19th Street Magazine May 2022

Moore Lions New Football Coach

Greg Bryant

Sooner Women’s Gymnastics

National Champions

Veteran of the Month

JoAnn Banse

May 2022 • Issue 5 • Volume 5

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Features

MAY CONTENTS 2022

ISSUE 5– VOLUME 5 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Mark Doescher

Visible Connections

10 by Callie Collins

MANAGING EDITOR Lindsay Cuomo

Moore Chamber of Commerce is rebranding with the broader community in mind.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Mark Doescher Kacie Long

CONTRIBUTORS

Minding the Money

14 by Lindsay Cuomo

Long-time MPS staffer Connie Bollig retires after two decades working in the athletic department.

Rich in Resources

18 by Sharla Bardin

14

Sharla Bardin | Callie Collin Lindsay Cuomo | Josh Helmer Chelsey Kraft | Steve Marshall Bill Moakley | Chris Plank

ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES

Trevor Laffoon - trevor@sportstalk1400.com Perry Spencer - perry@sportstalk1400.com

PUBLISHER

Casey Vinyard

Technology center’s workforce programs, community partnerships assist businesses.

A New Era for Lion Football

24 by Steve Marshall

Moore Lions hire new football coach.

Comeback Queens

28 by Chris Plank

In a year they were doubted, Sooner women gymnasts storm back to take the title.

24

19th Street Magazine 2020 E. Alameda Norman, Oklahoma 73071 Phone: (405) 321-1400 E-mail: 19thstreetmagazine@gmail.com Copyright © 19th Street Magazine Any articles, artwork or graphics created by 19th Street Magazine or its contributors are sole property of 19th Street Magazine and cannot be reproduced for any reason without permission.

Any opinions expressed in 19th Street are not necessarily that of 19th Street management.

Goal Achieved

34 by Josh Helmer

Ethan Loepke and Southmoore achieve goal of winning the soccer City Championship.

Barry & Becky Switzer

38 by Chelsey Kraft

Oklahoma royalty discusses their involvement with search and rescue dogs.

Normalizing the Stigma with

45 Preventative Care

28

by Lindsay Cuomo Mental health screenings integrated into primary care.

Veteran of the Month

50 JoAnn Banse

by Bill Moakley Veteran JoAnn Banse shares about her time in the Air Force and at the Pentagon.

sportstalk1400.com

38

Cover photo by: Mark Doescher

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COM M U N I T Y

Visible Connections T he Moore Chamber of Commerce has a lot to celebrate this year. They been hard at work to raise visibility, an effort intended to underscore its vital role as a center for business and community connections. A rebrand has come to recent fruition, with a new logo to represent its purposeful mission.

The effort came about as part of the Chamber’s strategic planning efforts, based on focus group feedback.

“It was time for a refresh,” said President and CEO Kim Brown. “Our previous logo had been around for about 10 May 2022

15 years. We took the information gathered on how participants view the Chamber and brought it all together as we were developing the brand. Kelly Arnold, our director of development and engagement, worked with our stakeholders to put together a design.”

The new logo, which is already in use, will have a soft launch as new materials are developed.

“A lot of the conversation was about being visible in the community and creating a look that was recognizable,” said Brown. “We are focused on becoming more

BY: CALLIE COLLINS

Moore Chamber of Commerce is rebranding with the broader community in mind relevant in the day-to-day business community within the 101 square miles serving Moore Public Schools with broad marketing opportunities available to us and to our members.”

A new tagline, “Promote. Connect. Advocate” accompanies the use of the logo. The significance of the words reflects The Chamber’s top three strategic goals. Telling members’ stories, helping them find opportunities and resources and being a voice for issues impacting the Moore community, including legislative advocacy, are elements expressed within that phrase.

Within the logo, the “M” of “MOORE” represents business and a subtle handshake is visible.

As part of the overall rebranding effort, a revamped website with a sleek and modern look and feel is anticipated soon. The purpose of the redesign is to offer a more user-friendly experience, with better mobile optimization.

A new dues structure and a “shop local” campaign are also on the horizon.

