The Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation has received a $1.75 million federal grant to study the impact of the coronavirus on Oklahomans.
Funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the two-year project will seek to understand the immune system’s response to the virus and how that immune response varies in different ethnic groups. Additionally, the study aims to understand if the immune response is protective against future infections — or if it might worsen them.
“OMRF has a strong history and wonderful partnerships throughout the state,” said Linda Thompson, Ph.D., who will help lead the project. “That should enable us to quickly obtain blood samples from those who have been exposed to or infected by the coronavirus.”
The researchers will analyze blood donated by volunteers to understand individuals’ differing immune responses to the virus. The OMRF scientists will be looking for biological clues that might identify those individuals most likely to experience a severe response to coronavirus infection.
As a group, Oklahomans are at a somewhat higher risk for life-threatening complications from Covid-19, as they tend to have higher rates of other conditions associated with greater mortality from coronavirus infection: obesity, diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure.
OMRF is actively recruiting individuals for Covid-19 antibody testing, especially people with these high-risk conditions, those with Native American heritage, and those who know or suspect they have recovered from the virus. If you’re interested in participating, please call 405-271-7221 or email Jackie-Keyser@omrf.org.
OMRF researchers will also be studying the roles and reactions of antibodies that form in the immune response to infection to the virus known technically as SARS-CoV-2.
“Specifically, we need to know if antibodies help fight the virus,” said Mark Coggeshall, Ph.D., who will also help lead the research. Work will focus on a phenomenon called antibody-dependent enhancement, where instead of protecting people from future infections, antibodies could actually make future infections worse.
“We have to understand all aspects of the body’s immune response and which ones correlate to good health outcomes, and we also need to understand how these vary in different ethnicities,” said Thompson. “This knowledge gap needs to be filled quickly to inform vaccine trials, some of which are already underway.”
The new funding comes as a supplement to a grant awarded to OMRF to study the immune system’s response to anthrax bacteria as part of the NIAID’s Cooperative Centers for Human Immunology.
“Our existing research on anthrax has a developed infrastructure to study immune response to a serious viral infection,” Thompson said. “So, we are set up to start this project without having to develop new methodology. The work can, and will, begin immediately.”
Coggeshall, for one, is eager to start the new project. “Our anthrax work is promising and important, but all research efforts right now should be on SARS-CoV-2 and Covid-19,” he said. “There is no more urgent issue to study in the world, and we will do everything we can to help.”
Funding for the research is provided by grant No. 2U19AI062629-16 from the NIAID, a part of the National Institutes of Health.

by Nick Thomas

What could convince a 90-year-old actress – once a model for Disney animators creating the Tinker Bell character of 1953’s “Peter Pan” – to abandon her West Coast home of nine decades and fly off to a new life in Florida some 2,500 miles away?
Perhaps a sprinkle of Disney magical fairy dust was involved when World War II veteran Robert Boeke, now 94, was visiting Amsterdam last summer with friends and stumbled on a store sign for “Tinker Bell Toys.”
“He told the people in the group he had actually dated Tinker Bell – me! – 70 years ago,” explained former model Margaret Kerry by phone from her new home in Sarasota. “One of the people with him decided to find me.”
An internet search led to Kerry’s website, Tinker Bell Talks (see www.tinkerbelltalks.com). Emails were sent and Kerry remembered dating him. The two eventually reconnected last September in North Carolina, followed by marriage in February and the move to Florida soon after.
“We just celebrated our four-month anniversary,” said Kerry when we spoke in mid-June. “And we haven’t yelled at or kicked each other.”
“Well, it’s early in the marriage,” I told her wryly.
“Thank you very much, I’m hanging up right now!” she said, laughing.
Kerry’s film career began at the age of four in an uncredited role in Warners’ “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (1935) playing – as if to foretell her future – one of the fairies.
I remember it clearly because one of the big studio lights caught fire and Mickey Rooney, who played Puck, dragged me into this little 2” deep stream on the set so I’d be safe from any flames.”
More roles came her way, including a half-dozen “Our Gang” (aka “The Little Rascals”) shorts, although as a member of the Meglin Kiddies troupe of child performers, she received no individual screen credit on some.
Her claim to fairy fame came in her early 20s as the model for Disney’s Tinker Bell. She also modeled for the red-headed mermaid in “Peter Pan” and did her voice.
