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Mae
and her only sibling sister Francis were born to Cherokee parents
in a sod house nearly a century past. In her late 80s Mae's
vision began to fail, family sold her car, she faced what
was to be left of her life shut in her own livingroom.
First thing she did was get a old computer and subscribe to
Internet.
Today the mother of six makes prized life-size Indian Dolls,
maintains Presidency of her local Senior Citizens Center and
riles those who refused to allow her to drive a newly
acquired golf cart around the tiny town of Saint John,
Kansas where she's lived much of her life.
When the city council banned Mae from it's roads
because her transportation was too slow, even the Amish
horse-drawn carts had to go around, she found other means of
travel then invited elders from the entire state to come
spend a weekend cruising St. John roads in their Invalid and
Golf carts.
The city powers threw in the towel, appealed to Mae's family
who saw to it she got cataract surgery, recovered her
automobile driver's license, then purchased her a nice
little toot-around car.
After she felt she had outgrown, actually out lived most of
the "Red Hat", a huge organization for women over 55 Mae
formed the now rapidly growing "90's Club".
This group now expanded to other states and even other
countries, proudly wear their motto on clothing buttons as
well as plastic yellow 'safety tape' frequently used to rope
off areas closed for emergencies.
Theirs tape attached to walkers, canes, wheelchairs bears
the mantra "I'm too young to be this old".
They have loads of fun and invite all interested, to join
them. You get a free button with your club motto on it.
Now 93+
years young, Mae epitomizes Native Americans in this day and
age. ©
2006 Strasbaugh |
