Ensign William Michael Finnegan, was appointed Ensign on Nov. 18, 1941, after rising to Chief Radio Electrician.
Ensign is the junior commissioned officer rank in the United States Navy. As division officers, Ensigns were in charge of overseeing the work of a crew of seamen and petty officers in a specific division. As a Chief Radio Electrician, Finnegan was required to qualify for the ratings of Radioman, Aviation Radioman, Radio Technician, Radarman, and Soundman.
In addition to the USS Oklahoma, Finnigan’s Duty Stations included USS Nevada (BB 36), USS Tennessee (BB 43), Naval Air Station San Diego, CA, USS Ranger (CV 4), Headquarters, 15th Naval District, USS Farquhar (DD 304), New York Navy Yard, NY, Radio School, Cambridge, MA and Recruit Training, Great Lakes, IL
Awards and Decorations include: Purple Heart Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Good Conduct Medal (2), American Defense Service Medal (Fleet Clasp), Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (Bronze Star), World War II Victory Medal and the American Campaign Medal.
Ensign William Finnegan was born in Bessemer, Michigan and died during the Dec. 7 attack on Pearl Harbor. Finnegan will be buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii, on September. 7th.

https://tealridge.com/

Story by Darl Devault, Contributing Editor

The free 2022 Second Half Expo begins at 8:30 am Saturday, October 22nd, and finishes at 2 p.m. for the second year at National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.
Billed as Something for Everyone Above Age 50, the expo is tailored to people in the “Second Half” of their lives. This is for those looking to connect with the resources needed to live the way they have always imagined. More than 120 of Oklahoma’s senior-related businesses will be present, providing education and demonstrations of their products and services.
The day will be loaded with fun activities, including free educational seminars, drawings for prizes, live music and much more.
“We firmly believe the senior years can be lived with dignity and purpose with the right guidance and resources,” said Bob Loudermilk, event manager. “We strive to support seniors and their adult children, honoring and assisting their aging parents.”
This year’s free two-hour panel session: THE 50+ YEARS – How to Navigate the Changing Landscape, offers eight community thought leaders sharing their expertise. This timely information on wealth management, senior housing, estate planning, health & fitness above age 50, tax & insurance planning, downsizing, Second-Half entrepreneurship and more is invaluable for seniors.
The panel session will begin at 9 a.m. with coffee and continental breakfast items provided. Seating is limited. Please RSVP to reserve your seat at https://secondhalfexpo.com/the-panel/. Details of topics and bios of the eight panelists are available on this page.
An example of the quality of the panelists offering their insights into living a vibrant and productive Second Half early Saturday morning is someone familiar to many Oklahomans.
Many seniors have seen Mark Bravo, 64, help broadcast the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon live on local KFOR-Channel 4 television since its inception in 2001. With Bravo’s broadcast journalism training from the University of Oklahoma and his experience as a marathoner, he describes the events from the runners’ point of view. He offers background both on the elite and “ordinary” runners.
“I’m humbled to be a part of this race, and to offer color commentary on race day gives me a chance to provide insight into road racing,” Bravo said in a recent interview. “I describe the mindset of all levels of athletes who participate and the importance of this race to Oklahoma, not only in April but all year long. I’m fortunate to have much engagement with athletes of all abilities throughout the year. The connection to the community has made it one of my great pleasures to help document every OKC Memorial Marathon.”
He actively supports the race throughout the year and on marathon weekend. From hosting the event’s two-day Health and Fitness Expo to inviting legends of the sport to the race, Bravo has volunteered thousands of hours over the years.
He takes great pride in ensuring its national reputation as the “Run to Remember,” leaving participants with two distinct emotions. The first is to bring together runners and spectators from around the world to honor those who were killed, those who survived, and those who were changed forever in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building.
Another source of his pride in this race is Bravo has helped bring many extras to the runners and walkers not available at most marathons. Bravo says this makes each person feel like an “elite” participant because of the on-course support from a massive outpouring of cheering and volunteering by OKC residents.
One of these extras for participants is interaction with Hall of Famers from the sport at the Expo. Many of these famous marathoners were at the forefront of the “running boom” in America in the ’70s and ’80s. These marathon luminaries speak about their experiences in and out of the sport and share their expertise to help ease runners’ minds before the race.
Bravo is a freelance writer, broadcaster and nationally-noted road race announcer who has finished almost 50 marathons in his 40-plus years in the sport. He speaks at countless sports-focused venues on building momentum in one’s life. Bravo has coached runners for the last two decades, and his view of mental and physical wellness is detailed in his well-received book: “Momentum: 77 Observations Toward a Life Well Lived.”
Bravo’s definition of an “athlete” has less to do with physical prowess but more about a few principles. “It’s viewing the world and yourself through a ‘kinder, gentler’ lens, an always existent ‘stick-to-it-iveness,’ strong view that the glass is ‘three-quarters full, not half-empty,’ and an ever-present emphasis on gratitude,” Bravo said. “Through these principles and how we share them, each of us raises the calibration of the entire world!”
He stays closely involved with the local running community in his position as manager of OK RUNNER OKC in downtown Oklahoma City. He and his wife, Leslie, live in Edmond, Oklahoma.

