Generations Making a difference in the community
A local leader in communication By Dustin Melchior
W
ell known throughout Lawrence County, Dr. Dave Lucas recently began taking his knowledge of the communication field into practice. “I taught communication really all my life. I started teaching at Marshall University, and then I taught at Kentucky Christian University. I have my PhD in communication,” he said. “For more than 28 years, I taught other students how to make a living doing communication and, a couple of years ago, I decided that I was going to actually do it myself.” He added that, when he saw live Internet streaming come about, he realized that was going to be the future. “I had one more chapter I wanted to write in my life,” he said. “Instead of teaching communication, I decided I was going to go out and do it.” Lucas started Dave Lucas Communication Inc. in 2015, filing all of the paperwork and completing all of the necessary procedures, although he said it took until 2016 to really take off. “I wanted to start this in order to be able to get information out to the consumer in an effective, but affordable, fashion. It’s important to get the message out in real time, without having a middle man or anyone having to edit anything,” he said. “We have seven people working for the company right now, and we’ve worked for local political candidates, U.S. Senate candidates, county commissions, organizations and agencies.” One of the first jobs of Lucas’ company was to begin live streaming the Lawrence County Commission meetings on Facebook Live, which made Lawrence County the first in Ohio to broadcast commission meetings. “That was extremely satisfying, exciting and gratifying,” Lucas said of the accomplishment. “Lawrence County was the first, the one that stared it all. It’s something that the commissioners should be very proud of for being pioneers for this practice.” Another thing that Dave Lucas Communication produces is its “All Points” program on Facebook at 6 p.m. each Thursday, in which political candidates, business leaders or others have a chance to talk about their plans or get their information out to the public. “It’s important for us to rethink the way we govern, and the public deserves to know where and how governments are doing things and spending money,” he said. “Our company can deliver that in a very effective and affordable manner.” Dave Lucas Communication Inc. has its own studio, located at 710 Park Ave., Suite 3, in Ironton, and offers sound recordings, video recordings, digital advertising work and more. Lucas also said that the company has a partnership with 98.3 WPAY in Portsmouth, and produces all of their Facebook and digital work. In addition to the communication company, Lucas is also very involved with Boy Scouts, specifically Ironton Boy Scout Troop 106, having been a scout leader for 24 years.
A supplement to
Weekend Edition | April 28-29, 2018
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GENERATIONS
THE TRIBUNE
WEEKEND EDITION, APRIL 28-29, 2018
Ironton man has many trades, knack for getting involved By Mark Shaffer
M
ike Pearson is not the type of guy to just be sitting around. Never
was. He grew up in Alabama, where his dad worked for NASA. The family moved to Ironton and attending Ironton High School, he took machine shop and then, after school, went to work at Ironton Machine. He was also in the Navy Reserves during his last year of high school. He worked at the machine shop after graduating in 1967 and stayed there until 1974, when he got a job at Marathon oil refinery in Catlettsburg, Kentucky. “I’m a journeyman machinist,” he said, explaining that he served a seven-year-long apprenticeship. He said being a machinist at an oil refinery was not a job for the faint of heart. “One mistake and there is a greasy spot where you used to be,” Pearson said. As for what he did, it was anything mechanical. “If it moves round and round or side to side, you would take care of it,” he said. While on his second day of the job at the plant, he ended up becoming part of the refinery’s fire squad. He was working on a compressor and a heat exchanger blew up.
THE TRIBUNE/JESSICA ST JAMES
Lawrence County resident Mike Pearson displays his 13 Red Cross pins. Each pin represents a gallon of blood donated. “Everyone else ran. I stood there and looked at, from my Navy training, I knew what to do,” Pearson said. He walked over and put water on the control lines as the fire chief watched. “He came over, put his big paw on me and said ‘who are you? I don’t know you.’ I said I had started Monday. He goes “Guess what, you’re on the fire department.’ So, I spent 19 years on the fire department.” Because of his experience of being a fire fighter at Marathon, he ended up as
chief of Hamilton Township Fire Department for 20 years. He was also in the Navy Reserves from 1964 to 1986. “I don’t give up,” he said. One thing that Pearson is particularly proud of is that the Red Cross has documented him as having donated a lot of blood. “I got the 13-gallon pin last year,” he said, adding when he got it, the Red Cross sent him a letter congratulating him and telling him that his donations could have saved as many as 312 lives. “It’s probably more than 13
gallons. I’ve been donating since I was in the Navy, and that’s about 50 years. The Red Cross didn’t keep track of donations like they do now until the 1980s.” Pearson said he has donated so much blood because he has a rare type of blood. “I’m O negative, I can give to anyone,” he said. “The Red Cross has a use for it, before I even give it.” He retired from Marathon after 32 years. He now splits his time between Ironton in Bloom, Ironton aLive, Heritage Farm
on the weekends and his woodworking shop. He joined Ironton In Bloom in 2011. He’s the one in charge of ordering trees and making sure they get planted at various locations around Ironton as part of an ongoing beautifying project. “I’m the one that, basically, dreams up things for us to do,” he said, pointing out it was his idea for Ironton in Bloom to give out free food at the Ironton Farmers Market on the second Saturday of the month and then ask people to make a donation, if they were so inclined. “Turned out it was one of our better fundraisers.” Pearson spends his weekends at Heritage Farms outside of Huntington. The 50-acre farm recreates life in the 1800s. “I work at the industrial museum, I take care of the machine shop, the coal mine and stuff like that,” he said. “I really enjoy showing children how the machines from then work.” Pearson also considers himself an Appalachian artist. His specialty is crafting doors. “If you have an old house, the doors are weird sizes,” he said. That means the homeowner just can’t go to a store and order a door that fits properly. “One of the doors I built was 9 1/2 feet tall and 7 feet wide. And it was in a crooked hole, the stone had moved over the years. It was something to build.”
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‘It’s like a family’ GENERATIONS
WEEKEND EDITION, APRIL 28-29, 2018
THE TRIBUNE
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10-member board keeps senior center running
By Heath Harrison
C
HESAPEAKE — Sybene-Chesapeake Senior Center director Darlene Green said nothing that happens at the facility would be possible without the help of her board. The 10 members of the senior center, Betty Kiogima, Bob Kiogima, Janice Bills, Mary Nance, Bill Nance, Carl Murdock, Lorene Plybon, Donna Plybon and Donna McClure, meet once a month to plan activities for the facility, located next to the Chesapeake Community Center. “They put their heads together and work,” Green said. “They are very special to me and have my back.” The group works on fundraising, as well as organizing activities, such as the center’s monthly Our Day dinners at First Baptist Church in Proctorville or trips to the Amish country. This fall, the center will celebrate its fifth anniversary. Soon, they will be moving to a new facility, with funds recently approved from the state to build a new center at the Lawrence County Fairgrounds. Construction is expected to begin after the county fair ends in July. “We enjoy every minute of it,” Bills said of the group’s work, adding that everyone is a volunteer. “It’s like a family.” Bill Murdock describes their work as “seniors helping seniors” and many in the group agreed with the sense of community and the bonds they have formed. “When we first walked in here, we didn’t know each other,” Betty Kiogina said. “But, pretty soon, we couldn’t wait to come back.”
THE TRIBUNE/JESSICA ST JAMES
Pictured lower left and working clockwise are Lorene Plybon, Mary and Bill Nance, Darlene Green, Carl Murdock, Bob Kiogima, Janice Bills and Betty Kiogima from the Sybene-Chesapeake Senior Center.