“June Foray was the brunette mermaid,” recalled Kerry. “One day after a recording session we stepped out on the Disney lot. ‘Why are we trying to get in front of the camera to be actors?’ we asked each other. We realized voice-over work was heavenly because we didn’t have to put on make-up, fix our hair, or get dressed up. And we could read from scripts – no lines to memorize. We both decided right there to go into voice-over acting. June became one of the most famous (eg Rocky of ‘Rocky and Bullwinkle’) and I went on to do about 600 cartoon voice-overs.”
Although it’s been nearly 70 years since Kerry’s famous fairy job, her tiny winged alter ego has never been far away especially during the numerous fan conventions she’s attended for decades. She plans to continue giving talks and lectures.
“Tinker Bell and I share some characteristics – we’re perky and adventurous,” says Kerry, who turned 91 in May. “I think getting married and moving to Florida after living 90 years in California counts as an adventure!”
Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University at Montgomery and has written features, columns, and interviews for over 800 newspapers and magazines.

The Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) and the Cherokee Strip Regional Heritage Center (CSRHC) are pleased to present This Land is Herland, a series of three programs on women’s activism in Oklahoma. The programs, sponsored by Oklahoma Humanities, will take place on August 13, September 22 and November 5, all at 7 p.m. The August and September programs will be conducted virtually, with the option to move the November program online as well.
“This Land is Herland brings together nine notable women scholars to explore the activism of Oklahoma women in a series of three public programs,” said Jacob Krumwiede, director of the CSRHC, an OHS museum. “These programs are offered free of charge, but you must register to receive the program link. You can register at www.okhistory.org/herland. Following the presentations the scholars will be available to answer questions from the online audience.”
“The focus is different for each program, but each takes a close look at Oklahoma women who have tried to affect change in the circumstances and environment in which they found themselves,” said Dr. Sarah Eppler Janda, one of the project scholars and co-editor with Dr. Patricia Loughlin of the forthcoming book “This Land is Herland: Gendered Activism in Oklahoma, 1870s–2010s.”
The first program, “The Fluidity of Power,” will take place on Thursday, August 13, at 7 p.m. Though planned to take place at the Museum of the Western Prairie in Altus, the program will be presented virtually for the safety of the participants and the scholars during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The program will consider how women in early Oklahoma found ways to wield power. Topics and speakers for the evening are: “An ‘Intrepid Pioneer Leader’: The A-Suffrage Gendered Activism of Kate Barnard,” by Dr. Sunu Kodumthara, Southwestern Oklahoma State University; “‘My Heart Had Been Burdened for the Orphaned and Homeless Children’: Religious Imperative and Maternalism in the Work of Mattie Mallory,” by Dr. Heather Clemmer, Southern Nazarene University; and “A ‘Loyal Countrywoman’: Rachel Caroline Eaton, Alumna of the Cherokee National Female Seminary,” by Dr. Farina King, Northeastern State University. To register for this free program, please visit www.okhistory.org/herland. Registration closes at 5 p.m. on August 12. The second program, “The Gendered Politics of Civil Rights,” will take place online on Tuesday, September 22, at 7 p.m. This program looks at how Oklahoma women impacted the struggle for civil rights on several fronts. Topics and speakers for the evening are: “‘To Speak so Forthrightly as to Offend’: The Civil Rights Activism and Confinement of Rosalyn ‘Rosie’ Coleman Gilchrist,” by Dr. Sarah Eppler Janda, Cameron University; “Making History: Being an NAACP Plaintiff—Ada Lois Sipuel Fisher,” by Cheryl Wattley, University of North Texas Dallas College of Law; and “Barbara ‘Wahru’ Cleveland and Herland Sister Resources,” by Dr. Lindsey Churchill, University of Central Oklahoma.
“The CSRHC in Enid planned to host the program on September 22, but we have also decided to move this program online,” said Krumwiede. “Details about online registration for this program will be available in the coming weeks.”
The final program, “Contested Notions of Equality,” will be held Thursday, November 5 at 7 p.m. This program will bring the discussion of gendered activism to the present era, with presentations covering American Indian women’s activism, the Equal Rights Amendment and the resurgence of conservative politics.
