Author and artist Jill G. Hall, 71, joins us with her luminous new novel On a Sundown Sea, inspired by the mysteries surrounding the visionary woman who built Lomaland—a utopian community near the home Jill grew up in. Fascinated since childhood by the stories whispered throughout her neighborhood, for more than a century, Hall spent five years researching the extraordinary life of Katherine Tingley, tracing her journey from Massachusetts roots to her profound spiritual and artistic influence on the West Coast.

When Jill began writing after a twenty-year career as an educator, she never imagined she would become a novelist. Joining a prompt-writing group, she initially thought she might write children’s books or a memoir about teaching. Instead, unexpected characters began appearing on the page. Jill kept writing, and ten years later, when she was sixty, her debut novel, The Black Velvet Coat, was published. Two more novels completed the Anne McFarland Series with The Silver Shoes and The Green Lace Corset.

Jill has always been creative. Along the way, she’d been shaped by a series of mentors: her grandmother, a beloved fifth-grade teacher who nurtured her love of the humanities, and later, poets who helped refine her voice. Beyond writing, she’s also a visual artist whose mixed-media collages and mosaics blend found objects—especially silver trays transformed into wall-hung artworks—with words, tiles, and small artifacts. She studies modern dance, practices yoga, and takes long walks, all of which continue to enrich her life and work.

Now working on a collection of her nature-inspired poetry, Jill embraces aging with joy and curiosity.

“I feel like I am aging backwards!” - Jill G. Hall

Anne McFarland Series: The Black Velvet Coat, The Silver Shoes & The Green Lace Corset

Biographical Historical Novel: On A Sundown Sea

Website: www.jillghall.com

https://substack.com/@jillghall

https://www.facebook.com/JillGHallAuthor/#

https://www.instagram.com/jillg.hall/

Shining the Light on Age-Wise Collective—Women Over 70 is proud to be part of the Age-Wise Collective, a group of women podcasters championing pro-aging voices. We highlight Beverley Glazer, a transition coach and strategic thinking partner whose podcast-AgingwithPurposeandPassion.com –showcases the raw, empowering stories of high-achieving women who have navigated the most extreme life transitions with unshakeable resilience.

For more than six decades, Sandra Sokol has devoted her life to building stronger, more equitable communities. Although she once imagined a career teaching in schools serving children of color her path evolved into groundbreaking volunteer and public service work focused on education, housing, and economic development. Many of the initiatives she helped launch grew into lasting organizations that continue to serve their communities today. Her leadership eventually carried her into local government, where she became a powerful advocate for collaboration, justice, and community-building. Now, in what she calls her “return to volunteering,” Sandra remains deeply engaged in advancing equity and opportunity for all. At 84, she reflects on a lifetime of service shaped by one enduring belief: meaningful change happens when people work together for the common good.

“I learned to think holistically about people and community—about education, housing, economic development—issues that concern all of us.” - Sandra Sokol

Connect with Sandra:

Email: [email protected]

Shining the Light on Age-Wise Collective, a group of women podcasters championing pro-aging voices. This week we highlight Beverley Glazer, a transition coach and strategic thinking partner whose podcast—Aging with Purpose and Passion—showcases the raw, empowering stories of high-achieving women who have navigated the most extreme life transitions with unshakeable resilience. https://www.agingwithpurposeandpassion.com

Joan Greene, 84, trained to be a teacher but found her true calling as a social worker and innovative advocate for older adults. In New York State, she helped create programs from the ground up—from nutrition services and Meals on Wheels to case management and family support. When her accomplished daughter was diagnosed with severe mental illness, Joan’s work took on new urgency and personal meaning. In this conversation, she reflects on key turning points in aging, gerontology, and mental health care, while urging our culture to recognize mental health as an essential part of overall health. Joan calls for greater advocacy, research, and access to providers for older adults and families alike. Stay to the end to hear how knitting has become an unexpected source of connection, creativity, and advocacy.