“The logo speaks to each one of us a little differently, but it represents those connections we have and encourage every day,” said Brown. “When our members are out within the community, they refer to us as home and family. We are that connector between the businesses and the community. Our goal is to be part of their success.” –19SM

The three goals are also represented in the logo’s three diamonds, which interconnect. The blue and green diamonds represent “promote” and “advocate,” while the yellow diamond joins all three to represent the word “connect.”

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19TH STREET MAGAZINE | 11

Hello

We have something for EVERYONE in May...

Check out our premier events below and register at MooreChamber.com.

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COM M U N I T Y

C

onnie Bollig has served as secretary to the athletic director and financial clerk for Moore Public Schools athletic department since the spring of 2000. She started working with the district in another administrative role in 1993.

“Connie Bollig has been the mainstay and backbone of Moore Public Schools’ athletics for many years,” said Brian Fitzgerald, athletics director for Moore Public Schools. “She has done an outstanding job of taking care of all thing’s athletics for our kids and coaches.”

After more than two decades, she is retiring at the end of the school year.

During her tenure, Bollig has been witness to several major milestones including various personnel changes, the addition of a sixth junior high and a third high school as well as the installation of artificial turf at Moore Schools Stadium.

“I remember it was a really big deal because we were one of the first in our part of the state to have it,” Bollig remembered. “Everyone was talking about it. It was exciting to be a part of that, helping to get the bond approved.”

Minding the Money Photos by: Kacie Long

Conne Bollig, right, and her husband Dale

14 May 2022

All three schools currently play at Moore Schools Stadium so the investment in the artificial surface has impacted thousands of student athletes since its installation in the early 2000s, maximizing the stadium’s ability to accommodate more practices and competitions, including hosting state championships.

Bollig said her focus has been on stretching the valuable department dollars “to make sure the kids have what they need to compete.”

“I have the fun job of taking care of all the money, making sure we were always prudent with our tight budget,” she shared. “The department is all about the kids and that has always driven me to make sure we have everything we need so the kids can get what they need to play.”

BY: LINDSAY CUOMO

Long-time MPS staffer Connie Bollig retires after two decades working in the athletic department

She also coordinated team schedules, a complex task since so many sports and schools use the one stadium.

While competition is meant to be fun and offer a sense of school pride, she has seen firsthand another important benefit.

“Athletics motivates kids to do well in school,” she said, something she saw in her own children, too.

Bollig and her husband of 44 years, Dale, have three grown children, all of whom competed in various sports during high school and two played in college.

“Our lives were built around sports,” Bollig said. “My husband and I are big baseball fans. Our boys played baseball and our daughter ran track and played basketball.”

Described as small but mighty by Bollig, the athletic department serves every student athlete in the district. sportstalk1400.com

“In our department, there are three staff members and, of course, the facilitators at each of the high schools and junior highs but every athlete is impacted by what is going on in our office,” she explained. “We are for the kids; they are No. 1.”

“As coaches, we always want to leave a place better than we found it, whether that is after a game or match,” Fitzgerald said. “Connie has definitely left the athletic department in a better place! The knowledge, background and expertise she possesses will certainly be missed and not easily replaced.”

In retirement, Bollig looks forward to traveling, watching her granddaughter play softball, gardening and caring for the cows on the family farm, but perhaps most of all, sleeping in.

“It’s going to be fun to wake up when I want,” she joked.– 19SM 19TH STREET MAGAZINE | 15

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Rich in Resources

Technology center’s workforce programs, community partnerships assist businesses

M

oore Norman Technology Center offers a wealth of resources to help established businesses and emerging entrepreneurs.

“We’re here to help people,” said Tim Burg, economic developer at the center. “We want people to be successful.”

Burg works with the center’s workforce and economic development team that offers customized employee training, small business development and coaching, along with access to trained graduates available for internships or hire.

Burg said he sees the center as “the glue that ties a lot of businesses, institutions and individuals together.”

These connections are some of the reasons he encourages business owners to reach out to the center to learn how the district’s students, schools, companies and communities can work together. Burg also said he sees himself as “a connector of dots” for businesses.

18 May 2022

When a business owner or representative contacts him with a need, Burg looks at the tools and partnerships available at the center, such as full-time courses, customized training or specialized programs, along with other resources to offer assistance.

“It’s customizing our services to the needs of business,” he said. Burg said another focus of his job is business retention and expansion.

“Let’s take care of those already here, plus set the stage to help new businesses that come in,” said Burg, who has 20 years of experience in economic development.