The topics and speakers for the evening are: “‘My Children Are More Important to Me Than Any Office I Might Hold’: Mary Fallin’s Use of Motherhood as a Conservative Political Strategy,” by Dr. Patricia Loughlin, University of Central Oklahoma; “‘Until We Organized’: Wanda Jo Peltier Stapleton and the Equal Rights Amendment Debate in Oklahoma, 1972–1982,” by Chelsea Ball, University of Oklahoma; and “LaDonna Harris: Comanche Leader, Activist, Matriarch,” by Dr. Amanda Cobb-Greetham, University of Oklahoma.
“We are hopeful that we will be able to hold this final program of the series in person at the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City, but we will make that decision based on conditions in the state as we near the date,” said Krumwiede.
“Each of the programs will be recorded and made available on the OHS YouTube channel at the conclusion of the project,” continued Krumwiede. “Curriculum materials are being developed as a companion to the programs for classroom or homeschool use.” The scholars represented in the public programs are joined by four others in a forthcoming book, “This Land is Herland: Gendered Activism in Oklahoma, 1870s-2010s,” co-edited by Dr. Sarah Eppler Janda and Dr. Patricia Loughlin. It is part of the new Women and the American West series from the University of Oklahoma Press. The anticipated publication date for the volume October 2021. This project is part of OKWomen100: A Century of Women’s Suffrage, the Oklahoma Historical Society’s initiative to celebrate the 100th anniversaries of the passage of the women’s suffrage amendment to the Oklahoma Constitution in 1918 and the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the US Constitution in 1920. You can find out more about events, exhibits and resources related to Oklahoma women’s political activism at www.okhistory.org/suffrage.
The program is made possible by a grant from Oklahoma Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities. The mission of Oklahoma Humanities (OH) is to strengthen communities by helping Oklahomans learn about the human experience, understand new perspectives, and participate knowledgeably in civic life. OH is a private, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. As the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, we strive to stimulate discussion, encourage new perspectives, and to actively engage people in the humanities disciplines, such as history, literature, philosophy, and ethics.
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 www.okhistory.org.

Join the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden every Thursday evening through August 13, from 6 to 10 p.m., for Sip & Stroll presented by Will & Wiley Hard Seltzer, 1800 Tequila, Kraken Rum and Bubly Sparkling Water. Guests 21-and-older, limited to 900 guests per night, are invited to explore an outdoor path that spans almost the entire Zoo to discover wondrous wildlife along the way.
While strolling through the Zoo, guests may stop and cool off at one of six water holes to experience featured drinks inspired by animals and habitats from around the world including Belize, Rwanda and India. Guests will also have an opportunity to learn what the Zoo is doing to protect and preserve the natural world through global conservation partnerships with the International Rhino Foundation, Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International, Turtle Survival Alliance and more, and how they can help conserve wildlife and wild places.
The full menu of culinary favorites will be available for purchase at Best of Oklahoma and Big Rock BBQ, as well as selections from a special outdoor grill at the Devon picnic grounds overlooking Zoo Lake.
“We are thrilled to re-open the Zoo’s gates and provide grown-ups with an exclusive opportunity to reconnect with friends and wildlife from around the world,” said Jenna Zeilstra, OKC Zoo’s manager of events. “Spanning over 100 acres, the Zoo provides ample space for social distancing and adventure for Sip & Stroll’s nightly limit of 900 guests.”
Additionally, the Zoo is proud to partner with Fertile Ground who will be on-site for each Sip & Stroll to ensure this is a zero-waste event series.
Sip & Stroll admission is $17 per person and tickets are now available at okczoo.org/sipandstroll. Event entry times are spaced every 15 minutes to allow for maximum social distancing. After scheduled checked in, guests are free to stay through the duration of the event, 10 p.m. Attendees can also pre-purchase a Drink Passport good for one 5-oz featured drink sample at all six water holes for an additional $27 per person. Additional beverages will be available for purchase, including domestic beer, wine, mixed drinks, soda and water. Tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable. Sip & Stroll is a rain or shine event.
Adventure awaits with Sip & Stroll this summer at the OKC Zoo! The Oklahoma City Zoo is open daily at 8 a.m. and advance tickets are required for all guests and ZOOfriends members. Tickets can be purchased at http://www.okczoo.org/tickets and are limited each day to ensure adequate social distancing between guests. Some of the Zoo’s indoor habitat are still closed to minimize potential transmission of COVID-19. The Zoo is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. now through Labor Day, Monday, September 7, 2020.
