391 Maureen Rafa: Advocate for Compassionate Care for Older Adults

At 71, Terry Craig reflects on a life shaped by creativity, curiosity, movement, and reinvention.Growing up as the second of six siblings, Terry learned early how to resolve conflicts and bring people together. Her mother sewed clothing for the family, and Terry soon discovered her own love of sewing and creating patterns. Over the years, she expanded into quilting and fiber art, including painting with wool and learning wet felting. Always eager to try something new, Terry embraces projects that keep her engaged and inspired.After studying interior design at the Art Institute, Terry realized she wanted a career centered on people and moved into human resources, and later into sales, after relocating to Florida. Upon returning to Chicago, she again worked in HR. Wherever Terry lives, she brings her sewing machine and seeks out community. Local community centers offer groups and classes where she can play Scrabble and connect with fellow stitchers. Physical movement has always been important. Terry began cycling after high school and met her future husband through the sport. Together, they explore multi-day rides, and they are now preparing for a five-week, self-guided e-bike tour along the canals of Paris, ending with a week on the Riviera. Today, she and her husband split their time between Chicago and Scottsdale, AZ where she teaches sewing to a group of 167 people. The group also completes charitable projects, including Easter baskets, pillowcases, and activity totes for children.Terry stays active through hiking, pickleball, cycling, and walking—10,000 steps barely faze her. She believes age is a state of mind and encourages others to overcome fear by starting small and celebrating tiny successes. For Terry Craig, reinvention is a lifelong way of living.“Age is a state of mind and you can overcome fear by starting small and celebrating tiny successes.” - Terry CraigCONNECT WITH TERRY:Email: [email protected] LogoThanks to our Platinum Sponsor, AARP Illinois, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With nearly 1.7 million members in Illinois, AARP volunteers advocate for better health, financial security, and stronger communities. Visit AARP.org/IL to learn more.

Recently, at 95, Ruby Hill spends time reflecting on her life. Two principles stand out: “I cared deeply about the needs of others, and the results were better than I could have imagined.” She also believes that much of her life was shaped by others, beginning with her father’s decision that pharmacy should be her career. Ruby married the young man who sat behind her in Dr. Paytash’s Chemistry 101 class, when classroom seats were assigned and attendance was taken by name. A year after earning her Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy and passing the State Board exam, they married. By the end of that decade, they were raising three thriving children. Decades later, inspired by the values of a small Unitarian Universalist congregation, Ruby responded to George Floyd’s murder by helping launch a STEM initiative for Black girls that combines science, technology, engineering, and mathematics with self-care, leadership, and community care. "Beginning with love for ourselves and each other, we can keep learning, know that we all belong, and create hope for future generations." - Ruby HillConnect with RubyEmail: [email protected] to our Platinum Sponsor AARP Illinois, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With nearly 1.7 million members in Illinois, AARP volunteers advocate for better health, financial security, and stronger communities. Visit AARP.org/IL to learn more.

Drawing on decades of experience in psychiatric mental health and a wide range of health care settings, Maureen Rafa now runs her own business as an elder care coordinator. She also actively volunteers to improve coordinated care, build livable communities, and promote thoughtful end-of-life planning. In this conversation, she challenges common misconception about aging—from the fear of dementia to the expectation of simply “dying in one’s sleep”—and urges older adults, especially women, to recognize and confront the “rampant ageism” embedded in our society. Maureen encourages women to become informed self-advocates and models that philosophy in her own life. At 72, she has downsized to an independent-living community, planned financially for future care, and remains intentional about avoiding isolation. “Always keep your female friends.” - Maureen Rafa Connect with MaureenEmail: [email protected] Rafa | LinkedInWomen Over 70 Welcomes our Platinum SponsorAARP Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they wish to live as they age. With nearly 1.7 million members in Illinois, AARP volunteers advocate for better health, financial security, and stronger communities. Visit AARP.org/IL to learn more.

What if aging could become a time of deeper meaning, connection, and personal transformation? Writer and baby boomer Abbie Rosner explores that possibility in her new book, Psychedelics and the Counterculture of Aging. Drawing on hundreds of clinical studies, authentic stories, and an overview of safe practices and the evolving legal landscape, she examines how psychedelics are being used to support the psychospiritual journey of becoming an elder. Abbie emphasizes that maturity matters: yesterday's risk-taking has evolved into today's thoughtful, intentional exploration. She invites us to consider whether a growing movement of conscious elders—committed to connection, compassion, healing, and purpose—might reshape how we think about aging. Whether you're curious, skeptical, or simply interested in new perspectives on aging, this conversation offers a thoughtful look at one of the most unexpected developments in later life.Connect with AbbieBook: Psychedelics and the Counterculture of Aging (Park Street Press. July 2026)Website: https://www.abbierosner.comThe ELDEREVOLUTION Newsletter on Psychedelics in Older Life. https://abbierosner.substack.comWomen Over 70 Welcomes our Platinum SponsorAARP Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they wish to live as they age. With nearly 1.7 million members in Illinois, AARP volunteers advocate for better health, financial security, and stronger communities. Visit AARP.org/IL to learn more.

