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From Mob Ties to Medal of Honor: The O’Hare LegacyIBy Kaye Brownhad indeed deliberately walked into the multipurpose room to try Zumba. My friend, Beatrice, had encouragedme to try it with her. She had read how it was fast paced dancing, but that anybody could do it. So, I, being of legal age (for Medicare) agreed to join her in our quest of losing weight, tightening our booties and having loads of fun!!!Our first mistake, after deciding to try the class, was the clothes we were wearing. We both had on well-worn sweatpants and baggy t-shirts. The other Zumba-ers had on these cute little brightly colored extremely tight pants of various lengths and multiple layers of shirts, cross-strappy workout bras, covered by a sleeveless shirt covered by a spaghetti strap shirt and then there were the matching headbands and wristbands, which we soon discovered were for mopping the sweat off your face.At this point, we should have made a beeline to the door, but we had been spotted by the punisher-in-chief, Miranda. I have no words to describe her except she looks like a normal person but too soon we found looks can be deceiving.All the Zumba-ers were spread out over the room, seemingly in some kind of arrangement where each one has a three- foot square area of their very own. We were not given any instructions on where to stand, but we did manage to occupy as little space as possible as far from Miranda as possible. Miranda gave a little speech about enjoying ourselves and just have fun. ("And try not to hurt yourself", no she didn't say that.) With those words of encouragement, the penalty phase started.Music, or whatever it was, started blasting out of the speakers at 200 decibels and just about knocked Beatrice and me on our butts. Everybody else started moving all their parts in different directions very rapidly. Turn right, turn left, lift your legs, lift your arms, shake your booty, roll, stomp, turn right, turn left, right, left, right, left, etc. That was just the first 30 seconds. From then on it got serious.The music was hip hop or rap, not sure what the difference is, but I do know there are some words in there that are definitely not in church hymnals. Probably the most humiliating thing about Zumba is the MIRRORS. Mirrors and fluorescent lighting are the bane of women over 35. They should be outlawed in every changing room and beauty shop worldwide. No woman looks as bad as those damned lights make her look. They are everywhere, in front, in back and probably on the ceiling. But there was nothing we could do about it now, so we put that in our memory bank to ponder after we escaped.After the first song, which I'm sure lasted 10 minutes, Beatrice and I tried to breathe but we didn't have the strength to inhale,US Navy/Office Of War Information/National ArchivesAging Gracefully With A Sense Of Humor~ Zumba For Seniors ~EBy Sonny Melendrezdward “Butch” O’Hare was a WorldWar II naval aviator whose heroismbecame legend. On February 20, 1942, Butch single-handedly intercepted a formation of Japanese bombers heading toward the aircraft carrier USS Lexington. With limited ammunition, he shot down five enemy planes in just a few minutes, saving countless lives. He became the U.S. Navy’s first flying ace and the first naval aviator to receive the Medal of Honor in World War II.But behind Butch’s valor lies the complicated story of his father—Edward J. “Easy Eddie” O’Hare. A successful lawyer, Easy Eddie worked closely with notorious mobster Al Capone, living in luxury thanks to his criminal connections. Yet over time, guilt began to outweigh wealth.Despite his ties to Capone and organized crime, he was deeply devoted to his son. He wanted Butch to have opportunities for a better life—free from the shadows of the underworld. Eddie provided his son with a good education, sending him to Western Military Academy, a prestigious prep school in Illinois, and later supporting his enrollment at the United States Naval Academy.While Butch was still in his teens, Eddie broke ranks with the mob, providing federal authorities the evidence needed to convict Capone of tax evasion.Eddie’s decision came at a steep cost.In 1939, just before Capone’s release from prison, he was murdered in a gangland- style assassination on a Chicago street. It’s widely believed his cooperation sealed his fate.But his sacrifice wasn’t in vain.Just a few years later, Butch O’Hare’s actions in the Pacific brought immense honor to the family name. Tragically, he was killed in action during a nighttime mission in 1943. In recognition of his heroism, Chicago renamed Orchard Field to O’Hare International Airport in 1949.Today, millions pass through O’Hare without knowing the story behind the name—a story of a father’s redemption and a son’s ultimate sacrifice. It’s a reminder that a legacy can be rewritten, that courage can emerge from complicated beginnings, and that doing what’s right isn’t always easy— but always worth it.Sometimes, redemption begins with a single choice—and ends with a hero.Sonny Melendrezis an award-winningmotivational speaker,Hall of Fame radio/TV host and author,based in San Antonio.For more of his enthusiastic brand of inspiration and speaking information, visit www.SonnyMelendrez.com and listen to his podcast.let alone exhale. Luckily, I had brought some tissues and a bottle of water or otherwise we would have passed out from dehydration and excessive sweating. The other Zumba-ers were acting as if they had been sitting down resting for an hour and were anxiously awaiting the second song.When Beatrice and I managed to locate the clock to see how much more we had to endure before we could escape, we discovered that we had only been there 4 minutes. I was sure we would never leave that room alive. Each song seemed endless, and my sweatpants kept getting baggier because of all the sweating I was doing, and my shirt was clinging to every inch of my body, which was not a pretty sight as the mirrors would confirm.Finally, after an incredibly long 50 minutes, Miranda, who looked as fresh as a daisy, said it was time for a cooldown. Hallelujah! they are going to turn on the air conditioning. Just another word for fooled you again, old timers! Now we have to stretch our non-existent muscles and try to keep in an upright position while standing on one foot and closing our eyes and inhaling and exhaling.Everybody else is happily chatting with each other as they walk out the door with hardly a hair out of place and their cute little outfits still sweat free, while Beatrice and I are leaning against the wall and wishing that we had brought our phones with us so we could call the rescue, someone in our family or a neighbor to come and get us. About that time Miranda came bounding over to ask us how we liked Zumba. I wanted to slap her and smash her against the wall, but Beatrice prevailed and told her it was just the workout we were looking for.We finally managed to get to our cars and decided to go have a strong drink, but we smelled too sweaty, so we just decided to head on home and soak in a big old tub and have a few or a lot of drinks. Thinking about it now, one thing is for sure, we'll be back next week and with new Zumba friendly clothes.Gibbs is glad I'm home and we can hang out together and go get ice cream.I Spy With My Little Eye... ContestPBy Sally Kaloslease look carefully on each and every page, scanning up and down, left and right, from front toback, and then back to front. Don’t give up! If you can find the watermelon farmer, you’ll be entered into a drawing to win $50! Just email the page number and location where you spotted the watermelon farmerto contest@bsbhighlights.com.The deadline is August 9, 2025.We hope you’ll have fun with our versionof a mini-scavenger hunt within our pages. Good luck!Congratulations to our July I Spy winner Laura CostelloAugust 2025www.bsbhighlights.com5