Located at the crossroads of I-44 and I-35, the OKC Zoo is a proud member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the American Alliance of Museums, Oklahoma City’s Adventure District and an Adventure Road partner. Regular admission is $12 for adults and $9 for children ages 3-11 and seniors ages 65 and over. Children two and under are admitted free. Stay up-to-date with the Zoo on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and by visiting Our Stories. Zoo fans can support the OKC Zoo by becoming Oklahoma Zoological Society members at ZOOfriends.org. To learn more about these and other happenings, call (405) 424-3344 or visit okczoo.org.

Wearing face masks, combined with other preventive measures such as frequent handwashing and social distancing, can help slow the spread of the coronavirus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that everyone over the age of two wear a mask while in public settings. However, there has been much debate about wearing masks and misinformation has spread online. Let’s clear the air about the most common misconceptions regarding masks.
Myth: I’m not sick so I don’t need to wear a mask.
Fact: Simply put, wearing a cloth mask helps decrease the spread of COVID-19. Research now has shown that a significant number of people with COVID-19 lack symptoms. These people do not know they are transmitting the virus to others when they talk, sneeze, cough or raise their voice (e.g. singing or shouting). Wearing a mask helps to lower the transmission of respiratory droplets to other people around you. You should wear a mask to protect others and they should wear masks to protect you.
Myth: Wearing a cloth mask does not protect me from getting COVID-19.
Fact: A cloth mask is worn to help protect others in case you have the virus. Countries that required face masks, testing, isolation and social distancing early in the pandemic have had success slowing the disease’s spread. Common sense also suggests that some protection is better than none. Cloth masks reduce the number of respiratory droplets a person releases into the air when talking, sneezing or coughing. The overall number of droplets in the air is reduced when more people wear masks and this reduces your risk of being exposed to COVID-19.
Myth: A face mask can actually make me more likely to catch COVID-19.
Fact: While some people may touch their face more often when wearing a mask, it’s possible to reduce infection risk with good hygiene. Be sure to wash hands frequently, wash your cloth mask after wearing and know how to properly put on and remove your mask. You can learn more by reviewing guidance on how to wear and care for cloth face coverings.
Myth: Wearing a mask will increase the amount of carbon dioxide I breathe and will make me sick.
Fact: Some people have heard that breathing in CO2 from wearing a mask can cause symptoms like dizziness, lightheadedness, headache and shortness of breath. However, the amount of CO2 created by wearing a mask is miniscule. For many years, health care providers have worn masks for extended periods of time with no adverse health reactions. The CDC recommends wearing cloth masks while in public and this option is very breathable. There is no risk of hypoxia, which is lower oxygen levels, in healthy adults. Carbon dioxide will freely diffuse through your mask as you breathe. If you feel uncomfortable in your mask, try to limit your talking and breathe through your nose. That will reduce the humidity level in your mask. Be aware that once a mask gets wet (perhaps from exhalation), it begins to lose its effectiveness and will need to be washed or replaced.
Myth: If I’m wearing a mask, I don’t need to practice social distancing.
Fact: The CDC recommends widespread use of simple cloth face coverings to help prevent transmission of COVID-19 by people who have the virus but don’t know it. But it’s not a substitute for physical distancing. Everyone should continue to practice recommended behaviors such as:
* Keep your physical distance: Six feet or about two arms’ lengths apart from other people.
* Limit in-person meetings.
* Wash your hands with soap often.
* Stay home if you do not feel well.
* Get a test if you have COVID -19 symptoms. Call your local health care provider to schedule a test.
* Self-isolate if you have been around someone who is sick or tested positive.
As the number of coronavirus cases continues to grow in Oklahoma, using a mask is still among the best methods to prevent community spread.
This item was prepared and sent by INTEGRIS.

Pat Basu, MD, President, Cancer Treatment Centers of America

COVID-19’s impact goes far beyond the illness itself. Our lives have changed drastically in an effort to get the virus under control and ultimately “flatten the curve”. However, there is yet another curve that needs our urgent attention – a ticking time bomb that is currently flying under the radar: the cancer “Shadow Curve.”
The pandemic has caused far too many people to skip treatments and miss routine cancer screenings. And while delaying scans or treatments may have felt like the most prudent action three months ago, evidence predicts that a few years from now, we may look back and wish we had taken a different approach.