Bill Norfleet has been collecting coins for years, and after retiring, he took his collecting to the next level by opening his business Brazito Coins and Collectibles, located at 2525 Northwest Expressway, Suite 222 in Oklahoma City.

“I’ve collected coins for a long time, and when I retired, I decided I’d just start selling some and buying some and trading back and forth,” he said. “It keeps me off the sofa. It helps me to meet people and do things.”

Norfleet sells/buying at coin shows, sells coins online, and meets with individuals by appointment only at his Oklahoma City office location.

“I’m not a high-pressure salesman at all,” he said. “I’m not going to pressure them to sell them (coins). I just try to help them (with coin information/values). Hopefully they’ll come back when they do want to sell them if they do.”

Norfleet said the internet has changed the way coins are sold.

“The online section is taking over from the storefront business,” he said. “Coin shows are not a storefront, but they’re akin to them. It’s face-to-face-stuff. I’m afraid that the (smaller) coin show deal is kind of dying.”

Norfleet said there are still larger coin shows that attract buyers/sellers from across the country.

“One of the biggest ones in the country is in Orlando, Florida,” he said. “We went to that one in January. It had 660 tables. We went to one a couple weeks ago in Houston. That’s a pretty good size show with 120 tables. There was a lot going on there. A lot of people buy and sell. The bigger shows have many different things there, and you draw a whole lot more people.”

Norfleet said to help better attendance at the Oklahoma coin shows, he is using email to help attract more attendees.

“We are trying something new. We’re going to send out an email to about the first 1,000 people that are identified as having an interest in coins,” he said. “We’ll send out a few emails, one of them four weeks before the event and one another week or 10 days before the event. We’ll see how that works.”

Norfleet said his website features a variety of certified coins.
Certified coins have been graded by an authoritative third party like the Professional Coin Grading Organization (PCGS) or Numismatic Guarantee Company (NGC).

A coin that has been certified will come in a tamper-evident encapsulation or slab from the organization that certified and graded it. This slab will have the necessary information to verify the coin’s grade and authenticity.

“A lot of what we have for sale are what are called certified coins, and they’re in a plastic container,” he said.

Norfleet said coin collectors have a wide variety of coin interests.

“It’s just wide (coin interests),” he said. “Two of the most popular of all time are Morgan dollars and Peace dollars. The (Morgan) were made from 1878 to 1921. Now there were some years in the 1920’s and 1930’s when they weren’t made because the price of silver got to where it didn’t make sense to make a dollar with it. They made a few in 1934 and 1935. The Peace dollars were made from 1921 to 1935. Gold coins are popular. The Indian head two-and-a-half-, five- and ten-dollar Indian head gold coins. The Saint-Gaudens coins are popular.”

Norfleet said he receives phone calls from people who are interested in selling their coins and inquiring about what they might be appraised at.

“We talk about what they have, and that gives me a good feel whether it’s worth their time and mine for us to get together or not,” he said. “I had one lady call and said she had a lot of foreign coins she was interested in getting appraised. I told her I didn’t handle foreign coins, but I gave her information on some people who do. Sometimes you get people who don’t have any children or grandchildren, or as is my case, don’t have any children or grandchildren who are interested in coins. That’s true of a lot of people. We try to be helpful to them in figuring out how to make that decision, whether they want to sell them or keep them.”

Norfleet said he has never lost interest in collecting coins.

