Oklahoma forester, Kurt Atkinson, is a recipient of the Society of American Foresters 2016 Fellow Award, a prestigious honor that recognizes long-standing service to the forestry profession.
“Kurt is most deserving of this honor,” said George Geissler, director, Oklahoma Forestry Services. “Now retired, Kurt had a stellar career of service with Oklahoma Forestry Services for over four decades. He was a leader, not only within our agency, but also in several statewide and regional professional organizations, including our state’s chapter of the Society of American Foresters.”
Atkinson received his forestry degree from Oklahoma State University in 1974 and began his career with Oklahoma Forestry Services, serving 33 years as Assistant Director and Management Chief. Under Atkinson’s leadership “Best Management Practices” were initiated. He also had a significant impact on forest management activities statewide, including stewardship, forest health, nursery operations, forest inventory analysis and the Forest Heritage Center Museum.
“Kurt has always been an insightful, respected, and visionary leader, and has served as a mentor and role model for many foresters in Oklahoma,” said Dr. Thomas Kuzmic, Oklahoma State University and District IX SAF Fellow Committee Representative. “I was honored to present Kurt’s nomination during the SAF committee proceedings earlier this year and was delighted with his selection to this year’s class.”
According to the Society of American Foresters, the rank of Fellow is one of the highest honors for members and signifies exceptional recognition by his or her peers for outstanding contributions and service to the organization and profession. Only 23 Fellows were chosen from across the nation for the 2016 class, with Atkinson being the only Oklahoman.

What do you hope to find under the Christmas tree? Salvation Army Central Oklahoma

I hope to find a new cast iron skillet with a lid.  Jeff Lara

Just to be home. That will be my only day off. Maj. Carlyle Gargis

Really, I’m not looking for gifts. I’m just the type of person who enjoys serving and doing for others.

James Dixon

I have everything I need. God has blessed me with everything. Meiing Ong

story and photos by Bobby Anderson, Staff Writer

Mark Hamm knows that someday in the not-too-distant future, central Oklahoma will be one giant metroplex.
“In the next 20 years they’re projecting another 20,000 people moving to Moore,” the Moore City Councilman said. “They’re all brand new and they don’t know anything about this and it will just be forgotten.”
Hamm was referring to Moore’s history, which dates back before statehood.
And as he discussed the city’s constant progress he was standing on the porch of Myron January’s family home, built in 1895 and believed to be the oldest structure in Moore.
The town’s history – and Myron January’s childhood home – are something Hamm and community members want to preserve for all to see.
In November Moore voters approved the continuation of a quarter-cent sales tax. Part of that money will go the development of an Old Town park, similar to what Norman has near its train depot.
The vision is much bigger than the old January home.
An interactive trail, a sitting area and hopefully a visitor center located near the railroad tracks will spring up some day soon. City officials already have their eye on procuring the original train depot, which is currently being used as an office on Shields Boulevard in south Oklahoma City.
Right in the middle is expected to be the January house, which Myron is giving to the city.
“It’s great. I think it’s a miracle,” January said of home’s impending move. “It’s going to have to be done pretty soon because you can tell it’s getting in bad shape.
JURY AND JANUARY
When you look back in the annals of Moore history you’ll see a couple names stick out – Jury and January.
The Land Run led to the Jury family settling on 160 acres in what now is southeast Moore. Next door was the January family.
“Two Jurys and two Januarys married – two brothers and two sisters,” January said. “So the Januarys and the Jurys have been very close all their lives.”
So close in fact that the Jury home now sits on January property, at least until the City of Moore can get it moved and preserved.
Even though it’s bare wood and has an addition missing, January still navigates the 400-square-foot, two-room house like it was yesterday.
“It wasn’t a whole lot more than this … but you would come in a door here and this was the back porch where (his grandmother Artie) did the washing,” January said. “There was a wall here and a built-in cabinet there.”
Myron January moved to Moore at age three. He left home as a teenager when he got married at 17. He’s lived within two miles of the current house ever since, keeping cattle on the remaining 75 acres.
Things have changed, as subdivisions have sprang up all around.
A new Sam’s Club sits less than a mile away. Target, Home Depot, JC Penny’s, Lowe’s and the busiest IMAX theatre in the world are just across I-35.
“I’ve dreaded it for many years,” January said with a laugh. “That’s life. Progress.”
Just down the street dairy silos dating back to the 1940s still stand as Moore’s only skyscrapers.
At one time, 400 head of cattle were milked at the Mathesen Dairy, which dispatched trucks daily to grocery stores across the county delivering fresh milk with cream on the top.
WHEN MOORE WAS LESS
Moore was founded during the Land Run of 1889. The early settlers came on train, horseback, wagons, and some on foot.
According to local historians, the town’s original name was Verbeck as designated by the railroad company.
However, a railroad employee named Al Moore, reported to be either a conductor or a brakeman, lived in a boxcar at the camp and had difficulty receiving his mail.
He painted his name “Moore” on a board and nailed it on the boxcar.
When a postmaster was appointed, the name stuck and he continued to call the settlement Moore.
Hamm got into politics to preserve that small-town feel, even though the city is now the state’s seventh-largest.
“I like politics but I’ve always liked local politics more than national,” Hamm said. “It’s where things happen, people see their government working for them. You call me about a problem in Moore, hopefully, we can get it fixed before you get home.”
And Hamm knows the past should play a part in Moore’s future. That’s why the city and a team of volunteers have set out to preserve it.
One of the first efforts is inviting people to help document that story online at www.historyofmoore.com.
Currently, there’s lots of gaps and missing stories.
And it’s in need of more people like Myron January to help fill in the blanks.