The National Cancer Institute states that annual cancer screening is one of the most effective ways to detect and beat this dreaded disease and “when abnormal tissue or cancer is found early, it may be easier to treat or cure.” If our society continues to delay cancer screenings and treatments, the result will be disastrous for both the individual patients and the health system as a whole. In fact, an April IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science report estimated that the delay in 22 million cancer screening tests will result in increased risk of delayed or missed diagnoses for 80,000 patients. More recently, Anthony S. Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, reported that COVID-19-related reductions in cancer screening and treatment over the next decade could potentially result in 10,000 excess deaths from breast and colorectal cancer alone.
To put it another way, since March, the US has witnessed a 37 percent drop in cancer care diagnosis compared to this same time period last year, and massive drops in cancer screening including mammography (down 87 percent ), colonoscopy (down 90 percent ) and Pap Smear (down 83 percent). As COVID-19 hot spots continue to rise across the country and the fear of second waves emerges, the problem is only exacerbated with COVID-19 cases monopolizing hospital resources and patients continuing to delay necessary screenings and treatments. Now is the time to course correct.
A Three-Part Solution to Bending the Cancer Shadow Curve
There are three key actions we must do, and encourage our loved ones to do, to regain control of cancer care in our own communities and ultimately bend the Shadow Curve:
1. Schedule your treatment or screening immediately. Most health care facilities have rigorous protocols in place to minimize COVID-19 exposure. The best way to eliminate cancer’s exposure is to detect and treat it as soon as possible, especially if there is a family history or if you have recently turned 50.
2. If the first treatment center you call says no, don’t give up. With current spikes of COVID-19, some facilities are overwhelmed with cases. However, there are other facilities, such as specialty cancer centers, that can see patients within a normal timeframe. Make that second or third phone call to schedule the screening or treatment you need.
3. Know your insurance benefits. In some cases, treatment centers may not be available in your network and this could qualify you to go “out of network” due to a network deficiency within your insurance plan. That means another center could be recognized as temporarily in-network, allowing you to get the care you need. Check with your insurance provider to see if this is the case. Many providers – including our cancer centers – will help patients navigate insurance complexities.
Together, we can stop the cancer Shadow Curve and save lives. By taking immediate, proactive steps in disease detection and treatment, we can reduce the possibility that illness and deaths from undiagnosed conditions such as cancer become more pervasive than those from COVID-19 itself.
Pat A. Basu, MD, is the president and CEO of Cancer Treatment Centers of America Global Inc. Prior to joining CTCA, Basu served as a White House fellow and senior adviser and played a key role in helping execute portions of then-President Barack Obama’s economic and health agenda.

story and photos by Darl Devault

America’s oldest sport, Major League Baseball, was a big question this year until it began playing a 60-game season on TV last month. There is no question Johnny Bench, the only living Oklahoma-born National Baseball Hall of Famer, exudes class by returning to the state as a volunteer to help promote youth baseball.
Seniors often step up to help projects they care about. Overall, the elderly make up a large part of the volunteer population.
In early July last year, the 14-time All-Star catcher returned to the Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City where fans saw him honored by a bronze statue in 2001.
Bench made several volunteer appearances before an Oklahoma City Dodgers Triple-A home game with Round Rock. He was direct while speaking to a youth clinic. “Catch every ball — if you’re going to play, learn how to play properly,” Bench said. “Learn the mechanics. Watch the major leaguers. Watch how the guys here in Triple-A do it.”
The best 20th century catcher was there to help the co-founders of Grassroots Baseball, noted sports photographer Jean Fruth and National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum President Jeff Idelson. Their new nonprofit promotes the amateur game around the globe, focusing on growing participation at the youngest levels.
The Grassroots Baseball Route 66 Tour recruited Bench with other Hall of Famers and MLB stars from the Route 66 area. They helped deliver baseball instruction, inspiration, and equipment to children in 10 communities along The Mother Road from Chicago to Santa Monica.
Hailing from Binger, Okla., Bench, 72, the former Cincinnati Reds superstar, made that day special for a group of young players. He helped Grassroots Baseball give Rawlings’ donated gloves and balls to each youth. He then joined them on the field for a short afternoon clinic. He walked among the young athletes, coaching proper throwing motions, and encouraging them to play hard to catch every ball.
Interested in players at the Triple-A level, Bench also toured both clubhouses after the clinic. He spoke with many of the players. Many asked for autographs and photos with Oklahoma’s baseball legend who pioneered the now common one-handed catching style.