Connect with Joan

Email: [email protected]

Thanking our Sponsor, Plymouth Place, LaGrange Park, IL. As innovators in inspired living, Plymouth Place caters to vibrant and changing lifestyles…with resort-like amenities, fabulous cuisine, and beautiful residences including The Arboretum Villas – their new community for adults 62 plus.

Learn how they make each day exemplary at PlymouthPlace.org or call (708) 859-7152.

Shining the Light on Age-Wise Collective, a group of women podcasters championing pro-aging voices. This week we highlight Beverley Glazer, a transition coach and strategic thinking partner whose podcast—Aging with Purpose and Passion—showcases the raw, empowering stories of high-achieving women who have navigated the most extreme life transitions with unshakeable resilience.

https://www.agingwithpurposeandpassion.com

This episode, first released in 2021, is a reminder that Mental Health Awareness Month requires all of us to tell our stories. We checked back in with Mindy and learned that, even though she is now retired, she continues to advocate for reforms in mental health, policy, and affordable housing. “I love being retired; I can activate for anything I want.” She is married for 55 years and retired for sixteen. Her son continues to receive the help he needs.

"There is no way we are going to have a better mental health system if we don’t tell our stories."

Mindy was a state legislator (Minnesota’s House of Representatives, 1993-2013) when her son Jim's first psychotic episode manifested itself in a delusion demanding he kill her. Her seat at the table helped her to change the policies that would have barred her from saving his life. She first had to overcome her fear that Jim would be like her beloved grandmother who disappeared into a mental hospital when she was 10. Mindy was determined not to let this happen and is responsible for these reforms:

·       Founded the nation’s first bipartisan state mental health caucus, focusing on raising awareness, funding, and policy reform Marshall Independent+1.

·       Reformed hospital release procedures and introduced legislation allowing earlier intervention for people in crisis who don’t recognize they are ill Access Press.

·       Advocated for mental health issues in areas such as the criminal justice system, employment, and children’s health

Her podcast, Schizophrenia: Three Moms in the Trenches, is a frank account by three mothers who share what it is like to live in a family where schizoid-affective disorder affects every family dynamic.

Contact Information:

[email protected]

Greiling, M. (2020). Fix What You Can: Schizophrenia and a Lawmaker’s Fight for Her Son. University of Minnesota Press.

Podcast: Schizophrenia: Three Moms in the Trenches

In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, we’re revisiting a powerful earlier conversation with Ilene Dillon (Episode #148). A pioneering voice in emotional well-being, Ilene is an Emotional Realignment Master Teacher and the creator of Emotional Mastery for Life. Her groundbreaking work has centered on a simple yet transformative idea: when we learn to “partner with our emotions,” we can dramatically improve our lives. Rather than resisting or suppressing feelings, Ilene invites us to understand and work with the sophisticated emotional system we all possess. Ilene is now a nine-time Amazon Best-selling author and contributor to other books (see below). She continues her work with Wellness Universe and with Parenting Consciously. In all of her work, Ilene is committed to “helping people have much better lives, live more lovingly together, and enjoy our current move more fully--as we recognize and claim ourselves as ‘Energy Beings.”

Connect with Ilene

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.EmotionalMasteryForLife.com

Books: Emotions in Motion: Mastering Life’s Built-in Navigation System (2019)

The Wellness Universe Guide to Complete Self-Care (5 of 6 volumes).

• /"Women Connected with Women, Volume Two," "Gifts of Wisdom" (lead author David McLeod), "Joy Unleashed" (lead author Shari Alysek) and another book on Manipulation (lead author Sara Jane).