“I just enjoy the hunt, but I’ve always enjoyed going to coin shows and taking a list with me of things that I want and looking for them,” he said. “Sometimes you don’t find what you are looking for. But a lot of times, you’ll find something.” •
story by Van Mitchell, staff writer

For more information about coins call Norfleet at (405) 495-4000, email billnorfleet@hotmail.com or visit www.brazitocoinsandcollectibles.com

by Greg Schwem

Maybe it’s time to admit that, when it comes to parental discipline, our skills have disappeared faster than a toddler’s attention span.
Princess Kate Middleton recently found herself under the disciplinarian microscope when a hilarious, yet uncomfortable video emerged starring her youngest child, 4-year-old Prince Louis and fifth in line of succession to the British throne. (Translation: He will never be King).
The video, shot as mother and son watched the Platinum Jubilee pageant from front-row seats, featured a clearly bored Louis sticking out his tongue at his mum and batting her hand away when she tried to refrain him from “cocking a snook,” the British expression for thumbing one’s nose.
Because the dustup happened between royals, the video naturally went viral, causing millions to give their unwanted opinions on Kate’s parenting skills. The responses ranged from sympathetic (kids will be kids, even if they do live in palaces) to calling Louis a spoiled brat for daring to show disrespect to the future Queen of England. What kind of hooligan will Louis be at 15 if he is already testing boundaries at 4, they wondered?
I chuckled when I saw the video, knowing Kate was in an impossible situation. What was she supposed to do, knowing her every move was being recorded by dozens of cameras? Backhand her son across the face? Summon the royal guillotine? Or, worse, put young Louis in timeout by making him sit with the weird-haired gentleman. none other than British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, in the second row?
If you’re a parent, you’ve had your own Kate moment. When she was 2, my eldest daughter bit my finger hard enough to draw blood. She is now 25 and holds a corporate job. She has never spent time in jail. At least, not that I’m aware.
Cut Kate some slack, I thought. All children should be subject to discipline, but who are we to judge how it is administered?
Of course, that was before I saw the Mercedes.
It was sitting, unattended, in the park I visit each morning with my dog. A real beauty she was; jet black in color, with the silver three-point Mercedes-Benz emblem glistening in the rising sun. A Google search revealed I was staring at the 12-volt, S63 model, featuring one-button start, forward and reverse shifter, wear-resistant wheels, one USB port and an MP3 interface. The car retailed for anywhere between $190 and $250, depending on what site you were perusing.
Oh, no, this wasn’t an actual Mercedes-Benz. It was a toy replica, designed to be piloted by drivers between 3 and 5 years of age. Still, I wondered, what type of ungrateful kid leaves such a vehicle in a public park overnight, knowing another child could just hop in and drive away?
Worse, what parent allows this to happen?
I tried to imagine the scenario: Did the car’s battery die and no toy Mercedes tow trucks were available to assist? This seemed unlikely, since the S63 weighed a mere 33 pounds. Picking it up and putting it in the family car wouldn’t be that difficult.
Or were there other forces at play here? Did another child zoom by in a toy Tesla, featuring a Wi-Fi-enabled touch screen? Did that cause the embarrassed Mercedes owner to throw a tantrum, exiting the vehicle and demanding his cheap parents purchase an immediate upgrade? If I had been that parent, I would have calmly explained the 2023 models hadn’t yet arrived and it would be wise to wait.
When she was 5, my daughter, the aforementioned finger biter, had a Barbie-themed electric car. Purchased for 10 bucks from a yard sale, it was parked in our garage every night. Had she left it anywhere else, rest assured, there would have been consequences.
So, parents, let’s stop coddling our kids. Make them put away their toys and teach them the value of money. Let them know the finer things in life come with responsibilities. They will thank you later.
Even if it means spending time in the royal dungeon.
You are now cured of scrolliosis. That didn’t hurt a bit, did it?
(Greg Schwem is a corporate stand-up comedian and author of two books: “Text Me If You’re Breathing: Observations, Frustrations and Life Lessons From a Low-Tech Dad” and the recently released “The Road To Success Goes Through the Salad Bar: A Pile of BS From a Corporate Comedian,” available at Amazon.com. Visit Greg on the web at www.gregschwem.com.
You’ve enjoyed reading, and laughing at, Greg Schwem’s monthly humor columns in Senior Living News. But did you know Greg is also a nationally touring stand-up comedian? And he loves to make audiences laugh about the joys, and frustrations, of growing older. Watch the clip and, if you’d like Greg to perform at your senior center or senior event, contact him through his website at www.gregschwem.com)