Deidre Ebrey has worked with the center in her role as director of public affairs and economic development for the City of Moore and sees the center as an asset for the region’s business community.

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training to meet employer needs is what MNTC does best and is often used as an incentive when recruiting businesses to our community,” Ebrey said.

Ebrey encourages businesses to learn more about the center’s workforce and training programs and the convenience of those services.

“Whether the training takes place on-site at the business or employees need to take classes at one of the two MNTC campus locations, quality training is available within a 10-minute drive time,” she said.

Burg said helping businesses in the area succeed is beneficial to those who live and work here, be it through job opportunities for employees and revenue growth for communities. He sees the technology center as a vital piece of that economic picture.

“The passion of the leadership team that we have here is to help those around us,” he said, adding that he believes the center can serve as “a wellspring for a lot of people to have a better life and a better career.”

Moore Norman Technology Center provides professional business consultation and training to companies in Moore, Norman and parts of Oklahoma. For more information about the resources available to businesses, contact Tim Burg at tim.burg@mntc.edu or call 405-801-5896.-19SM

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HI GH S CH O O L S P ORTS

NE W E RA

for Lion Football

T

Moore Lions hire new football coach

he Moore Lions recently announced that they have hired Greg Bryant as their new head coach for the upcoming football season.

man front and we’ll be an aggressive team on both sides of the ball. We will be an effort-based team based on what we believe in.

Bryant is a former player and 1999 graduate from Edmond Santa Fe High School. He calls himself, “an O-Line, D-Line kind of player.”

“We have good players and will try to stay fluid to the scheme with the players we have in the program.”

He started his coaching career at Ft. Hays State University in Hays, Kansas where he coached for five years and worked his way up from a defensive line coach to the defensive coordinator. Bryant’s next coaching job took him to a Division III school at Wisconsin-Stout where he was the defensive coordinator as well. From there he returned to Oklahoma and became the linebackers coach and defensive coordinator for four years at Southmoore.

Bryant moved on to Deer Creek for the 2016 season and recently worked at Choctaw where he was the assistant head coach and defensive coordinator.

Bryant would like to run a spread-multiple offense with the Lions this coming year.

“We’ll try to get the ball to the playmakers,” Bryant said. “The defense is going to be built around an odd24 May 2022

The Lions have quite a few players returning from last year’s team that finished with a 7-3 record and a good group of freshmen that ended the year with a record of 8-1.

Bryant’s mission statement is to grow and expand the culture of Moore High School and touch base with some of the traditions that have been previously established by coaches like Tommy Noles and others who have successfully coached the Lions.

“We want to build a belief system that we can win and that we’re champions before we even play the game,” he said.

Bryant said some of the inspiration he has comes from a variety of impactful coaches he has worked with previously.

“I’ve been around some outstanding coaches. Gary Darnell, who is a Moore Hall of Famer, recruited me to Western Michigan,” he shared.

“There is a long list of influential coaches that have both inspired and motivated me.”

“In our search for our new head football coach, we were looking for someone who can continue our success but also elevate us to the next level,” Moore Athletic Director Chad Mashburn said about the new hire. “We felt that Greg had those tangibles. His ideas about how to compete in every aspect from the top down in our program we thought were what we need now.

He will help all of our programs get better. We are grateful to have him.”

Bryant and his wife Jaci have a son, Reece, who is six years old and daughter, Ellie, age three. He comes from a football family as he has two other brothers that are also coaches.

Spring football begins the third week of May.-19SM

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S P O RT S

In

a comeback for the ages, the Oklahoma women’s gymnastics team capture another National Championship.

Some might even say a heavy dose of Sooner Magic helped the Sooners to their fifth National Title in program history.

The Sooners were mired in last place after the first rotation, but the team put forth unmatched performances in the final three rotations to claim the title with a score of 198.200 over Florida (198.0875), Utah (197.7500) and Auburn (197.3500).

“I don’t know if you guys have seen anything like that before, I personally have not,” Sooner head coach KJ Kindler said. “What fight and heart they had. They didn’t count themselves out and they pushed every single event.”

The comeback for the Sooners started well before that Saturday afternoon in Ft. Worth.

It started in the preseason when many tried to count out the perennial power.

