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Off the Hook - Archive 2010
by Melanie Behrens

8/27/10
The tennis event
Tennis is a great sport and I have been playing for more than 35  years. Unlike golf, when I step onto the court I am pretty sure what  is going to happen. You may remember I wrote about golf last week and  all its uncertainties. Tennis is a good workout in a short period of  time. I now have many more aches and pains, but I love it.
Last week, the USTA event for men was at Kings Island and a group of  my tennis friends invited me to go along for a day trip. It actually  ended well, but we had a very rough start.
Because of the series of events, some of my friends only wanted me to  use their first names (just look at the picture for full disclosure  on the names).
We met at Janet’s house. Janet has some street parking changes in  front of her house involving tickets, so we decided to park in her  driveway. There were five of us including Janet and Lynn and Nell who  pulled into her driveway on one side. Then she realized we needed to  be on the other side, so all the cars were moved and my car was  squeezed in. It was a 10 minute event jockeying the cars and we were  on what we thought was a fairly tight schedule. There was lots of  laughing at the ridiculous situation.
We were waiting for Mary to pick us up. She hadn’t stopped to get gas  first because she didn’t want to hold up the trip, but she needed gas  to get to Kings Island. We’ll deal with that in a moment.
Janet bought the tickets and they were on her credit card. To pick  them up she was going to need her driver’s license and credit card.  As we finally drove away, just about one mile from her house, Janet  discovered that she had neither of those items. So we went back to  Janet’s house to try and retrieve them from some pocket or purse or  cooler where she may have left them. It seems Janet doesn’t carry a  purse. The group had a suggestion for her at this point — you need to  carry a purse, Janet.
She searched all of those places, but couldn’t find them. Janet  grabbed her social security card and other credit cards, hoping they  would work (it did) and we were on our way about an half hour late!
We only made it to Milford Center where we had to stop for gas. I  wondered why we were on Rt. 4, because I always use Rt. 38 to go to  Cincinnati. I decided to be quiet because I was only a passenger. 
Others in the car noticed it too and soon we were looking for a cut  over to Rt. 38. What do women do who don’t have a GPS? They call  husbands (they are good for some things). It took two of them to get  the info we needed and soon we were headed south on I-71.
About 10 minutes from our destination, we came to a stop and traffic  was backed up for at least 10 miles. We crept along for 25 minutes  (now we are an hour late). Finally we passed this tiny area of  construction where, can you believe, nothing was going on, and made  our way to the tennis tournament at Kings Island.
We found our seats, which were under a nice canopy, and were headed  down the row when a woman in front of me said “Stop, Stop.” I looked 
down to see that the fanny pack I have on in front of me has caught the girl’s hair in the zipper pull and it is about 5 minutes of  wailing and turning to try and get her hair out of that zipper.  Everyone behind is saying, “Sit down, we can’t see.”
I said, “Can you believe this?” Mary answered, “It fits with the day  we’ve had already!”It was hot, but we were able to watch number one seed Rafael Nadal  play and finally win after dropping the first set to his French  opponent.
As we started our trek home in the evening, we wondered what was in  store for us. The answer is — nothing out of the ordinary! And we were happy about that. It was a great day, one with many laughs and  lots of good memories.
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  Interesting fact: The current month of August has five Sundays,  five Mondays and five Tuesdays. This only occurs once every 823 years!
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  If you missed last week’s golf column, just go to marysvillejt.com  click on Off the Hook, then on archives.
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

8/20/10
Thoughts on golf
Now that it’s late summer, I guess I have to consider the golf season in its final days. There are some times in the fall when the weather is very pleasant, but I know that the rainy season is coming and that means no more golf for me this year. I’ve come to love this crazy sport over the 30 years I’ve been playing.
Believe me, it started out as a hate relationship (and that feeling sometimes returns). The game was much too hard and I thought there 
were just way too many things to remember — keep your head down, keep your arm straight, move your body at the right time and don’t forget  to follow through correctly.
Enough whining. I’ve picked up on some of this sport and now can be considered a respectable player. Mind you, that doesn’t mean good ... just respectable.
As I watched the pros play last week at the final major tournament on the PGA circuit, I was awed by their skill and it also reminded me how much your mental health is involved in the play of the game. Oh, maybe that’s my problem.
The best example of that is Tiger Woods. I no longer care what he does. For obvious reasons, he has lost my attention, but the sportscasters continue to hang on his every move.
Golf is tough, and very unforgiving. I play as much for the social aspect as for the conquering of the course, and consider it important 
to have three other people with me for those four hours to enjoy the day. Lunch or dinner following the event is also a must.
  The girls I play with have developed a few sayings just to keep our sense of humor about this frustrating game. For instance — long drive meanith not if you screw up the second shot. I may have cleaned that up a little bit for you.
Then there’s also the dreaded PPSU — post par screw up. That would be a double bogey on the next hole.
  If you don’t play golf you might not have a feel for what I’m saying, but if you do, I know you’re with me. Some of my friends have recently shared some thoughts about the game and I want to pass them on to you.
Best comments by caddies
Golfer: “I think I’m going to drown myself in the lake.”
Caddy: “Think you can keep your head down that long?”
Golfer: “I’d move heaven and earth to break 100 on this course.”
Caddy: “Try heaven, you’ve already moved most of the earth.”
Golfer: “Do you think my game is improving?”
Caddy: “Yes sir, you miss the ball much closer now.”
Golfer: “Do you think I can get there with a 5 iron?”
Caddy: “Eventually.”
Golfer: “How do you like my game?”
Caddy: “Very good, sir, but personally, I prefer golf.”
Only golfers will understand the following:
Don’t buy a putter until you’ve had a chance to throw it.
Never try to keep more than 300 separate thoughts in your mind during your swing.
The less skilled the player, the more likely he is to share his ideas about the golf swing.
No matter how bad you are playing, it is always possible to play worse.
Everyone replaces his divot after a perfect approach shot.
It is surprisingly easy to hole a 30 foot putt for a 10.
Nonchalant putts count the same as chalant putts. It’s not a gimme if you’re still away.
You can hit a two-acre fairway 10 percent of the time and a two-inch branch 90 percent of the time.
Since bad shots come in groups of three, a fourth bad shot is 
actually the beginning of the next group of three.
Every time a golfer makes a birdie, he must subsequently make two double bogeys to restore the fundamental equilibrium of the universe. (That’s where that PPSU comes in!)
If there is a ball on the fringe and a ball in the bunker, your ball is in the bunker. If both balls are in the bunker, yours is in the footprint.
A good drive on the 18th hole has stopped many a golfer from giving up the game.
If your opponent has trouble remembering whether he shot a six or a seven, he probably shot an eight (or worse).
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

8/13/10
Zimmerman takes on “Emperor”
Jarrod Zimmerman (MHS class of ‘05) now lives in Chicago since his 
graduation from Northwestern University. He works as a web designer 
(his own company) to pay his major bills, and also as an actor, 
probably his first love.
Now he has a new role to fill, that of the Emperor’s undersecretary 
in The Chicago Shakespeare Theater production of “The Emperor’s New 
Clothes.” This is a musical family oriented version of the Hans 
Christian Andersen story. It is obviously a departure from 
Shakespeare for this cast.
The theater is located on the Navy Pier along Chicago’s waterfront 
portion of Lake Michigan. It’s a lovely setting and perfect for this 
theater group. Performances run through Aug. 29, 2010.
With eight shows a week and a full time job, Jarrod has little time 
for anything else. But that’s OK with him. He says a theatrical 
career is his main focus and he even has an agent to keep his name 
out there.
He has a TV series (”Boyfred”) in the works, which he and several 
friends have pitched to a network, which, in turn, has assigned a 
writer to work with them in order to get the pilot ready. All that’s 
left then will be to get acceptance for 2011 season.
If you plan on being in Chicago before the end of the month, tickets 
for the play can be obtained from the website at, www.chicagoshakes.com.
Richwood business gets boost
It is a big boost to a Union County business under new ownership. 
Melisa Conley Robbins (North Union HS class of ‘86) recently acquired 
her father’s western hat business. Her dad, Lionel, called it Conley 
Hats, but she calls it C & R Leather and Hats. She has a new very 
important client in country singer, Cowboy Troy, formerly part of Big 
and Rich. He has hired Melisa to produce his full line of signature 
hats, which will eventually be for sale on his website.
She’s thrilled to have this boost for her business, and it came 
directly from Cowboy Troy. You see, even though her business is in 
Richwood, it does not have a storefront. Sales are made through 
country-western festivals. I had trouble locating her for this story 
because there is no listed phone number, but since her father has 
been in this business since the 1970s, her family is well known to 
country performers. They have her number, so to speak.
Melisa previously worked for the Union County Sheriff’s office and 
had to retire because of serious health problems. Now she says she is 
feeling well and with extra support from her brother, Steve Conley 
(Fairbanks Athletic Director and Marysville Parks and Recreation 
Supt.), she’s ready to make this business grow big!
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

8/6/10
Ken Denman — going across the pond
Last week I told you about the very talented Ken Denman, who has had  varied interests in his life including computers, serving as a  commander in the U.S. Navy and being a commercial instructor pilot.  If you missed it, go to marysvillejt.com, click on Off the Hook, and  then on archives.
Ken is a local guy who grew up in northern Union County. He went off  to the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War and after that earned a  college degree in computer science which he used at O.M. Scott & Sons  until he retired in 2005. One year later, after nearly 40 years of  service, he also retired from the Naval Reserves.
As he said, “I always had a backup job.” During his time in  Washington, D.C. he fell in love with flying and learned to be a 
pilot and now is an instructor pilot.This brings us to Ken’s interest in the Union County Airport, where  he serves as president of the Airport Authority. It’s a volunteer job  and he does it for the love of flying. Ken has logged over 3,000  hours in the air and has served as an instructor.He recently purchased a helicopter which he has to learn to fly, and  that needs to be done in Phoenix. When the weather cools that’s his destination, I suspect.
At the airport in 1993, he met a British gentleman who just wanted to  learn to fly. Ken served as his instructor and the man actually  purchased a single engine, six passenger plane, which he wanted to  fly home to England. He asked Ken to join him and that would be a  true test of their flying ability. The plane was equipped with  special gas tanks to fly 16 hours with just two people on board. They  spent a total of 33 hours in the air with several stops.
First, they flew from Maine to Labrador, then on to Greenland, then  Iceland, and finally Scotland, with their longest flying time being  to Scotland at about 6 1/2 hours.
I asked him if he was afraid to be out over open water with a single  engine plane. He said, “Once you get out that far, you can’t return,  so you just forgot about it.”
As a precautionary measure, they did take survival suits for the cold  water of the North Atlantic, but fortunately that never came into  play and seven days after leaving they arrived in Scotland. That was  17 years ago and the men were in their forties. They have maintained  a wonderful friendship and you can imagine the bond that you would  have after that adventure.
Ken is excited about the additions at the local airport and one is  the new grass runway which is 2,600 feet long by 80 feet wide. The  dirt was donated from the sewer plant project, and Scotts helped with  special new seed and fertilizer for the area. Ken told me that it’s  much safer for a tail-wheel airplane to land on a grass strip and  pilots are grateful for it.
Since it’s probably not possible to have a runway long enough for  jets, he said the Airport Authority has decided to just make ours the  best small airport in the area.Ken’s other passion these days is serving as task force leader for  the local “ride for kids,” which helps fund research and aid for  families who have children with brain tumors.
It was started by  Honda, and for each $300 raised as a pledge for their ride, each  donor receives one ticket for a drawing to win a motorcycle. Ken  originally joined with the hope of winnig a motorcycle, but he  didn’t do that for several years. Over the last 19 he has won two.He also has been taken with the wonderful fund raising event for  these children. This year his team (he and his wife, Carol) was able  to raise over $10,000. He has donated the motorcycles he won back to  the cause, selling raffle tickets for that also.As you can see Ken Denman is an interested and interesting person. He  has a lot to give and shares his time and talents with Union County. 
We thank him for his efforts.
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

7/30/10
Pilot, naval officer, fundraiser
There’s so much to say about this guy. He’s a retired Navy commander, an instructor pilot and president of the Union County Airport  Authority, and he just finished the huge fundraising event which was the “Ride for kids” in association with the recent Bike Fest.
Ken Denman grew up in northern Union County and graduated from  Byhalia High School in 1964. His home was on a chicken farm and he  worked hard there describing himself as “dirty all the time.”
So at 20 years old he knew when he joined the U.S. Navy he was looking for a clean desk job. The year was 1966 and after boot camp he began his training which would lead him to many years working in Naval Intelligence.
These were the Vietnam War years and Ken decided that the Navy was probably the safest place to be with the same bed every night even though during his whole career on active duty and reserves he only spent a short time on a ship. He joined before he could be drafted.
His time on active duty with Naval Intelligence involved interpreting movement of the enemy from aerial photos and later providing intelligence and charts to aircraft carriers as they set sail for the battle zone. All this was done in the Washington, D.C. area where he also attended the University of Virginia night school in computer training.
After four years in the Navy, he was released and used his computer training at a bank in Norfolk, Va., as the systems officer. During this time he also fell in love with flying and became a pilot.
His family knew Ken would like to get back to central Ohio and when a computer related job opened up at O.M. Scott & Sons, his mother, who worked there, called and told him to apply. At that time, Scotts would hire multiple members of families (Ken’s sister worked there, also). He stayed there for 28 years until he took early retirement in 2004 because Scotts outsourced his department of 30 people to India.
All this time Ken remained in the active Naval Reserves still in the intelligence field, and after 9/11, his unit was recalled to the Washington, D.C. area where he worked for the office of Naval ntelligence. His job was to serve as a go-between for NCIS and the CIA to share information vital to our country’s safety.
His concern at that time was how the intelligence community was guarding our nation’s capital. They were worried about all the little planes breaking the circle they had created around Washington, D.C., but Ken saw the main problem as controlling airliners which could really do damage and were still using that concentrated area. He did go home at night, however, feeling the U.S. had a handle on the world and the scary terrorist situation of those days was being monitored. He said he could leave all the barrage of “intel” at work.
Next week I will write about Ken Denman, instructor pilot, who flew a single engine “across the pond.”
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

7/23/10
The wedding, the movie, the heat
The occasion for our recent trip to downtown Chicago was a family 
wedding. My niece, Kelly, and Brian are a very attractive couple and 
this was a most anticipated event. Downtown Chicago in July can be 
hot, but this was brutal. The tall buildings and concrete hold the 
heat and humidity to its highest level.
Kelly’s father asked her to reconsider being married in July in the 
large, downtown, unairconditioned cathedral, but she won out. Her 
thoughts were that it could be cool that day — that’s Kelly.
On the wedding day, temperatures reached the mid 90s (much hotter 
inside the church) and we all had hand fans moving quickly as we 
watched the lovely ceremony. Soon Kelly and Brian were married and we 
all gratefully moved outside to some fresh air and a slight breeze.
At the reception, the cocktail party before dinner at the historic 
Newberry Library brings me to a discussion of manners, which, at 
these sorts of events, seem to go out the window for some people.
It appeared that no one had eaten in days and a quest was on for 
canapés being passed around. They arrived at one end of the room and 
were gone by the time the server moved to the far area, so guests 
gravitated to the entry to get the best selection. That’s OK, but I 
saw one person take three shrimp off a tray, eat them quickly and put 
the toothpicks right back on that tray which was still holding food 
to be served. Ugh! This is all from people who looked like they 
should’ve known better.
Still in the manners category, I also observed a man at dinner who 
announced he wasn’t interested in the bride and groom and was just 
there to eat and drink. Some people might think that, but not say it.
During family toasts he left the room quickly, saying he wasn’t going 
to sit through that part. He was, after all, getting a free dinner. I 
was tempted to help him brush up on his manners! I suppose he might 
try to chalk up his actions to the heat, which was increasing as we 
danced in a room with 200 people.
Not only was this a special weekend for the bride and groom, but also 
for downtown Chicago. A reported $20 million was plugged into their 
economy as Shia Le Beouf and Josh Duhamel came to town to film 
“Transformers 3.” At the time I didn’t even know there was a 
Transformers 1 and 2. The heart of the Magnificent Mile on Michigan 
Ave. was shut down for four days — almost six blocks right in front 
of our hotel.
Filming went on virtually 24 hours a day. There were car wrecks, 
explosions and men parachuting onto the raised drawbridge. Shia was 
riding up and down Michigan Ave. on his bike during his free time 
gladly signing autographs for fans. All this was pretty exciting for 
us since we rarely see a movie being filmed.
The searing heat continued as we packed into the El like cattle in a 
car to see the Cubs play the Phillies. It was another long hot event 
with the Cubs losing their lead and giving the total game away in the 
ninth inning. I thanked our ticket buyer many times for the seats 
which were under cover. At least the blazing sun was not on us during 
the game.
Chicago has a lot to offer for visitors and we took advantage of only 
a few things. Of course you may know there is also major shopping 
available.
It was a varied and interesting weekend, and did I mention it was 
really hot?
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

7/16/10
Muskingum students visit China
He is a 2008 graduate of Marysville High School and currently a  political science major (administrative or international politics) at  Muskingum University, and now can call himself an international  traveler with his recent return from China.
Brandon Creagan spent about 12 days in China with a group of other  Muskingum students this summer seeing the country and earning college  credits. He said that temperatures ranged in the mid seventies and  some of the food could be considered exotic. They dined on Peking  duck, but breakfast consisted of cooked vegetables, rice, cooked  fruits and meat that Brandon said didn’t taste like meat at all. I  wonder what that really was?
There was, however, some toast available. He said the saving grace  was that, if necessary, a McDonald’s was located about every five  blocks in most cities and there was even 24-hour delivery service.He also loved the night markets where good food was plentiful and  inexpensive. His favorite, meat on a stick, cost the equivalent of 1  cent and chicken or fish was about 3 cents. I have to say that if I  were there, I might be wondering what the meat source really was.
The students spent time in Shanghai, where they saw the World’s Fair,  and then went on to Qingdao, a city famous for beer, the only beer  that meets U.S. import standards. The brewery also owns part of the  Cleveland Cavaliers. Stops were also made in other cities including  Dalian and the capital city, Beijing.
In some places, Chinese people spoke English, and in others they had  no idea what was being said. Thankfully, when ordering at McDonald’s,  there was a menu to point to the item you wanted. Brandon felt  Chinese people were very pushy and always seemed in a hurry.
He explained, “Whenever they were at an attraction or on the street  they would push and shove you so they could get where they were  going.” At first he thought it was rude to push them back, but after  a while he learned that it’s part of the culture and it was OK to do  his own pushing.
He also thinks they do not have our concept of personal space, and  literally get in your face when talking to you, which can make  Americans feel uncomfortable. In addition, Brandon noted that there  are really no traffic laws in China. There are traffic lights, but  everybody runs them no matter what direction they are coming from. 
Maybe the lights are at times difficult to see because of smog in all  the cities which Brandon said was so bad that you could hardly see  the sun.
The group of 14 students and two professors traveled from city to  city by train and boat. Traveling first class was cheap and necessary  by our standards because trips were as long as 19 hours on a train.  Berths had a bed, but in second class you got a chair, much like an  airplane. In third class one could sit in a chair that was made of  plastic and fourth class had a bench with no back on it.
Now that Brandon is home, he has to turn in a little writing and  photography to receive his college credits. This is a really busy  summer for him because he also works as an intern directly for Gov.  Ted Strickland in his statehouse office.
You can see that Brandon is already working on his exposure to  politics. We might even see his name on a ballot sometime in the future.
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

7/9/10
The house that Frank built?
When I first came to Marysville more than 40 years ago I remember  riding by the large, dark brown home located on about 2 1/2 acres on  the northwest corner of Maple and Fourth streets. I was told right  away that it was the Scott House owned by O.M. Scott & Sons Co., used  to house their visitors and hold special meetings. I was also told  that the home was designed by internationally known architect Frank  Lloyd Wright. I actually knew very little of the history of the house  at that time.
Recently I’ve had the chance to talk with Fred and Helen Ahlborn, who  are the present owners and also with Carl Coe whose relative and  arysville native, Almer Coe, contracted to build the house in 1910.  This past winter I did a three-part story about the Coes. (To read,  go to Marysvillejt.com, click on Off the Hook and then on archives.)
The design of the house is typical of Frank Lloyd Wright and the  Ahlborns have some evidence that he was actually in Marysville  supervising the finish work of the house. Almer Coe had the home  built in 1910 (it was completed in about 1911-1912) for his mother-in- law, Mrs. Alfred (Lydia) Scott, probably a distant relative of O.M.  Scott. It also served as a summer home for he and his wife. They  lived in Oak Park, Ill., where Frank Lloyd Wright had his main  headquarters.
Over the years, there has been some speculation as to whether Charles  White, business associate of Wright and the supervising architect,  was using Wright’s design or his own. That may have come about  because Wright had quite a colorful life and because of the timing of  it.
Here is a bit about the famous architect: In 1909 Wright became  involved with the wife of an acquaintance and actually the two went  off to Europe for a year. They continued their dalliance for several  years, even after construction of his famous home, Taliesin, in  Spring Green, Wis. In 1914, there was a fire at Taliesin, and  Wright’s girlfriend was murdered. Following that and after many years  of requests, his wife finally gave him a divorce. The question about timing involves when Wright and his lady friend  returned the first time from Europe, where he lectured and consulted. 
It was late 1910 and that’s about when the Coe house construction  began. So the question is, did Wright return in time to have designed  this home or could he have even done it through the mail as he did  others, while he was in Europe?
Whether he actually designed the home or not, it stands to be a  representative of his technique and is now nearly 100 years old. When  you see the house you would never guess the age because Wright’s  designs were so ultramodern and square.
The Ahlborns have been there for 20 years and have maintained the  integrity of the design in every change or repair they have made.  Currently they’re working on the kitchen, which when finished will  have earned a large celebration. Fortunately Fred is handy and  knowledgeable in construction, so he is able to do some of the work  himself. In a house of this age, repair seems to be an ongoing project.
Many from this area have sent the Ahlborns accounts of the history of  the house. One was from Lorry Irey, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Fred 
Callaway, who owned the house from 1926 to the 1950s when Scotts  bought it. Lorry says the Callaways had a clay tennis court in the 
yard, a huge garden for her mother and an orchard between the two. 
The family also added horse stalls in the garage, which are still  there today. She and her sisters mowed the entire 2 1/2 acres with a  push mower and their parents paid them 50 cents for the job.
Scotts bought the sprawling home to use for business purposes and  sold it in 1987 to the Kaufman family, and then 20 years ago the 
Ahlborns took on the responsibility of caring for the beautiful home. 
Helen has enjoyed entertaining there, hosting parties for every group  she’s been involved with, and sharing the charm of this home. They  are always looking for more history and welcome anything Marysville  natives might have.
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

7/2/10
The Marysville pool
It was just a little over 40 years ago that my husband and I moved to  Marysville. I was new to the area and had much to learn about  Marysville (it was still a village at that time). Soon we had our  first child and it was summertime. In those days, many moms took  their children to the Marysville swimming pool.
I assume that is still a favorite pastime of many women although I  think more of them work now and during the week are not able to enjoy  the beautiful swimming pool that we have. I was very sad to think  that it might not open this summer had the tax levy not passed, since  I remember how much fun we had with our children there.
In 1970, the pool was old, to say the least. It had been built in  1936 as a project of the WPA, a Depression era agency created to get  people working again.
The first swimming pool was constructed at a cost of $27,000. It was  hailed as “Lake Erie at your front door.” Admission prices in those 
days were 30 cents for adults and 15 cents for children and a season  ticket was $10 for a family.
The entrance to the pool was on north side of the property instead of  on the west as it is today and visitors entered in two different  directions, one for men, the other for women. At that time, the entry  was right through the separate locker and rest rooms, so everyone  split up and traveled through a very old and sometimes smelly place  which always had “suspect” water on the floor. We were never quite  sure what we were walking through.
Just inside the entrance you could see the baby pool, where I spent  many years with my children. As the kids grew up and could swim, the  group of moms were all free to play cards or talk to each other and  it was definitely a social event to be there. When we came home, the  kids frequently took a nice long nap. Oh, those were the days.The old pool left us with many memories, but in 1970, it was in need  of repairs in many spots.
The present swimming pool (built at the same location in 1982) was a  “state of the art” facility that cost about $750,000 and was managed  by Dick Smith at the opening. Weather hampered the construction thus  the opening wasn’t until early July. The ribbon cutting was done by  Margaret Mackan, the most loyal and longtime pool patron. The skies  were gloomy and there was a little rain, but admission was free to  all that first day. I remember the excitement in town to have this  impressive new pool.
Our son Kevin worked at the new pool for several years as a  lifeguard. That’s when the swimming team really flourished and has  continued to be a great sport for youngsters.
The swimming pool has been a large part of the lives of many families  in this area and I am so grateful we are all able to continue to  enjoy it.
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

6/25/10
Two tornadoes and counting
It’s been a few weeks now and I’ve had time to think about what  happened. In the last 39 years, I have been through and have been  personally affected by two tornados. My bet would be, most people  have never even been through one of them.Earlier this month our home was moderately damaged by a low level  tornado (type 0) tearing through our neighborhood in the middle of  the night. It was fierce, frightening and fast.
We were lucky. We  only lost one giant tree, which went sideways instead of straight  into our house, and had only small structural damage to our home.  Others lost much more including their roofs.It was just beginning to get light at sometime after 5 a.m., so at  first we couldn’t see the devastation to our yard, but 39 years ago  it was a different story, because the tornado occurred at about 7  p.m. The date was June 25, 1971 and my husband Dan and I had an 18- month-old child, Mike. It was a very hot, summer Friday evening and  we had just left the Fireman’s Ice Cream Social. That was an event we  always looked forward to and our little son was able to get close to  a real fire truck that night for the first time.
As we returned home the sky became increasingly black. In those days,  weather coverage on TV was not nearly as up to the minute as now and  the community warning signals were not in use as they are today. We  thought it looked very bad in the west as the lightning started to 
flash and sent us into the house.Then the wind came followed by heavy rain. In fact, the rain driven  by strong wind (the reason our insurance didn't pay) was pouring  through our windows and running down the walls. I started to be  concerned that the front of the house might even be gone.
As we looked out in what was still daylight, we saw that a huge 100- year-old tree across the street had fallen on the road. This storm  was serious and we didn’t have a basement to hide in. Twigs and hail  hit the house, and my son clung to me tightly like a little monkey as 
we looked for a safe place to hide.
The storm lasted longer than the recent one and later we would learn  the tornado it created had sucked out the huge glass window of the 
temporary headquarters of the Journal-Tribune on N. Main St. The J-T  was in the process of building the current newspaper plant at Fourth 
and Main and was temporarily housed in a separate location.All of the items in the front office of the building including 
newspapers were all over Main street. My husband, Dan, made his way  through the storm, and with help was able to patch up the building 
and retrieve as much paperwork as possible.
Eventually the National Guard arrived and closed off our town to  potential looters. Some guardsmen were stationed in front our house 
on Collins Ave. As I remember, they were there for several days in a  very hot and humid atmosphere.
There was no power for more than 24 hours, and in some cases a few  days. But remember that was 39 years ago. I also remember phone 
service was intermittent for awhile.
That storm destroyed beautiful trees all over our town and it will  take another 50 years to replace the atmosphere that existed then.So, even though it was so long ago it’s amazing that I can remember  many details of that night which devastated our town. Two tornadoes 
in one lifetime is a lot and they say things come in threes so that  makes me think there may be another one in our future. Let’s hope not.
(Melanie Behrens - melb@imetweb.net)

6/18/10
A bird on the head is ...
She has experienced and survived a lot even before she came to this country in 1949. Janine Goertz who is 86 years old, arrived as a war bride and settled into the Cleveland area because there were jobs there. She had been born in France and spoke no English when she immigrated to this country. Her children, Harvey and Viviane, are also both fluent in French since it’s their mother's native language.
During World War II, Janine lived under Nazi occupation for five years until the Americans, including her husband, Vernon Goertz, liberated France. Janine became an American citizen shortly after her arrival in the U.S.
The Goetz family has been in the Marysville area since 1985, about the same time Harvey took a job at the Scotts Co.
Vernon passed away in 1991 and since then, birds have been a tremendous amount of company to Janine. She currently has two cockatiels, Carrie and Lulu. Her recent bird adventure began like this.
Janine was cleaning Carrie’s cage outdoors when the latch came open and out she went. Of course, Janine was quite upset. She could see the bird sitting up in a tree and so she called for her. But Carrie appeared to be glad to be free in the outdoors — for the time being. She flew all over the property and even Janine’s son-in-law, Denny, came to help. But there was no getting the bird to fly back down to them at that time.
When darkness came, Janine was even more concerned when Carrie had not returned. The weather was stormy, like what we’ve had recently, and it lasted for a couple of days. Still there was no Carrie.
Janine’s daughter, Viviane, came to help and called for Carrie. By now everyone was worried that the bird couldn’t survive the rain and chilly air, since she lived the soft life of an indoor bird.
Two days later while Denny was outside, hoping to spot the cockatiel and try to coax it home, he heard her familiar sound and saw her high in a pine tree in the neighbor’s front yard near the road. Viviane and her mother arrived on the scene in the car with Carrie’s cage and her cockatiel friend, Lulu, which was in another cage. They held the cages up and could hear Carrie chirping. So was Lulu. Obviously, they were talking to each other about the situation. Lulu might have been saying, “You better get right down here, now!”
Suddenly Carrie swooped down from the top of the tree and circled their heads. After one pass, she turned and landed on top of Janine’s head ... very softly. Janine reached up and the bird jumped onto her finger. You can imagine how relieved and excited Janine was to see her friend back.
When the cage was opened, in Carrie went, just like she knew where she was going. The family wondered how the bird could survive all the storms, cats and hawks, and find her way back to the top of Janine’s head? I think no matter how much you love that bird, you would want her off the top of your head pretty quickly!
Now both birds are home and safe inside their cages whistling to each other. Mostly they do just whistle. Viviane tells me they speak a little, but not like parrots do.
All is well in the Goertz household and I assume there is no more cleaning bird cages outdoors!
 
6/11/10
Editor’s note: The Rev. James Baldwin, Pastor Emeritus of First English Lutheran Church, died last week. He was a former member of the Marysville Newspapers, Inc. Board of Directors. He was a friend of “Off The Hook” columnist Melanie Behrens and as a final tribute to him we are reprinting the column she wrote about his life a few years ago.
___
Life with the pastor
He is a retired Lutheran minister currently celebrating his 65th year of ordination. He has been retired since 1985 with his last charge being First English Lutheran Church in Marysville.
Now, Pastor Jim Baldwin lives at Carriage Court and he shared some of his lifetime memories with me.
He is the grandson of immigrants. One set of grandparents came from Bavaria and the other from Dorset, England, both in the late 1800s.
His grandfather from Bavaria was initially a school principal, who as a young man traveled to the U.S. via London. Being quite musically talented, he soon landed a one-year stint in Queen Victoria’s orchestra playing the violin.
He finally arrived in Waterville, Ohio (near Toledo) to begin his new life. He married and was the father of six daughters, one of whom would be Pastor Jim’s mother.
Jim’s parents met on the streetcar on the way to work and were married in 1912. Her father built them a honeymoon house to spend their first year in. Later, each of the remaining five daughters would live in that house.
Jim was born in 1915 and grew up in Waterville. After high school, Wittenburg College was his choice as a good Lutheran with German ancestry. It was perfect. There was also a seminary located there, which Jim planned to attend after college. In fact he announced that intention when he was in the fifth grade!
While at Wittenburg, he distinguished himself on the track team running the long distance events of one and two miles.
It was his fraternity, Phi Gamma Delta, that tapped him to be their choral leader for school competitions. The only problem was about one third of them couldn’t sing. He decided those tone deaf singers should just hum.
No matter what the song, he told them, just hum. That really paid off as the Phi Gams won the competition and the comment of the judges was, “We loved the humming sound in the background. That distinguished you from everyone else.”
Music was always a large part of Jim’s life. His love of it began when he was just six and learned to play the piano. Now arthritis will not allow him to play.
Jim met his future wife Carolyn when she was a sophomore and he a junior. Both taught Sunday School at the Masonic Home in Springfield and to do so they rode the streetcar together.
They would date for six more years before marriage. That proposal was also in true Baldwin form. Back in 1938 he asked Carolyn if she would marry him on June 15, 1940. She answered, “Yes, but why that date?
His reply was that it would be the first payday after the first Sunday in his first parish. So they did marry that day.
He had just graduated from the Hamma Divinity School on the Wittenburg Campus. Their first church was in Franklin, Ohio, near Dayton. They lived in the upstairs of a big farmhouse near the church. Four years later they moved to a church in Toledo and had added two sons to their family.
By 1949 they were ready to take on Oxford, Ohio and Miami University. Jim would be pastor to Lutheran students. It was a perfect assignment for him. He loved the college kids. I can imagine his quick wit served him well. He also jumped right in to the city scene, becoming a city councilman and founding Faith Lutheran Church.
Then in 1955 his father died and Jim left the ministry for the family business back in Toledo. During the 10 years he spent there, he traveled extensively, working in public relations for the family company. That meant he gave 600 speeches in 300 cities.
Eventually the family moved to the Toledo suburb of Ottawa Hills. Jim and Carolyn bought a home that had been vacant for more than 30 years, and spent a year rebuilding it.
These 10 years saw the family business prosper and so did the Baldwins. The company his family owned produced and sold household disinfectant and was eventually sold to Lysol who now has their name on those products.
In 1965, the ministry called him back and the Baldwin family moved to Worthington to a church with big troubles. The leaders of the synod thought Jim was perfect to straighten the church out since he had just come from the business world.
Six years later that problem solved, he was sent to another church that needed him, Marysville First English Lutheran. He served there from 1971 to 1985 when he retired at age 70.
There have been many good years in Marysville. Pastor Jim became very active in the community serving on several boards and certainly was appreciated for his quick wit and ability.
There were some sad times, too. In 1976 Carolyn died. She was his love, his wife, his partner in life. Everything was different then and he felt life was not worth living, but he had a church to take care of. Eventually his smile returned and today he still loves to tell a good story.
Pastor Jim, now 89 years old, spends his days at Carriage Court reading voraciously everything he can get his hands on. That includes papers and books, religious and not. Many of the books he later donates to the Marysville Library. His memory is fantastic and may be fueled by his journal which he has written in daily most of his life.
Thank you pastor Jim for contributing so fully to our lives!

6/4/10
Dedication and maturity
He’s a young man who knows where he’s going. He’s dedicated to his sport of gymnastics, and his goal of possibly being on an Olympics team is fueled by his amazing maturity which sends him to the gym to practice five days a week for at least four hours. Most weekdays he eats a snack after school, does a few minutes of homework, and then heads off to the gym. He has only one 15-minute break in his four-hour practice and returns home about 9 p.m. Then there’s more homework before bed.
Alex Johnson was first introduced to gymnastics at about the age of 4 and 12 years later at 16, he’s a champion many times over. The son of Jill Johnson and Richie Johnson, he is a sophomore at Marysville High School.
Recently he won “all around” honors (meaning highest combined scores for all events) at the Arnold Classic. This took him on to the Ohio 
State meet in Lancaster, where he took first again in “all around.” That led him to the regionals in Indianapolis, where for the third time he took first “all around.”
By winning the last honor at regionals he was able to represent his team at the Junior Olympic Nationals in Knoxville, Tenn. He took 11th place there among 238 in his age group and now continues on to the Visa National Championship in Connecticut in August. This competition will name people to the Junior Olympic National team, where he must score in the top seven. Those winners will be able to go on to the Olympic Training Center and Colorado Springs, Colo. and be part of USA gymnastics.
This tremendously physical sport demands incredible muscle power to compete in the six different events which include rings, parallel bars, high bar (which is Alex’s favorite), floor exercise, pommel horse and vault. I was so surprised when he said the high bar was his favorite event, which looks the most scary to me. They stretch out completely straight above the bar and sometimes turn around and grab the bar facing the opposite direction. I can hardly watch it.
So, I asked Alex if he was afraid and he said, “I’m scared all the time, but you can’t let fear control you because you won’t know you can do it until you try it.”
He says you can learn a new skill in a week but it takes much more time to perfect it — to make it automatic. That’s where trusting the coach comes in. Alex has been with the same coach for the last three years at Integrity Gymnastics in Dublin.
There are days when he’s so tired, he has to dig deep to find the motivation to go 100 percent. He thinks the dedication makes him better. I think it very unusual for a young man of 16 to be able to do that.
Also, most days some muscle, somewhere, hurts, but his only major injury so far has been a stress fracture in his back two years ago, which sidelined him for about two months.
Not only is dedication required from the athlete at this advanced position, but also from his family. The gym is about 20 minutes away and he didn’t drive until this year, so someone had to take him there and back every day. It’s also an expensive sport, not only for gym time, but also for equipment and “meet” entries. You can see conditions have to be just right for all the training to be at most benefit.
Long-term goals for him include the quest for a college scholarship and, oh yes, Alex said every day he thinks about being in the Olympics.
More on the barber shop
Last week I told you about my visit to Larry Poling’s barber shop and the world of men there. (To read that go to marysvillejt.com, click on Off the Hook and then on archives.) Then I received this note from Don DeGood:
“I read your story of the barber shop in tonight's paper. When I got to the part that said Larry had been there 40 years, my thoughts were — that can't be (how time flies). The shop was DeGoods Barber Shop. My father and brother were both known as Baldy DeGood, both barbers. They had a chair for me, but it wasn't my career choice.”
“My mother died in 1964 and brother in 1965. These two deaths devastated my father who was 80 years old at the time. It was not long after my brother died that dad was taken to a rest home. I was the shop manager for a few years and I sold it to Harold Green who shortly sold it to Larry. In the 40 years since I have had my hair cut there once. Just too many memories there.”
“When I was in second grade I used to walk into Hazens Book Store, that was between the corner and Galloway's Shoes, the shop that burned recently. The book store used the room that the barber shop now occupies and I used it as a short cut.”
“Dad and my Uncle Kenny DeGood bought the barber shop from Pickle Bartholomew in 1921. It was located in Hoys Pool Room. Dad moved to  the Liggett Building, the room now used for the Mexican restaurant. Tony Butler had his restaurant in the shop next to the alley. I remember going into Tony's with a penny for a lollipop. Tony's business grew and dad didn't need all the room so Tony took over the back half with a wall dividing the room. It didn't work, Tony Butler's was the place to be with everybody walking to school just around the corner. Just too much noise and Jitterbug dancing etc. Eventually, Dad rented the room the barber shop is in now.

5/27/10
A man’s world
As I bravely entered the men’s inner-sanctum, as expected, I was the only woman among several men. Some I knew, some I didn’t. You see I had gone to Larry Poling’s barber shop, and I hadn’t been in that type of establishment since my sons were young. Nothing has really changed, though.
Now for the reason I was there. Larry Poling has been cutting hair in the same location on West Fifth St. for 40 years (some of his customers have also been with him that long). He’s an example of someone who enjoys his job and has stuck it out through the long and the short of men’s hair and the ups and downs of downtown Marysville.
Larry grew up in Raymond just down the street from the barbershop of his grandfather, Virgil Poling, who  worked in his own shop until he was 92 years old and died at 94 in 1991. When Virgil started, he was self trained, that is to say, there was no licensing of barbers. Finely in 1943, when licensing came about, they grandfathered him in. Virgil was also fire chief in Raymond, and when the fire alarm rang, he left the guy in the chair even if he wasn’t finished.
Larry watched his grandfather’s hard work and decided that was the job for him. So when he graduated from Marysville High School in 1966, he went immediately to barber school, which lasted for about one year.
His first job was in Kenton, but the drive became too much and he soon returned to Marysville to work for Clark McKitrick at the corner of South Court and West Fourth Sts. Haircuts were $1.40 then. In February of 1970 he moved into the shop where he is now and worked with Jim Goodwin.
Not only did he eventually buy the barbershop, but in 2000 he also bought the entire block - the old Union Block building, which includes businesses from the alley on West Fifth around the corner to right next to the former pool hall on Main St.
There was a disastrous fire in part of the building a few months ago and Larry’s in the process of renovating that building, which will be ready to open in another month. At that time he hopes to fill the space with a retail business.
His barbershop is what I might call “typical” (but remember my experience is limited here). By that I mean there are two chairs for haircutting — Rick Brake has worked for more than 20 years with Larry. People come streaming in the door and some may have a favorite barber or others will just take the first available barber.
There is also a tiny barber chair located between the two of them, which they use for small children. It is the chair that Larry sat in for his first haircut in his grandfather’s shop in Raymond.
While there, I observed that men are much easier than the typical woman. Men just sit down in the chair with their backs to the mirror and say, “trim it” or “cut it” or “I like it short.” Then Larry or Rick proceed to do the job and the customer can’t even see what is being done. Few women would go that route.
Dan Ludwig is a perfect example of the typical client that Larry has. He has been coming there for 10 years. Larry knows just what he wants and about 15 minutes and $12 later the job is done. That’s quite a jump in price from the 25 cents his grandfather charged in his shop so many years ago.
Larry has seen many changes. First of all he’s glad to see that people want their hair cut again. During the 1970s, times were tough. Men were not getting their hair cut. In fact, they were letting it grow to their shoulders. Barbers really suffered then, but now all has returned to normal as Larry puts it.
He has also seen tremendous changes in downtown Marysville. Forty years ago when he opened his shop the town was still bustling. There were two shoe stores, a children’s store, two dress shops, and two places for men to buy clothing. He said people were always walking up and down the street.
He works nearly every day of the week and long hours. In his spare time he and his wife, Cindy, like to ride their Honda Gold Wing motorcycle, They went all the way to Missouri last year. He has also served as a girl’s softball coach at Dublin Scioto High School for the last five years. Add to that a lawn care, landscaping and snow removal business and you've got a busy guy.
Her serves on the board directors of the UCJRD (Union County Joint Recreation District), which maintains the athletic fields on County Home Rd. For his contribution to this effort he was honored with the Salute to Leaders award last fall from the Union County Chamber of Commerce.
When I asked Larry why he stayed in the barber business so long and what it was he liked about it, he simply said, “Everybody has to do something and I like this.” He’s a man of few words and I guess that makes him a good listener.
While I was there, a political discussion ensued about the city of Marysville. I guess this would be typical for a barber shop.
It’s still a man’s world in there and it was nice of them to let me spend some time with the guys.

5/21/10
Skip Mullaney - part 2
This column is a follow up to the story I began last week about Fahy (pronounced Fay) “Skip” Mullaney, a 1957 graduate of Northwestern High School in Raymond. He was a basketball and baseball star and went on to Capital University in Columbus receiving a scholarship to play both those sports. After graduation he became a Methodist minister and eventually a business consultant.
His first church call was in North Hampton (near Springfield), a small congregation of about 200. Along the way, Skip was also involved in political activism. His first congregation tried to remedy a deplorable situation in the Clark County jail.
Church members attempted to help with donations of books and even held church services at the jail, which were only allowed in the hallways. The congregation saw that much needed to be done to make living conditions, where toilets didn’t even flush, more tolerable for inmates. There seemed to be little response for improvements from the county government.
Skip thought it might even be desirable to be arrested himself, but that didn’t happen when the group demonstrated on Easter in front of the jail. He thought it might be a way to get inside and see how they could help fix the situation.
Later, he almost got his wish and here’s how that went. One evening the local police came to his front door attempting to collect an outstanding traffic ticket, which Skip says he didn’t even know existed. It was for $15 and he looked at his wife Mary Ann and said, “Here’s my chance.” She looked at her three little daughters and said, “Absolutely not!” But he went for it anyway.
After Skip refused to pay the ticket, the policeman called for backup and took him away in the cruiser, but not directly to jail. He soon found himself at the local police station, about a half mile from his home. Skip was placed in a room by himself and eventually a policeman came in and asked him, “Why are you doing this? Just pay it. We don’t want to take you to jail.”
But, of course, Skip had an ulterior motive. Eventually they said they were letting him go and he had to walk home.
Finally, because of all Skip’s efforts and those of his congregation, the jail was razed and a new one built.
After five years, he left his congregation and the Methodist Church reassigned him to work in a specialized Metro Ministry position concentrating on poor housing, poverty and social issues.
By 1976 he had apparently been noticed for his efforts and was hired away from the church to head the Offender Aid and Restoration in Charlottesville, Va., where he managed programs in eight states as the national director. The Mullaneys still live there today. The Charlottesville newspaper recently honored Skip as one of the “Distinguished Dozen” in their town, for his service to the community.
In 1984 he went on to the National Institute of Corrections, where his focus was to better train people in criminal justice. He worked with departments of corrections to improve training of probation officers, parole officers and workers in halfway houses, and taught them how to hire the best person for the job.
Skip eventually became an organizational development consultant helping businesses plan what their vision was for the future and how to get there. That’s what he’s been doing for the last 25 years. He deals with the facts, but the compassion of a minister has always been in the back of his mind. He is still an ordained minister and has come out of retirement only occasionally to help with small churches in his area on a temporary basis.
Now, Skip, who is semi retired, and his wife Mary Ann, an award-winning retired teacher, are enjoying the good life, which includes several months in South Florida during the winter. He still works as a consultant several times a year for companies looking for a better way to get to their desired goals.
He said: “At age 38 when the ‘jump’ in my jump shot was fading, I began running and soon gave up the city basketball league for road races. So for 32 years I have been running competitively, running races all across the country.”
At 45 he ran the Boston Marathon (2 hrs. 56 min). In recent years he only runs races of 10 miles or shorter. This past winter he was the Senior Olympics champion in Florida for both 5K and 10K events and holds several age group records in Virginia for distances from 400 meters to 10 miles. You can see the athlete is still alive and well in Skip Mullaney.

5/14/10
Sports star, pastor, consultant
He was a basketball and baseball standout at Northwestern High School, class of ‘57, (located in Raymond), and is an ordained Methodist minister and political activist turned business consultant.
These are just a few of the ways one could describe Fahy “Skip” Mullaney (Fahy is Irish for Fay). Then there’s the fact that he is a veteran of the Boston Marathon and at age 45 ran it in two hours and 56 minutes, and once scored 42 points in a county basketball tournament game against Richwood High School.
But his story begins in Union County on a dairy farm where he intended to spend his life. His parents, Jay and Laura Mullaney, purchased the farm on Johnson Road in Union County in 1927. Before his father was married he had been a race car driver. He raced in Indiana and took one car to the Indianapolis 500.
His mother had been a teacher and had served as a staff person in an orphanage. The farm was mainly a dairy farm, with registered Jersey cows. About 300 acres was devoted to grain farming.
The state of Ohio purchased most of the farm using the power of eminent domain in the early 1970s. The land and that of several neighbors was used to form the 5,500-acre Transportation Research Center.
Two of his sisters, Jean Grooms Detwiler and Leslie Singley, live within 25 miles of Marysville and his third sister, Mary Alice Winter, is recently deceased. He also had a twin brother, Jay Jr., who died at 18 months.
Fahy (now know to many as Skip) had outstanding athletic ability and after graduating from Northwestern in 1957, he was lured away from the farm by Capital University where he continued to play sports. There he also met his future wife Mary Ann Forry, whom he married in 1962. They felt they might have been nearly the only Methodists in the Lutheran College. Skip says he hoped to “act as a missionary” to the Lutherans, but just couldn’t convert them to the Methodist theology.
Instead, he went on to the Methodist Theological School in nearby Delaware, and received his first call after graduation in 1964 to a small church in North Hampton near Springfield.
That’s where it all began, the political activism that is. His church was quite interested in the sad conditions at the Clark County jail in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Reportedly, many toilets were inoperable.
An entire library was donated by his church and members discovered the inmates didn’t get any use of it and found the books stashed away in the basement. The feeling of the jail administration seemed to be that these people didn’t deserve any help.
Basically, conditions were described as deplorable. Pastor Mullaney held church services there, but they had to be in hallways. So, one Easter many of the congregation led by Pastor Mullaney joined in a protest at the jail to draw attention to the conditions. He describes it as a typical 1970s - style protest. They also hired a filmmaker to record a documentary about jail conditions.
The film was shown 65 times during the next year to every group available in Clark County. All this eventually forced the county commissioners to begin the process of replacing the county jail.
Skip thought it would be great to be arrested and see the jail first hand, but that didn’t happen during the protests. However, an opportunity arose later. More about that next week.

5/7/10
Mothers celebrated
Most women of a certain age are mothers and even grandmothers (that might be the best time of all). Motherhood is a time of stress, pride, sleepless nights (because of infants and teenagers), laundry, cooking, hugs and love.
 A mother is often the biggest influence on one's life and maybe even one's personality. It seems no matter how old you are, when you are sick
it would be nice to have your mother to take care of you. No one can do it like her, especially if you are married to a man who is in no way a
nurse!
So, for all those mothers, grandmothers and those who are soon-to-be, I share some recent mail on this subject from my friends.
Mothers
Real mothers don't eat quiche; they don't have time to make it.
Real mothers know that their kitchen utensils are probably in the sandbox.
Real mothers often have sticky floors, filthy ovens and happy kids.
Real mothers know that dried play dough doesn't come out of carpets.
Real mothers don't want to know what the vacuum just sucked up ...
Real mothers know that a child's growth is not measured by height or years or grade.
It is marked by the progression of Mommy to Mom to Mother.
---
The images of mother
4 years of age - My Mommy can do anything!
8 years of age - My Mom knows a lot! A whole lot!
12 years of age - My Mother doesn't know everything!
14 years of age - My Mother? She wouldn't have a clue.
16 years of age - Mother? She's so five minutes ago.
18 years of age - That old woman? She's way out of date!
25 years of age - Well, she might know a little bit about it!
35 years of age - Before we decide, let's get Mom's opinion.
45 years of age - Wonder what Mom would have thought about it?
65 years of age - Wish I could talk it over with Mom.
---
Somebody said
Somebody said it takes six weeks to get back to normal after having a baby, but that somebody should note that once you are a mother, "normal" is history.
Somebody said that being a mother is boring, but that somebody never rode in a car being driven by a teenager with a driver's permit.
Somebody said that good mothers never raise their voices, but that somebody never came out the back door just in time to see their child hit
a golf ball through the neighbor's kitchen window.
Somebody said that the hardest part about being a mother is labor and delivery, but that somebody never watched their baby get on the bus for
kindergarten for the first time or on a plane headed for military boot camp.
Somebody said mothers can stop worrying when their child marries, but that somebody didn't know that marriage adds a new son or daughter-in-law to a mother's heart strings.
Somebody said that a mother's job is done when the last child leaves home, but that somebody never had grandchildren.
Somebody said your mother knows you love her, and so you don't need to tell her, but that somebody is wrong - call her today!
 

4/30/10
Timing is everything
How many times have you said, “If only I’d been there earlier” ... or “Thank God I was late and missed it?” That usually means some sort of disaster, big or small, was averted. Lately, I’ve been thinking about the events of my life that fall into this category.
This is what started it. I was sitting in an outside dining area of a restaurant enjoying lunch with my friend. It was a beautiful day and lunch was great. Here’s where the timing comes into it. I got up out of my chair and stood there for a short time when I noticed a black bird coming near. Then it struck suddenly in exactly the same place where I had been sitting — a big pile of runny bird stuff. Oh my gosh, I was thankful to have missed that event. It would have been all over me. That’s what I mean by timing is everything.
There must be something about me and birds. I’m sure pelicans certainly fall into that category. They are of the largest variety. My next short story didn’t turn out so well. Here’s the sad tale.
I was in Florida sitting in the sun in a comfortable lounge chair. All seemed right with the world! I didn’t hear him (or her) overhead, but I guess I’m glad I wasn’t looking straight up at the time. I felt it hit on my chest and on the arms of the lounge chair. When I opened my eyes, there it was — gray runny stuff that smelled like fish.
I was horrified. I looked up and there was the culprit, a huge pelican flying away after the nasty deed. Quickly I jumped up and ran to the nearest source of water to wash off what I was afraid could be a source of breathable histoplasmosis (a disease carried by birds).
There wasn’t another soul around to share my disgust, so I just sat back down and decided the chance of a second strike in the same place was slim to none and that was correct. Timing is everything! This time my timing and maybe karma were all a little off.
These two events, while certainly in the icky category, were, of course, not life threatening, but my next story could have been.
I was spending some time in Florida and making the half-hour trip to Everglades City with my friends Tim and Helen Norris. We were going there to have fresh grouper right out of the Gulf of Mexico, in this tiny fishing village. The highways of South Florida are extremely overloaded and thus treacherous at the height of the season. Defensive driving is crucial.
We reached our lunch destination and all was good except the service was slow and so was arrival of the food. This was actually doing us a favor, we learned later. Tim even wanted to go inside the fish market where we ate, to see what the fresh catch was for the day. That delayed us a bit, too, thankfully.
We began our 30-minute ride back on route 41, a desolate two-lane road going from Naples to Miami, but very heavily traveled. About 15 minutes into our journey we spotted black smoke ahead about 30 feet in the air. As we got closer to the flames, we saw a large dump truck on its side.
This happened just three cars in front of us. I immediately called 911 on my cell phone and the operator had all kinds of questions I couldn’t answer. It seems someone had just reported the accident before me, but they wanted more details, like did the truck driver get out and how many people were involved, etc.
Luckily, we stayed back about 100 yards expecting another explosion that never occurred.
It was a remote location and help didn’t arrive for a very long 15 minutes. With the black smoke in the air, the road was blocked. Finally the squad and fire trucks arrived down the wrong side of the road, plus Lifeflight appeared.
We watched the helicopter with much trepidation. What if the vehicles exploded as the craft hovered overhead? It took the helicopter about 15 minutes to find a relatively safe place to set down in the heavy black smoke being emitted at the crash scene.
Finally, we were able to turn around and take the very long way back to Naples, but we had seen what we were sure was a very sad accident. Later we learned the giant dump truck had been approaching from the opposite direction, then crossed the two lane road hitting head on a car with four young people inside, just three vehicles in front of us. Of the five people involved, four died and one teenage girl was still alive in the hospital. What a sad event.
It was also one where we said things like, there, but for the grace of God goes us. We were safe in our car and I was sure glad the service in the restaurant had been slow.
This incident sticks out in my mind as an important example of, timing is everything!
No doubt, we are not in charge of the timing, but I’m still grateful for every time I’ve dodged a bullet!

4/23/10
Cookies, Brownies and Girl Scouts
Everybody has tasted them. You might even have some in your pantry, as I do. There’s nothing like the flavor of a Girl Scout cookie.
  My granddaughter, Margie Behrens, lives in Cincinnati. She’s eight years old and a Brownie and she recently sold us some of those cookies. As I looked at the boxes it jogged my memories of when I was eight years old.
It all began for me in 1952 when I was in the second grade. That is, I became a Brownie and would eventually be a Girl Scout by 1956. We learned to sew, cook and camp (I wasn’t much into the last one), all skills good little, well-rounded girls needed to know at that time.
Our uniform was a knee-length, medium brown dress with a little brown felt beanie that we wore on our heads. Later, that dress would be traded for the green Girl Scout one, which included a sash worn across your chest with evidence of all the badges earned. Mothers served as troop leaders and badges to be sewn on uniforms were earned with each new task accomplished.
  The major fundraising effort for Girl Scouts of America was and still is the cookie sale. I remember the day we would gather at a kickoff spot and would say how many cartons we thought we could sell. I usually took two, which had at least 24 boxes in each. It was a large brown cardboard container that had a handle on it and we were asked to go door to door to sell the cookies, which came in about three varieties at that time.
  I would hit the neighborhood early the first day in my uniform with carton of cookies in hand ready to sell. The neighborhood was always very generous with me. Today, of course, girls sell hundreds of boxes by taking orders and then delivering them.
  The Girl Scout organization began selling cookies in about 1917. Then, cookies were made in select homes by the girls, with mothers helping. It began five years after founder Juliette Gordon Low started Girl Scouting in Muskogee, Okla. At that time, the cookies were sold in the high school cafeteria there.
By 1933, the cookie sale had gone nationwide selling for 59 cents — that was for 12 rookies from somebody’s kitchen. The next year the Girl Scouts from the Greater Philadelphia Area Council began selling commercially baked cookies. By 1958, the price had risen to $1.25 and Thin Mints and Samoas — still made today — were introduced.
In 2010, there are just two commercial bakers making all the cookies — ABC/Interbake Foods and Little Brownie Bakers. The cookies sell from between $2.50 to $4 a box.
  And if you were a Brownie or Girl Scout or your daughter was, this should bring back memories for you.
In July 1922, the “American Girl” magazine, published by the Girl Scouts, featured the following cookie recipe:
  1 cup butter
  1 cup sugar, plus additional amount for topping
  2 eggs
  2 tablespoons milk
  1 tablespoon vanilla
  2 cups flour
  1 teaspoon salt
  2 teaspoons baking powder
Cream butter and a cup of sugar, add well beaten eggs, then milk, vanilla, flour, salt and baking powder. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Roll dough, cut each into trefoil shapes and sprinkle sugar on top, if desired. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 8 to 10 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Makes 6 to 7 dozen cookies.
That year the cookies were packaged in waxed paper bags, sealed with a sticker and sold door-to-door for 25 to 35 cents a dozen.
Why not try this recipe and see if it still makes a good sugar cookie.
Thank you to “Reminisce” magazine for the history of Girl Scouts.

4/16/10
Navy corpsman excels
He was a member of the 1991 graduating class of Marysville High School and is now serving in the U.S. Navy.
HM1 (Hospital Medical) Kevin Caldwell has had extensive medical training as a corpsman and currently serves as the only medical provider for about 150 men on board the submarine USS Montpelier.
He and his family, which includes wife Misha Cotterill (MHS class of ’92) and their son Nathan, 15, live in Virginia. That is to say Misha and Nathan live in Virginia Beach and Kevin in Norfolk, where his ship is docked. This arrangement came out of a desire to let Nathan attend just one high school and not have to move again.
As is often the case, Navy families move around a lot and sometimes those sailors are even out to sea when their wives are pregnant. So, it was not unusual that Nathan was actually born while Kevin was at sea.
Since joining the Navy in 1993, Kevin has seen the world. The Caldwells lived in Iceland for three years and were assigned to a station in New Orleans when Katrina hit. They had to evacuate to Arlington, Texas, and that was only one of three evacuations which were weather-related.
His parents, Doug and Peggy Bailey, have followed Kevin around to visit most of his home bases over the years. Peggy said of Iceland, “It’s beautiful! In the summer it is light for 24 hours and in November the sun is up only three to four hours a day.”
The lack of sun is a bit depressing. I wouldn’t last long there in the winter.
Kevin’s advanced medical training in the U.S. Navy includes his recent graduation from the Naval Undersea Medical Institute as an IDC (submarine independent duty corpsman). His training consisted of 58 weeks of intensive, fast-paced study with rotations in anesthesia, trauma and critical care medicine, emergency medicine and other real world aspects of operational medicine.
They started with a class of nine men and three made it to graduation at the Naval Submarine Base, New London Groton, Conn. Kevin also received the leadership award, which goes to the independent duty hospital corpsman who personifies the highest standards of personal example, fairness, leadership, moral responsibility and military bearing.
Obviously, Kevin is having a great career in the Navy. We wish him well!
Inner peace
A friend sent this to me and I laughed out loud. Hope you do, too!
If you can start the day without caffeine,
If you can always be cheerful, ignoring aches and pains,
If you can resist complaining and boring people with your troubles,
If you can eat the same food every day and be grateful for it,
If you can understand when your loved ones are too busy to give you any time,
If you can take criticism and blame without resentment,
If you can conquer tension without medical help,
If you can relax without liquor,
If you can sleep without the aid of drugs,
Then you must be the family dog!

4/9/10
 McCarthy returns
He has an impressive resume which includes an internship with the Today Show, several Emmy nominations and three years of experience as a general assignment reporter for WVLT-TV, the CBS affiliate in Knoxville, Tenn. Now Mike McCarthy, a 2002 graduate of Marysville High School (salutatorian) and a 2007 grad of the Ohio University Scripps School of Journalism, can be seen locally on WSYX (WTTE Fox affiliate, too) as a general news reporter.
He started in March and is glad to be back in central Ohio near his family and fiancé, Ashrae Scott. They plan to marry in the summer of 2011.
Mike is a talented young man who works as a “one man band.” This skill of doing it all has made him a valuable commodity in a very competitive business. At times there are as many as 100 people vying for one job. The pay is modest, but the experience invaluable.
 A “one man band” operation means Mike unloads his 40 pounds of camera equipment, sets it up to shoot, interviews his subject and reports. Later, he cuts the material to be shown on TV. Really doing the job of three people, Mike saves the station money. The only disadvantage of working this way is that there is no one to bounce alternate ideas off of in the field.
The station has taken advantage of the fact that Mike is from Union County by sending him to Marysville recently to report on “cool schools.” That included stories about the MHS Band, the Show Choir (of which he was a member) and FFA. During this visit he discovered also that one third of MHS teachers are alumni.
The pace at WSYX is fast, concentrating on breaking news more so than his station in Knoxville. This contributes to a high burnout rate for reporters, but makes each day different with no worries about being chained to a desk!
Typically his day begins early at a staff meeting where reporters pitch ideas for stories. Once the assignments are made, it’s off to work.
Mike does two stories a day not including his live on-TV time. That often means a last minute rush to complete the task and be ready for the on-air deadline. There are never enough hours in his day.
The life of a reporter can be crazy with terrible hours, which is why many work toward the coveted anchor jobs, of which there are few. That is where the money is and where you may see Mike one day!
He is the son of Tom and Amy McCarthy.
Marilyn Amrine Hardacre Avenue
Not many can boast that the street in front of their home has been named after them, But Marilyn Amrine Hardacre (MHS class of ‘53) has that honor. The festivities for renaming her street Hardacre Avenue were held recently in Marshfield, Wis., where Marilyn served as mayor for eight years in the 1980s.
 The city of about 19,000 is located 100 miles from Madison. Marilyn was honored for her community involvement which includes being instrumental in rehabilitating the downtown area, construction of the YMCA and construction of a “parkway” leading into and around the city. It’s a nice honor for a woman who has done so much for her town.
Her husband, Jerry, is a surgeon in the area and was in the same Ohio State University medical class as Dr. John Evans.

4/2/10
The Coe family of Union County
Marysville resident Carl Coe has been sharing some of his family research with me for the last few weeks. Two weeks ago he detailed the story of his relative in Chicago, who helped convict the murderers in the Leopold and Loeb case in 1924 by identifying eyeglasses he made.
Last week he told us about that same relative, Almer Coe, who built the home at the corner of Fourth and Maple streets, which most of us know as the Scott House. It is now owned by the Ahlborn family.
Coe said the mother-in-law of his distant Chicago relative was named Lydia Scott (Mrs. Alfred Scott) and she was the first full-time resident of that house. I wondered about her relationship to the O.M. Scott family.
Carl Coe related: “There is some disagreement on Alfred Scott’s relationship to Orlando McLean “O.M.” Scott, founder of The Scotts Company. It is nearly certain that they were related. Both families moved to Union County from Washington County, Pa., as did the Coes (Almer Coe’s grandfather Daniel Coe, 1801-1851, arrived in Union County in 1833 and three years later built a mill on the present Darby Coe Road, near Milford Center). Both Scott families immigrated to Pennsylvania from Ireland. Alfred Scott had a first cousin Orlando Scott of Marysville, and the same age as Orlando McLean Scott, but a different Orlando Scott. Alfred Scott’s parents were Francis and Nancy (Gadd) Scott. Orlando McLean Scott’s parents were James and Mary (Josselyn) Scott, all of Marysville.”
“Nearly all Coes of the world trace their ancestry to the border area of Suffolk/Essex, England. Almer’s 16th generation grandfather was Sir John Coe (1340-1415) of Gestingthorpe, Essex. John Coe was knighted in 1365 by King Edward III for extraordinary valor as a principal captain of The White Company at the Battle of San Gallo, Italy, May 1, 1364. The White Company, led by Sir John Hawkwood, was made famous by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) in his novel of the same name. Sir John Coe established the Hawkwood Chantries at Hedingham Castle in 1412 in honor of his former general.”
In addition, the mother of President George W. Bush (and wife of President George H.W. Bush), Barbara Bush, is related to the Coe family of Union County. She was a second cousin of the late Marjorie Coe Ohnsman. Her grandson, Dave, works at the Journal-Tribune and is our computer/Internet expert.
Barbara’s mother was Pauline Robinson Pierce (MHS class of ‘14) who met her husband, Marvin Pierce, at Miami University. They later lived in Rye, New York, where he became publisher of Redbook and McCall’s magazines. Mrs. Bush’s grandfather was Judge James E. Robinson (MHS  class of 1885), who was Union County Common Pleas Court and Ohio Supreme Court Judge.
Now you have, as they say, the rest of the story.
If you missed the previous stories about the Coe family, just go to marysvillejt.com. Click on Off the Hook and then on archives.

3/26/10
Almer Coe — part two
Last week you may have read in this column about Marysville native Almer Coe and the way he helped convict Leopold and Loeb in the famous trial in Chicago in 1924. After growing up in Marysville he had moved to Chicago and was the owner of Almer Coe and Co., jewelers and opticians. He made the unique set of eye glasses that were owned by Nathan Leopold and dropped at the scene of the murder. Coe’s testimony was crucial to conviction of the two young men.
Almer Coe’s distant relative is Marysville resident Carl Coe, and he has shared more of his family research with me. He said: “In 1910, Almer Coe contracted with fellow Oak Park (Illinois) resident Frank Lloyd Wright to build a summer residence in his hometown of Marysville (on the northwest corner of North Maple and West Fourth streets). Wright assistant, Charles White, traveled to Marysville to oversee construction.”
“Many of Frank Lloyd Wright’s firsts were used in the Coe home. The distinctive corner windows, large low fireplace, flat roof, ceiling beams, sun porch with thin vertical windows, summerhouse and pool, flagpole and fence — were all part of the original design. Construction was completed on Feb. 9, 1911.”
“The distinctive burnt umber home was first occupied by Coe’s mother-in-law, Mrs. Alfred (Lydia) Scott. Later, Marysville based O.M. Scott & Sons Co. — world’s largest producer of lawn care products — purchased the home in 1960. It was appropriately renamed “Scott House.”
Coe has also researched the home. “Almer Coe died in Chicago on Dec. 3, 1956, at the age of 96, but he and Elizabeth Coe did live at Scott House when in Marysville. Mrs. Coe’s mother, Lydia Elizabeth (Mrs. Alfred) Scott — the full-time resident — moved in on completion in 1911. She died a short time afterward. Then the Coes put the home up for sale. Marysville merchant A.G. Kirby (great-uncle of Dan Behrens) bought the property. The Kirbys thought it was too hard to heat, and put it back up for sale.”
“The next owner was John Laughrey, a Marysville attorney. The Laughreys lived in the home just five years and then sold to Dr. and Mrs. Fred Callaway in 1926. They made the first additions to the house, a bedroom wing and a greenhouse on the west side. They fell in love with the property and made several trips to Chicago to visit with the Coes.”
For the last 20 years, the home has been owned by Fred and Helen Ahlborn, who will have more to tell us about the house in the future.
Almer Coe also donated the lot across the street on the east side of Maple and Fourth streets to the Presbyterian Church to use as their manse. The home was completed in 1916 at a cost of $5,000 and its first occupant (according to Wilma Miller) was the Rev. Hugh Evans. The last pastor to live there was the Rev. John Groat in 1967. The house was then sold to the Disbennett family.
I was curious that Mrs. Coe’s mother’s name was Scott and asked about the relationship to the O.M. Scott family. More about Carl Coe’s reply to that next week.

3/19/10
Marysville man involved in “Trial of the Century”
Carl Coe (MHS class of ‘69) grew up on a dairy farm where Honda of America is located today. Ironically he has worked for Honda for the last 26 years in new model research/associate relations. Currently he manages the supplier warranty program as well as serving as chairman of the board of Honda Federal Credit Union. Carl has been very active in our community serving several years on Marysville City Council, part of his tenure as president.
He has recently shared a story with me, which is part of our past in Union County. He admits he is fond of history and the process of research. This time his efforts include a distant relative of his, Almer DeWitt Coe, a Marysville native with an interesting connection to a famous trial.
Carl writes: “Eighty-six years after the Chicago media circus, it is still known as the ‘Trial of the Century.’ Defended by Clarence Darrow, 19-year old Nathan Leopold and 18-year-old Richard Loeb murdered 14-year-old Bobby Franks of Chicago’s exclusive Oak Park just to prove that people of their genius could get away with murder.”
“Leopold and Loeb, wealthy child prodigies and friends who had met at the University of Chicago, spent two months planning the killing. On Wednesday, May 21, 1924, they lured Franks, a neighbor and cousin of Loeb, into a rented car and struck him with a chisel. Franks died.”
“The killers covered the body and drove to a remote area near Wolf Lake in Hammond, Ind. After dumping the body along a road, they spent the rest of the evening playing cards. All was going their way until a pair of eyeglasses was found at the crime scene. The glasses were unremarkable except for a unique hinge feature. In Chicago, only three people had purchased glasses with such a mechanism. One of them was Nathan Leopold.”
“The unique eyewear had been made by Marysville native, Almer DeWitt Coe. Born in Union County Jan. 2, 1860, his father, Moses Coe, served as Allen Township Assessor in 1861 and 1865 and township trustee, 1867-68. His mother was Martha Boal of Marysville. Both are buried in Oakdale Cemetery.”
“Almer Coe moved to Chicago where he was founder and owner of Almer Coe & Company, jewelers and opticians. As such, he had personally crafted the glasses that had inadvertently fallen from the pocket of Nathan Leopold in a field near Hammond on the day of the murder. At the Leopold and Loeb trial in Chicago in 1924, Coe’s testimony sealed their fate. The self-annointed genius murderers were sentenced to life in prison. Loeb was murdered in Joliet Penitentiary in 1936. Leopold earned early release in 1958 after being incarcerated for 33  years. He died of natural causes in 1971.”
Carl’s relative, Almer Coe, is also known as the man who contracted for construction of the most prestigious home at the time in Marysville (and for many years to come). It was known as the Scott House (one of the later owners was O.M. Scott & Sons) and was located on the corner of W. Fourth and N. Maple streets. The company used it as a guest house and for entertaining. It is now owned privately. We’ll have more about that next week.

3/12/10
Underwood  and the Baltimore kids
A few weeks ago I told you the story of Grant Underwood (valedictorian of MHS class of 2005). After graduation from the Ohio State University he made a two-year commitment to teach in the Baltimore, Maryland school system as part of Teach for America, and worked on his master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University at the same time.
He has taken his world of Marysville, Ohio, a semi-rural community of about 17,000 people mostly Caucasian, to the inner city school system of Baltimore, where his students are all black. Grant says they are very interested in our life here as it is so different from theirs. They know the school they are assigned to is offering them only the basics. He is teaching English to seniors who have few textbooks, whose attendance is sparse at times and many of whom are members of gangs.
Now, more news from Grant and his “failing” high school. He reports, “Since the last time we’ve talked, Baltimore City Public Schools made a rather significant announcement, recently declaring that my high school, Doris M. Johnson, would close next year due to its poor performance. We are the only high school in Baltimore city closing its doors next year. Although we’ve done all we can to keep the students’ spirits high, I suspect that many have internalized the “failing” stigma that is no fault of their own. The way I see it, the students are not the reason the school is failing and closing; the failures are indicative of the educational inequity surrounding our underfunded and under supported school.”
Grant is the perfect supporter of his students and he says, “The kids are still going strong, though. One of my students and her friends tried to stop the decision, forming a Facebook group called ‘Fight!!! for DMJ.’ Others are reflecting on the closure in my class: When the announcement was made we were just starting a persuasive writing unit. As a result of the decision, many students decided to write about ‘what makes a good school,’ citing the Baltimore City news articles, their experiences in the school, and literature we have read about education/imperialism as evidence.”
If you know Grant, who grew up in Marysville, you respect him as a kind and knowledgeable person who is undoubtedly doing all he can with the resources available in this situation.
40 years ago letters
I have had much response to the stories I have written about “40 years ago in Marysville.” Here are two that deal with the early days of the Journal-Tribune and the hot metal process of producing the newspaper. The first is from Shirley Hadley from Pittboro, Ind.
She said, “Enjoyed reading today’s Off the Hook. I worked at the Journal-Tribune in 1957-58 in the old building. Shoveled snow off the sidewalks in Dec. 57-Jan. 58. Guess I was bored.”
“I ran the perforator machine in the back. It was a tape with perforations in it and was used to print type from, I believe. Can’t remember the process, has been too long. Win Behrens was publisher, Clara Miller, Helen Wilson and others were reporters. Don Streng and Shade Watkins also worked in the back.”
This one is from Brenda Hill Cronin who now lives in Jamestown, N.C. “I read your article about moving to Marysville. My grandfather, LeRoy Andrews, was the one who was in the basement melting the lead that was used for the hot metal system. There was no AC in those days and it would be stifling hot. He would come home with metal shards all in his clothes. They lived right up the alley on Court Street. He worked there probably until his death in 1964. His son Roy Andrews still lives in Marysville on North Lewisburg Road.
If you missed these stories just go to Marysvillejt.com. Click on Off The Hook and then on archives. Scroll down until you see them.

3/5/10
Thailand — Joe’s way
It all began when he agreed to see Thailand with a college roommate. The trip had its anxious moments but would change his life. Joe Chapman, general manager/partner of Bob Chapman Ford in Marysville, has seen a completely different world — 30 hours away by plane.
He says the people of Thailand are all about love, respect and kindness. In the airport a sign even says, “Welcome to the land of smiles,” and that’s how he feels when he remembers the two-week journey. When I talked to him, I could feel the warmth and excitement in his story, which is amazing when you hear the next part.
Joe’s friend had been to Thailand before so he could serve as tour guide, but they also traveled separately for awhile. Joe spent some time in Bangkok and took a plane to Phuket, then a ferry to the Phi Phi Islands and Maya Bay. Even though all were beautiful places, there was danger.
While on Phi Phi (pronounced pee pee), Joe purchased a white guitar in an area where there were many shops and sat down on a bench to try it out. Other musicians gathered around (some from Australia), then a crowd gathered to listen. It went on for seven hours.
Later that evening Joe awakened with pain in his ankle — it was the size of a cantaloupe! He knew he needed help so at 4 a.m. he began a search, which lasted about 3 hours, for a hospital. Remember, this is on a tiny island in another part of the world. He asked the “night people” for directions and was told to take a path through the jungle to the other side of the island. He said it was the scariest night of his life. His trek through the jungle included bats and mosquitoes flying at him, plus wild dogs. When he finally found the hospital, the doors were unlocked, but there seemed to be no one there.
He walked through what appeared to be an empty hospital and finally found a young man asleep on a mat. He actually had to awaken him and found out he was an assistant. He got a female doctor to look at Joe. She told him, in broken English, that he had been bitten by a scorpion, pointing to the bite on his foot. In just five minutes she had given him a shot of penicillin, which you can beg for in the U.S., but hardly ever get, and issued him an assortment of pills to take.
Those who treated him wanted cash for their medical services and so, after paying them, his money was nearly gone. In order to get money wired to him he took his computer in search of wifi service. He then got onto Facebook, contacted his friends on that service and asked them to contact Bob Chapman Ford to wire him some money immediately. Time was of the essence. Sometimes technology can be great and even with a 12-hour difference between Phi Phi and Marysville, all this worked out and Joe was able to get some cash to continue his trip.
He can’t seem to say enough kind words about the Thai people. He says they make everyone feel welcome and comfortable. “You feel like you’re in God’s hands there,” Joe said. “When asked for directions, people don’t just tell you where to go, they take you.”
Their theory of life, according to Joe, is giving and forgiving. It makes you happy and the world a better place. He says the people feel that it gives a person bad mental energy to carry around negative feelings and it’s very important to forgive.
He also observed that there seemed to be few rules in their society. For instance, there are no posted speed limits. He rarely saw a policeman and drugs were available to those who wanted them, but no one seemed to abuse them or discuss what was going on. He was approached several times and he said “ no Kap,” meaning no thank you, and made the motion of putting his hands together as if he were praying and nodding his head to his hands. This is apparently an important gesture which means, I respect you, but no thank you. One must make these gestures or people are insulted and could overreact.
While traveling, Joe also saw a massive Buddha of white marble under construction on top of a mountain. The project cost was $18 million. People could make donations of marble tiles and write a note on the inside of it to be placed on the outside of the Buddha. He also ran 
into a man on the street with seven wild elephants just being held by their ears. No chains were involved. Joe was able to touch the elephants and sit on them. He noticed they were not trained but well cared for and not smelly either.
Joe’s impressions are, one can buy anything in the world in Thailand for apparently very little money. It’s a beautiful country everywhere you look and he can’t wait to return to the “land of smiles.”

2/26/10
Gibson helps Bangladesh
Brad Gibson, vice president of communications and marketing at Union Rural Electric in Marysville, is currently stationed in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in an effort to aid that country in establishment of electric power. A few weeks ago Brad detailed how hard life is in this part of the world. This is an update on his experiences there.
His job, as a consultant, is to help improve communications for the 70 distribution electric cooperatives (locally called PBSs) throughout the country. Dhaka, the capital, is ranked the second worst city in the world in an annual global survey of livability that assesses living conditions in 140 cities. According to a survey conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), a business information arm of The Economist Group, publisher of the respected magazine bearing its name, the Bangladeshi capital is just ahead of Harare, Zimbabwe.
The survey found the city of 13 million people scoring below average marks in five broad categories that citizens most care about: Stability, healthcare, culture/environment, education and infrastructure.
This is the atmosphere Brad is trying to work in.
He has made friends and one owns the home he describes here:
“I have visited a private home and it consists of a single room that is approximately 12 feet by 12 feet. There are a few rooms in the complex that share cooking and bathroom facilities. This room was the living quarters for a family of four and they seemed perfectly pleased with their accommodations here in Dhaka. As a matter of fact, the father, whom I see daily, is one of the happiest people I have ever met in my life; a truly incredible man. They also informed me that they had a three-room home in their village, but that their work took them to Dhaka where they could earn increased wages.”
“They told me that they paid approximately 3,500 Taka per month to rent the room, which is equivalent to approximately $50 U.S. dollars. They told me it was quite expensive because they chose to live in a very safe and nice part of town (which was accurate).”
I asked Brad about the treatment of women in this area of the world near India and Pakistan. He reported: “The country is predominantly Muslim, but unlike many perceptions the people are very open and accepting of other religions. Muslim women live a traditional  lifestyle and many cover their faces. With that said, women are making great strides and there is a strong focus among many businesses and in banking to empower women as employees and borrowers of money to help build their incomes. It appears this has been quite successful and is gaining momentum based on what I’ve seen and understood.”
Brad continued: “The weather is beginning to warm up here and yesterday was their first official day of spring. Once the heat arrives, the electric load shedding will increase dramatically and I’ve been told that there will be significantly more power interruptions and for an extended period of time.” He explained that load shedding is a result of having greater demand for electricity than can be produced. He said, “The capacity of electric generation in the country is approximately 5,500 Megawatts, but the actual generation (because of plants that are inefficient or out of commission) is approximately 3,500 to 4,000 Megawatts. On a daily basis the demand is much greater so there are rolling outages where they shut off your power.”
“This time of year there are many rural accounts that are temporarily activated to run pumps which irrigate rice fields and some other crops. Irrigation is different than what we do in the U.S. They literally turn on a deep well pump and flood the rice field and then turn the path for the water channel to another field and flood that as well. As this demand increases for the pump load and as the weather gets warmer, the length of load shedding increases. In rural areas this can equate to not having power 50 percent of the time they would like to use it. During peak months we anticipate two to four outages a day at our office, lasting about an hour, sometimes more. Fortunately we have a generator that can handle the critical load and keep us up and running.”
Brad is returning home for a month or so and will go back to Bangladesh several more times this year. I asked if he was glad he took on this project. He answered, “Absolutely. It is tremendously difficult to be away from my family, but it has enriched my life in ways I never imagined. I hope I am giving as much as I’m receiving. Sharing this experience with my family and my two-year-old son will hopefully help make him a stronger person and provide a foundation, which will give him a well-rounded global perspective. Our generation and certainly our children’s generation will inherit wonderful opportunities presented in difficult situations around the globe.”
More from Brad later on his trip back to Dhaka.

2/19/20
How our lives have changed
In the last decade much has changed in our world. That includes the effects of technology and environment, and more importantly and closer to home, Marysville has changed its appearance in the last 10 years. This column is devoted to local and worldwide changes and how it might have affected our lives.
Local shopping
In this category, Marysville has come a long way in the past decade. We now have several home improvement stores, new sports equipment outlets, a grocery superstore and it seems we have a bank on almost every corner. All of this makes it much easier for the residents of Union County to enjoy the convenience of doing business locally, something the Journal-Tribune always promotes.
New restaurants
Restaurant openings have been booming with the addition of chain restaurants and locally-owned full service dining establishments, and new ownership of several old restaurants featuring new menus. Plus, there are two new bakeries, one also offering sandwiches and the other mostly devoted to cakes and cookies.
Indoor swimming
The addition of the swimming pool at the local YMCA has been a huge benefit to local swim teams and also to those who enjoy water aerobics early in the morning. There are also people who just like to swim laps in the wintertime, such as former NCAA champ Jack Foster.
Journal-Tribune
In the last 10 years, the local newspaper has undergone many changes and one most obvious is the appearance of the newspaper. The front page (along with overall size) has changed several times over these 10 years. Also, as you probably noticed, advertising, especially for national companies, has evolved into color inserts which include coupons.
Instead of operating with a printing press in our own building, the J-T is now printed at the printing plant on the east side of town. All the pages are sent via a computer to the facility.
No movie
Sadly I have to say that a recent change is that we do not have a movie theater in town for the first time in many, many years. This is too bad and I hope that situation will be remedied sometime in the near future.
Worldwide temperature changes
It has been widely reported that global warming is ruining our world and causing melting ice in the tundra regions. I am here to say this is the coldest, most miserable winter I ever remember. Snowfalls are setting records in the Midwest and the east coast, and the time I spent in Florida this winter has evidenced record breaking cold there, too. Florida has had few days even in the 70s and had the longest extension of cold weather in more than 35 years. So much for the theory of global warming.
Airports
It’s not much fun to fly anymore. Remember when you didn’t have to take off your shoes or your jacket, and could take a bottle of water on the plane? Terrorists changed all that for us.
Alternative medicine
Not only acupuncture, but also herbal supplements and alternative ways of treating cancer have become much more accepted in mainstream medicine. Personally, I tried acupuncture this year for migraine headaches and have had welcome positive results.
Cell phones
It is reported that more than 85 percent of the population have cell phones. Many people have replaced land lines in their home. I find my cell phone to be the most handy gadget in the world, yet I would never replace my land line with it because many times it just doesn’t ring. People will say they called me and after checking, I will see there was a missed call, but no sound from my phone. It’s good, but not 100 percent effective.
Facebook
I admit I’m part of the social networking offered here, but only because I was pressured by my children to get on it and get into this interesting world. I rarely check it and am almost daily added on someone’s friend list. I usually agree to do that, but have to admit it’s not really part of my life.
Tattoos
If you’re between 20 and 40 you’re likely to have one of these things. It’s ink inserted under the skin — not always in an attractive manner. I don’t have one, but I know people really well who do and were pretty upset when they got them. I was informed by my dermatologist brother not to worry. He said, “When they’re tired of them they can now be taken off with a laser.” Maybe that makes them tolerable.
You will no doubt see some things listed here that have changed your life in the last 10 years. It will be interesting to see what the next 10 years brings.

2/12/10
Remembering a Valentine’s Day
When people say it’s a small world, everyone seems to understand the meaning. It’s a strange expression, but of course, what it means to most is that we’re all connected much more closely than we think. Recently I heard a story that brought all this to mind.
My friend, Helen Norris, is in Florida for the winter and she had to make a trip to a Laundromat because her washer was broken. This is in the area where they are staying and there are many washers and lots of people using the facilities. She was probably just a little unhappy for the inconvenience at the time, but she had a great experience because of the time spent doing her laundry in multiple loads.
Of course, if you’ve ever been to a Laundromat you know that it takes a little while and you have to sit there waiting for the clothes to be done in the washer then move them to the dryer. While you’re waiting, you need something to do, so Helen picked up a copy of “Women’s Day” magazine and noticed it was from February of 2000, unbelievably, 10 years ago.
There were many stories about the upcoming Valentine’s Day and she started reading them. Soon she came to one that really made her think. Here is what the story said:
“On June 6, 1999, we celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary and I’ll never forget it. The marquee on the theater said it all — Congrats to Henk and Marianne for our 25-year love story. As a surprise and after a six-month search, my husband had located a copy of the movie, ‘Love Story.’ Henk had reserved the entire theater for us and our two children, so we could all see the same movie that the two of us saw on our first date 28 years earlier (in the Netherlands).”
The story was signed Marianne and Henk Berbee, Marysville, Ohio.
Helen burst out laughing. How could this be? She is a good friend of Marianne Berbee’s, yet had no idea this happened 11 years ago. Marianne apparently entered her story in some sort of a contest that “Women’s Day” sponsored that year. Helen couldn’t wait to call Marianne, telling the story of this 10 year-old magazine that had been sitting somewhere all this time.
Helen considered this to be quite an unusual find, a strange experience and one that shows it really is a small world.
Hearts of the times
I consider this not only a sign of the times but also the idea, what is this world coming to? In these days close to Valentine’s Day, many people have a bowl of those tiny little candy hearts in their home. You remember them. They say things like “you’re cute,” “I love you” and “be mine.” But this time I had seen it all.
I expected to read all the cute sayings I mentioned, but now the world has really changed. I picked up one that said, “text me!” I knew that these were recently produced candies. This certainly isn’t an old bag of candy. Be sure and read the ones sitting around your house to see that love has really changed.
Randall’s Bakery revisited
Here’s a note from Tami Randall Wallace: “I received a phone call from my aunt who still lives in Marysville. She said that my grandfather’s bakery had been mentioned in your column entitled ‘40 years ago in Marysville.’ I looked up your column and found mention of some goodies that were my favorites as well. My grandmother lived in an apartment above the bakery and the smells were wonderful!
“Unfortunately, I never got to meet my grandfather, but Floyd Randall started Randall’s bakery and worked there until his death. The bakery was sold, but retained the Randall name. My father, Phil Randall, worked there as a baker, although thanks to World War II, he was not a consistent feature. My father would open his own Randall’s Bakery in Bellefontaine, Ohio. I grew up watching him bake and learning to appreciate good pastries.”
“Most of my father’s formulas (he did not call them recipes) died with him in 1983. I have a few that he had worked down to small enough quantities that my mother could make them at home. Please let your reader Joanne Rausch know that if she finds that recipe for sugar cookies I would like it as well. Thank you for reminder.”

2/5/10
Forty years ago in Marysville
  This week is a continuation of my memories of coming to Marysville 40 years ago. I was a young bride living in Marysville, which was very different from my native Columbus.
  I remember that in our first year of living in Marysville (my husband Dan and I), the Journal-Tribune was located at the corner of Fourth and Main Sts. as it is now, but on a different corner. It was on the other side of Fourth St. and the building is still there. It is a square brick building with the words Marysville Tribune carved into the stone above the front door.
  That building was owned not by my husband’s family, but by the Hubers, who had owned the Marysville Tribune. My husband’s grandfather, Bruce Gaumer, was owner of the twice-weekly Union County Journal and he eventually bought the Tribune, a daily paper, merging the two into the Marysville Journal-Tribune. It operated out of the Tribune building on the southwest corner of Fourth and Main streets.
  It was an old building even then and in fact the Journal-Tribune leased it from the Huber family. The front part was cut up into tiny offices with a small advertising office to the right and with my father-in-law’s (Publisher Winfield Behrens) tiny office on the same side. The news room was on the left side with four large desks somehow jammed inside. A large counter ran nearly the entire width of the building. Everything was cut up in nature, quite different from the large open building that is used today where communication is so much easier.
The back three-fourths of the building was where the printing actually took place, both for the newspaper and commercial printing. It was called a hot metal system and involved melting lead from things called pigs, which were 20-25 pounds, into thin strips which were called slugs I guess animal names were appropriate. Slugs with type were produced by a machine called a linotype. There were six linotypes and operators sat there typing out the actual words on a line of type (hence the name linotype). These hot metal strips of words and sentences were put together in a page format and transferred to the press, an ancient looking flatbed press which could print no more than eight pages at one time. It took about two hours to print the paper in those days and now it’s simply a matter of minutes with high-speed computer-run presses.
The hot metal system had been used for many decades and was a very dirty operation. Just as we came to town in 1969, newspapers were starting to change to what was called the offset method. It involved no hot metal or mess. Soon it became clear that this new system was the wave of the future and so the new building was built and opened in 1972 right across Fourth St. facing on Main (at the site of the old Sinclair gas station and Dr. Fred Calloway’s office). It is located across the street from the post office and still houses the newspaper operation today.
  There we had our own very fancy and modern press utilizing the offset process which used chemicals instead of hot lead. Now we print at a separate printing facility on the east side of town.
Just down the street from the newspaper office, I believe where Union Electronics is located today, was a store called Haffners. My memories of that place with its old fashioned creaky hardwood floors, open space and employees stationed around the room, brings me to what I thought was a funny story. All the ladies who worked there seemed to be at least the age of my grandmother. My recollection is that several would be in front standing and others would be in the back standing around the room presumably to help customers. I remember entering the store one day. I was in a hurry because it was the holiday season and I needed a bow maker. In those days — the early ‘70s — that would be a triangular plastic thing that you would wrap ribbon around and push a plug of plastic through the middle. That would then push into the box to decorate the Christmas present. Mine was lost or broken, so I was on a quest to find a new one as I entered Haffners that day.
I looked around quickly and did not see any, so I approached the nearest lady for help. I described what I was looking for and explained what it did. She looked directly at me and said, “Yes, yes, I believe I know what you’re talking about. We even had a lot of call for those last year.” Then she again turned to me and said, “But, we don’t have any.” So much for stocking things people ask for. I thought, OK, I am in a different world.
As I have said every time I’ve written one of these stories of the past, there was no better place than Marysville for children to grow up and for us to have great lives with great friends. I’m so glad that we made the decision to live in Marysville all these years.
More of my memories of Marysville will follow in the future.

