Senior News and Living sponsored a pop-up resource fair at the American Legion in Norman on Monday, May 13th. Here are a few highlights from the event.

By Marise Boehs

They gathered at the OnCue in Yukon Sunday morning – a dozen motorcycles, a few cars and 21 volunteers preparing to surprise a veteran who had asked for a flag pole for his yard.

The skies were overcast, a little windy and cold but nobody seemed to mind. It was the first install of the 2024 season and a chance to catch up with friends and comrades and do a thing they all love and believe in.

Flag Poles Honoring Our Veterans is a 501(c)3 organization established in 2020. Their mission is to touch as many veterans as possible throughout the state of Oklahoma. The organization is completely volunteer and runs solely on donations of materials and money from individual and corporate sponsors.
Any Oklahoma veteran who has been honorably discharged and owns his or her home can ask for a flag pole through an application on their website. (FPHOV.org FPHOV has installed 560 flag poles in the past 4 years.

“The Sunday before Veterans Day every year we do 22 flagpoles in one day in the awareness of the 22 Veterans we lose a day to suicide.”
Kevin Blake, Founder FPHOV

They honor 3-5 Veterans each Sunday from mid March through Christmas unless a holiday falls on Sunday.

The fourth Annual Veteran Appreciation cookout will be in October with live music and free food for all veterans who have received a flagpole. In the evening there is a flagpole retirement ceremony.

Founder Kevin Blake explained about the ceremony. “We collect tattered flags throughout the year and we have a burn barrel. We retire each flag and call out the name of family or friend Veterans that have passed with each flag. Then I bring the barrel home after it cools and collect the grommets and make key chains out of them. Our flag never dies.”

In his own words…

In December 2019 we were helping serve dinner at a local church (Yellow Rose in Moore) to families for kids less fortunate and would be given toys to be able to have a Christmas.

A gentleman walked up to me and asked if I was the guy down the street from him that has a flagpole and every holiday (4th of July, Memorial Day) I set flags out down my driveway and along my curbside. We figured out that I was. He said he is a Veteran, he has an Army flag and an American flag and had always wanted a flagpole.
We chatted and then went our way. That night it laid on my heart “why doesn’t that Veteran have a flagpole”. So the next day I went out and purchased a flagpole, a flag, solar light and all the materials to install it. I notified his wife and asked her to have him in their driveway at noon on Sunday 3 days before Christmas.
I posted what I was doing on Facebook and asked folks to be at my house at 11:30 am Sunday. We had 19 motorcycles and 9 cars show up – almost 40 people. I loaded the concrete and tools in my riding lawnmower trailer. His wife had him outside when he heard the bikes start up. He said he thought it was just me and my biker buddies heading out. Everyone followed me on my mower with 2 people carrying the pole and when we rounded the corner his tears started flowing. With everyone videoing, going Facebook live, saying what a great idea and why hasn’t this ever been thought of before. That night my wife said to me “I think every Veteran deserves a flagpole in their yard when they retire”.

I set out and created the name, got our 501c3, nonprofit and copyright to the name and logo. And in March of 2020 (even when Covid was starting up at the same time) we got started. Our first year we Honored 100 Veterans.

The next year we set a goal of 150 Veterans and met that goal. But as volunteers with full time jobs we felt a bit pressured so we did not set an amount goal after that. We just do as many as possible.

