To the editor: Fellow seniors, if you are not already aware of the drastic loss of medical coverage by Medicare and Medicaid that took place this year, you will soon! Costs for some routine tests and services that were covered last year are no longer! You can thank your Democratic legislators in Washington for this by their support of Obamacare. Obamacare stole millions from the Medicare-Medicaid programs to fund the giveaways to others.

There’s a fair in the air (Sept. 2-7). The Shawano County Fair has been around since 1881. It’s a wonderful annual event that brings folks to our community in droves — and that’s a good thing! Numerous businesses comment about how the fair boosts their business, too. The excitement starts well before the fair actually begins. The 4-H kids are busy with their animals and other projects.

This past week seems to have been filled with “beeps” and “buzzes.” The beeps came from one of four smoke alarms in and near my bedroom, but which one was it? One day, two batteries were replaced, but the beeps continued. They were not sounding a serious alarm meaning fire, rather, it was an occasional beep that usually happened while I was trying to drift off to sleep. A different alarm got a new battery, and now nary a beep can be heard. While

It’s that time of year again when my emotions morph into schmaltzy-mode and I become a bit out-of-sorts. It happens every year when school is back in session and the house becomes quiet and still. When the kids (in this case, our last one!) leave to go back to school, I always like to have a project lined up that takes my mind off what’s going on. This is our youngest child’s second year of college, for crying out loud!

It has been around 32 years that the Shawano County Conservation Association has had a stand at the fair.

Rebecca LaLonde is the president of Wolf River Harmony, a women’s a cappella barbershop chorus. She is a Shawano native, graduating from Shawano High School. After she married, LaLonde moved to the Upper Peninsula and started her own cleaning service. When she moved back to Shawano in 1980, she continued the service at several businesses. LaLonde then worked for Shawano County as a custodian and then a receptionist.

Patricia Kools Harvey passed away peacefully in her Tampa, Florida, home on Aug. 26, 2015, surrounded by the love of family and friends. Born in Kimberly in 1929, Pat graduated from Kimberly High School and married John Kools, of Appleton, where they raised their children. After her children were grown, she worked for elderly services in both Shawano and Waupaca counties, impacting countless retirees.

Zachary A. Prestby, 19, of Green Bay, passed away peacefully Wednesday afternoon, Aug. 26, 2015, at his home surrounded by his family. He was born Aug. 23, 1996, son of David and Suanne (Jaworski) Prestby. Zach graduated from Pulaski High School in 2015, with a rare standing ovation. His hobbies included collecting frogs, collecting erasers, which he called “Bobs,” loving his two dogs, Dakota and his spoiled rotten princess Maddee, and swimming.

Charla Lyons, 59, Marion, passed away Friday, Aug. 28, 2015. Arrangements are pending with Swedberg Funeral Home. www.swedbergfuneralhome.com