etc.).

COVID-19 vaccines are being administered in Washington to adults 65 and older, adults 50 and older living in multi-generation households, residents and employees of nursing homes, assisted-living communities and other long-term care facilities, healthcare workers, and first-responders.

The state Department of Health has information about eligibility, availability, and scheduling of vaccination appointments at 1-800-525-0127, doh.wa.gov, and covid.vaccine@doh.wa.gov.

Here is a Q and A about vaccinating and related topics, based on information in mid-February from state and federal health authorities.

When can all adults get vaccinated?

After the initial phase involving older adults, long-term care residents and employees, and healthcare workers, the next phases in order will be:

• High-risk critical workers 50 and older who work in agriculture, child care, food processing, firefighting, grocery stores, public schools, law enforcement, prisons and jails, and public transit.
• People 16 and older who have two or more underlying medical conditions that the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says put tghem at greater risk of severe COVID-19.
• High-risk critical workers under 50 who work in certain group settings, and residents, staff and volunteers in group living quarters such as homes for people with disabilities, homeless shelters, and domestic violence shelters.

The state hopes to start vaccinating these groups in late winter or early spring.

Where can I get a vaccine? 

Locations can be found on the state Department of Health (DOH) Phase Finder Tool at doh.wa.gov. Assistance is also available at 1-800-525-0127. Those who are eligible will receive a confirmation and a list of vaccine providers, including hospitals, county health departments, medical clinics and pharmacies. They then must contact a provider to schedule an appointment. For those not yet eligible, the tool will record their mobile number and e-mail address to let them know once they’re eligible.

How will residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities get vaccinated?

Residents and staff are being vaccinated through a federal program that has contracted with CVS and Walgreen pharmacies to administer vaccines free on-site. CVS and Walgreen have finished offering first doses and are now in administering second doses.

Do I have to pay for the vaccination? 

The federal government is buying the vaccine and getting it to providers for free. Providers can recoup a fee for administering the shot, but not from consumers. Fees are covered by patients’ insurance or the government (in the case of Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries and the uninsured, for example). There shouldn’t be out-of-pocket cost for getting the vaccine.

 

Should I still wear a mask after getting vaccinated?

The vaccine is one part of slowing the spread of the coronavirus. It could take months to build up immunity, so the CDC recommends face masks and social distancing. In addition, it’s not yet clear how effective the vaccines are against new, more contagious strains of the coronavirus, although they would still provide some protection, according to health officials.