1/29/10
Brad Gibson in Bangladesh
Brad Gibson, vice president of communications and marketing at Union Rural Electric in Marysville, is currently stationed in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in an effort to aid that country in establishment of electric power. He will make several trips there through this next year and has agreed to share some of his experiences from that country.
His position as a consultant is to help improve communications for the 70 distribution electric cooperatives (locally called PBSs) throughout the country. Collectively, they supply electricity to over 7 million accounts, and deliver the gift of power to over 49 million people.
Just to give you a little history, Bangladesh is 88 percent Muslim and was carved out of an area of Pakistan and India. This part of the world has been an area of turmoil for centuries. In 1971, riots and strikes broke out in East Pakistan as that area tried to establish the independent state of Bangladesh. Pakistan sent troops to quell the rebellion. The ensuing war was one of the shortest and bloodiest of modern times, with the Pakistan army occupying all major towns, using napalm against villages, and slaughtering and raping villagers. In 11 days it was all over and Bangladesh, the world’s 139th country, officially came into existence.
The new country experienced famine in 1973-74, followed by martial law, successive military coups and political assassinations. Finally a democracy was established and has  operated since 1996.
When I asked Brad about the climate, I expected to hear that it was hot and humid. Instead he informed me that there is a severe cold spell with temperatures in the low 40s, which is quite unusual (so much for global warming). He said there is no heat in buildings and many people do not have hard-walled homes and live without access to even a blanket. It is causing deaths among the feeble and elderly.
Then he talked about his living conditions : “In Dhaka (where I’m based out of and the capital of Bangladesh), they are quite westernized and I have a warm bed, air conditioning if necessary, warm water shower, and a comfortable living room and dining room. I stay in a guest house rather than a hotel. I am traveling outside of the capital this week and am staying in what has been described as the best accommodations available in Rangpur. Suffice it to say it would not qualify as a one star hotel in the United States. In the “deluxe” room they assigned me, I do have warm water, but the shower is only a head coming out of the wall and sprays over everything if used. There is a hole in the wall (apparently a window), but there is no glass or a screen covering it. That is unfortunate as the mosquitoes are plentiful and malaria is a very serious threat. Fortunately the bathroom door securely closes and I sleep under a net alongside my malaria prescription.”
“Having been in Rangpur for four days now, I have yet to see another Caucasian person. Some have said that makes me a celebrity, but I’d argue it might be more of a freak. The locals love to have their picture taken. Some are even brave enough to ask for a picture with me, but most just politely stare.”
Brad’s job has many hurdles to overcome. He said, “Millions of users are still in line to even be connected to the grid and live without power. Their wait continues as the demand for electricity in the country is over twice as much as what the power supply companies can currently deliver, which causes rolling outages throughout the day. This makes it very difficult for farmers running pumps and small business trying to increase capacity and count on equipment, and frustrates the end users. Additionally, theft of material (lines and transformers) is prevalent and causes additional unnecessary outages and costs which are hard to recover. Communications efforts will focus on explaining the cooperative business model and power supply issues. Thus far I have been submerging myself in the culture to better understand how they communicate and what methods of communication will potentially serve our purpose.”
“The average household income is somewhere around $1,200 per year and good jobs deliver incomes of around $2,400 per year. There are many millions of people in the country living in severe poverty with incomes considerably lower than the average. A country nearly the size of Iowa has approximately 160 million people — the crowds are almost constant and rickshaws line the streets of not only the city streets, but also the country roads.
More from Brad later as he shares his knowledge with the people of Bangladesh.

1/22/10
40 years ago in Marysville
A few weeks ago I started this series dealing with my first few years of living in Marysville. I came here in 1969 as a young bride of less than two years. Things were really different here than in Columbus where I grew up.
At that time I would say there were less than 10 doctors in Marysville and the general practitioners often covered the emergency room and assisted in surgery. There were no pediatricians, obstetricians or gynecologists.
Not long after we moved here, I was pretty sure I was pregnant. Instead of returning to my 0B-GYN doctor in Columbus, we decided our child should be born in the Marysville hospital and I needed a local doctor. It seemed to be widely held that Dr. Harold Stricker was great for baby deliveries, so that’s where my husband, Dan — who grew up in Marysville — thought I should go.
Oh my, it was an experience back in time just entering his office. I called for an appointment and I was told to come in at 1 p.m. So I did. His office was located in an old house about where the Richwood Bank is now on West Fifth St. I walked in and saw a large square room where metal chairs lined the outside walls and a small metal desk was at the end of the room. There was old, green tile on the floor. I stepped up to the lady (Madeline Robinson I would find out later) who was wearing nurse’s attire and said that I was a new patient. She said, “Have a seat,“ so I did.
I waited there while other people continued to fill the room and sit down in chairs. This went on and soon there were about seven prospective patients sitting in the chairs and no one seemed to have reported to the nurse.
Finally a nice looking older man came in from the side door and said to the nurse, “Who’s first?” She pointed to me and that was my first meeting with Dr. Stricker.
He was a little gruff at first and very businesslike. Later I would learn he was a kind, gentle person and became my friend. The examining table was quite high up in the air and the patient needed a large desk chair to climb onto the table. I thought, what am I doing here? It was a sparse office that looked like something from 1920s.
He soon told me I was going to have a baby and he would see me once a month until our baby was born. I left by another door with a prescription for prenatal vitamins.
As I returned each month, we went through the same procedure. Apparently no one really had an appointment at his office. They just came in, sat down and were seen in order. The patient would then leave through that other door.
All went well with this doctor and our son, Mike, was born in Marysville. Only natural childbirth was offered in those days and shortly after 1969 the Lamaze technique became more popular. Of course, we did not have the epidurals of today to relieve the pain of giving birth.
Since there was no pediatrician, Dr. Stricker took care of our son as did most of the family doctors in Marysville. They delivered them and cared for them until they were grown. This seemed to work well for the most part.
Marysville was a small town of about 5,000 people 40 years ago and even though close to Columbus it was quite self-sufficient. This was a wonderful place for our children to be educated and grow up and I’m so glad to have spent most of my life here.
The first of these columns a few weeks ago brought much comment from those living in Marysville a long time and also from some who had moved away and are subscribing to the newspaper by mail or reading it online.
One question came to mind from one of my readers, Joanne Rausch. Here’s what she had to say: “After reading your article it got me thinking and reminiscing. I remember Randall’s Bakery and fond memories of sugar cookies and the fried cinnamon rolls. Many times I have wondered if any recipes for these were available from anyone in town. They also had a wonderful cookie with nuts and a very distinctive taste. If any of your readers have these recipes to share I would appreciate it.”
I hope to have more of these memories of Marysville in the near future.

1/15/10
More with Grant in Baltimore
Last week I told you about Grant Underwood’s new job. He is a 2005 graduate of Marysville High School and last June graduated from the Ohio State University with a degree in English and a minor in music.
He joined a very select group of college grads in the Teach for America program. He received a cram course in six weeks this summer to learn to teach, and now is in the dysfunctional, failing school system of Baltimore, Maryland. There, he teaches English to seniors, many of whom read on a sixth grade level. Everyone there is black and he is now in the minority.
His job has been a challenge in every way and I can see he is up to it. Students do not have their own textbooks and attendance is a problem. It’s a world unlike any Grant has been used to and he has an opportunity to really affect the lives of these struggling students.
Now more about his school.
If there’s a behavior problem, there is no detention, actually no punishment of any kind in his school. Grant is responsible for handling problems in his class, but fortunately he seems to have been able to win students over. If you know Grant, you can appreciate his kind, honest nature and see that he would be a breath of fresh air to these kids.
Their grades are not A through F, but appear as a percentage. Grant is not allowed to give them less than 50 percent on the report card. It seems the students just move on each year and are finally passed on to graduation.
Grant had a lot of trouble understanding their names. For instance, he had three girls named Destiny all spelled in a different way. Students tend to mumble, so it was difficult to understand what they had to say and to know what their name was. Plus, students would make fun of him if he didn’t get their name right. So in the beginning, he decided to try a little white lie. He told them that he had a hearing loss in one ear and that they had to speak up and enunciate clearly for him to understand them. Obviously all resources have to come into play here.
Now if he gets the name wrong, half the students laugh and the other half are all over them saying, “Leave Mr. Underwood alone, he has a hearing loss — don’t make fun of him.” Grant considers this a minor victory.
In the beginning, this name recognition problem was complicated by the fact that everyone goes by a nickname in his class — often associated with their appearance. So they wanted to use those nicknames on their school papers and this became an impossible situation. Not only did he have trouble with their given names, but also they wanted him to learn nicknames, too! He put his foot down and now nothing but the proper name goes on the paper.
To help the new teachers in this difficult first year, mentors are available to meet with them during teachers planning time, which is actually set aside for them to get ready for the next day. They sit in on Grant’s class and offer suggestions. He says any help is welcome.
The school does not offer much in the way of extracurricular activities. There are the basic sports of football, basketball, track, and volleyball, but there is no band or a club of any kind. Grant actually discovered the old band room one day with the help of some of his students. That was used in better times. When inside, he saw that the ceilings were falling down, tables turned over, and the place generally needed a good cleaning. But there was an old piano there. Grant had told his students that he played and of course now they’re trying to coax him into piano lessons, which he’s considering in the future.
It’s a job that Grant seems to embrace and I can see he’s going to provide these young people with a view into another world — the one that Grant experienced as a student in Marysville High School.

1/8/10
Two worlds meet in Baltimore
He is a 2005 graduate of Marysville High School and valedictorian of his class. Last June he also graduated from the Ohio State University with a degree in English and a minor in music. That didn’t really prepare him for a teaching job, but that’s where Grant Underwood is at the moment. He was selected to teach through the Teach for America program and sent to the Baltimore, Maryland school system. As part of this program he also attends Johns Hopkins University in the evenings and some weekends working on his master’s degree in teaching (yes that’s what it’s called).
He has taken his world of Marysville, a semi rural community of about 17,000 people who are mostly Caucasian, to the inner city school system of Baltimore, where his students and much of the staff are black and where he is now in the minority. Grant says they are very interested in our life here as it is so different from theirs. They know the school they are assigned to is offering them only the basics.
This summer, the Teach for America teachers had a six week course on  how to teach. Most do not have education degrees. This is a program to help these failing schools and is very selective about those chosen. Grant is teaching seniors — about 80 of them a day. That’s if they come to school. Sometimes there are as few as five in class. Most have jobs after school.
This is a totally different world than where Grant grew up. It’s tough and the kids are tough. Many of his students are in gangs and some, even though they’re seniors, only read on a sixth grade level. Grant’s job is to bring some of his world and education to theirs and to affect their lives in a positive way.
His job is hard because the school is in sad condition. In his English class, students don’t have their own textbooks to take home. They share, reading during class. Students prefer to read out loud because that’s what they’re used to. Grant insists they learn to read silently, but the lack of textbooks is a big problem. He has been able to get together enough copies of Hamlet for everyone through donations from an outside group. Also the quota of office copying is already used up for the year, so teachers often pay for copies of material at outside sources — all on a first year teacher’s salary.
It gets worse. In his high school, there’s currently no math teacher. Two quit their jobs and the third one is on maternity leave, so the math classes are being monitored by substitutes who have little math training. It often turns into more of the study hall situation or the students come and spend an extra hour in Grant’s class or in the Spanish teacher’s class.
At the end of last year, all the teachers were fired in his school because there has been no progress for several years and it is known as a dysfunctional and failing school. The classes are now manned by many of these new teachers from Teach for America plus a few who were able to be rehired.
Grant said he has never felt more fortunate to be a graduate of Marysville High School. There he had books. Then there were the teachers who have been there so long that his father had them for class. In Baltimore, students are in a constant state of change.
Next week more with Grant Underwood and the Baltimore kids!
My wish for you in 2010
May peace break into your home and may thieves come to steal your debts. May the pockets of your jeans become a magnet for $50 bills.
May love stick to your face like Vaseline and may laughter assault your lips! May happiness slap you across the face and may your tears be that of joy.
May the problems you had forget your home address! In simple words — may 2010 be the best year of your life.

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