Sunday, June 8, 2014

THAT'S MY UNCLE JOEY

MY UNCLE JOEY (above) ON HIS PINK BICYCLE

A few weeks ago I received an email from my Uncle Joey who is 90 years plus young.

He mentioned in the email to me that there was a story about him in the newspaper with a picture of riding his bike.

There was no article attached to his email and no photo either, so I wrote him back asking for what I thought were the "missing" attachments.

Shortly after, he responded by email, that there "were no attachments and I could find the Greenwich Village newspaper "The Villager" at my local newsstand".

Since I live quite a distance from him, where could I possibly get a copy of the newspaper?

Through the magic of the Internet, I have been able to find this wonderful story online about my Uncle Joey and his pictures in color, not the drab black & white newspaper photo.

The article describes an amazing man who has aged with dignity, happiness, a love of life, adventure, survival, all serving as an example of inspiration to the rest of us of how the human spirit can continue to keep growing no matter what your age.

My favorite part of the story is his description of why he owns a pink bicycle.

As Albert Einstein said 'Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.'

Keep riding you bike forever Uncle Joey.

Through rain, snow (but not vortexes)…(CLICK HERE TO READ THE NEWSPAPER STORY)

May 1, 2014 | The Villager

Photos by Tequila Minsky

Joe Katz who lives in Silver Towers with his wife, recently turned 90. The retired New York University clinical psychology professor lunches with fellow seniors at Caring Community at Greenwich House, at 20 Washington Square North, and rides his trusty bike there every day.

He said he likes his pink bicycle because the “homophobes won’t steal it.” He was riding during the winter, wearing his blue coat, below, but took a hiatus during the very cold weather.

Now he’s back in the saddle again, wearing his red coat, above, riding back and forth between his home and the Caring Community.

Meanwhile, his wife goes there, too, but she walks. His family reportedly would like him to stop cycling, but to no avail.

He’s like the Forrest Gump of biking — you just can’t stop him.

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Comments (3)

The Wolkoff Family · 2 minutes ago

That's our Uncle Joey. Fearlessly riding his bike in the middle of the winter, exploring new adventures. No seat belts needed as he's an expert biker, plus the blue helmet is color coordinated beautifully with his red coat. The man has class and style!