By Marilyn Olson, Executive Director, VillagesOKC

March 29 will be a full day of celebration and commemoration for VillagesOKC members. It’s National Vietnam Veterans Day, and two major events will fill the day. A morning ceremony at the Oklahoma History Center Museum will honor all Vietnam-era veterans. An afternoon ceremony at Del City High School will recognize the character and sacrifice of 1st Lt. James Robert Kalsu.
VillagesOKC is partnering with the Oklahoma History Center Museum, the local offices of Humana, Oklahoma Warriors Honor Flight, the Force 50 Foundation and Navigating Medicare to host a pinning ceremony honoring all the servicemen and servicewomen, active or reservists, who served anywhere in the world during the Vietnam War-era. Each will receive a lapel pin inscribed with “A Grateful Nation Thanks and Honors You.”
The event will be held in the Devon Great Hall of the museum 10 a.m. to noon, with the doors opening at 9:00 a.m. This event is free and open to the public.
At 1 p.m. that afternoon, a larger-than-life monument to Kalsu will be unveiled at the Del City High School stadium which bears his name. At 1:30 p.m. in the Del City Performing Arts Center there will be a Vietnam-Era Veteran pinning ceremony and premier of the documentary “Uncommon Character – the Legacy of James Robert Kalsu.”
Kalsu was a stand-out student and Del City High School football star, an All-American at the University of Oklahoma, and Rookie of the Year for the Buffalo Bills, who became the only active professional athlete killed in action in the Vietnam War.
“If our children and grandchildren are to truly value the freedoms we have, it will be experiencing events like this where men and women are honored for their character and selfless acts of valor,” said VillagesOKC Executive Director Marilyn Olson. “VillagesOKC values our veterans and intends to continue finding ways to honor them.”
According to a release from the museum: “March 29 was designated as Vietnam Veterans Day by the 2008 National Defense Authorization Act, to be commemorated with annual nationwide events. Guided by the stipulations in that act, only Vietnam War veterans and their families are recognized. However, the Vietnam War Commemoration organization is providing recognition pins to honor any US veteran who served on active duty or in the reserves in the US Armed Forces at any time during the period of November 1, 1955, to May 15, 1975, regardless of location, Vietnam or elsewhere. Family members of any veteran unable to be present may also receive this pin.”
The keynote speaker will be Colonel “Chuck” DeBellevue who has been deemed “Ace of Aces;” one of only five to achieve that status from downing six North Vietnamese MiGs. Altogether, he logged 550 combat hours while flying 220 combat missions; 96 over Vietnam. His decorations include the Air Force Cross, three Silver Stars, three Legions of Merit, six Distinguished Flying Crosses, eighteen Air Medals and the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Device. In 2012, he was inducted into the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame and received the Congressional Gold Medal.

Visit: https://villagesokc.org/

The Oklahoma History Center, in association with VillagesOKC, the local offices of Humana, Oklahoma Warriors Honor Flight, Navigating Medicare and the Force 50 Foundation, is proud to host a pinning ceremony honoring all the servicemen and servicewomen, active or reservists, who served anywhere in the world during the Vietnam War-era. Family members of any veteran unable to be present may also receive this pin. The event will be held in the Devon Great Hall of the Oklahoma History Center on Friday, March 29, from 10 a.m.-noon, with doors opening at 9 a.m. This event is free and open to the public.
March 29 was designated as Vietnam Veterans Day by the 2008 National Defense Authorization Act, to be commemorated with annual nationwide events. Guided by the stipulations in that act, only Vietnam War veterans and their families are recognized. However, the Vietnam War Commemoration organization is providing recognition pins to honor any US veteran who served on active duty or in the reserves in the US Armed Forces at any time during the period of November 1, 1955, to May 15, 1975, regardless of location, Vietnam or otherwise. Family members of any veteran unable to be present may also receive this pin.
The keynote speaker will be Colonel “Chuck” DeBellevue, who has been deemed “Ace of Aces,” one of only five to achieve that status from downing six North Vietnamese MiGs. He logged 550 combat hours while flying 220 combat missions, with 96 over Vietnam. His decorations include the Air Force Cross, three Silver Stars, three Legions of Merit, six Distinguished Flying Crosses, 18 Air Medals and the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Device. In 2012, he was inducted into the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame and received the Congressional Gold Medal.
Also speaking will be Colonel Peter Plank, one of the founders of the Liberty Jump Team. This team has taken more than 100 World War II veterans back to the battlefields of Normandy and Belgium at no cost to the veterans. “Taking them to the battlefields they fought in and the villages they liberated is a humbling experience. Being a part of the Liberty Jump Team preserves the memory of those that came before us alive. We owe them that,” says Plank.
Michael Do, an Oklahoma City businessman, will speak on behalf of the Oklahoma City Vietnamese community and the South Vietnamese military. Music will be provided by the 145th Army Band, known as “The Governor’s Own.”
The Oklahoma History Center is located at 800 Nazih Zuhdi Dr. in Oklahoma City. It is open to the public Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
The Oklahoma History Center is a division of the Oklahoma Historical Society and is an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, National Archives and is an accredited member of the American Alliance of Museums. The mission of the Oklahoma Historical Society is to collect, preserve and share the history and culture of the state of Oklahoma and its people. Founded in 1893 by members of the Territorial Press Association, the OHS maintains museums, historic sites and affiliates across the state. Through its research archives, exhibits, educational programs and publications the OHS chronicles the rich history of Oklahoma. For more information about the OHS, please visit
https://www.okhistory.org.

