Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108o c t o b e r 2 0 1 6 5 9 voices Gretchen Powers The Golden years W hen New Jersey native Judy Strano, 67, read an article in the American Association of Retired People in 2011 that listed Portland, Maine as a top city for relocating, she dis- missed it off-hand: “Too cold.” Little did Ju- dy know that just three years later she and her husband, Rich, would be clinging to the side of Fort Williams Lighthouse in the middle of a raging Nor’easter, blasted by the wind and rain–and loving every second. “It was like watching fireworks. It was a truly magical experience.” The social worker of 30 years had spent her entire life in New Jersey, working, raising two children, even setting up her “Interest- ing Women Group” in Piscataway. Howev- er, Judy knew it was never too late for a fresh start. “I thought that if I stayed in New Jer- sey, I’d find it hard to adjust to retirement. It’s such a busy, hectic place. I needed a change of scene.” The initial plan had been for the cou- ple to relocate down south, but Judy couldn’t picture herself as a stereotypical Floridian re- tiree. The Stranos’ son, Kevin, had moved to Portland from Brooklyn with his wife sever- al years earlier to raise their young daughter. The desire to be nearer to her family and the thrill of adventure tugged Judy northward, and in August of 2014, Judy dragged her hus- band of 45 years “kicking and screaming” up to Maine. “We decided to rent an apartment. That way, if it didn’t work out we could just leave–no strings attached. Within just a cou- ple of months I knew we were staying.” Despite her gung-ho attitude, Judy had some reservations about leaving behind the place she’d known her entire life. “I was scared about making new friends in Portland. Meanwhile, I was saying goodbye to a group of lifelong friends back in Jersey.” Not one to linger in self-doubt, Judy joined two books clubs, the South Portland Recreation Center, Maine Audubon Society in Falmouth, and the Allen Avenue Unitarian Church. She even plans to launch a new chapter of the “Interest- ing Womens Group” here in Maine (her Jer- InAugust 2014,Judy dragged her husband of 45 years “kicking and screaming” up to Maine.