As Kindler started her post-Championship press conference, she pulled a sheet of paper out from her pocket and held it up. The sheet was from a preseason preview, and it had a scathing prediction for the Sooners.

“If there is a year when it is actually safe to predict Oklahoma NOT winning, this is the year,” the paper said.

Photos: this page provided by OU Athletics - rest by Mark Doescher

“This has been on our fridge in our locker room since the preseason polls came out. This really fueled them,” Coach Kindler said. “We have a very young team, but we have incredible seniors and juniors that led us all the way.

They’re fighters until the end and it would’ve been easy to count themselves out.”

28 May 2022

The “sign” was not a motivational tactic put forth by the coaching staff. It was instead the senior leadership coming through for the Oklahoma Sooners.

“I saw that quote on the internet and I immediately sent it to my senior class,” senior Carly Woodard said. “We decided we were going to hang it everywhere in the locker room. So every time we walked into our training room, we would see it and everyone knew the focus.”

For some, it would seem natural to count the Sooners out. Oklahoma entered the season as the preseason No. 3 team and featured what many viewed as a young and unproven roster.

Even with the unparalleled success of the pro

CO M E B AC K QUEENS

BY: CHRIS PLANK

sportstalk1400.com

19TH STREET MAGAZINE | 29

gram, many might consider a preseason No. 3 ranking as a reason to celebrate, but it was a sign that some did not view Oklahoma as capable of making a run for the title.

had also returned to the top of the Big 12 Conference, winning six of its last seven meets as they headed into the postseason including a thrilling home performance in a win over Michigan.

“You can’t measure a person’s motivation, determination and discipline,” Kindler said. “No one from the outside can see what’s going on daily and the work being done in the gym. Everything that happens, must happen in your head and heart and it comes out in competition. There was a lot of youth on this team and a lot of guidance from the seniors.”

“I love the fact that we were preseason No. 3, that we had to work our way to that No. 1 slot,” Kindler said. “I know going into the finals we weren’t the top pick. Florida was the team people were thinking would win it and they are a great team. We knew they would be tough to beat, but we felt our team was rising at the right time.”

The Sooners struggled out of the gate losing two meets in the first month of the season. But the struggle ended up being a major part of the season’s success.

“Because last year we had some depth issues due to injuries, health was one of our top priorities,” Kindler shared. “That would put us in a better position at the end of the year… to put our best team forward. Our sophomores grew from last year, and there was no sophomore slump. They were shooting stars.”

As the season progressed, the Sooners started to find their groove. In fact, as the postseason loomed, the Sooners were back in what you would consider a natural, rightful spot. Oklahoma was ranked in No. 1 for the sixth time in the past seven seasons, and they hosted one of the four regionals for the 12th consecutive year. They 30 May 2022

By the time the Sooners reached Fort Worth, the site of the National Championship, they were at the top of their game. The title-clinching performance marked the Sooners’ ninth straight and 11th overall trip to the team finals. In each of their eleven appearances in the finals, the Sooners have finished within the top three. This is Oklahoma’s fifth national title in the last eight years.

As had typified the campaign and became the theme for the season, even the title-clinching performance featured adversity and the challenge of having to overcome a substantial obstacle.

During its semi-final performance, the Sooners put up a small number on the vault, their first event, but proceeded to perform lights out in the next three events to clinch a spot in the championship.

In the championship performance, the opening event put the Sooners in a much deeper hole. The Sooners had a challenging start with a season-low 49.1875 on floor to sit in fourth after the first rotation. There was no magic pep speech, there were no magic words. It was a simple push.

“Let’s Go! It was really that simple,” Kindler said. “(Katherine LeVasseur) vault really fueled everyone.

We didn’t vault well in the semi-finals, and we didn’t get to show our true selves on that. They came in with a vengeance in that event and wanted to prove themselves. Kat has faltered a bit in the semis and her vault really set the tone.”

But nothing at all? No “Win one for the Gipper?” Nothing magical from the Sooner head coach?

“I didn’t even say anything to them,” Kindler said.

“They knew what was happening. If I brought them in a group together that might have killed the momentum.

Sometimes you must know when to not talk.”

Kindler did not have to say anything. She didn’t have to whip up a fire and brimstone speech because her seniors had already set the tone.

