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Pool sharks pick up their cues
Fran Sanchez is a shark. The 78-year old former CAD engineer doesn't look threatening, but get him near a pool table and it's quite a different story. Sanchez makes four shots in a row and calls out the 8 ball. When the ball stops short of the pocket, a series of howls fills the room. "You're still my hero," said Harry Gratz, 91, of Valencia. "It's your shot, Harry Potter," Sanchez responded. Sanchez and Gratz ...

	Delivering meals and smiles Every Tuesday, Tom Schmidt of Canyon Country makes house calls. He's not a doctor, but he brings something very important to the homebound seniors he sees on his weekly treks - hot meals and a warm hello.
	Mini health fair added In continued efforts to help caregivers receive the support, information and self-care they deserve, the Santa Clarita Senior Center has added a mini health fair to its upcoming June 20, Caregiver Resource Day.
	Volunteers help fellow elders thrive "I think the purpose of life is to be useful, to be responsible, to be honorable, to be compassionate. It is, after all, to matter, to count, to stand for something, to have made some difference that you lived at all." - Leo Rotsten, American writer, 1908-1977 Growing old and living independently can be a mixed bag. On one hand, you want to remain in the comfort, dignity and familiarity of your own home.
	'Seeing the light' through visually impaired services People with impaired vision can do everything a normally sighted person can do, but they need to slow down to do it, said John Taylor, who leads the Santa Clarita Valley Senior Center's Visually Impaired Services Program.
	A powerhouse of support for caregivers For the legion of men and women who provide care for dependent loved ones, helpful caregiving-related information can be a veritable lifesaver.
	'New light' for the visually impaired First of two parts "Once I knew only darkness and stillness ... my life was without past or future... but a little word from the fingers of another fell into my hand that clutched at emptiness, and my heart leaped to the rapture of living."
	Paint the town 'green' Flying fish, prancing ponies, impish cartoon characters - these were among the many images painted onto cardboard receptacles during a recent event at the Santa Clarita Valley Senior Center.
	Orchestra makes magic moments Over a half-century ago, Millie Ballace worked at MGM and 20th Century Fox as a backup musician in the orchestra. She hadn't touched her violin much since that time, until picking it up at the Cowboy Festival a few years ago. "It was hard for me at first, playing along with others," Ballace said. "But then I started practicing every day. I thought it would be great to start an orchestra again."
	Questers celebrate May Day "Who wants an Italian dinner for six?" Alexandra Tozzi asked the large group of people attending a fundraiser put on by one of the Questers chapters in the Santa Clarita Valley on April 23.