THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, March 31, 2023 Page 19 OBITUARY Karen (Lundstrom) Riemer Of Mal den, passed away unexpectedly but peacefully on March 24, 2023, at home at the age of 66. She was a devoted wife, mother, sister and friend; a giving and exuberant personality who leaves a gigantic hole in the lives of all who knew and loved her. Born in Schenectady, N.Y., on October 2, 1956, to Hal and Ginny Lundstrom, Karen moved to Arlington in third grade and then never strayed far geographically, settling in Malden with her beloved husband Kevin nearly 30 years ago to raise their son David. Karen graduated from Arlington High School in 1974, then went on to UMass Amherst, where she received a BFA. In addition to studying interior design, she served as President of her sorority, Alpha Chi Omega, and made lifelong friends whom she still vacationed with. Karen never lost touch with anyone; once you met Karen you became a friend and she nurtured these friendships across miles and spanning generations. Karen relished being at all family events and socializing with relatives and friends. Her loving, personable nature never went unnoticed. BHRC | FROM PAGE 15 ager on a license for the sale of alcoholic beverages. Under current law, these managers must be U.S. citizens and are also required to be on the premises at least 40 hours per week. “This legislation was fi led after a few restaurants … reached out and brought this issue to my attention,” said sponsor Sen. Patrick O’Connor (R-Weymouth). “Considering a signifi cant portion of food industry employees are legal immigrants, it makes sense to allow them to be able to compete for these types of positions. Managerial positions are crucial to the success of any business, and this change would put Massachusetts in line with many other states and allow restaurants to expand their pool of qualifi ed applicants.” FIX-A-LEAK WEEK AND WATER DAY – Last week the Healey administration commemorated World Water Day and National FixA-Leak Week. Fix-A-Leak Week is led by the United Nations and is aimed at raising awareness about the importance of fi nding and repairing water leaks in homes and businesses. World Water Day’s theme is designed to accelerate change to solve the world’s water She laughed very hard and often. Karen took special joy in her role as Master of Ceremonies for the annual 4th of July Pool Olympics in the backyard of the longtime family home on Gray Street in Arlington. Engaging her creative side, Karen documented all these events in picture and video, generating both joy and laughter whether her subjects were “picture-ready” or not. Offi cially an aunt to only four, in reality “Aunt Karen” had countless nieces and nephews as her extended family was HUGE. She was a renowned cookie maker and loved sharing her Christmas platters and specially decorated Thanksgiving Turkey and Easter Bunny cookies with family and all of the neighborhood. Her cookies were only surpassed in family lore and tradition by her specialty Christmas twice-baked potatoes and her famous summer ice cream pies. Karen’s career was in commercial Interior Design – even founding her own company, KL Interiors. But her real passion was taking care of others, starting with her son David, and including her mother, her nephews, neighbors, friends and numerous seniors in the community. Karen gave generously of her time and was the consummate Volunteer serving her Church, the PTA, the Bread of Life Food Kitchen, and many local political campaigns. Additionally, Karen had a longtime involvement in the AA/Recovery community, where she and sanitation crisis. “Access to safe drinking water is a fundamental right,” said Energy and Environmental Aff airs Secretary Rebecca Tepper. “We all have a role to play in protecting our water supply as the climate crisis worsens droughts and fl oods and alters our ecosystem. We encourage all residents and businesses to protect against unnecessary water waste.” “While water safety and accessibility are global issues, individual actions are required to address them,” said Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bonnie Heiple. “Small changes in the ways in which we use and manage water in our daily lives cumulate into signifi cant improvements to protect and conserve our precious water resources.” MASSACHUSETTS CAUCUS OF WOMEN LEGISLATORS’ (MCWL) TOP FIVE – The MCWL announced its top fi ve legislative priorities for the 2023-2024 legislative session. SALARIES OF HUMAN SERVICE WORKERS (H 191 and S 84) – Would eliminate disparities between the rate of pay for human services workers employed directly by the state and those employed by private agencies and compatook special joy in her position as the Greeter and was well known for giving The BEST HUGS! Karen loved camping and progressed from years in a tent to the relative luxury of an RV, which she and Kevin loved to take to Salisbury Beach for prime weeks in the spring, summer and fall. A lifelong Boston sports fan, Karen and Kevin shared a passion for both the Red Sox and NE Patriots and loved watching or listening on the radio even while camping. Karen leaves a big broken-hearted family, especially her husband Kevin of Malden and her son David of Dorchester. Karen also leaves her sister Joan Jantz and husband Andrew of Arlington, sister Gail Schlesinger (late husband Bob) of South Boston, brother Peter Lundstrom and wife