“Our theme this year was legends… each meet we had a different athletic legend in the sports world and for the season it was Secretariat,” senior Carly Woodard noted.

“Secretariat came out of the gate last in every race and that’s what was going through my head. He came out of the gate last in every single event and, in my mind, we still had this and we could build momentum in every single event, we could pull this off… and that is exactly what we did.”

“You could read the room, everyone knew we were in last place, and we knew we had to get back on track and get that momentum going,” senior Olivia Troutman shared. “We let everyone sit in it for a little bit and feel it themselves. Going into vault, I normally do the vault talk before we compete. I told them it’s not over until it’s over and we got to keep fighting.”

After the dismal start on the floor, the Sooners found their groove. Allie Stern started off with a 9.9 on the vault. Katherine LeVasseur put the comeback into overdrive with a 9.975 in the No. 2 spot.

During the vault rotation two days before in the semi-finals, LeVasseur posted a season-low 9.65.

“I just think that kind of fueled everybody,” Kindler said of LeVasseur’s vault.

When all was said on the second rotation, the Sooners had posted a school NCAA Championship vault record with a 49.6625 to make up a lot of ground. sportstalk1400.com

“When I think about those last three rotations, the only word that comes to mind is white hot,” associate head coach Lou Ball said. “I’ve never seen a team be that good, at that high of a level for three straight rotations.

We came off vault and we were still behind. I remember running off the runway and saying to ESPN before they interviewed KJ, don’t count us out.”

The school record-setting didn’t stop for the Oklahoma Sooners. After a vault performance that had kick-started the comeback, the Sooners posted yet another school NCAA record with a 49.725 team score on the bars. It was the highest score the Sooners had put together all season on an event where they spent most of the season ranked as the top team in the country.

“That bar rotation was electric,” Ball added. “We needed the lead going into beam and it gave us a little bit of a cushion. It allowed us to relax and do their thing and be calm about it.”

19TH STREET MAGAZINE | 31

By the time the Sooners hit the beam, there was no question that they had raised their collective game. The Sooners registered a 49.625 on beam which marked the second-highest score at an NCAA Championship event.

The comeback was complete. After not scoring a 9.9 or higher on any floor routine, the team tallied 14 scores of 9.9 or better in their final eighteen routines.

The Oklahoma Sooners were National Champions.

“It’s incredible,” Woodard said. “Getting this opportunity and this fifth year is something I’m incredibly grateful for. To go out on top was a dream of mine from the beginning, so it’s a surreal experience. It’s nothing like 2019, it’s very different in itself.”

The championship was the 4th outright title the Sooners have won in the last 6 years and its 5th overall in program history. The program is the gold standard in Women’s College Gymnastics and is only getting stronger.

“The minute I woke up I had a feeling we were going to win. After floor I still had that feeling we were going to win, I just didn’t know how it was going to work,” Troutman said. “I remember looking around... and I knew somehow we would pull it out. There was never a doubt on this team.”-19SM

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Goal Achieved

S

Ethan Koepke and Southmoore achieve goal of winning the soccer City Championship

enior captain and midfielder Ethan Koepke and Southmoore entered this season with a mission: capture the City Championship. It’s mission accomplished for the standout Rogers State signee after Southmoore dispatched Moore, 2-0, in the SaberCats’ second game of the season and then a 4-3 overtime win over Westmoore.

“It meant a lot to me because that was my first one since I’ve been in high school,” Koepke said. “First one in the first four years. It took a lot of work and fight because those games are always highly competitive. It’s a real dogfight in those games. I had two chances to score in those two games off of penalty kicks, which I was able to put away to help our team win.”

Koepke described what it takes to deliver a pivotal penalty kick like he delivered against both Moore and Westmoore.

“It’s really just calmness,” he shared. “For me, that comes from experience, just always being in the situations where you have the highest pressure. So, for me, I set the ball down, I take a deep breath and I just put it away.”

A club player for South Lakes, Norman Celtic and the

34 May 2022

Energy, Koepke appreciates what those club experiences have helped bring to his game.

“They give you different options and different looks of the game because it’s not your everyday high school team. You have to adapt. It’s more mental. Club play has helped me become a smarter player, more of a student of the game.”

While those experiences have obviously helped Koepke expand his game, it’s been his work as a student of the game that has helped him grow. Beginning in middle school, Koepke regularly started watching professional soccer to learn how to improve his game.