Bench continued his day as the focus of a news conference about supporting the nonprofit’s effort to encourage youth baseball. “I drilled those youngsters to play properly, to try to catch every ball,” Bench told the reporters. “Baseball offers them so many ways to watch the proper mechanics, they just need learn how to make it work for them.”
Before the game, Bench reversed the tradition of throwing out the first pitch by catching the first pitch, as he is commonly known as the best catcher of his era. Playing baseball’s most physically demanding position, The Sporting News named him the game’s greatest catcher in 1998. He batted cleanup on the Big Red Machine, propelling him to the MLB All-Century Team with more than a million fan votes in 1999.
Once the game began, Bench and Fruth autographed the nonprofit’s first hardcover book for Oklahoma City Dodgers fans. Grassroots Baseball: Where Legends Begin, is authored by co-founder Fruth (Sports Publishing, $60, 224 pages). The book is available and more info is found at www.grassrootsbaseball.com/
“I’m overwhelmed by the wonderful feedback I have received on the book,” Fruth said last month. “Tying baseball heroes back to their roots and the kids who are following in their footsteps has been rewarding and delivers the message of, ‘If I did this, so can you.’”
The book features first-person essays revealing how and where the following baseball careers began: New York–Whitey Ford, Mexico–Fernando Valenzuela, Mobile, Ala.–Hank Aaron, Japan–Ichiro Suzuki, Cape Cod–Craig Biggio, Oakland–Rickey Henderson, Cuba–Tony Perez, Williamsport, Pa.–Randy Johnson, Puerto Rico–Ivan Rodriguez, Tampa, Fla.–Wade, Boggs, Caribbean Series–Juan Marichal, Aberdeen, Md.–Cal Ripken, Jr. , Curacao–Hensley Meulens and Texas–Nolan Ryan.
Bench wrote the book’s afterword. Available in the team store on the concourse, Oklahomans fully embraced their legend’s return, as the book sold out quickly. A recent MLB Now TV Interview with Fruth and Bench about the book is available on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEe1dkl4dZI
Idelson was in OKC right before he was to retire from his role as president following last July’s Induction Weekend. He served baseball in Cooperstown for 25 years, the last 11 as the Hall of Fame’s president.
“The Oklahoma City Dodgers were an incredible partner who identified the kids and allowed them to learn about the game and life lessons from Johnny Bench, not only a Hall of Famer, but a local hero,” Idelson said last month.
After the book signing, Bench finally slowed down when he joined family members and friends from Binger in a suite to watch the game.
The special day revolved around promoting Grassroots Baseball. New author Fruth photographed youth players for possible inclusion in a second book to be titled, Grassroots Baseball: Route 66.
The second book is coming together nicely,” Fruth said last month. “I spent five months on the Mother Road last summer. I am shooting what I can as the country safely opens this summer. The relationship between baseball and Americana is so strong, and documenting the grassroots game, along this historic route, has been rewarding.”
This was not Bench’s first full day at the ballpark. In 2001, he and his longtime manager, fellow Hall of Famer Sparky Anderson, spent a full day there. An appreciative group of Oklahomans celebrated the unveiling of his bronze statue.
A larger-than-life statue honors Bench at the home plate entrance to Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark near the corner of South Mickey Mantle Drive and Johnny Bench Drive. The ballpark also features bronze statues of Mickey Mantle and Warren Spahn.
You can relive the 2001 dedication of the Paul Moore sculpted statue by reading a verbatim transcript of the news conference preceding and the speeches made at the unveiling at: www.baseball-almanac.com/blog/johnny-bench-statue-dedication-day
During the news conference in 2001, Bench and Anderson talked extensively about those things that set the Red’s greatest home run hitter’s career apart from most Hall of Famer’s. Anderson explained his first exposure to Bench’s talent on the way to his famed 17-year career with the Reds.
Now living in Jupiter, Fla., and raising two young sons, Bench was the Reds catcher from 1967 to 1983. His powerful throwing arm shutting down base stealers led the Reds to back-to-back World Series Championships. He earned the 1976 World Series MVP vote.
Playing a demanding position as much as he did took its toll. Yet, he hit well, right up to the end of his career. He led the National League twice (1970 and 1972) in home runs. He also earned the MVP trophy both of those seasons.
He finished with 389 home runs and 1,376 RBIs, both of which still stand as franchise records in Cincinnati. He led the NL in RBIs three times. When he retired his home run total was the most for any catcher ever.