Fifty years ago, immunologists were just beginning to understand a newly discovered type of white blood cell that would come to be known as the T cell. Decades of research have since shown these protective cells to be so crucial, we couldn’t survive without them.
Fast-forward to today, and research stands at a similar infancy with a closely related immune cell called innate lymphoid cells, or ILCs, says Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation scientist Xiao-Hong Sun, Ph.D.
The National Institutes of Health recently awarded Sun a $3.4 million grant to continue unraveling mysteries about these cells, including whether they may offer clues about the differences in immune reactions between children and adults.
“It’s far too soon to say whether we will someday discover ILCs play a role as profound as T cells,” said Sun, who holds the Lew and Myra Ward Chair in Biomedical Research at OMRF. “But I hope this research will begin to answer that question.”
Sun joined OMRF in 1999 and studied T cells until pivoting her research to ILCs when scientists discovered them about a decade ago.
Initially, researchers believed ILCs originated only in bone marrow. In 2019, Sun discovered the thymus, a gland near the heart, can also produce them. The thymus trains the immune system to distinguish friendly cells from invaders. It tends to shrink and become less active as we age.
“Our previous discovery was important because it may shed light on why immune reactions differ between children and adults,” Sun said. “Childhood onset of asthma and food allergies are just two examples. This new study may help explain the underlying causes and suggest new therapeutic approaches.”
“It took a half-century of painstaking work by scientists around the world to get to our current understanding of T cells,” said OMRF Executive Vice President & Chief Medical Officer Judith James, M.D., Ph.D. “That’s often how science works. Dr. Sun is applying similar approaches to understand ILCs in an accelerated way. I’m excited to see where her research leads.”
Sun’s grant, No. 1R01AI178947-01, was awarded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the NIH. Oklahoma City’s Presbyterian Health Foundation provided funding for Sun to collect preliminary data for this research.

Oklahoma City Indian Clinic (OKCIC), celebrates the Red Feather Galaeach year during Native American Heritage month. This year’s occasion raised over $150,000 and will provide 30 pairs of hearing aids for patients in need.
Held at the Omni Hotel in downtown Oklahoma City, this year’s Red Feather Gala was emceed by Ali Meyer and Joleen Chaney, news anchors from KFOR. They successfully united nearly
600 supporters, including tribal representatives from various parts of Oklahoma, to contribute to OKCIC’s charitable mission. To support the cause, attendees had the opportunity to make donations through a silent and live auction and Native art.
An outstanding moment of the evening was when RADM (Ret.) Kevin Meeks received the 2023
Spirit of the Urban Indian honor. RADM Meeks was honored for his lifelong commitment to improving the well-being of Native Americans in Oklahoma. As a proud citizen of Chickasaw Nation, he currently serves as Deputy Secretary of Health. Throughout his career, he has played a pivotal role in the enhancement of health care services for American Indians.
“I am very honored to receive the Spirit of the Urban Indian Honor,” said RADM Meeks. “I’m so proud of Oklahoma City Indian Clinic’s accomplishments. They have created outstanding and nurtured outstanding partnerships with area tribes and the Indian Health Service. OKCIC is a great example for other urban Indian programs to emulate.”
The gala provided attendees with an opportunity to immerse themselves in Native American culture through a captivating dance performance by the Central Plains Dancers. Additionally, guests could make memories at the photo booth, while enjoying a night of dancing with live music and karaoke.