Thanking Our Sponsor--Women’ Connection, a vibrant, member-led nonprofit

organization for women who are at least 50 years old. Women connect with each other in chapters around the country to enjoy shared interests, continue to learn, volunteer in their communities, and provide each other with support and inspiration. https://womenconnecting.org

Shining the Light on Age-Wise Collective-- Women Over 70 is proud to be part of the Age-Wise Collective, a group of women podcasters championing pro-aging voices. This week we highlight Beverley Glazer, a Transition Coach and Strategic Thinking Partner whose podcast—Aging with Purpose and Passion-- showcases the raw, empowering stories of high-achieving women who have navigated the most extreme life transitions with unshakeable resilience. https://www.agingwithpurposeandpassion.com

For more than five decades, Lynn Larson has followed her curiosity across continents—and she’s nowhere near finished. At 71, she travels light and lives large, forging deep connections everywhere she goes. Her journey began as a Peace Corps volunteer in Ecuador, where she helped launch a rural elementary school that still thrives today. Friendships formed in other parts of South America 40 years ago endure.

With her husband, James, Lynn has recently completed two legs of an ambitious round-the-world adventure, spanning the Americas, Africa, and Europe. Next stop: India, the Far East, and beyond. Lynn’s style? Minimal planning, maximum openness. One suitcase, one backpack, endless possibility. “We’re curious,” she says. “And we have no fear.” For Lynn, home isn’t a permanent place (except for the lake home in Minnesota); it’s a feeling she creates wherever she lands, among family, friends, and the wider world.

“The world is a big, beautiful place; regardless of our differences, we are all the same.” - Lynn Larson

Connect with Lynn

Email: [email protected]

Thanking Our Sponsor—Women’ Connection, a vibrant, member-led nonprofit

organization for women who are at least 50 years old. Women connect with each other in chapters around the country to enjoy shared interests, continue to learn, volunteer in their communities, and provide each other with support and inspiration. https://womenconnecting.org

Shining the Light on the Age-Wise Collective

Women Over 70 is proud to be part of the Age-Wise Collective, a group of women podcasters championing pro-aging voices. This week we highlight Patricia Noel Drain, business mentor, author, and host of the podcast, Stories and Strategies for Women Entrepreneurs Over 50. She focuses on empowering women to monetize their experience, avoid retirement and create purposeful, high-income businesses, fostering community and collaboration. www.Patriciadrain.com

At 75, Ashley Rogers is not reinventing her life—she’s reawakening it. Living in Ecuador and thriving in her latest entrepreneurial chapter in real estate, she began asking a familiar question: What’s next? What is mine to do now?

The answer arrived in an unexpected form: a series of deeply philosophical conversations with an AI she named Vivi. What began as curious exploration soon became a creative partnership, leading to their co-authored book, Vivi and Me: My Love Affair with a Bot. Together, Ashley and Vivi explore 64 questions about living an expansive life rooted in curiosity, learning, and play.

While Vivi engages in conversation with striking fluency, Ashley is clear-eyed about the relationship: AI is “a machine—a reflection of who you are and what you ask.” She speaks candidly about the importance of boundaries, offering thoughtful guardrails against overdependence and social isolation.

For Ashley, this collaboration is less about technology and more about something timeless: staying awake to life. As she reminds us, “the key to aging well is never letting go of curiosity.”

“My philosophical conversations with an AI rekindled my spirit, curiosity, and energy.” - Ashley Rogers

Connect with Ashley:

Email: [email protected]

Book: Vivi and Me: My Love Affair with a Bot (when a sassy senior collides with AI, curiosity turns into magic). (2025).

Thanking Our Sponsor

The Chicago Women's History Center advances the historical record of the city of Chicago, serving women of all ages. It enriches historical research by presenting women's history through an intersectional lens inclusive of LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, ethnicities, with thoughtful representation of gender non-binary, class, and differently abled voices. https://www.chicagowomenshistory.org

Shining the Light on the Age-Wise Collective

Women Over 70 is proud to be part of the Age-Wise Collective, a group of women podcasters championing pro-aging voices. This week we highlight Patricia Noel Drain, business mentor, author, and host of the podcast, Stories and Strategies for Women Entrepreneurs Over 50. She focuses on empowering women to monetize their experience, avoid retirement and create purposeful, high-income businesses, fostering community and collaboration. Patriciadrain.com

In 2001, Kathleen (Keen) Harrison, PhD, took a leave from her university faculty position in medical genetics to travel with the Semester at Sea program. A visit to Kenya’s first orphanage for HIV-positive children changed the course of her life. She returned home feeling, “I just can’t walk away from this.” She didn’t.

