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Prime Times Weekly feature of the Mail Tribune , Medford, Oregon For a group of Ashland men from Linda Vista Care Center, one of the best ways to keep aging in perspective is another outing together as ... The BULL PEN Photo by Bob Pennell Jack Gell dips into a barbecued meal during an outing at Emigrant Lake with his men's group, the Bull Pen, of Linda Vista Care Center in Ashland. ASHLAND -- A bunch of elderly men find themselves in the sunset of their lives in wheelchairs in a nursing home doing indoor activities designed mainly for females, who outnumber them 9 to 1. How do they keep up their spirit and recapture their sense of purpose and just plain fun? Brad Weller, the maintenance chief at Linda Vista Care Center, has the answer: You get the guys together and bust out of there. Two years ago, Weller organized "the boys" into a men's group. They started having pancake breakfasts every other Tuesday and taking off in the Linda Vista bus every week to bowl, fish, have a barbecue by a lake, look at scenery and develop that special camaraderie and way of talking with each other that men have when they're just with men, said Weller. "Everyone noticed a big difference. They're smiling, have spirit and are overall more happy, not down and depressed. Men like being with just men and having that privacy and independence. They're really proud of it and look forward to it," he said. The men named themselves the Bull Pen and had red T-shirts made with their logo of a feisty, smiling bull. The Bull Pen men gather for woodworking, pottery and trips with their dog, Buddy (also in a Bull Pen T-shirt), to places such as Crater Lake, the Rogue River, Lost Creek Lake and Howard Prairie Lake. During hunting season, they may barbecue deer meat bagged by Weller. A big trip is planned this summer to Wildlife Safari near Winston. "It's great to get out of the building, see new country and be out in the open," said Ken Chapman, 85, a former building contractor and World War II Army engineer who designed the Bull Pen logo. "It's good to have old buddies to express yourself to," said James D. Brown, 53, a former heavy equipment operator with multiple sclerosis. "The group helps keep our mind off our problems. It's easy to get depressed if you've got nothing to do but sit and worry. This keeps us involved." "I love all the boys," said John Scott, 78, a former farmer, as he bit into barbecued meat at a recent Emigrant Lake outing. "They're darn good friends. They always give me good advice and help me with my peg leg." "They're all down-to-earth people," said William Evans, 80, a former doctor. "We've all had many of the same experiences with World War II and with aging and can really be there for each other." Weller is the son of a nursing home administrator and "grew up in nursing homes." He raised $7,800 for the Bull Pen's wheelchair-accessible van by selling Christmas trees for two years and was helped by an $1,800 donation from Linda Vista trustees. From yard sales, he raised $1,400 for two pottery wheels. The Bull Pen raises operating funds from sales of pottery, cookies and popcorn, Weller said. The Bull Pen boys usually find park restrooms and waterfronts inaccessible to wheelchairs, he said. Government agencies told Weller they lack funds, so he and the Bull Pen boys offered to raise the money. In response, Jackson County Parks and Recreation has set up a fund, and donations may be made to Jackson County Parks Wheelchair Access, 400 Antelope Road, White City OR 97503. On a recent annual inspection of Linda Vista, the Heath Care Finance Administration was "so impressed" with the novel project that it publicized the Bull Pen on its Web site to inspire other congregate care facilities, Weller said. "People this age don't have much short-term memory," said Linda Vista social activities director Scott Moulton. "They may not remember today's breakfast. But they remember these adventures for a month. They have tremendous gratitude for this." Prime Times Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA