INTEGRIS General Surgery Yukon is proud to welcome Jason Brown, M.D., to the team.
Brown received his medical degree from the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine and completed his General Surgery Residency at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. He finished his Fellowship in Surgical Critical Care at the University of Hawaii, Queens Medical Center. He is a member of the American College of Surgeons, Society of Critical Care Medicine and the American Medical Association.
“The most gratifying part of what I do is having the opportunity to offer a surgical solution to a person with a surgical need and having the privilege of witnessing the positive impact on their life.”
His areas of interest include: Laparoscopic surgery, endocrine surgery, hernia surgery, colorectal surgery, breast surgery and gallbladder surgery. Brown offices at INTEGRIS General Surgery Yukon, 1205 Health Center Parkway, Suite 100, in Yukon. Call 405-717-5400 for more information or to make an appointment.

Getting a flu vaccine during 2020-2021 is more important than ever because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Flu vaccination is especially important for people who are at high risk for the flu; many of whom are also at high risk for COVID-19.
It has been recognized for many years that people 65 years and older have a greater chance of developing serious complications from the flu compared to young, healthy adults. This risk is due in part to changes in immune defenses with increasing age. While flu seasons vary in severity, during most seasons, people in this age group bear the greatest burden of severe flu disease. The same can be said for COVID-19.
But age is not the only risk factor. Adults of any age with any of the underlying medical conditions listed below are also at increased risk.
Asthma and COPD – Heart disease – Diabetes – Chronic kidney disease – Liver disease – Cancer – Pregnancy – Obesity – Smoking/History of smoking
People with these types of conditions, and those who are immunocompromised for other reasons, are more susceptible of developing serious complications from the flu. Many of these conditions also increase the likelihood for serious outcomes from COVID-19.
If you fall in the high-risk category, vaccination is especially important. When you get vaccinated for the flu, you reduce your risk of getting sick and possibly being hospitalized or even dying. In turn, by staying healthy this flu season, you help conserve potentially scarce health care resources needed to help those battling COVID-19. Click here for more flu-related information.

When Mary Schneeberger’s 100-year-old pecan tree snapped during October’s ice storm, part of her heart broke right along with it.
“It lost a major portion of its trunk and its future is in jeopardy,” said Schneeberger, who lives in Oklahoma City’s Mesta Park neighborhood. “It’s just a beautiful tree that adds so much to the house and the property. I was devastated.”
But her boyfriend, Adam Cohen, offered up a silver lining thanks to coworkers at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. Cohen, OMRF’s senior vice president and general counsel, knew that foundation scientists Patrick Gaffney, M.D., and Michael McDaniel had decades of experience as woodworkers. (Story continues below)

“I called Pat and Mike and they hurried over to look at the tree,” said Cohen. “They each told Mary they thought they’d be able to make her keepsakes from the wood.”
Gaffney said he thought he could fashion some tables, while McDaniel would aim for a selection of salad bowls and vases. “We’re very excited, because we’ve seen their work, and they’re both incredibly talented craftsmen,” said Cohen.
But Schneeberger’s silver lining will take time. Like science, woodworking has its roots in patience.
Gaffney and McDaniel recently wrapped two years of work on nearly 30 original tables, bowls and vases from an ailing sweetgum tree. The diseased tree belonged to Gaffney’s senior lab manager, Kiely Grundahl.
“Sweetgum is a challenging, unpredictable wood to work with,” said McDaniel, whose work from the tree is on display at The Art Hall in Oklahoma City through Nov. 30. “But once I saw it had a fungus, all kinds of possibilities and options started racing through my head.”
Under the right conditions, fungal growth in wood results in a sought-after feature called “spalting.” The natural decaying process develops unique coloration, dark lines and patterns in lumber. Art, meet science.
Divided between the artisans, the wood from Grundahl’s tree was stored for a year to allow spalting to continue and for the lumber to dry. For Gaffney and McDaniel, the wood proved a boon for all the extra time spent around the house in 2020.
Like most of OMRF’s workforce, Gaffney spent the early days of the pandemic working from home. If he got stuck on a research problem, he’d head out to the small woodshop in his garage to do some thinking while sanding slabs or treating the wood from Grundahl’s sweetgum. “I think it even made me more productive with my science. It was the perfect place to think,” he said.
McDaniel also finds respite in the craft. A self-taught woodworker, he fell in love with the hobby when a storm knocked down several Kentucky coffeetrees on his property.
“Every step is rewarding and peaceful in its own way. It’s honestly not too complicated, just time-consuming and requires creativity when things don’t go as planned. Part of the fun is finding the beauty in the chaos,” McDaniel said.
Gaffney and McDaniel’s garages are now full of future projects. Oklahoma City officials estimate the recent ice storm generated 100,000 tons of debris, and the pair got plenty of calls.
OMRF’s Cohen said he knows it may be years before he and Mary see what beauty can be found in the storm’s damage, but it will be well worth the wait.
“If Pat and Mike are able to take a moment of loss and transform it into something beautiful Mary can treasure,” he said, “that will make her immensely happy.”

Photography and Text by Terry “Travels with Terry” Zinn t4z@aol.com

Travel is a gift. Under current Health conditions, Travel is sadly not advisable.
Perhaps come Summer 2021 world health will be safe or safer than present.
But this delay in physical travel should not negate planning a future travel adventure.
It might also be wise to plan a car trip relatively close to home. There are many enjoyable and interesting destinations in our own back yard. One such is Dodge City, Kansas.
Dodge City has developed its own PR catch phrase: “Get Into Dodge.”
Of course that is a ironic take on the wild west phrase of a lawman to an outlaw of, “Get Out Of Dodge.” I say, referring to one of the City’s hero’s, “Wyatt Earp Never Had It So Good.” This popped into my brain during my trips final dining experience at Prime on the Nine restaurant, while reflecting on the good experiences in Dodge. (story continues below)

Overlooking a golf course, the Prime on the Nine restaurant, offers the highest of service and food to informed tourists and locals. http://primeonthenine.com
If you have followed my articles for some time, you know I like the traditional dining experience of Martini, and perfectly cooked tender local steak to medium plus. This elegant venue filled these requirements to perfection and the perfect closing meal to my three day visit to Dodge City. Truly Wyatt Earp in his short stay in Dodge, “Never Had It So Good.”
Another outstanding dining experience is the Central Station Bar & Grill, https://centralstationdc.net/ where you have the option of dining in an authentic 1950 railway car. With a salute to the rails that opened up Dodge City to the cattle markets, it’s only proper to order a steak as well. I devoured a rib eye steak, side salad, sweet potato fries with onion rings. With four kinds of steaks to be mesquite grilled or with other choices including chicken varieties there is something to satisfy your western appetite. Despite being there on a very popular night, the service and quality of my meal did not suffer. To top of the entree the apple cobbler delight dripping with caramel and ice cream was an exquisite and unexpected finale. This venue also offers a dance floor and sports bar amenities as well as guest entertainers.
For a quick casual fix, the homemade pizza while you wait is offered at Dodge City Brewing, www.dodgecitybrewing.com, but closed on Monday and Tuesdays. To hear how vodka and gin is distilled, visit the Boot Hill Distillery, www.boothilldistillery.com with tours and tastings available. More interesting than the process is the building’s history and location on top of Boot Hill cemetery. The Vodka is mild and mixes well while the Gin is heavy on botanicals and sold at a premium price.
You must save time to tour the Boot Hill Museum, www.boothill.org, where a large new museum building is near completion. www.boothill.org/construction-update The Museum hosts an extensive gift shop with artifacts and memorabilia. The best part of admission is being able to walk into a replicate of the Old Dodge City wooden store fronts, including the Long Branch Saloon, complete with bar and piano. Other stores offer remembrance of shops that might have been in old Dodge City on front street. Walking back and forth on the wooden board walk you might feel a moment in old west time.
A walking tour of the town takes you by many of the bronze statues remembering many celebrities made famous by the Myth of Dodge city. Of cores there is Wyatt Earp and even Matt Dillon.
I drove up from Oklahoma City on what is casually called the Northwest passage on state highway 270 and 183. While the online map suggested a drive time of 4 and 1/2 hours its more like about 6 hours,but worth it for the destination and a chance to see the unspoiled landscape of Oklahoma, accented by a few wind farms. A mirage when fist approaching Dodge City you see a large hill covered in black. At first you wonder what causes the blackness, and soon see it is a massive panorama of black cattle, the prime resource of Dodge. All of this can be explained if you take the trolley tour, which also goes through the remaining inhabited buildings of Fort Dodge.
I happily stayed at the conveniently located Best Western North Edge Inn, where my first story room had an exit just feet away from my automobile parking. Of course they offer all the amenities you expect from a Best Western including the free morning breakfast to start your sight seeing off right.
So much to see and do in Dodge City so please check out more at: www.visitdodgecity.org

Mr. Terry Zinn – Travel Editor
Past President: International Food Wine and Travel Writers Association
3110 N.W. 15 Street – Oklahoma City, OK 73107
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www.martinitravels.com

Oklahoma man battling rare disease inspires others

For many families, COVID-19 has changed the way we celebrate Thanksgiving this year. Still, a young father of four in Elgin, Oklahoma shows others that gratitude can exist even in the face of adversity.
Tyler Fikes is not one in a million, but he is one in about 100,000 people each year who develop a rare condition known as Guillain Barre Syndrome, a disorder in which the body’s own immune system attacks its nerves. The cause of GBS is not clear, but it is preceded by a viral infection in some people. Fikes recalls he had just gotten over a cold when he first noticed symptoms.
“It was Thursday about noon. I’d been working at my computer. It had kind of the same sensation as if your arm or something went to sleep and it was waking up, that little pins and needles feeling. I thought well maybe I’m holding my hands against the side of the desk or something and I didn’t really give it much thought,” he said.
Within days, though, he was in the hospital, paralyzed from the neck down.
“So, from Thursday at noon to early Monday morning, that’s how long it took. I went from being able to do whatever I want to literally not being able to scratch my own nose,” Fikes remarked.
Doctors prepared Fikes and his wife Savannah for the worst. The disease was progressing fast and there was a very real possibility that Fikes would lose the ability to breathe without the help of a ventilator. Still, Fikes did not lose his faith or his determination.
“You do what you do. This is the hand that I was dealt, and God said, ‘Do it.’ and we said, ‘Okay.’ I had a lot of prayers. I actually had people praying for me from the Philippines, India, you know all over the world. By the next morning, they said, ‘it looks like it has stopped progressing. It should be all recovery from here. And here we are two years later still recovering,” he said with a smile.
That was two years ago. Today, at Valir Physical Therapy in Elgin, Fikes continues to do the hard work of recovery. Physical therapist Stephani Chambers has been at his side month after month, witnessing firsthand his true grit in action.
“He doesn’t have that give up factor. He’s like, ‘No, let’s try it again even when he is purely exhausted,” Chambers said. “He would always be like, ‘No, let’s give it one more, come on we can try it again.’ I’m like, ‘OK, let’s try it again.’ You could throw a lot at him and he’s going to give it every ounce of effort he’s got. He’s going to give it everything plus some.”
Steadily, Fikes made progress. He experienced wins. First, getting out of the wheelchair, then the ability to dress and feed himself. The road to recovery was not without setbacks, but those never phased Fikes. For him, it was just part of the process.
“You’re working, you’re making progress, leaps and bounds and then it just stops for a while; and then all of the sudden, it’s like, I haven’t tried that in a while. And you try it, and it just works. It’s like, hey, that’s motivation to get to the next plateau,” he explained. Chambers says Fikes has always had the right combination of commitment and belief.
“I always tell patients therapy is 50 percent what you put into it and 50 percent what you believe about it. He’s got both components. He’s got the mind component and the effort component. So, his process is 100 percent his to gain,” she said.
Fikes has definitely seen gains over the past two years at Valir. He regained not only the ability to walk, but the ability to drive again too. He struggles still to regain full use of his hand; but when his fourth child was born, he cut the cord himself – another meaningful victory for Fikes. His newest goal is to regain the ability to pick up his children.
“Right now, I can kind of cradle them in my arms and use my shoulders and my core to kind of pick them up, but being able to pick them up with my hands and do stuff would be really nice. But we work around what we got,” he said.
Fikes’s never-say-never attitude is inspiring to all who know and meet him.
“To see the different milestones he’s hit each time is really rewarding. We’ve all cried with him when he’s cried and Savannah’s cried, and we all have those happy tears when we hit those other milestones,” Chambers said. Through it all, both the ups and the downs, Fikes and his wife Savannah stay rooted in faith, always looking to the future with optimism. Although it is not the path he would have chosen to take over the past two years, Fikes believes there is always light even in dark times. He explained that were it not for the tests done when he developed GBS, a nodule on his thyroid might have been missed.
“You know, if I hadn’t had this, I would be walking around with potentially deadly cancer and I wouldn’t know it. So, you know, it’s all going to work out and my job is to just keep working,” he said.
And in a year that has pulled the rug out from under many people everywhere due to COVID-19, Fikes shared this perspective:
“You with deal with what life gives you. You keep on going and the sun comes up in the east and sets in the west. That’s what you do.”

Hospice nurse grateful to help COVID-19 patients

Story and photo by James Coburn, Feature Writer

Candy O’Neal’s biggest challenge in today’s nursing environment of COVID-19 has been the transition of caring for home-bound patients to those living out their final days in a nursing home, she said. She had to give up her previous patients up to another nurse to only work in one facility.
But O’Neal is used to being flexible in her career with a history in medical surgical care, emergency room care, and clinical nursing. Hospice is all about comfort and quality of life.
“Right now to me, this COVID stuff has kind of put people into a depression,” said O’Neal, RN case manager at Companion Hospice in Guthrie.
O’Neal understands the need to quarantine COVID patients to a room. But it has caused them more weight loss and cognitive changes. (Story continues below)

“It’s not getting out in the dining areas — not getting to have activities — not seeing their loved ones. Having a parent or a child come visit through a window that you can’t open is not the same. They’re lacking that though, and so that’s been pretty hard on them.”
O’Neal wouldn’t change being a nurse. She knows that she is making a difference in life the best she can. Helping families cope with their loved ones facing a terminal illness is heartfelt for O’Neal.
“This team here works well together. We all get along — all of us. And that’s hard to find,” said O’Neal, who has worked as Companion hospice nurse for nearly three years.
A friend of hers who is now a nurse practitioner had been trying to recruit O’Neal to Companion for a couple of years before she accepted an interview. At first she was hesitant to accept being a hospice nurse who answers families’ hard questions about an impending death. After three weeks she accepted her new journey in life.
“Something just told me to do it,” she said. “And so I did, and honestly this has been the best decision I’ve made. It changed my outlook on life. I feel like I’m the one that feels rewarded from this. It kind of makes me emotional. I feel like we both end up at peace if that makes sense.”
Oftentimes people ask O’Neal how she endures being a hospice nurse every day. She is helping people make a transition in life during a profound time of need in their lives.
“I’m helping them comfortably pass over. But you not only care for the patient — you care for the families a lot,” she explained. “We do a lot of close interaction with the families.”
Helping families brings a continuity of care that O’Neal cherishes. She learns so much about their lives and what brought them to their present point in life, she said.
Hospice care does not focus on waiting for a family member to pass on. It’s more of a celebration of life and what life has meant. The nurses meet their patients in whatever state of mind they are experiencing in life.
There are some patients that she has had a few years. They are re-certified for hospice as long as they continue to decline, she said.
“I get really attached to my patients. It’s hard not to,” O’Neal said. “But it’s almost like losing a family member. You get close to them when you see them two or three times a week, and then as the disease progresses you may see them every day.”
Her endurance in being a nurse stems from when she decided to become a nurse during her early twenties. She was studying to become a veterinarian when her grandparents became sick. She was told her grandfather was dying of cancer.
“I thought I already like doing it for animals. I think I want to do it for people,” she said.
O’Neal was auditing courses in nursing school when her grandfather passed away. She took a break from her nursing studies after he died and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in veterinary school. She had a baby. Her family needed her, so she shifted her career to work as a medical assistant in the office of Dr. Todd Krehbiel, who persuaded her to go back to school to earn a nursing degree. She went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing at Langston University.
During the holiday season, O’Neal says she is thankful for life itself and that her family and friends are all healthy during a time of uncertainty.
“Right now, it’s uncertain even though we wear masks everywhere, you still don’t know,” she said. “I’d say I’m grateful for holidays but I’m really just thankful for life because right now there’s a lot of people that are struggling.”

Groundbreaking Spiro Exhibition to Debut at The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum

The Spiro site contained one of the greatest collections of prehistoric American Indian artifacts ever discovered in the United

The Spiro Mounds are one of the United States’ most important ancient Native American sites, as well as an archaeological find unmatched in modern times. Yet, despite creating a sophisticated ancient culture, the Spiro people are nearly forgotten in the pages of history books. How did these incredible works of art and other treasures from all over North America end up hidden for hundreds of years, and why? Opening February 12, 2021 at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, “Spiro and the Art of the Mississippian World” will seek to answer these questions and more in the first major presentation on the Spiro Mounds ever undertaken by a museum, representing the first, and possibly last, time these artifacts will be reunited from various collections across the country.
“We are incredibly pleased to announce this unparalleled exhibition, which will give proper honor and representation to the culture and historical impact of the Spiro people,” said Natalie Shirley, The Cowboy president and CEO. “Our staff has worked for years to create a world-class, exciting and collaborative presentation of a people who have been overlooked for too long.”

This exhibition will share the art, history and culture of the Spiro people through approx. 175 objects, as well as an accompanying publication, website, public symposium and panel discussion. It was created in collaboration with representatives from the Caddo and Wichita Nations, the descendants of the Spiroan people, and with contributions by 17 humanities scholars from nearly a dozen universities and museums from across the United States.
The Spiro Mounds were the location of one of the largest and longest episodes of looting at any American archaeological site in history—comparable to that of Mesa Verde in Colorado and, sadly, several others across the country. Both looting and New Deal/Works Progress Administration (WPA) archaeological excavations came together in a near-perfect storm at Spiro. In 1935, the public’s imagination was peaked when the Kansas City Star called the site’s discovery a “King Tut’s Tomb in the Arkansas Valley,” and identified it as the greatest source of Mississippian iconographic material ever found. Embossed copper plates, wooden sculptures, thousands of pearls and beads, large human effigy pipes and engraved shell gorgets and cups are just some of the items found at Spiro. In fact, nearly 90% of all known engraved shell created during the Mississippian period (900 – 1650 AD) was discovered at this one site. This exhibition will include the reunification of a range of items looted and archaeologically excavated at Spiro that have not been together since the early 1930s and 1940s. (story continues below)

“The quality and quantity of material found in at Spiro is unprecedented,” said Eric Singleton, Ph.D., Museum Curator of Ethnology. “We are grateful to have the support of the Spiroan descendants, the Caddo Nation and the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, as we prepare this exhibition. Without them, this exhibition would not be possible.” The Spiroan people, along with other Mississippian groups across the eastern half of North America, created a world equal to that of the Aztec, Maya or Inca, consisting of trade networks and highly developed social, political and religious centers. The exhibition will explore the archaeology and history of Spiro and its relationship to other contemporaneous Indigenous communities in North and Central America, highlighting community development, religious and ceremonial activities, farming and hunting practices and daily life. It will also illustrate how ecological factors, specifically the occurrence of the “Little Ice Age” beginning in 1350 AD and lasting until 1650 AD may have led to the site’s decline and ultimate abandonment. The exhibition also showcases contemporary Indigenous art pieces that explore the ideas of origin and connect the art and artistry of the Spiro people to their modern descendants.
Following the exhibition, the online component and educational materials will be available on the Museum’s website and in our permanent Native American gallery. In addition, the Museum will give both the Caddo and Wichita Nations all interpretative materials to use at their discretion in their respective tribal museums.
The exhibition will debut at National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum February 12 – May 9, 2021, before traveling to the Birmingham Museum of Art (October 5, 2021 – March 11, 2022) in Birmingham Alabama, and the Dallas Museum of Art (April 15, 2022 – August 5, 2022), in Dallas Texas.
The Spiro and the Art of the Mississippian World has been made possible in part by major grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Henry Luce Foundation, as well as support from the Kirkpatrick Foundation.
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this press release do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
About the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City is America’s premier institution of Western history, art and culture. Founded in 1955, the Museum collects, preserves and exhibits an internationally renowned collection of Western art and artifacts while sponsoring dynamic educational programs to stimulate interest in the enduring legacy of the American West. For more information, visit nationalcowboymuseum.org.

By Nick Thomas

Many performers have recorded videos of encouragement for fans throughout the COVID-19 pandemic months. But few, if any, have been as prolific as Neil Sedaka.
With more than 150 mini-concerts posted since April on his YouTube channel NeilSedakaMusic, the singer, pianist, and composer of 60s hits such as “Calendar Girl” and “Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen” continues to churn out the casual performances from behind his home piano several times a week and plans to continue into the Christmas season and beyond. (story continues below)

“The response from people all over the world has been unbelievable, even those who were never really Neil Sedaka fans before,” said the 81-year-old singer from Los Angeles. “They can’t believe my body of work.”
Sedaka’s repertoire would impress any artist.
“I started writing songs when I was 13 and have composed over 800,” said Sedaka who, in late March, was one of the first entertainers to post a video of hope during the early pandemic days in the US in the form of rewritten lyrics to “Oh! Carol,” his hit from the late 50s.
A week later, his first mini-concert – filmed by his wife on a cellphone from their New York home with the family parrot in the background – consisted of a medley of a half-dozen Sedaka hits.
“I just thought the music could be therapeutic for people locked down at home,” he recalled. “Then people began requesting songs on my Facebook page, so I decided to continue the mini-concerts.”
For Sedaka, too, the performances have helped get through the months of isolation after moving to the family’s Los Angeles home earlier in the year.
“I’ve continued to play all the big hits, but I’ve also done a lot of my lesser-known songs that I like to call my forgotten or neglected children,” he said. “Some of them I wrote 60 years ago and haven’t played for years, so it can take a while to relearn the lyrics along with the chords and rhythms. But it’s been very enjoyable for me as well.”
Trained as a classical pianist at New York’s Juilliard School, Sedaka discovered pop music as a teen and teamed up with lyricist Howard Greenfield to co-write the songs mentioned above and many more. In later years, other hits were written with Phil Cody (“Laughter in the Rain,” “Bad Blood”) but Sedaka’s love for classical music never waned.
“There are not many singer-songwriters of my era who can play Chopin, Debussy, and Bach!” he said. “I’ve even performed a few piano pieces during the mini-concerts.”
Like other artists, Sedaka’s live tours have been postponed until 2021 (see www.neilsedaka.com) and he says the mini-concerts have helped fill the void all entertainers are experiencing this year. He’s also been appearing monthly on the Sirius XM channel ‘50s on 5’ with his program “In the key of Neil.” While he’s looking forward to returning to live concerts next year, don’t expect to hear any new Neil Sedaka songs since he stopped composing several months ago.
“I felt if you can’t top it, you should stop it,” he said. “I think the reason I’ve been around so long is I’ve always been able to raise the bar, reinvent Neil Sedaka, and to develop and grow. It’s still very gratifying to hear my music played on the radio – the songs will outlive me.”
Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University at Montgomery, Ala., and has written features, columns, and interviews for over 850 newspapers and magazines.

Dear Savvy Senior,

Writing a will has never been a high priority to me but this lingering coronavirus crisis has changed my thinking. Can you recommend some good do-it-yourself resources to help me write a simple will?

Getting Older

Dear Getting,
The coronavirus crisis has changed the way a lot of people look at things, including wills. Currently, fewer than half of American adults have prepared a will. But having a last will and testament is important because it ensures that your money and property will be distributed to the people you want to receive it after your death.
If you die without a will, your estate will be settled in accordance with state law. Details vary by state, but assets typically are distributed using a hierarchy of survivors. Assets go to first to a spouse, then to children, then your siblings, and so on.
You also need to be aware that certain accounts take precedence over a will. If you jointly own a home or a bank account, for example, the house, and the funds in the account, will go to the joint holder, even if your will directs otherwise. Similarly, retirement accounts and life insurance policies are distributed to the beneficiaries you designate, so it is important to keep them up to date too.
Online Will Makers
If you have a simple, straightforward estate and an uncomplicated family situation, writing your own will – with the help of a good online will making program – is a viable alternative to hiring an attorney and much cheaper. Like tax software, these online tools will guide you through a series of questions and will insert your answers into a will for you, and it usually takes less that 20 minutes from start to finish.
Three top-rated do-it-yourself options include the Quicken WillMaker & Trust 2021 downloadable software (available at nolo.com) that costs $100 and works with Windows and Macs and is valid in every state except Louisiana; LegalZoom (legalzoom.com), which offers basic wills for $89 or $99 if you’d like assistance from an independent attorney; and Trust & Will (trustandwill.com) which charges $89 for a basic will.
If that’s more than you’re willing to pay, consider FreeWill (freewill.com), which is a completely free will making resource made possible with the support of nonprofit organizations.
When to Hire a Lawyer
If you have considerable financial assets or a complex family situation, like a blended family or child with special needs, it would be smart for you to seek professional advice. An experienced lawyer can make sure you cover all your bases, which can help avoid family confusion and squabbles after you’re gone.
The National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (naela.org) and the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils (naepc.org) websites are good resources that have directories to help you find someone in your area.
Costs will vary depending on your location and the complexity of your situation, but you can expect to pay somewhere between $200 and $1,000 to get your will made. To help you save, shop around and get price quotes from several different firms. And before you meet with an attorney, make a detailed list of your assets and accounts to help make your visit more efficient.
Make it Valid
Be aware that to make your will valid, you must sign and date it and have it witnessed according to the laws of your state. Most states require two witnesses who are not listed as beneficiaries in your will to watch you sign it. Some states also require that a notary witness the signing as well. Nationalnotary.org can tell you if a notary is needed to legalize a will in your state, if remote notary services are available, and how to access such online services to execute your will if you are sheltering at home during the pandemic.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.

OU Health, Mercy and SSM Health St. Anthony are teaming up with 100 of the nation’s top hospitals and healthcare systems to deliver an urgent plea for all Americans: Mask up, because wearing a facemask is the best chance at slowing the surging COVID-19 pandemic.
More than 11 million Americans have tested positive for the virus – including an additional 1 million in just the past week – leading to 245,000 deaths. In Oklahoma, nearly 160,000 people have been infected by the virus and more than 1,500 people have died. Last week, Oklahoma saw a 74.8% increase in cases over the week before, according to data from the Oklahoma State Department of Health.

“We’re seeing more COVID-19 patients than ever coming into our emergency departments in desperate need of care but we are running out of room,” said Jim Gebhart, Community President of Mercy Oklahoma Communities. “We have to reduce the exponential increase of community spread before it’s too late.”
“The nation’s top hospitals and healthcare systems are partnering at this crucial time to deliver a unified message: Wear a mask to slow the surge of COVID-19,” said Chuck Spicer, President and CEO of OU Medicine, which is part of OU Health. “We urge people across Oklahoma and the nation to do their part to decrease the spread of COVID-19. This is a time when we must all join together to defeat a virus that is taking far too many lives.”
“As caregivers, our mission is to care for all patients with all conditions at all levels of care, but our hospitals are at maximum capacity,” stated Joe Hodges, Regional President, SSM Health Oklahoma. “We coordinate daily to create capacity where we can, but we are running out of ways to do that. We need the community’s help to support our valued physicians and nurses on the frontlines by wearing a mask to stay safe and reduce the infection rates.”

In this joint campaign, OU Health, Mercy and SSM Health and the nation’s top healthcare systems emphasize that current trends in the pandemic are daunting and frightening. If the nation stays on its current course, hospital leaders are increasingly concerned that more healthcare facilities will be overwhelmed as shortages of healthy caregivers make it difficult to handle a rapidly increasing number of patients. Unfortunately, this is already happening in parts of the country.
“The next several months will be critical,” Spicer said on behalf of the campaign. “Although there has been positive news about vaccine development, no one knows when those vaccines will be ready for widespread use. In the meantime, everyone must remain vigilant, take precautions and follow public health orders. The country has reached a tipping point. The power to do what is right is now in the hands of everyone everywhere.”
Beginning today, OU Health, Mercy and SSM Health St. Anthony join their national partners in sharing public service messages for the #MaskUp Campaign. In addition to messaging across Oklahoma, the #MaskUp campaign will be featured in The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and The Los Angeles Times.
The message reads:
“As the top nationally ranked hospitals, we know it’s tough that we all need to do our part and keep wearing masks. But, here’s what we also know: The science has not changed. Masks slow the spread of COVID-19. So, please join us as we all embrace this simple ask: Wear. Care. Share with #MaskUp. Together, wearing is caring. And together, we are saving lives.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention points to recent studies that have shown facemasks successfully limit spread of the COVID-19 virus. Wearing facemasks protect in two key ways: by protecting the wearer against inhalation of harmful pathogens and particulates and by preventing exposure of those around the wearer.
In addition to masking, the CDC suggests that everyone minimize the number of non-household contacts, maintain a physical distance of at least 6 feet, and limit the amount of time around others, especially while indoors and in poorly ventilated areas.
For further information about masking guidelines and the #MaskUp campaign, visit EveryMaskUp.com.