Ready to get outside and enjoy fall? Hikers and walkers of all levels are invited to join foresters from across the state for the annual “Walk in the Forest” event held at Turkey Mountain Urban Wilderness Area in southwest Tulsa from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. on October 22. Foresters and natural resource professionals from across the state will be stationed along the trail to provide information about the forest, which is located in Tulsa’s backyard. There will additionally be special activities for kids at each station.
“This really is a great opportunity to plan a fun day outdoors with friends and family,” said George Geissler, director, Oklahoma Forestry Services. “Foresters enjoy being on hand to answer your questions and tell you about all of the benefits that our Oklahoma forests provide, some of which may surprise you.”
Hikers should dress appropriately for the weather and wear sturdy, comfortable shoes. The Walk in the Forest will take about an hour if participants stop at each educational station. Kids will receive a special booklet with activities to do along the way and prizes for completing them. Participants will receive a loblolly pine seedling and other giveaways while supplies last.
The Walk in the Forest program is part of a national campaign coordinated by the Society of American Foresters (SAF) and the American Forest Foundation. The Oklahoma walk is being hosted by the Oklahoma Division of SAF, in partnership with Oklahoma Forestry Services; Oklahoma State University (OSU) Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management; the OSU Student SAF Chapter; and the City of Tulsa’s River Parks Authority. Event sponsors include Weyerhaeuser Company, International Paper, Winlectric and the Oklahoma Forestry Association.
For more information about the Walk in the Forest, contact Oklahoma Forestry Services at 405-522-6158 or visit www.forestry.ok.gov. For information and directions to Turkey Mountain Urban Wilderness Area, visit www.turkeymtn.com.

by Bobby Anderson, Staff Writer

More than two years of work and planning by multiple AllianceHealth Midwest departments culminated recently in a prestigious accolade that will benefit patients throughout the metro.
For the first time, the hospital received full Chest Pain Center with PCI (Percutaneous Coronary Intervention) Accreditation from the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care.
To receive accreditation, AllianceHealth Midwest demonstrated its expertise and commitment to quality patient care by meeting or exceeding a wide set of stringent criteria and completing on-site evaluation by a SCPC review team.
AllianceHealth Midwest is the only hospital in the state of Oklahoma to receive this level of accreditation.
“This accreditation is another large step in our commitment to providing superior emergency and cardiac care to the residents of Midwest City and Eastern Oklahoma County” said Damon Brown, CEO, AllianceHealth Midwest. “This accreditation was made possible because of the dedicated work and commitment of a multi-disciplinary team that included employees, physicians and paramedics.”
Cardiology Director and Chest Pain Coordinator Mark Macklin, RN, BSN has spent the last 12 of his 22 years in nursing in cardiac care after an emergency medicine and trauma background.
“The most important reason to pursue this is it’s the right thing to do for patient care,” Macklin said. “It’s a standardized system for evaluating and treating patients from the lowest risk patients to the care and treatment of the STEMI patient.”
“It encompasses the entire gamut of cardiology and chest pain.”
It is estimated that over 60% of all cardiac arrests are directly caused from an acute myocardial infarction.
The addition of the Resuscitation designation to Chest Pain Center with PCI accreditation enhances outcomes because the facility will have initiated early strategies such as early recognition, CPR and defibrillation, early intervention with Primary PCI simultaneously with post arrest hypothermia treatment.
“It standardized our practice, making sure we used evidence-based practice, best practice protocols and we’re all doing it the same way, every time with no deviation,” said Amy Baden, RN, BSN, MBA, and AllianceHealth’s network director of cardiology services. “It’s our roadmap that every patient will be given the exact same care no matter who their cardiologist is.”
Baden said that resuscitation element is one all employees are trained in.
“Any type of employee is also educated in the signs and symptoms of an early heart attack,” Baden said. “From a kitchen worker to a nurse on the floor – even the valets – have all been educated. It’s a multi-faceted education process.”
That education has been introduced to the surrounding communities. AllianceHealth Oklahoma, in partnership with the American Heart Association, donated CPR kits to high schools throughout Oklahoma.
Locally, AllianceHealth Midwest donated one to the Mid-Del School District and one to the Choctaw school district.
Nurses are also going into the schools and educating students and teachers on how to properly perform CPR.
Macklin said each week the board room was filled with representatives for nearly all departments.
“We were empowered to do that,” Macklin said. “Our administration and the board signed off … and we went in there every Monday with a sense of empowerment that we need to get from here to there and who’s best to drive the bus to get there.”
“Some days it was our Chief Nursing Officer (Gloria Ceballos, PhD, RN) who could roll out to all of nursing what needed to be done. Sometimes it was the Chief Medical Officer (Dr. Rockey Talley) who needed to get our hospitalist team on board with the protocols we were rolling out. It changed from Monday to Monday to get from where we started to where we ended.”
“It really kind of brought our whole hospital around that table with a single focus.”
By achieving SCPC’s Chest Pain Center with Primary PCI with Resuscitation Accreditation status, AllianceHealth Midwest demonstrated expertise in the following areas and others:
– Integrating the emergency department with the local emergency medical system
– Effectively treating patients at low risk for acute coronary syndrome and no assignable cause for their symptoms
– Supporting community outreach programs that educate the public to promptly seek medical care if they display symptoms of a possible heart attack
Baden said with the help of AllianceHealth Midwest’s EMS service door-to-balloon intervention time has dramatically decreased.
“We’ve had STEMI’s that come directly to the cath lab,” she said. “There’s a lot of elements … and we’re trying to rule in these patients quicker. We’re decreasing the amount of damage and decreasing the length of stay.”
“Through this we’re all doing it the same way and the patients are happier. We’re all talking the same talk. Patient satisfaction scores in these units have elevated as well so we’re excited about that.”
The SCPC is the accreditation services arm of the American College of Cardiology.
AllianceHealth Midwest, located in Midwest City on the eastern edge of Oklahoma City, is a 255-bed acute care facility with nearly 300 primary care and specialty physicians.

Today, the Social Security Administration announces the launch of a new Health IT initiative with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that enables all Social Security disability case processing sites to receive medical records electronically from all VA facilities. Veterans will receive a faster decision on their Social Security disability claim, speeding them and their dependents through this new process. Both agencies will save time and money with an automatic request through the eHealth Exchange.
“President Obama has said, ‘we must maintain the sacred covenant we share with our veterans by ensuring they have the care and benefits they deserve,’ and I could not agree more,” said Carolyn W. Colvin, Acting Commissioner of Social Security. “We are committed to providing our veterans with the world class service they so richly deserve and improving the speed and efficiency of our disability program.”
The new Health IT program was tested successfully at Social Security locations around the country. On Veteran’s Day, November 11, the eHealth Exchange will go live, nationally, to all Social Security disability case processing sites.
Social Security requests nearly 15 million medical records annually from healthcare providers and organizations to make medical decisions on about three million disability claims. Medical documentation is essential to make a disability determination. Historically, the agency obtained medical records through a manual process (mail, fax, secure mail). This new national initiative puts in place an automated process to obtain medical records electronically without human intervention.
“VA is currently improving quality of life by enabling Veterans to share their health information with federal partners and integrating their data into a safe and secure health-related consumer application,” said Dr. David Shulkin, Under Secretary for Health of the Department of Veterans Affairs. “Currently, when eligible Veterans apply for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits the average wait time for Social Security to receive paper records from VA can take months; this partnership allows Social Security and VA to share the Veteran’s health information electronically in minutes. The Social Security and VA partnership allows VA to continue to be a leader in interoperability efforts among federal partners while improving overall quality of life for our Veteran patients.”
This partnership adds the VA to Social Security’s more than 50 other Health IT partners, including the Department of Defense, in approximately 7,000 facilities across the United States providing electronic health records. Social Security’s goal is to continue expanding the number of healthcare organizations and federal agencies providing electronic health records within a safe and secure environment.
To learn more about Health IT, please visit www.socialsecurity.gov/disabilityssi/hit.
Social Security offers two other programs to expedite disability claims filed by veterans. Wounded Warriors and veterans with a VA disability compensation rating of 100% Permanent & Total have their Social Security disability claims treated as high priority and receive expedited decisions. For more information about these programs, please visit www.socialsecurity.gov/people/veterans.

by Bobby Anderson
Staff Writer

Integris Canadian Valley Hospital is using technology to make a giant leap forward in improving outcomes of its stroke patients.
And thanks to a computer screen on wheels with high resolution cameras patients are getting the help they need anytime day or night.
Christine McMurray, RN-PCCN, serves as an administrative supervisor at Canadian Valley, and has served as the clinical coordinator for getting the new telestroke program off the ground.
“It’s kind of like a fancy-FaceTime where the physicians we have, the neurologists can beam in on the screen … and lenses can zoom all the way into their pupils and check pupil responses,” McMurray said.
Attached is a wired stethoscope that allows both the onsite clinician as well as the remote clinician to hear lung and heart sounds in real-time for those patients presenting with stroke symptoms.
The robot is controlled remotely and can be moved around the patient. The 360-degree microphone also captures sound from all directions inside the room.
The attached monitor screen allows both patient and doctor to have a face-to-face conversation as well as examination even if the doctor is hundreds of miles away.
“We were taking all of our stroke patients that required tPA to Southwest Medical and Baptist,” McMurray said. “Now what we can do after they are seen in the ER with telestroke we can give them tPA on a stable patient and bring them here for a neurology consult.
“Now, rather than shipping them out of Yukon they can stay here in town, in the community and neurology will beam in if there are no complications within 24 hours … they can prescribe the discharge medications, change any anti-coagulations medicines without physically being here but being present.”
Integris Canadian Valley Hospital Chief Nursing Officer Teresa Gray, RN, BSN, MBA said the technology offers immediacy for both doctor and patient.
“The doctor can basically do a full assessment from any device – iPhone, iPad, computers from anywhere anytime,” Gray said. “This technology allows for when you may not have services 24/7 in your facility and the patient has a change in their condition or you need a different level of care we have immediate access.”
“When you talk about neurology in the state of Oklahoma and there is a shortage of neurologists, this allows them to provide access to smaller communities that may not normally have neurologists and various high-level specialities that are hard to recruit. This gives the opportunity to bring that kind of service back to the smaller communities.”
Stroke is the fourth-leading killer in the United States and the leading cause of long-term disability.
Approximately 800,000 people experience a stroke each year in the US. Successful management of acute ischemic stroke is extremely time-dependent.
According to the American Heart Association, ideally, the only Food and Drug Administration-approved treatment for acute ischemic stroke should be administered within 3 hours of the onset of stroke symptoms.
The American Heart Association estimates that only 3% to 5% of ischemic stroke patients are treated with thrombolysis (a clotbuster known as tPA).
“They don’t have to be transferred out anymore. They don’t have to wait for a bed,” McMurray said of the major benefits of telestroke. “Baptist and Southwest have both been on delay several times. Then they have to go to the ER and they are put on hold there or are waiting in a hallway. Where here we’ve got eight ICU beds and they can come right over. They are treated with the same protocols and the same order sets. Everything is the same. If there is any problem all the physician has to do is come in over (Telestroke).”
The program is done in collaboration with the hospital’s hospitalist program which follows the plan of care throughout the course of a patient’s stay.
McMurray said the technology has already been used by the hospital’s two hospitalists to dial in remotely to check on other non-stroke patients who are experiencing changes in condition or acuity.
On average, Gray said Canadian Valley transfers out 7-8 stroke patients per month with lower-level patients not requiring tPA kept.
Gray said Canadian Valley continues to evolve its service offerings as it becomes the mainstay for healthcare for those living in Western Oklahoma.
“This is something cardiology and nephrology can use – any of our services that are not onsite 24/7,” Gray said. “That’s what we hope to expand is increase our complexity of patients, add additional services to the community we haven’t had and incorporate new technology.”

Whoever conceived of the idea for Norman Forward is to be commended. The Quality of Life projects are certainly important to our growing city. But at the same time, we should take time to reflect on Norman, backward though the years to the work accomplished by citizens who built our thriving community.
We need to show our appreciation to those citizens who got up every morning, went to work and paid their taxes to build roads, streets, schools, parks, a hospital and more that we use everyday. Many of those same people are retired, living in Norman, and they voted for Norman Forward with the expectation of a new senior center with space available to offer more activities than can be provided in the current center.
As Norman has grown, working people adapted to many changes in Norman, along with changes within their own families. Some lost spouses, family and friends, and with that, some lost badly needed contacts with people. A senior citizens’ center would be a perfect place to spend a few hours, meet new people, socialize and ward off depression which is prevalent in older citizens.
A forward-looking Norman should say thank you to earlier residents by opening the doors to a new center and making an extreme effort to contact and invite people to take part in the activities. Also, for their health’s sake, we must motivate these citizens to make new friends and remain vibrant.
Since recreation is the primary reason for the Quality of Life NF projects for younger people, city planners should extend the same criteria to seniors. Seniors need to move, too. Many NF projects will be delayed for the next 15 years, but the senior citizens’ project should not be one of them.
Nadine Jewell, Norman

Eric Olsen Executive Director HELPS nonprofit law firm. www.helpsishere.org

Sometimes seniors with lower incomes find themselves owing past due income taxes. Taxes they can’t afford to pay. As the Executive Director of HELPS, a 501 c nonprofit law firm that assist seniors with debt problems, I regularly talk with seniors distressed about past due taxes owed. Seniors want to pay their taxes, but sometimes there simply is insufficient income. Seniors need to know that laws and regulations have been enacted to assist persons with lower incomes to protect them from tax collection.
Most seniors don’t understand that social security, pensions, VA benefits and other forms of retirement income are protected by federal law. This income cannot be garnished for old debts such as credit cards or past due loans. An exception is the IRS occasionally will garnish 15% of a senior’s social security for past due taxes. However this will not happen without the senior being first notified. Steps can be taken to prevent a garnishment by the IRS.
For seniors that can afford to pay their taxes if the sum is less than $50,000 they can arrange for monthly payments over five years almost automatically. Lower income seniors can often be placed on uncollectable status with the IRS and pay nothing. An existing garnishment by the IRS can even be stopped. Seniors can apply for uncollectable status with the IRS over the phone or online. The IRS website provides budget guidelines to qualify for uncollectable status. These budget guidelines are not normally volunteered when applying for uncollectable status with the IRS. If you say you can pay something each month, the IRS will gladly take your money. Many lower income seniors underestimate their needs and pay a monthly payment they can’t afford to the IRS because they think they have to pay something. When according to IRS budget guidelines they could pay nothing.
Almost all seniors don’t realize that their local state tax collector cannot garnish social security and retirement income for past due state income taxes. Even when this money is deposited into a bank account, as long as it is traceable to social security and pension income it is exempt. If an account is garnished a claim of exemption can be filed for the money to be returned. State taxing agencies unfortunately will never tell seniors their income is protected. Instead they often will badger and intimidate in order to collect from seniors who don’t know their rights. If a state tax collector calls, a lower income senior can simply advise his income is federally protected social security, pension, VA benefits, or disability and they can’t afford to pay the tax.
Sometimes seniors are worried when they receive a “tax lien.” Language in the written lien notice makes them worry they are going to lose their home, car and other possessions. Tax collectors are not in the business of selling peoples homes. It just doesn’t happen in real life. Many seniors have little or no equity in a home for a lien to attach anyway. The taxing agency files the lien and hopes the tax gets paid if and when the home is sold. Tax collectors do not go after personal possessions, especially persons with lower incomes.
Bankruptcy is generally unnecessary for lower income seniors because their income is already protected. However taxes often can be eliminated through bankruptcy. The general rule is that the tax must be over three years old and have been assessed for at least two years in order to be eliminated through bankruptcy.
Certainly we should strive to pay our taxes. However laws and procedures are in place protecting lower income and poor seniors from tax collection. America wants seniors to have the food and medicines they need. If there is a choice between basics and paying taxes, seniors can take steps to stop tax collection action. Seniors income is in almost all instances protected and available for their needs.

Oklahoma City ballet dancers Valerie McDonald and Christina Wornick are the recipients of Watermark for Kids scholarship awards. The scholarships are presented by The Fountains at Canterbury and Watermark for Kids, a non-profit organization committed to empowering underserved kids, helping them pursue their passions and thrive. Watermark for Kids was founded by Watermark Retirement Communities, which manages The Fountains at Canterbury.
McDonald, a 17-year-old ballet dancer, will use the scholarship award to continue her Level 5 classes at the Dance Center of Oklahoma City Ballet. The school provides classical ballet technique instruction and prepares dancers for a professional role in the arts. McDonald hopes to pursue dance on the professional level after her formal training.
Wornick is a previous recipient of the scholarship award who has been dancing since the age of four. The 12-year-old dreams of becoming a famous ballerina. The Watermark for Kids scholarship will allow Wornick to continue her training at the Dance Center of Oklahoma City Ballet as a Level 4 student.
“Watermark for Kids is an amazing program that The Fountains of Canterbury is proud to facilitate in support of local students,” said Jim Story, liaison for Watermark for Kids at The Fountains at Canterbury. “Our community is passionate about Watermark for Kids because it provides children an opportunity to pursue their dreams. We are looking forward to watching our two recipients thrive while working towards their long-term goals.”
Residents and associates at The Fountains at Canterbury host fundraisers throughout the year to donate funds to the Watermark for Kids program.
For more information about Watermark for Kids visit www.watermarkforkids.org. To learn more about The Fountains at Canterbury please call (405) 381-8165 or go online to www.watermarkcommunities.com.