Story by Darl DeVault and Robin Maxey

Caring for his mother, who provided one of the best starts in life he says, is routine at age 64 for Ted Cox, who set the record for the best hitting start in Major League Baseball. He moved from his family home in Midwest City he and his wife Debbie share, to a room in his mother’s home he grew up in 19 months ago to be her live-in caregiver.
His mother, Ernestine Cox, is 91 years old and legally blind. His father Virgil died in January of 2013 at 94.
Every day, Cox helps dress and feed her. His son Joe and his wife Samantha also aid in this effort. Cox usually prepares her to travel the two miles on the three days a week she receives dialysis at a center in Midwest City.
She receives physical therapy twice a week in the home and has difficulty remembering life’s details, such as taking her medicine. Some days Cox has to remind her of her schedule, such as when the nurse will arrive and the home health worker to bathe her.
Cox began as the caregiver to his parents by assuming these same duties for a year before his father died. He says he is happy to assume these duties, as his mother gave him one of the best starts any son could ask for in Midwest City in the early 1960s. His mother took him to practices when Cox started playing sports at seven years old.
“I can afford to take care of my mom while my wife Debbie since 1974 is much happier of the two of us to still be working.” Cox said recently. “My mom supported us kids in our sports and I had some baseball talent that allowed me to have a little more life experience than most. Giving her this personal care is all a part of being a good son to a loved one.”
Cox said every year during September, he hears from his circle of friends who remind him about his baseball record. This also makes him think how blessed his start in life was, with his mother’s support.
His mother made sure Cox made it to football and basketball practices before he settled on baseball. While learning to play baseball in school, he was also a three-sport star. He was the starting quarterback and point guard for his high school basketball team.
He became one of the best high school baseball players in Oklahoma by his senior year in 1973. His outstanding play on the Midwest City High School baseball team catapulted him into the Boston Red Sox farm system right out of high school.
There he was fortunate to have another mentor help him have a great start. Future National Baseball Hall of Famer Ted Williams, known as the greatest hitter ever in MLB history, taught him to hit even better.
Williams was a Red Sox special coach every Fall in the Florida Instructional League who showed Cox plenty of attention. Cox climbed the minor-league ladder, stepping up a class each year under Williams watchful eye.
“From first meeting Williams in 1974 at Fall Instructional (League) after first joining the Red Sox, the importance of those conversations really began during my first big league spring training in 1976,” Cox said last week. “Williams liked to hang out at the batting cages observing our swings, sometimes making really loud comments over the background noise.”
The legendary Williams’ suggestions had an immediate impact on the young athlete’s future. “Williams showed me and strongly suggested I try a couple of things,” Cox said. “Those tips certainly helped as I saw instant improvement in my ability to drive the ball into the outfield.”
He became a more productive and powerful hitter throughout his climb thanks to Williams’ coaching. At 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds by 1977, he evolved into a skilled hitter with a major-league swing with the help of coaches Williams and Johnny Pesky.
William “Ted” Cox started his MLB career for the Boston Red Sox with a best of all-time hitting performance in September of 1977. Cox established the MLB rookie debut hitting record by hitting safely in his first six at-bats in his first two games. Of the 19,000 players who have started MLB careers, his six consecutive hits at the start of his career is still the record for 150 years of organized baseball, 42 seasons later.
“Successful hitters have extraordinary eyesight, reflexes and reaction time to go with great hand-eye coordination,” Cox said. “But all that won’t get you on base unless you hit the ball. For that you need real major league coaching to help you develop a swing so fluid that every pitch they want to throw is your favorite pitch to hit.”
He went on the play five years and for two other teams, the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays. Forty-two years later Cox is retired and living in the family home he grew up in while taking care of his mother Ernestine in Midwest City.
Writer’s Note: In celebration of the Washington Nationals winning their first World Series in franchise history Wednesday night, Senior News and Living provides baseball fans the full story of Ted Cox’s historic first two games online in an expanded version of this story. Please go to okveterannews.com for full details of each of his first six hits.