Bench’s playing career ended in 1983 when he was honored with “Johnny Bench Night.” He showed the packed-house crowd at Riverfront Stadium what they would be missing by hitting a two-run homer in the third inning.
Bench was elected to the Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 1989. The other Oklahoma-born Hall of Famers are Paul and Lloyd Waner, Joe Rogan, Mickey Mantle, and Willie Stargell.
“Johnny (Bench) is special. He cares about the game, he cares about the kids, and he cares about the Hall of Fame,” Idelson said last month. “One of the important roles he plays is spending time with the new inductees each July. He sits with the new members to remind them who they are, where they are, and just how special of a fraternity they have just joined. He encourages them to wear the Hall of Famer mantle well. And to enjoy the experience because there’s nothing like it.”
The Los Angeles Dodgers bought the OKC RedHawks franchise and moved their Triple-A affiliate to OKC in 2014. They have now played five seasons as the OKC Dodgers. The ballpark was selected last month as the 2020 Triple-A Best of the Ballparks in annual fan voting held by Ballpark Digest.

Story by Bobby Anderson, Staff Writer

Moving from Hugo to Guymon was about as far a move as Dan Stiles could pull off and still stay in Oklahoma.
“A lot of people think Oklahoma ends at Woodward,” Stiles says with a laugh.
Guymon – a place where the wind definitely comes sweeping down the plains – is just under two hours away from Amarillo. It’s three-and-a-half hours from Denver and just 125 miles away from the end of the central standard time zone.
But Guymon itself is also a mecca for healthcare in Northwest Oklahoma and Stiles is in the middle of it all leading Heritage Community and Dunaway Manor.
Dunaway Manor is the only Skilled Nursing Facility in the Panhandle, the only Assisted Living in the Panhandle and the only licensed and locked Memory Assisted Living in the Panhandle.
The stand-alone non-profit is not owned by any governmental agency, church or other entity and has been that way since 1962.
The facility offers long term care, Physical and Occupational Therapy, Respite Care, Assisted Living, Memory Care Assisted Living and Assisted Living Respite care.
In 1960 a group of concerned citizens gathered and decided there needed to be a residence for senior citizens in Guymon.
Local veterinarian W.F. Dunaway and wife Mada donated a substantial sum which was matched by local residents for the facility to be built.
The residence was called Dunaway Manor.
Dr. Dunaway and wife also set up a foundation that is now called the Texas County Foundation.
Dunaway Manor is a 77-bed skilled nursing facility with long-term care and respite care offerings.
In the late 2000s, the fact that no assisted living properties existed became a topic of conversation.
In 2012 Heritage Community Assisted Living and Heritage Community Memory care opened.
The assisted living facility side has 25 apartments. The locked memory care unit has 15 residences.
All sit on land owned by the City of Guymon.
“We are not owned by anybody. We have a board of directors,” Stiles said, noting most board members are residents of Texas County. “Most are ranchers and farmers. I think we’re the only one set up like this.”
Stiles is actually the chief executive officer but goes by the title of campus director.
He says he was never much for titles and admits to no pretense on campus, just a focus on neighbors helping members.
“We have a ton of community support,” said Stiles.
To that end, a group known as Helping Hands for Heritage took shape a little over a year ago with the specific aim at fundraising for projects needed on campus.
“It has been a good deal,” he said.
Covid has hit the area hard. In fact, Guymon was the No. 2 site in the state in the number of Covid infections, fueled by positives at the local meat processing plant.
And while Guymon may be one of the most diverse cities in the United States – boasting 32 nationalities – the number of healthcare facilities is limited to Heritage Community and Dunaway Manor.
“The biggest problem we have out here is getting nurses,” Stiles said. “You’ve got to want to live in the panhandle and there’s a lot of different opportunities out here.”
Population growth has boosted Guymon to a Class 5A school, which means Guymon students travel around the state more than any other school.
“We are very big on culture change and patient-centered care,” Stiles said. “We call (residents) neighbors that live in our neighborhood. I feel like when you get the staff and team to buy into that it’s a whole lot different to take care of a neighbor than a resident or patient.”
One of the great advantages Stiles has to offer his staff is the sheer number of opportunities they can choose from.
There’s long term care as well as skilled nursing availability.