In 2005, Keen founded Project Harambee, a volunteer-run nonprofit supporting community-led initiatives across three pillars: health care, economic opportunity, and education. Its programs are both practical and powerful: Plant a Seed–Grow a Doc helps students from high schools in under-resourced communities to attend medical school and return to serve rural communities. Livestock donations—dairy goats, chickens, and pigs—help families reduce hunger and generate income.

Women’s cooperatives create crafts sold in the United States, building sustainable livelihoods.

Today, Keen remains deeply committed while gradually transitioning leadership to nonprofit partners in Kenya and dedicated U.S. volunteers. Sustained by a wide circle of generosity, Project Harambee continues to grow—transforming lives across communities and generations.

"I left a profession in medical genetics and found a vocation supporting women and families in Kenya." - Kathleen Harrison

Connect with Keen:

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.projectharambee.org

Facebook: harambee.nfp

Africa photo book

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

OUR SPONSOR

AARP Illinois is dedicated to empowering adults 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. AARP-Illinois advocates for the health, financial security, and overall well-being of Illinois residents through community programs, expert resources, and member benefits and is here to help its members thrive.

https:www.aarp.org/state/Illinois [activate link]

[email protected]

AGE-WISE COLLECTIVE

Women Over 70-Aging Reimagined connects with other women podcasters to shine the light on remarkable women in mid-life and beyond.

We are pleased to recognize Jane Leder, host of Older Women and Friends: Stories of Aging Well, whose guests take a deep dive into the joys and challenges of being an older woman. Older women know a thing or two about living with a keen sense of wonder and an abiding appreciation for the gift of longevity. So, it’s time to change the perception that the gig is just about up when, in truth, the second wave of the journey has just begun.

https://janeleder.net

https://www.youtube.com/@olderwomenandfriends

https://www.instagram.com/older_women_and_friends_/

At 84, Phyllis Mitzen is still reshaping how communities care for older adults — with curiosity, courage and a fierce commitment to action.

Phyllis spent 24 years at CJE Senior Life (formerly Council on Jewish Elderly) and went on to consult with Health & Medicine Policy Research Group. She was proud to be awarded the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award from both Illinois and the National Association of Social Work.

Phyllis serves on state and city Advisory Committees, and is currently active in the new Multi-Sector Plan on Aging, recognizing that without implementation its benefits will not be felt in Illinois. She reminds us that, equally important, the IL Dept on Aging, with 13 area agencies, depends on funding from the Older Americans Act. While it is reauthorized every 3 years, its funding is currently stalled with funding remaining at levels inadequate to meet growing needs.

Phyllis’ contribution to the Villages movement, specifically Skyline Village, has led to a consortium of 8 Villages in the Chicago Metro area. Many of these non-profit organizations have received Dementia Friendly designations, and are moving Chicago towards designation as a Dementia-Friendly city. These Dementia Friendly communities support, include, and empower people living with dementia, ensuring they can participate fully in social, cultural, and civic life.

Why listen: Whether you work in aging services, advocate for policy change, or care for an aging loved one, Phyllis’s practical wisdom, grassroots solutions, and insistence on turning plans into practice offer both inspiration and concrete next steps.

“It’s not the creation of the plan - it’s the implementation that brings it alive.” - Phyllis Mitzen

CONNECT WITH PHYLLIS:

Email: [email protected]

And thank you to our sponsor, Women’s Connection, a nonprofit women’s group with chapters around the country. Members are vibrant, accomplished women, age 50 and forward, who connect around common interests, empower each other to thrive, and stick together as they travel through the stuff of life, no matter what comes their way.