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GENERATIONS
THE TRIBUNE
WEEKEND EDITION, APRIL 28-29, 2018
Faith motivated Wyngate resident’s move from China to U.S. After fleeing communist oppression, couple established life in Huntington By Heath Harrison
R
OME TOWNSHIP — Lily Fae’s story begins in Indonesia, where she was one of nine children. When she was 14, she said her mother took the family to China. Fae studied in Shanghai to be a nurse and worked for nine years in the profession. Following the communist takeover of the country, she said she found herself at odds with the new government and she and her husband, Peter Fae, left for Hong Kong. “They don’t have God,” Fae said of the communist system. “I couldn’t stand it.” The couple stayed in Hong Kong for two years, until Peter applied for a scholarship in the U.S. They first arrived in the country in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where her husband studied linguistics and literature and received his PhD. It was at that point when he was invited to Huntington, West Virginia. “They took him to see the head of Marshall,” Fae said. “They saw that he spoke English very well and they offered him a job. He said ‘OK, I’ll take it.’” Peter worked at the school as a professor for 32 years before retiring in 1999.
Fae, who speaks six languages – Indonesian, Cantonese, Mandarin, Southern Chinese, Shanghainese and English. said she worked in Huntington first in a hospital, before taking a job at a doctor’s office, which she preferred, getting weekends off. She also ran a business at Heritage Station in Huntington, which she describes as “an Oriental Shop,” until 1999. While she said shopping traffic dropped off downtown with the opening of the Huntington mall, it remained popular with bus tours through the city. She said she and her husband returned to China for a visit in 1979. The couple were married for 55 years until Peter’s death in 2013. Fae has resided at the Wyngate at RiversEdge senior living community in Rome Township since September 2017, after first living at the facility’s Barboursville location. A devout Christian, she said she takes comfort from listening to spiritual songs on television and Youtube. A necklace around her neck, featuring an “A” and “O” serves as show of her faith. “It’s alpha and omega,” she said. “Because God is the beginning and the end.”
THE TRIBUNE/HEATH HARRISON
Lily Fae has been a resident at the Wyngate at RiversEdge senior living community in Rome Township since September 2017.
Health care costs in retirement: Can you separate fact from fiction? (BPT) — As their 65th birthday looms, many people eagerly anticipate the affordable access to health care that Medicare will provide. After all, Medicare covers everything, right? Not exactly. Because of this common misconception, many people are caught off guard when they realize that each one of the dozens of Medicare options available to them comes with its own set of out-ofpocket cost implications. In fact, a survey of the newly retired found 43 percent are spending more on health care than they had planned. Think you’re savvy enough to discern myth from fact when it comes to your health care costs in retirement? Read on to put your knowledge to the test. Myth: When comparing Medicare plans, it’s best to choose the lowest-premium option to help minimize your costs. Fact: While premiums are an important factor when choosing a health care plan, they should not be the only factor - or necessarily the most important either. Sometimes a low monthly premium option comes with higher out-of-pocket costs or lacks benefits and services that are important to you. It’s best to understand the total costs of a plan - including the deductibles, copays and coinsurance - as well as any benefit limitations
that could increase your costs. For example, if the hospital you use isn’t in a plan’s network, you’ll likely incur higher costs if you choose to access care there. If you like to exercise and stay active, a plan that covers a fitness center membership could save you the expense of a monthly gym membership. Want to see a dentist or optometrist? Original Medicare likely won’t cover that care, meaning you’ll have to pay for it out-of-pocket, unless you choose a Medicare Advantage plan with dental and vision coverage. Myth: If I enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan, I will pay only one premium. And if my plan has a $0 premium, I won’t have to pay any premium at all. Fact: The simplicity of Medicare Advantage is one of the reasons enrollment in these plans has grown so dramatically. Many people appreciate the convenience of wrapping all of their Medicare coverage into one plan and having just one card in their wallet. That said, choosing Medicare Advantage doesn’t mean you’re totally off the hook in terms of paying monthly premiums. You are still responsible for paying your Part B premium. In 2018, the standard Part B premium is $134, but it may be higher or lower depending on your income. Myth: There isn’t much you can do to con-
tain or manage health care costs. It’s mostly up to chance or luck. Fact: While no one can predict or completely control their future health care needs, you can take steps to protect yourself from high health care expenses. Choosing a Medicare plan that limits the amount you spend on health care costs during the year is one option to consider. Look for plans with an out-of-pocket maximum, which is the most you will pay for covered services in a year. Once you reach that amount, your plan will cover 100 percent of the cost of the Medicarecovered services you receive, and you’ll pay only your premiums. Medicare Advantage plans and two Medicare supplement plans include out-of-pocket maximums.
