- If it's Monday,
Velma Cox and her friends must be playing Rummikub.
- I have three tens to put down.
- That's called a set.
- All of it different.
That's called a set.
- At 96 years old,
Velma has a busier social calendar
than most people half her age.
- I played dominoes this morning.
And usually this time of the afternoon,
we play Skip-Bo and Rummikub.
- On another day,
she might fit in some Wii bowling.
After all, she does hold the high score
for her senior living community.
- I play games at least three times a week.
And we just play half a day, so the other half a day,
I've got to find something else to do.
[splish]
I got all kinds of beads.
- In her remaining spare time,
Velma makes art with beads so small,
she can fit dozens into a single flower petal.
Velma can make one blossom a day.
Over time, she has made 30 bouquets.
And given them all away.
- I make little animals and I make flowers.
It was just fun.
And I'd give' em to my friends so I could make some more
'cause they piled up a little bit.
If I made some, I couldn't make any more,
unless I got rid of them.
So I just started giving them away.
- Her friends all sport broaches and hair clips
with Velma's bead flowers.
- I enjoy making them.
And it spends my time.
I have a lot of extra time.
- That extra time is how Velma came here and
started making bead flowers in the first place.
In 2006,
her husband Robert became so ill from diabetes
Velma could no longer take care of him.
Their daughter Arlene moved them
to the Felician Village in Manitowoc.
Velma was in her apartment and
Robert was in the nursing home wing.
- I went to see him when he was in St. Mary's every day, yes.
And I finally had to feed him his meals.
- Robert passed away three years later.
- Oh after my husband died,
I had to find something to pass the time
because time was heavy on my hands
because always before,
always went to be with him in the day time.
* *
- Velma's children tried to help her find a hobby
to fill the empty hours.
- My daughter-in-law bought me a bead book.
I kept at it till I just enjoyed it so much.
- It gave her something to focus on
during the long afternoons.
- I'm only thinking of my beads.
I'm not thinking about nothing else.
- Robert never lived in this apartment,
but his memory is all over,
from photos on the wall to a candle holder on the counter.
- I met him on a roller skating rink.
That's a long time ago.
- They were married in 1941.
- We farmed 30 years.
- They raised three children.
And Velma uses email and Skype to keep in touch.
- I showed them my beads and stuff.
- Oh cool.
- Yeah.
Well we've been having fun here I guess.
- I send a message to my daughter every morning.
Tell her I'm up, out of bed so she knows I'm still alive.
[laughs]
- Even with all the games and talking with family,
there are still a lot of hours left in the day.
And Velma says working with beads and
making art can be therapeutic.
It's even better
when she can share the results with her friends.
[indistinct talking]
* *