Iora Primary Care, which serves adults on Medicare, has opened two new practices in Pierce County.
The clinics are in Tacoma at 5006 Center St. and in Puyallup at 3705 S. Meridian Ave. Ribbon-cutting ceremonies at the new locations were held Oct. 9 and Oct. 16, respectively.
Iora has been serving 65-and-older adults in Washington since 2014.
In a related announcement, Humana Medicare Advantage said the new Puyallup and Tacoma clinics will increase access for its beneficiaries to Iora, which now has six primary care locations, including ones in Federal Way, Renton and Seattle. The Iora clinics will accept all Humana Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans (available for people who are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid) offered in Washington, as well as Original Medicare.
Iora and Humana have the same relationship benefitting older adults in Arizona and Colorado, along with Washington.
Sound Options has received the Leader in Excellence Award in the 2018 Best of Home Care awards for the second year in a row.
The award for the Tacoma-based firm is the highest recognition awarded by Home Care Pulse and is based on quality metrics. The distinction ranks Sound Options among the top 5 percent of homecare providers participating in the Home Care Pulse satisfaction management program.
“This award is a testament to excellent team work and consistency of care, ” said Mary Lynn Pannen, the founder of Sound Options. “We have the pleasure of working with so many wonderful families and caregivers.â€
After starting in 1989 in a small home office in Tacoma, Sound Options now serves families from Olympia to Seattle by creating family plans, coordinating care and providing companionship for seniors.
Village Concepts has begun construction in Renton of a new retirement community.
Village Concepts of Fairwood will be a 115- unit independent, assisted-living, and memory care community, joining the company’s 16 other communities across western Washington. Overlooking Fairwood Golf and Country Club, it will be located near a public library, a hospital, and a grocery store and other retail businesses.
Marathon Development and The Rush Companies will be handling construction, which is projected to be completed in early 2020.
Architects’ image of the 115-unit Village Concepts of Fairwood.
From baseball cards and sports equipment to postcards and toys, is that “junk†in your attic or basement dusty treasure or just dusty?
We’ve all heard of families getting rich from the sale of rare memorabilia. So how can you tell if your stuff is valuable and, if it is, how can you sell it?
“The general rule is that the older the item, the more valuable it is. 1980 is not old. 1960 is kind of old. 1910 is old,†says Al Crisafulli, auction director at Love of the Game Auctions, an Internet sports auction house that has helped many families identify and sell valuable items.
In one instance, Crisafulli determined that a family’s baseball bat that spent decades beside their front door to protect from intruders was actually used by Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig — and Love of the Game Auctions sold it for them for more than $430,000.
He offers these tips to help determine if your items are valuable:
Baseball cards. Cards from the 1960s and earlier are collectible, and those from before the 1940s can be extremely pricey. Do they have sharp corners, no creases and retain original gloss? Do they depict star players and Hall of Famers? A Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner or Mickey Mantle will sell for more than non-stars.
With particularly old cards from the 1880s and early 1900s, look for tobacco and candy brands, such as Old Judge, Piedmont, Sweet Caporal or American Caramel. Unopened packs from almost any era can be valuable.
Memorabilia and equipment. Look for old advertising posters depicting sports stars and food, tobacco or sporting goods brands. This doesn’t mean ads torn from magazines, but those used as store displays and for other purposes. Tin signs are highly collectible from the 1900s into the 1960s, but low-quality reproductions aren’t. Pre-1950s catcher’s masks, baseball gloves and bats can be valuable, especially those endorsed by star players. Condition is important, but used equipment can be valuable.
When you go to sell sports items, consider a specialty auction company which has the expertise to properly research sports pieces and maintains lists of bidders specializing in this area so it can get top dollar for these items. More information is available at loveofthegameauctions.com.
Postcards of your vacation destinations likely are worthless. But those depicting famous people, such as movie star cards and vintage baseball postcards, can be valuable. Look for early “real photo†postcards from the 1900s through the 1940s, which are photographs printed on postcard backs. No matter the type, the older the better, and the more famous the better.
Old Halloween or Christmas postcards from the early 1900s can be expensive. The same goes for many intricate “hold-to-light†postcards, where portions of scenes light up when held to strong light.
Look for famous characters, such as early Walt Disney items, superheroes, Star Wars, etc. The most prized toys are those in original condition with no broken pieces and paint intact. And if you have original boxes, you might strike gold.
So, while you’re cleaning that attic, basement or garage, don’t rush to purge. Before throwing out old “junk,†determine if it’s valuable.
Sou
Depending on their type and condition, old toys stashed in an attic or basement could be valuable on the memorabilia market.
