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Inside: Win tickets Vol 44 No. 7
www.theactiveage.com Kansas’ Largest Newspaper
June 2023
Working moms
Parents return to workforce with their children as bosses
Dr. Adel Korkor
Fifty 5Ks in 50 days, 50 states
By Joe Stumpe Dr. Adel Korkor remembers the general reaction to his idea of running 5ks in 50 states within the span of 50 days. “I was told I should probably see a psychiatrist because this is something that’s going to be hard to accomplish,” he said.
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By Amy Geiszler-Jones When two Wichita women were looking for new jobs, they turned to a couple of employers they know best: their children. Lori Farha and Squeek Crouse give new meaning to the phrase “working moms.” Farha, 67, had been working in the geriatric behavioral health unit at Ascension Via Christi St. Joseph when the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown started. Because of social distancing challenges in a health care setting, Farha felt she needed a change, but she wasn’t ready to retire. Initially, she was hesitant to ask her youngest son, Ben, if he might have room in his Farha Roofing company for her. “I don’t want to abuse my parenthood,” Farha said. For Ben, it was a no-brainer. “It was an easy choice to make, and I wanted my mom to be safe,” he
Photo by Amy Geiszler-Jones
Squeek Crouse grabs customer Devin Hansen a bottle of water as her daughter, Brenda cuts his hair. said. nearly two decades of experience as a Three years later, he still feels it social worker into helping take care was a good choice to have his mom, of Farha Roofing employees. The who handles all the payroll and company has grown to include 50 human resources responsibilities, See Moms, page 6 come work for him. She’s parlayed
‘So many dead trees in Wichita’
Trees need extra care in drought By Annie Calovich As the first flush of flower and leaf faded from the landscape this spring, an ugly reality emerged. Many of the trees were still brown. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many dead trees in Wichita,” said Brian Ernstmann, owner of Ernstmann Tree Care. Drought is the main culprit. While trees in home lawns often get watered along with the grass, that was not enough in a summer as dry as last year’s. “You have to put more water on for a longer time to get to the tree roots,” Ernstmann said. While it is rare for a dead tree to fall, Ernstmann said that dead
branches that are left in trees will continue to decay and could soon present a danger. “I think this summer and fall, they’re going to come down,” he said. People who want to preserve their trees have to take extra steps during dry spells to help them make it through. Photo by Annie Calovich Dan Wetta, a Dan Wetta says the time and money he's spent retirement planner, is keeping this elm tree healthy are well worth it. one of them. A huge up the sidewalk to dangerous heights exotic elm tree shades three years ago, Wetta convinced the almost all of his front yard in College Hill. When one of its big roots pushed See Trees, page 7
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