20 • June 2015 • UPBEAT TIMES by Eloise Tweeten ~ Eloise@TweetenEldercare.com A


re you free to be who you truly are, inside and out?


Martha Peterson’s fi rst taste of personal freedom arrived af- ter spending two years at Cal Berkeley under her parents’ watchful eye. Then she com- pleted her BS degree in biol- ogy at Whitworth University in Spokane, Washington. Born Martha Adelle Dunlop


in Oakland on June 23, 1927, Martha Peterson was raised in Berkeley by strict Presbyterian parents. At Whitworth, Martha met her future husband, John Dunlop, in the music practice room where they both played classical music and later would play Bach together. With John, Martha raised four children in Santa Rosa. As a community activist, one of


Martha’s ac-


complishments during this time was co-founding the Adult Lit- eracy League of Sonoma Coun- ty in 1969, where she contin-


LDER ISDOM FREE AT LAST This column is dedicated to our elder citizens and the wonderful life experiences & wisdom they share!


ued to volunteer for the next 10 years. Once her children were grown, Martha found herself looking for other things to keep her busy, like teach-


ing yoga at a lo- cal senior center, teaching children to play the piano, and study- ing com- parative religions. Little did she know that an exciting new life chapter was about to un- fold when John retired... Friends with positive Peace Corps experiences planted seeds in both Martha and John


Dada’s Deli Restaurant


to join the Peace Corps. In 1982, within a short time of applying for service, the call came in and Mar- tha and John were off on an interna-


tional ad- venture


to Sierra Leon! Martha


was as- signed


to teach chemistry, biology


and ics,


phys- but


after the


fi rst year of training and prac- tice teaching, Martha spent the second year working in a school for the blind. She has kept in contact with one of the students, Thomas, who escaped civil unrest after their return to the U.S. She also helped fi nd fi nancial and material support for Thomas to complete his college education and start his own school for the blind. Eb- ola shut the school down for some time, but it is now back up and running. Martha’s experience in Si-


erra Leone taught her a lesson or two about people and cul- tures.


There, everyone had a


place in society. Their customs may have been primitive rela- tive to ours, but they got by and weren’t depressed about their life circumstances.


Freedom


from want of “belonging,” per- haps?


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Returning to the U.S., friends encouraged Martha to docu-


ment her experiences, which led to a thesis and BA/MA de- grees in English from Sonoma State. With that project com- pleted, the travel bug bit again, and Martha was ready for an- other Peace Corps assignment. However, this time John wasn’t so enthused and their paths were destined to part. In ret- rospect, they were on separate paths for some time, and despite the hurt it was time to move on. In November, 1989, the second call came and by January 1990 Martha was off to Pakistan for another Peace Corps adventure to train Pakistani English teach- ers. While there, she gained a personal understanding of the Muslim world but the two year assignment was cut short when volunteers were evacuated in January, 1991 on the eve of the Golf War. Martha’s international trav-


els didn’t end there, however. In 1992, at age 65, she joined a Healing Arts group from Se- bastopol on a trip to the Ukraine where she taught “Spiritual Growth Through Spiritual In- terpretation of the Holy Bible,” followed by three trips to China to teach English from 1994 to 1999, and a teaching assign- ment in India (her personal favorite) in 2001. Martha has learned much over the years, including a sense of Freedom to Be...ME. She was an obe- dient child who was musically talented, obtained good grades and went to college, and yet a challenge to her parents all the same. She recalled them open- ly lamenting, “What will we do with Martha?” No need to worry. She turned out just fi ne!


... continued on page 22


Gabriel A. Fraire Writer - Editor - Graphic Designer


Want to Self Publish a Book? I can help, edit, design, produce


email: gafraire@comcast.net cell: 336-681-7227


Dutton Ave Standish Web site: gabrielfraire.com


Weird Facts & Fun Trivia #7 Dr. Seuss pronounced his name so that it would rhyme with rejoice.


The thyroid cartilage is more commonly known as the adams apple.


If you travel across Russia, you will cross seven time zones.


In Baltimore USA it is illegal to wash or scrub a sink regardless of how dirty it is.


Marvelous Folks ... continued from page 18


1915 until his death in 1926, Gaudi


worked on his Sagra- da Familia project.


By 2005, UNESCO declared seven of his works as World Heritage Sites. Marvel- ous.


Luther Burbank is a Santa


Rosa hero. American botanist, horticulturalist genuine pioneer in agricultural science, he grew more than 800 strains and vari- ations of plants for 55 years. Thirteenth of eighteen children born 1849 on a Massachusetts farm, he moved to Santa Rosa in 1875, he felt he had come home. Burbank’s Russet pota- to is what McDonald’s French fries are made of!


Mark your calendars for the informal Denim and Dai- sies Garden Gala at the Luther Burbank Home and Garden at the corner of Santa Rosa and Sonoma Avenues on Saturday, July 11, from 5:00 to 7:30. De- licious foods, beverages, mu- sic, silent auction, raffl e, all for a fee. Call 707-524-5445 for more info and reservations. Tax deductible for


this non-profi t


maintenance of Burbank’s home and beautiful gardens. Happy gardening! ~ Ellie


Help one another; there’s no time like the present and no present like the time. ~James Durst


Hearn Ave


Bellevue Ave


Todd Rd


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