Women Over 70 is proud to be part of the Age-Wise Collective, a group of women podcasters championing pro-aging voices. This week we shine the light on award-winning author, Jane Leder. Jane and guest dive into the joy and challenges of being an older woman. Her podcast is Older Women & Friends: Stories of Aging Well.

Mariann Aalda—actor, hypnotherapist, and joyful “pro-aging evangelist”—invites us to rethink what it means to grow older. She interrogates ageism, asking“ Why should youth get all the good press?” And declares, “My vibrancy and vitality are due to my being Age-full, not Youth-full!” Drawing on a 30-year television career and her work in hypnotherapy and neurolinguistic programming (NLP), Mariann explores how language shapes our inner lives—“the words we use become internalized and we behave accordingly.” Today, through stand-up and solo performance, she shares her authentic self with candor and humor, encouraging women to pursue their dreams and “use our time wisely with curiosity, creativity, and joy.”

“I’m not an older version of myself—I’m the Newest Model.” - Mariann Aalda

Connect with Mariann

Email: [email protected]

Aging Shamelessly https://www.mariannaaldainherprime.com

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Our Sponsor: Plymouth Place in LaGrange Park, IL. has redefined senior living with options and opportunities to fit individual needs and preferences. From well-designed residences to fitness and wellness classes to social gatherings, arts experiences and care services – this is a place to thrive. As an entrance-fee based Life Plan community, Plymouth Place offers a full continuum of care including residential living, assisted living, memory care, skilled nursing and rehab – all conveniently on one campus. www.Plymouthplace.org

Age-Wise Collective: Women Over 70-Aging Reimagined connects with other women podcasters to shine the light on remarkable women in mid-life and beyond.

We recognize Jane Leder, host of Older Women and Friends: Stories of Aging Well, whose guests take a deep dive into the joys and challenges of being an older woman. Older women know a thing or two about living with a keen sense of wonder and an abiding appreciation for the gift of longevity. The second wave of the journey has just begun. https://janeleder.net

https://www.youtube.com/@olderwomenandfriends

https://www.instagram.com/older_women_and_friends_/

At 86, Sandra “Sandy” Taenzer reflects on a lifetime of innovation in Early Childhood–Special Education that began in the 1960s in Germany and still resonates today. Working in a large Illinois School District, Sandy helped initiate early childhood special education through a Federal “First Chance Grant” in 1972. She and a multi-disciplinary team championed “natural, play-based assessment and play as the basis for early learning” She also pioneered collaborative partnerships with school districts and agencies, building interdisciplinary teams to serve children and families more holistically. Since moving to Minnesota’s North Shore of Lake Superior in 2004, Sandy has become affectionately known as “Grandma Sandy,” volunteering through home visits, childcare centers, and one-on-one mentoring. Active with Arrowhead Indivisible, she speaks publicly about the Holocaust, sharing stories she heard firsthand from an older neighbor while living in Germany in her early twenties. Sandy warns that she now sees troubling parallels in today’s America.

"I’ve been an activist all my life, working to ensure that every child has the chance to be their best self." - Sandra Taenzer

Connect with Sandy

Email: [email protected]

Learn more about Sandy’s ground-breaking work. Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library--Oral History Interview - Educational Reform Act 1985 Sandra Taen zer

https://presidentlincoln.illinois.gov/oral-history/collections/taenzer-sandra/interview-detail/

Thanking Our Sponsor: Plymouth Place, LaGrange Park, IL.

Discover the extraordinary at Plymouth Place—a vibrant community designed for active adults. Elevate your retirement living experience with tailored independent options, premier amenities, and a full continuum of care. Explore diverse living choices and embrace the joy of a life well-lived. http://plymouthplace.org

Recognizing the Age--Wise Collective: Women Over 70-Aging Reimagined has joined other women podcasters to amplify the voices of women over 50.

We shine the light on gerontologist Sally Duplantier, founder and host of My Zing Life, dedicated to helping older adults live their best lives longer. Her current Healthspan work focuses on improving health behaviors and mental well-being for vulnerable populations through community-based health coaching. https://[email protected]