“For me, it was watching some pro games, college games as well as my high school coach,” Koepke said.

“He really developed me to become more attacking-minded and to think differently.”

When others take notice of his goal-scoring ability today, it lets him know his hard work has paid off.

“I actually don’t believe myself to be the best goal scorer, so when I hear that, it makes me smile because that is the part of the game where I’ve always tried to be better at… it’s really something I’ve worked hard on. I

BY: JOSH HELMER was more defensively minded in my younger days.”

When not scoring goals, Koepke’s greatest strength is his refusal to be outworked.

“I would say my aggressiveness and my strength are some things that have always been there. I’d say defense is more heart, it’s like your will. I don’t want anyone else to out-will me,” he said. “I like to be the hard worker, like the heart of the team almost. Then, if I get my chance, I take it.”

While club play has presented elevated competition and improved tactical play growing up, it’s Koepke’s experience at Southmoore that has been the most fun so far.

“This coaching staff, it’s really a family with them,” he shared. “Ever since I came in as a freshman, they really have great team values, and they really love the team and want the best for individuals on and off the field.

They’re kind of like second parents to me almost.

sportstalk1400.com

“And then the team, it’s always been a great family. You always know they’ll have your back and everything but knowing what each other are going to do and always being on the same page, you’re always having fun out there with them and you always want to play for them.”

Koepke’s future at Rogers State is on the horizon and he feels it’s the perfect match.

“I really like how they play,” he said. “It fits me as a player and personally it’s close to my family as well.

Their team suits the way I play.”

For now, though, it’s all about trying to capture a championship with his family at Southmoore.

“Our main goal was to get the City Championship back, which we did. And then now, it’s making the playoffs, which we’re on our way to doing that. Then after that, will be bringing home the state championship if we can,” Koepke said. –19SM

19TH STREET MAGAZINE | 35

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COM M U N I T Y

Barry and Becky Switzer, third and fourth from the left, are joined by search and rescue dogs and their handlers.

T

here are some names that do not need any introduction in Oklahoma. While many may know Barry and Becky Switzer as the former University of Oklahoma football and women’s gymnastics head coaches, respectively, the duo also makes its mark through extensive community involvement.

One organization that is significant to the Switzers is Ground Zero Emergency Training Center, a nonprofit founded by the couple to train search and rescue canines in the state of Oklahoma. In addition to dogs being trained to respond following natural and manmade disasters like hurricanes, tornados and building collapses, they are also taught to search for lost adults and children.

The Switzers established Ground Zero in 2017, but the idea to create the nonprofit began after the April 19, 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. That was when Becky was first in-

38 May 2022

troduced to rescue dogs and the work they do, and after tornados devastated Moore in 1999 and 2013, she knew it was important for Oklahoma to have more dogs for search, rescue and recovery.

Right now, Ground Zero has placed dogs in 10 states and is about to add four more states to that list. Oklahoma has a state task force, which Becky said is one of the best in the country, to which Ground Zero has provided several dogs. She added that the nonprofit will continue to replenish or add more dogs to the task force as needed.

“Oklahoma ranks third in natural and manmade disasters in the nation.”

“That’s our priority, being sure that our state is ready for whatever,” Becky explained. “We’ve had, of course, tornadoes. The possibility of earthquakes is great here, so structural collapse is a big concern too. We hope it never happens, but we want to be prepared. ”

BY: CHELSEY KRAF T

Ba rry & B ecky Swit ze r & THE GROUND ZERO EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER DINNER ON THE FIFTY GAYLORD FAMILY OKLAHOMA MEMORIAL STADIUM LEARN MORE AT GROUNDZEROSAVESLIVES.COM

JUNE 18TH

Next month, the organization will hold its first major fundraiser. Originally planned for 2020, “Dinner on the Fifty” is scheduled for June 18 at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Becky said it will be a unique and “once-in-a-lifetime” event.

Guests will enter the Switzer Center, where there will be cocktails and music. VIP attendees will have the opportunity to explore the locker room, and everyone will experience the hype tunnel - complete with everything turned on - to enter the field. There, guests will see some of the dogs and their handlers in action.