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WEEKEND EDITION, APRIL 28-29, 2018
GENERATIONS
Resident praises Wyngate care By Heath Harrison
R
O M E TOWNSHIP — Maida Russell Chapman said she came to the Wyngate at RiversEdge senior living community in December 2016 and knew what to expect. Her second husband, Bernard Chapman, had stayed in the facility for 84 days prior to his passing and she said he had been in excellent hands at the facility. “I was with him every day and put him to bed,” she said, stating that she stayed for the full length of visitation hours each day Maida was born in 1927 in Bradrick, West Virginia. A 1944 graduate of Chesapeake High School, she said, at the age of 17, took business classes, learning shorthand and typing and got a job in Huntington, working from 1944-1953, until the birth of her children with her first husband Joe Russell, a World War II veteran who served at Iwo Jima. The couple married in 1947 and were together for 43 years until his death in 1990. Maida said she returned to work after her oldest son went to college in the 1960s. Following Joe’s death, Maida said she was “alone for 17 years until Bernard Chapman came calling.”
THE TRIBUNE
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Custom settings make smartphones easy, accessible to older users (BPT) - The digital generation gap is slowly narrowing, as older users come to more fully grasp smartphone technology and appreciate its many benefits. New technologies make it easier than ever to maintain social contacts, monitor health and preserve independence. According to Pew Research, 85 percent of adults over age 65 own cellphones today, and the number who own smartphones has risen from 18 percent to 42 percent since 2013. Some phones are marketed specifically as being for older users, experts say that these specialized gadgets sometimes over-promise and under-deliver. In fact, ordinary Android devices and iPhones are more popular choices, as they’re economical, easy to find and customizable. There are countless amazing tasks a smartphone can perform, but the biggest advantage is that they can be fully customized to meet the unique requirements of nearly any user. By spending just a few minutes adjusting settings, a device’s functionality can be made as simple or robust as you need it to be. Today’s smartphones include a variety of powerful accessibility features that make them incredibly user-friendly. On an iPhone, go to Settings > General > Accessibility to find many convenient options, such as closed captioning on apps that support it, and a built-in magnifier that uses the phone’s camera. Android phones have a menu of similar functions, which can be found under Settings > Advanced > Accessibility. Samsung models even offer an “Easy Mode,” which configures the Home screen with a simpler layout and bigger icons to provide an easier experience for first-time smartphone users. More adventurous users may even want to explore digital assistants like Google Assist, or Apple’s Siri, which respond to voice commands.
Rehab that gets you back to living
THE TRIBUNE/HEATH HARRISON
Maida Russell Chapman has been a resident at the Wyngate at RiversEdge senior living community in Rome Township since December 2016. The two had gone to high school together, but did not really know each other at the time, she said. They were married a year later, in 2007, when he was 81 and she was 80. Maida said she enjoys her time at the Wyngate, taking part in exercise sessions several times a week.
“You’ve got to keep moving,” she said. “I go every day.” She had particular praise for the food. “I have a great breakfast, and lunch is the best meal of the day,” she said. She is a member of Beulah Baptist Church, which she still attends on Sunday mornings.
Of her care at the Wyngate, Maida said the staff is attentive. She points to the alert button she wears, which she said she can press and someone will arrive to help “within minutes.” “I knew what it was like before I came here myself,” she said. “It’s great. You could not ask for better care.”
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GENERATIONS
WEEKEND EDITION, APRIL 28-29, 2018
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