Lifelong traveler, Barbara Winard, 78, has been exploring the globe since she was in her twenties. She loves traveling independently and has taken 8 trips as a solo traveler with Road Scholar— the not-for-profit world leader in educational travel for older adults. Barbara travels to learn, so Road Scholar’s focus on educational travel has been a perfect fit for her. “Discovering new things in your life is wonderful,” she says. “All travel expands your world and helps you understand other people.”After traveling with Road Scholar to South Dakota, Barbara started writing blogs for the organization and quickly became Road Scholar’s go-to expert on solo travel. Through her work with the organization, she formed a friendship with Road Scholar’s former blog editor (and now PR director) Kelsey Knoedler Perri, 38. They have since traveled on a Road Scholar trip together to Quebec City. They both appreciate that Road Scholar has given them the opportunity to build an intergenerational connection.Hear about Barbara’s experience as a solo traveler, how travel has changed for her as she ages, and learn from Kelsey about Road Scholar and how working for the organization for over 10 years has changed her perspective on older adults and aging.“Discover new things in your life. Don’t overthink traveling alone. Take the leap.” - Road Scholar Connect with Kelsey and Barbara:Kelsey: [email protected]: Women with Road ScholarWebsite: www.roadscholar.org___________________________________________________________________And, Women Over 70 is pleased to welcome our platinum sponsor, AARP Illinois, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they wish to live as they age. With nearly 1.7 million members in Illinois, AARP volunteers advocate for better health, financial security and stronger communities. Visit AARP.org/IL to learn more.

Visionary. Connector. Builder. Those words describe Katina Strauch, 79.When we spoke with Katina, she was recovering from a broken leg, talking with us from her bed on her smartphone. Despite the setback, she remains what she has always been: an active writer, researcher, lifelong learner, and trusted consultant to the Charleston Conference—the influential global gathering for the scholarly communications community that she founded more than four decades ago.What began as a meeting of just 20 people has grown into an annual conference that attracts thousands of academic librarians, publishers, booksellers, vendors, and information professionals from around the world. In the late 1970s, major research libraries had opportunities to meet through the Association of Research Libraries, but there was no place where smaller academic libraries, publishers, and vendors could come together as equals to exchange ideas and solve shared challenges. Katina recognized that gap and imagined something entirely new: an informal, collaborative conference where every voice mattered.At the time, she was on the tenure track and looking for a meaningful way to establish her professional reputation. Rather than pursuing a traditional academic path, she created a gathering that transformed an industry. By inviting antiquarian book librarians, publishers, vendors, and librarians into the same conversation, she built a community that continues to shape scholarly communication today.Reflecting on its impact, Katina simply says, "It's had a huge impact."The Charleston Conference recently entered a new chapter when it was acquired by the nonprofit Annual Reviews, helping ensure that Katina's remarkable legacy will continue for generations to come."Smaller academic libraries, publishers, and vendors now could come together as equals." - Katina StrauchConnect with Katina:Email: [email protected]: Doing the Charleston (2025) – Katina's memoir chronicling the creation and evolution of the Charleston Conference alongside her career as a librarian.Thanking our Platinum Sponsor—AARP Illinois, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With nearly 1.7 million members in Illinois, AARP volunteers advocate for better health, financial security, and stronger communities. Visit AARP.org/IL to learn more.Shining the light on Age-Wise Collective—check out Boomer Banter withWendy Green—it’s in a new chapter, with shorter solo episodes focused on her personal caregiving journey and the search for purpose in later life. Going deeper, her Substack, Thriving Through Time, by Boomer Banter is where she really opens up. Find everything on Wendy’s website, heyboomer.biz.