by Mike Lee Staff Writer

Pam Spanbauer, RN, BSN, MEd, may be retired from her nursing practice but her impact on healthcare in Oklahoma will be felt for generations to come.
As the governor’s appointee to the Physician Manpower & Training Commission, Spanbauer is the only nurse on the board that helps ensure healthcare for thousands of rural Oklahomans.
Now the board chair, Spanbauer helps make sure that small communities in Oklahoma get the competent and professional physicians they so desperately need.
Spanbauer also currently serves as the vice president of the Oklahoma Nurses Association.
The commission is a task-force established in the 1970s.
“They have funding to help fund physicians in training to go out into the rural areas in Oklahoma,” Spanbauer said. “In Oklahoma we have so much rural area. In these farming communities the last thing they can do is take a day and drive to the city to get healthcare and drive back.
“It’s really important especially with the fact we don’t have many hospitals in the rural area.”
Spanbauer was raised in a small town in North Carolina. She had a single doctor growing up who took care of her entire family.
“If we had to have gone to the city we probably wouldn’t have gotten healthcare,” said Spanbauer, whose family lived 50 miles from the nearest hospital. “I’ve always had that small-town respect.”
She says the reality is that most doctors are going into specialty practices. Those who head to family medicine will stick closer to more populated areas.
The commission will cover a significant portion of a doctor’s tuition for a commitment to be the physician in a rural area.
“Many of the physicians actually wind up staying in that area after their commitment is done,” Spanbauer said. “If it weren’t for that a lot of doctors wouldn’t even know there are these opportunities and how great healthcare can be in a small community.”
Spanbauer and the commission review each applicant and decide the best place to match each doctor. Communities routinely send in requests for physicians to cover their population.
The mission of the Physician Manpower Training Commission is to enhance medical care in rural and underserved areas of the state by administering residency, internship and scholarship incentive programs that encourage medical and nursing personnel to practice in rural and underserved areas. Further, PMTC is to upgrade the availability of health care services by increasing the number of practicing physicians, nurses and physician assistants in rural and underserved areas of Oklahoma.
Subsequently the Oklahoma Legislature has added the responsibility of a Physician Placement Program, Nursing Student Assistance Program, the FP Resident Rural Program, the Physician Community Match Program and the Physician Assistant Scholarship Program. Spanbauer says the commission is guided in all the programs by a sense of stewardship which requires that maximum effort, both individual and organizational, be utilized to increase the number of practicing physicians, nurses and physician assistants in Oklahoma and, particularly, in rural and underserved areas of the state.
“I’ve always had a strong desire to give back in some way which is why I love being retired,” Spanbauer said. “I loved what I did when I was working but now it’s like I can give back. When I was working I didn’t have as much time.”
During her career, Spanbauer served as an EMT and drove an ambulance for Children’s Hospital. She also helped start the MediFlight program and later spent nearly her entire nursing career at Mercy.
“I had an opportunity at that time to see how spread out everything in Oklahoma is,” she said. “We would drive to pick up a baby and see how some of those hospitals barely had enough to get by. They didn’t have all the equipment we had in the city to take care of these premature babies.
“I’ve always been very passionate about wanting everybody to be able to have access to care. It’s a fact that people don’t.”
Spanbauer says the commission is charged with five high-priority goals:
1. Work to improve the balance of physician manpower distribution in the State of Oklahoma, both by type of practice and by geographic location;
2. Aid accredited physician training facilities in the establishment of additional primary medical care and family practice internship and residency training programs by sharing in the cost of these programs;
3. Assist Oklahoma communities in selecting and financing qualified medical and osteopathic interns/residents to participate in the Physician Community Match Program;
4. Assist Oklahoma communities, in any manner possible, in contacting medical and osteopathic students, interns and residents, or other physicians (inside and outside Oklahoma) who might wish to practice in Oklahoma;
5. Work with Oklahoma communities and the leadership of Oklahoma’s nurse training institutions to provide nurses for underserved areas of the state.
“It gets back to what medicine is all about and that’s the relationship the doctor has with the patient and the community,” Spanbauer said.
And that’s how Spanbauer makes a difference for future generations to come.