Terry of Weymouth, niece Jess Schlesinger and nephews Rob Schlesinger and John and Tom Jantz. Not to be forgotten, Karen also doted on her “granddog” Roger and her “kitty kids,” Billy and Buddy. Relatives and friends are invited to visit in the DeVito Funeral Home at 1145 Mass. Ave., Arlington, on Saturday from 1:00–3:00 p.m. with a funeral home service to commence at 3:00 p.m. In lieu of fl owers, please consider a donation in memory of Karen to: Club24inc.org, BreadofLifeMalden.org or a charity of your choice. Please visit devitofuneralhome.com to view an online guestbook. nies with state contracts. SALARY TRANSPARENCY (H 1849 and S 1191) – Would require employers to disclose the salary range when advertising a job position. INCREASE ACCESS TO MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS (H 534 and S 1381) – Would increase access to disposable menstrual products in prisons, homeless shelters and public schools. POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION SCREENING (H 2163 and S 1375) – Would require MassHealth to provide coverage for postpartum depression screenings by pediatricians for 12 months. ALLOW USE OF CAMPAIGN FUNDS FOR CHILD CARE FOR CANDIDATES FOR PUBLIC OFFICE(H 669 and S 422) – Would allow a candidate for public offi ce to use campaign funds for childcare while the candidate is campaigning on his or her own behalf or attending events directly related to his or her campaign. QUOTABLE QUOTES “Housing is a big issue. We know that people can't thrive, they can't raise their families, it's just so much BHRC | SEE PAGE 20 aavvyvy S avy avvy S oiorenniioor nior by Jim Miller Simple Home Safety Solutions for Aging-in-Place Dear Savvy Senior, Falls and fi res are the two things I worry most about for my elderly father who lives alone. Do you have any suggestions on what we can do to help keep him safe, and keep an eye on him from afar? Concerned Daughter Dear Concerned, Of course! There are a number of small adjustments and modifi cations you can make to your dad’s home to help protect him from falls and fi res, both of which cause thousands of injuries and deaths each year. Here are some tips to get you started. Eliminate tripping hazards: Since falls are the leading cause of home injury among seniors, a good place to start is to pack away your dad’s throw rugs which are common tripping hazards or use carpet tacks or double-sided tape to secure them. You may also need to adjust your dad’s furniture so there are clear pathways to walk through and position any electrical or phone cords along walls and out of the way. For hardwood steps, consider attaching a nonslip tread to each one to provide traction and help him see the edge. And for added protection in the bathroom buy some nonskid rugs for the fl oors and use adhesive nonslip treads or a mat with rubber suction inside his tub or shower stall. Improve his lighting: Good lighting is essential for safe aging-in-place, so check the wattage ratings on your dad’s lamps and light fi xtures, and install the brightest bulbs allowed, and add supplementary lighting if necessary. You should also purchase some dusk to dawn nightlights for the bathroom and in the hallways that light up when the sun goes down. And mount some motion sensor lights outside the front and back doors and in the driveway that automatically come on when he comes and goes after dark. Get grab bars: These can signifi cantly reduce his risk of bathroom falls. Install them where he enters the shower or tub and on a wall inside the stall, but don’t use grab bars that attach with suction. Instead, have wall-mounted bars put in by someone who can affi x them to the wall studs. It’s also best to choose bars whose surfaces are slightly textured and easier to grip. Ensure railings are stable: Wherever he has steps – stairways, entryways or basements – he needs sturdy railings. Ideally, they should be on both sides of the steps. Prevent cooking fi res: There are several aff ordable products you can purchase to help your dad prevent home cooking fi res like BurnerAlert discs that attach to a stove’s knob and will continuously blink or beep after the stove has been in use for a preset amount of time, and Ome smart knobs that can control a stove’s heating settings from an app. Or you can invest in a more expensive iGuardStove sensor that shuts the stove off when it doesn’t detect motion for fi ve minutes. Install smoke alarms: Install a smart smoke alarm in your dad’s house (buy one for each fl oor) that will alert him when smoke or carbon monoxide is detected. These smart devices will also send alerts to your phone to let you know when a problem is detected. Google Nest and First Alert both smart smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. Add fi re extinguishers: Get portable multipurpose fi re extinguishers for each level of your dad’s house and in the garage. Consider a medical alert: To ensure your dad’s safety and provide you some peace of mind, consider getting him a medical alert device that comes with a wearable SOS button that would allow him to call for help if he were to fall or need assistance. For more tips, get a copy of AARP’s “HomeFit Guide” (see AARP. org/HomeFit), which has more than 100 aging-in-place suggestions that can help make your dad’s home safer and easier to live in. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.
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