Writing has been a guiding force in Nancy Morgan’s life, woven together with her love of language, travel, and cross-cultural learning. Across a career in teaching, curriculum design, media production, and study-abroad leadership, writing has remained at the heart of her work.Now retired, Nancy has turned more deeply to writing as a way to explore life’s complex and difficult questions. Drawing on personal experience, she writes fictionalized accounts about the impact of dysfunction, homelessness, and mental illness on family relationships. Curious about the emotional truths beneath the surface, Nancy strives to “get into the soul of her characters.” Homelessness, a central theme in her writing, is also at the heart of her volunteer work and social commitment.At the center of Nancy’s life is family. She describes her husband, two daughters, and seven grandchildren as her greatest source of joy and grounding. Today, Nancy says simply and gratefully, “I love the life I am living.”“Stories can help us understand what families often struggle to say out loud.” - Nancy MorganConnect with NancyEmail: [email protected] our Platinum Sponsor—AARP Illinois, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With nearly 1.7 million members in Illinois, AARP volunteers advocate for better health, financial security, and stronger communities. Visit AARP.org/IL to learn more. Shining the light on Age-Wise Collective—check out Boomer Banter with Wendy Green—it’s in a new chapter, with shorter solo episodes focused on her personal caregiving journey and the search for purpose in later life. Going deeper, her Substack, Thriving Through Time, by Boomer Banter is where she really opens up. Find everything on Wendy’s website, heyboomer.biz.

Kathy Bresler, founder of ALTAR Community in Chicago, has created a welcoming space where women of all ages come together to be seen, heard, and supported. ALTAR is a third space for women centered around meaningful gatherings, conversation, creativity, reflection, and authentic connection.Through conversation, reflection, and shared experience, women discover what feels most true and meaningful in their lives and often experience profound personal transformation.Grounded in curiosity, creativity, and compassion, Kathy brings together her background in interfaith and interspiritual ministry with years of corporate leadership experience to nurture both the heart and the practical realities of building community.Kathy believes younger women are hungry for meaningful relationships with older women who embody a different way of aging — women who are alive, engaged, creative, evolving, and unwilling to disappear into society’s narrow expectations of later life. In turn, older women are renewed by being seen, valued, and welcomed into authentic intergenerational connection.At the center of Kathy’s work is an invitation to cultivate what she calls “Vitamin J” — the practice of nurturing and extending our “joy-span” at every stage of life.Connect with Kathy Email: [email protected] ALTAR Community Chicago: https://www.altarcommunity.comShining 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 andstrategic 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.

At 80, Regan Burke is still organizing, advocating, and speaking out.But her path to becoming a respected activist, columnist, memoirist, and political influencer was anything but straightforward. Before she found sobriety in her twenties, drugs and alcohol shaped much of her daily life. She attended five different high schools, searching for direction until one perceptive nun recognized her talent and changed the course of her future by encouraging her to write.That spark ignited a lifelong commitment to telling the truth.For decades, Regan immersed herself in political organizing, volunteering for campaigns she believed could make a difference. A devoted member of the recovery community, she carried the lessons of honesty and accountability into her writing, becoming a blogger, newspaper columnist, and memoirist known for speaking candidly about politics, power, and personal struggle.Today, despite living with chronic pain, Regan refuses to retreat from public life. She organizes rallies for people with limited mobility, mentors younger political leaders, and works tirelessly to encourage civic engagement. While she may no longer knock on doors, her determination to create change remains as strong as ever.In this conversation, Regan reflects on sobriety, activism, aging, courage, and why using your voice may be more important now than ever.And when the work gets hard? She sings. Choir music helps ease her pain, sharpens her mind, and reminds her that community can be one of life's most powerful forms of healing."It’s risky to stand up - it takes bravery." - Regan BurkeConnect with Regan:Blog: ReganBurke.comEmail: [email protected] 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 gerontologist Sally Duplantier, host of Wellness Wednesdays. These free and recorded webinars feature experts on topics about healthy aging. Visit MyZingLife.com to learn more.

For nearly fifty years, Sybil Kolon has devoted herself to protecting 79 acres of family land in Michigan’s Irish Hills. Originally owned by her grandparents, the property was placed under option with Legacy Land Conservancy in 1976 with the hope that it would someday become a nature preserve.Now 72, Sybil spent her childhood exploring the farm’s woods and fields, developing a lifelong love of nature. After attending Michigan Tech and Michigan State University, she returned to live on the land with her husband, building a home there in 1983. Over time, she became the family’s caretaker of the property and felt deeply responsible for preserving it for future generations.In 2015, Sybil and her husband created a living trust with Legacy Land Conservancy to ensure the land would eventually become a preserve. But Sybil decided there was no reason to wait. She began working to transform the property into a public nature preserve during her lifetime, including carefully deconstructing the old farmhouse so its materials could be salvaged and reused.In June 2025, Iron Creek Preserve officially opened to the public.Today, Sybil is leading yet another conservation effort after nearby land was sold to a gravel mining company, threatening both the preserve and surrounding wildlife habitat. What began as a personal commitment to family land has become a larger mission of environmental stewardship and community advocacy."Taking care of the land is important — but we have to take care of each other, too.” - Sybil KolonCONNECT WITH SYBIL:Email: [email protected] 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.