The coastland times with which is combined the pilot and herald of Belhaven and Swan Quarter. [volume] (Manteo, N.C.) 1959-1973, 1961-03-03
STRONG APPEAL
IN BEHALF OF
SENIOR CITIZENS
Naes Head Man Tells Of the
Good Work To Be Accomplish
ed Through Organization
By JOSEPH M. COX
Mays Head. N. C.


There is a story told, of time
about like the present when many
of the tourists had returned home
after their summer travels. An old
mountainer found a small hand
mirror lost by a tourist. He looked
at it and remarked: "That sure is
a good picture of my old Pappy."
Returning to the small cabin he
shared with his wife, he hid it. His
wife noting that he seemed to have
something on his mind became sus-
picious and began to look around,
after he went to sleep and found
the mirror. She looked at it and re-
marked, $50 that is the Old Hag
he been a'chasing.
Turn back in memory and think
of when you were young and your
neighbors visited and the old folks
talked about the things of interest
to the community anil the children
played in the yard and barn. Have
we, who are older than 49 years
unconsciously fallen into rut by
staying home to look at television
or read or crochet or some other
pastime.
We who have passed the half GEN.
tury mark are facing problems
some what different than those
of our parents. People are living
longer than in our youth. We are
hearing the cry for the Federal
Government to take care of us, pay
our hospital bills and doctors, and
feed us when we are out Of work.
Where will we meet to discuss
these problems or any other prob
lens affecting US and our neigh
bors?
We who have lived many years,
have seen movements or ideas ad-
vanced and some we have found
to be unwise and have failed. We
are wiser with the passing of the
years. We have been schooled on
experience and have ripened, like
the fruit on the trees. When it rs
young and not grown it was not
good to eat but after it has grown
ripe it is pleasant to the taste.
Likewise people profit by it then:
So can others, by our experience, II
we will talk and tell those around
us.
Turn back the pages of history
to the years preceding the Ameri-
can Revolution when our forefath-
ers were not satisfied with sthe
Government as set up by the King
of England. Did they sit back and
keep their mouths shut? We might
profit by reading the Autobiogra-
ply of Benjamin Franklin. Orga-
nize, get together, let every man
or woman express their opinion, tell
our representatives in the state and
in Washington, what we want done.
They are not gifted mind readers.
They are just ordinary folks that
our vote selected to join with rep
resentatives from other parts Of
the country to decide how to spend
the money collected from us and
to make rules for the country as a
whole.
People in this and other States
saw the need for getting the people
of fifty years and older together
where they can talk and share the
wisdom others have. No one or just
a small group has it all. Solomon
1 think said, "In the multitude OF
words there is wisdom"
Within the past few months, l
saw part of a half hour program
on television of an interview of the
Head Man of the Senior Citizens
Clubs in the State of California,
right here at the beach, Mays Head,
N. C. In the course of this inter-
view, he told us there were $780,
600 people in the Senior Citizens
Clubs of California. Recently /
read in the Virginian-Pilot that
there had been two more Senior