The evening will also feature dinner catered by Benvenuti’s, a silent auction and dancing, with music provided by “Manhattan,” a 16-piece band based out of Texas. Becky added there will be some other surprises thrown in as well. The dress code is “Garden Party Chic,” but no heels are allowed since the event will be held on the football field. More information can be sportstalk1400.com

found at groundzerosaveslives.com under the “Events” tab, and individual tickets go on sale this month.

The nonprofit’s kennels and training site are located just outside Tuttle, Oklahoma. The Switzers hired Todd Frazier as the lead trainer and breeder, and he moved here from Mississippi for the job.

Frazier explained that they start training the dogs from three days old, introducing them to environmental elements like different sights, sounds, smells and textures on their feet. Training continues for several months, and eventually dogs train on rubble piles to simulate an actual disaster situation.

If a dog is deemed not able to be a search and rescue dog, the organization finds them other jobs or adopts them into homes. Frazier said that nationally, one out of every 1,000 dogs make it from puppyhood through training. However, Ground Zero has been fortunate and had most of its litters make it.

19TH STREET MAGAZINE | 39

Dogs trained through Ground Zero serve in several states around the nation, including a state task force in Oklahoma.

Rescue groups who are asking for a dog from Ground Zero must send a handler to an extensive two-week course. After completion of the course, handlers are assigned a canine at what is called The Passing of the Leash, a very special ceremony for everyone involved including donors, trainers, volunteers and handlers.

The Switzers are dog lovers, and Barry recalled always having dogs following him when he was growing up in rural Arkansas. He also remembered the night of the

1999 Moore tornado when Becky couldn’t sleep and went to help. What she saw that day stuck with her, and it gave birth to Ground Zero.

“We’re in the fourth quarter of our lives, and we certainly want to leave something behind for our state, for the people of our state,” Becky shared. “If we can leave behind some type of preparedness that will potentially save lives and help our task force, I think that’s great.”-19SM

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H EA LT H

BY: LINDSAY CUOMO

NORMALIZING

the Stigma wit h Pre ve ntative Care

Mental health screenings integrated into primary care

M

ay is Mental Health Awareness Month but for primary care doctors, mental health is something they focus on daily. Because of the prevalence of mental health illnesses, doctors are proactively screening patients during their annual visits.

“If you go to your doctor once a year, they often do a mental health screening because patients might not even realize they are having symptoms,” shared Dr. Serena Mitroo, a board-certified primary care doctor specializing in internal medicine at Norman Regional’s Primary Care – NW Executive Park.

According to the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health & Substance Abuse, Oklahoma has some of the highest rates of mental illness, ranking third in the nation per capita. They also note that most are not receiving the care they need.

“We are still challenged with a lack of mental health providers,” confirmed Elise Grein, registered nurse and Norman Regional’s manager of clinic care coordination. “Depending on a patient’s need, there is often still a waitlist.”

However, that is where primary care doctors and departments like Grein’s can step in.

“Our care coordinators help patients connect with men

sportstalk1400.com

Key questions to ask yourself about your mental health: 1. Do you have little interest or pleasure in doing things that used to interest you?

2. Do you feel down, depressed or hopeless often?

3. Do you have trouble sleeping or staying awake?

4. Do you frequently feel tired or have little energy?

5. Do you have trouble concentrating?

If you find yourself experiencing these symptoms often for longer than two weeks, you should talk with your doctor.

19TH STREET MAGAZINE | 45

tal health resources and ways to help themselves while they wait,” she explained.

It is important to know that the patient questionnaire screenings are not an official diagnosis, Dr. Mitroo said.

Instead, the questionnaire is meant to alert your doctor to look more into what is going on because “mental health issues can develop into physical symptoms that interfere with a patient’s daily life,” she cautioned.

Liz Shumate, the manager of Norman Regionals’ outpatient counseling center, said that medical professionals from varied backgrounds are stepping in to help.

“Nurses are reaching out to their colleagues and helping with a continuity of care,” she shared. “And more education for medical staff is available so they can help patients until they can get in to see a mental health professional.”

Shumate, Grein and Dr. Mitroo all agree that patients are also more aware and willing to seek help, something they believe the pandemic may have influenced.

“Before patients had to bring it to a doctor’s attention, now we want to catch it earlier and intervene sooner,” Dr. Mitroo said. “There is still some hesitancy to take medication for things like depression, compared to say high blood pressure, but therapy and medication work best together.”