“But we always need people in assisted living which is a total different population to work with,” he said. “There’s also opportunities in memory care for working with patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia. We offer a huge variety.”
As healthcare reimbursement drives care out of the hospital faster, facilities like Heritage Community and Dunaway Manor are taking care of more medically complex patients.
“People are being sent to us a lot sicker than they used to be,” Stiles said. “We do a lot of IVs and wound care. We have several trachs in the building.”
Right now Stiles’ largest need is for charge nurses – LPNs or RNs – who are able to step onto the floor to take care of neighbors.
“Unlike the hospital or even a doctor’s office the majority of the people you’ll care for are going to be here long term,” said Stiles, who noted even his skilled nursing side has an average stay of 35 days. “There are people in this building who have lived here for 10 or 11 years. You develop a close relationship with them. It’s not ‘Mr. Smith came in on Tuesday, had his hip replaced Wednesday and leaves on Friday.”’
“When they come here you’re going to spend time with them so it’s a more long-term atmosphere where you’re caring for people you know. You grow very close and very attached to your people.”
And your people quickly become your neighbors.

I’d been putting it off for months but, once my health club reopened, I saw the fancy, digital scale still tucked in the locker room corner and realized I had no choice. I shed my clothes, climbed on and sucked in my stomach while waiting for the numbers to appear.
It read 203, a 6-pound gain since my last club visit in, uh, wait a minute … March? April? All I remember is that snow was still on the ground.
Much like first-year college students must grapple with the freshmen 15, a 15-pound weight gain typically attributed to late night pizza orders, dime beer specials and unlimited dorm cafeteria desserts, “the COVID 15” has become part of our physiques. And, as states retreat from their reopenings, forcing us back into our homes where a television, a couch and a giant bowl of French Onion potato chips await, we can do one of two things:
A. Start that rigorous home exercise program we should have begun in mid-March
B. Become more creative in our excuses for weight gain.
If you chose B, allow me to comfort you with these five reasons your pants fit about as well as the glove OJ Simpson tried to force over his hand during his murder trial:
1. Masks add weight. If you stepped on a scale, yet were simultaneously practicing social distancing, you wore a mask, am I right? I said, AM I RIGHT? Subtract a few pounds for that. True, my mask weighs less than an ounce; but I didn’t bedazzle it with slogans, sequins and the like. Those additions add unnecessary pounds. It’s not your fault you gained weight. Blame Dr. Fauci.
2. You didn’t know which products would be in short supply. Remember when we were fighting with one another over toilet paper? When we left the store with not one container of anti-bacterial wipes but an entire pallet? You became anxious, correct? You started wondering what else might disappear from grocery shelves and never return. It could be M&Ms. Or peanut butter. Or that heavenly, buttery toffee you only treat yourself to at Christmas time. So, during that Costco run, you purchased the industrial sized container of all three. Then you went home and consumed all of it because, “If I die during this quarantine, at least I’ll die happy.” Good for you!
3. Repairmen are booked solid. It’s true, the coronavirus has made it harder to find a technician willing to come out, promptly, and service those vital appliances like air conditioners, dishwashers, washing machines and, perish the thought, refrigerators. Suppose your trusty fridge decided to die when it was housing the dozen cartons of Ben & Jerry’s you purchased? (See No. 2 for why you made that purchase). That’s why you ate the ice cream so quickly; you hate wasting food.
4. The Food Network. Leave it to this easy-to-find cable channel to expand our waistlines during quarantine. Don’t Food Network executives realize that more than 10% of this country is out of work and has nothing to do except watch “Ridiculous Cakes,” “Girl Scout Cookie Championship” and “The Three Chocolatiers”? And take notes? We may no longer be able to see our shoes when we emerge from quarantine, but we can take comfort knowing we became avid Girl Scout supporters.
5. Liquor stores and marijuana dispensaries. Both were deemed “essential” businesses by most states once it became necessary to decide which types of establishments to shutter during quarantine. That left millions unable to see a doctor for routine wellness checks or incapable of getting their hair cut for that upcoming Zoom job interview but able to get drunk, high and, subsequently, hungry at any moment. If your liquor or weed consumption spiked during the pandemic, it’s your governor’s doing.
So, you see? It’s not your fault you’re an overweight, slovenly mess. So many factors beyond your control contributed to your “COVID 15.”
Which, based on recent developments, may soon become the “COVID 20.”
(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)