Lois Campbell, Laverne Conery and Fran Wilkinson all have something in common — they’ve never given up their zest for living.

Laverne Conery

Laverne Conery will never want for friends. Not as long as she has her bowling ball.

At 79, the Lawrence Township resident continues to bowl in a winter league at Park Centre Lanes. Her team, the Pepsi Trio, meets there every Thursday morning to visit, socialize and, of course, bowl.

“I love to bowl,” she said. “I’ve been bowling off and on for the past 60 years. For the past 20, it has been on a regular basis.”

Among the reasons, she said, is that it is a good workout. She admits her game has regressed a bit. When she started, she bowled 160 games. Now it is more like 148 games. But that is OK, she said, noting that she has earned numerous medals in Senior Olympics with her bowling prowess, including two gold medals on the state level.

In addition to medals, Laverne has acquired many friends over the years.

“We have moved around a lot, but all I’ve had to do is walk into a bowling alley with my ball and I had a group of friends ready-made,” she said. “I love the competition, but this is something I enjoy.”

Lois Campbell

“I was a stay-at-home mom until a friend of mine said, ‘Let’s go play golf,’ ’’ said Lois Campbell, of Canton. At the time, she was 50. Now 88, she still is playing — 18 holes.

Every Thursday morning she and her friends meet at Meadowlake Golf & Swim Club to play in the 18-hole league. Until a few years ago, she carried her own bag. Nowadays, she uses a pull cart.

“I quit carrying a bag when it became too much for my shoulders,” she said. “But I am still walking.”

Her game isn’t limited to Thursdays.

“I golf several times a week,” she said, adding that she would go out every day but Sunday, weather permitting.

“I never had any formal lessons; it just came sort of natural for me,” she said, noting that she did play some previously with her husband. She said she has had three holes in one and four eagles in the past 38 years. “Sometimes I get frustrated because my game is backsliding, but then the girls remind me how old I am. I just don’t think of myself as an 88-year-old.”

Fran Wilkinson

As long as there are tennis rackets, Fran Wilkinson will play.

A resident of Green, Wilkinson, 85, has been playing tennis since the late 1960s, when her sister asked her to take lessons at Mount Union College.

“She told me if I came, she would pay for the lessons,” she said. Wilkinson took her sister up on the offer and hasn’t stopped since. She now plays doubles twice a week in leagues at the North Canton Racquet Club and Green Tennis Club with a much-younger group — women in their 50s, 60s, and 70s. She currently holds the No. 1 spot on the North Canton Racquet Club league for having won the most games.

“I only play indoors because of the sun,” she said. “It gets pretty hot on the cement courts outside.”

Wilkinson received four gold medals in Senior Olympics games over the years, but says it is getting much easier to compete because her age group keeps dwindling.

“I’ve played an awful lot of tennis,” she said. “The people are exceptionally nice in this sport, and tennis and golf are something you can do when you get old. It is good for the body.”

She credits skeet shooting earlier in life for her tennis skill now.

“Keeping a keen eye on clay pigeons helped improve my skills in tennis.”

Be it sports or exercise, the secret to a long and healthy life is keeping active. According to the AARP’s Web site, genes play a role, but your lifestyle has the largest effect on how healthy you are and how long you live. That includes what you eat and drink, how active you are, whether you smoke and how you handle stress.

After smoking, lack of physical activity and poor eating habits are the largest underlying causes of death in the United States, according to the National Institutes of Health.

A little physical activity goes a long way. At least 30 minutes of activity five or more days a week can improve your overall health.

Researchers continue to uncover health benefits from being physically active. These include weight control, better sleep, more energy, relief from depression, reduced stress, better ability to fight off colds and other illness, arthritis relief, stronger bones and muscles (which can prevent falls and bone loss), plus a lower risk of diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, blood pressure and colon cancer.

Ingredients for aging gracefully:

Don’t smoke

Limit alcohol

Eat well

Be active

Get enough sleep

Get regular checkups and screenings

Practice safe habits

Remember mental and emotional health

SOURCE: aarp.org