Shumate said that the pandemic has highlighted mental health concerns by taking away some of the most common coping mechanisms.

“When our routines changed during the pandemic, peo-

ple have been more aware and are seeking help,” Shumate said. “For people who are functioning and are not in crisis, the typical way we recharge is making plans to spend time with people that we care about or planning a vacation or something exciting to look forward to. But when we were faced with the day to day without a clear picture of the future, we were all really in the moment.

Also, returning to what we were doing pre-pandemic can be very overwhelming.

“It all starts with a self-awareness, just being honest with yourself and your doctor about how you are doing. We can monitor our symptoms for things like anxiety and depression just like we might for high blood pressure.”

She pointed to symptoms such as changes in your sleep whether that be not sleeping or sleeping too much or changes in your energy levels. More severe symptoms could be your heart racing.

“The best way to assess is to keep a log,” Shumate encouraged. “Technology can be very helpful. If something does come up, you’ll have that information readily available.”

Dr. Mitroo is accepting new patients at her clinic located at 3201 W. Tecumseh Rd., Suite 110. To schedule an appointment, call 405-515-1800. Patients can also self-refer to Norman Regional’s Outpatient Counseling Center, located at 700 S. Telephone Rd. in Moore. The center offers in-person and virtual therapy sessions for individuals 18 and older. To schedule an appointment, call 405-912-3485.-19SM

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M O O R E • M U S TA N G • N O R T H E D M O N D • S O U T H E D M O N D • WA R R A C R E S • D E L C I T Y • N O R M A N • C H O C TAW • Y U K O N • N O R T H O K C • S O U T H O K C

V ETE R A N

BY: BILL MOAKLEY

Veteran of the Month: JoAnn Banse JoAnn Banse hares about her time in the Air Force and at the Pentagon.

J

oAnn Banse always wanted to travel and see the world. So, after a friend returned from the Vietnam War while Banse was working for a telephone company in Nashville, she decided she was going to join the military.

“I called the army recruiter and the Air Force recruiter happened to answer the phone and told me to come down and sign the papers,” Banse recalled. “That’s how I ended up in the Air Force.”

That was in 1970. Banse would head to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio for training, and then to Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi. Banse was told by a commander that she was not to go to the base’s Enlistment Personnel Office and try to influence where her next assignment was. However, having met a friend from Washington state who was also assigned to Keesler, Banse thought she’d try to influence their next stop.

“I told them we were wanting to stay together, so we ended up at Travis Air Force Base in California,” Banse said. “My friend was assigned to C-5s and I got stuck in the aerial ports. And it seems like my whole career centered around aerial ports.”

Banse’s work in aerial port included working with military personnel and cargo headed to various destinations. Among her assignments while in California in the 70s was being stationed at the airport in San Francisco to ensure soldiers coming through the airport knew where to go and what base they belonged at. The area included several Air Force and Navy bases.

In 1974, Banse, now married, decided to leave active duty. That earlier itch to travel returned and she heard a reserve group was planning a deployment.

50 May 2022

“Me and a lady I knew were talking and she asked if I knew the reserves at Kelly Air Force Base were going to the Philippines,” Banse explained. “I said, ‘oh, my goodness, I have always wanted to go to the Philippines.’ We went and signed up. So, there I was in the aerial port again, and this time I became an air cargo specialist. I was loading and unloading planes. It was a fun time.”

Banse would later take a position with the Air National Guard at Moffett Federal Airfield near Mountain View, California and became a trainer and master sergeant.

In 1993, Banse took a civil service job that brought her to Tinker Air Force Base and a return to the aerial port.

In 1976, Banse, who had two children at the time, completed a year of college but found life too busy to finish.

So, armed with a total of about 60 hours, she decided to finish her degree and return to school in 2004.

“I decided, well, it’s about time for me to get out of the military,” Banse said. “The military would pay half of my tuition if I went to a state-funded school, and all I’d have to do is pay for my books.”

Banse earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Oklahoma in liberal studies and went on to earn a master’s degree in human resources. Those accomplishments would lead to a job at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. Banse served three years at the Pentagon and then retired after some 30 years of military service. She is now active with the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion. –19SM

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