Mid-Shore Life

by Cyndi Paxton Johnson

Every five to ten years the rules change - and we eventually change to accommodate them. Remember when we first discovered the internet? It started out as a way to chat with all kinds of people - and now it's THE primary mode of communication for most businesses. If you're in business - you need a website! It's also the FIRST source for information - about anything! (it's even faster to look up a word on dictionary.com than it is to dig out the actual dictionary!)

The last couple years have seen a HUGE influx into social networking - applications such as Digg, Facebook and Twitter. They  also started out as a way to connect with friends (remember MySpace?) and are now being used by more and more businesses and non-profit groups!

It's all about connections.

On a purely personal level - social media helps me stay in touch with a wider range of friends, colleagues and community members. I've reconnected with childhood friends, old neighbors and fellow grad students through the wide net social media casts. I've also made new friends - many of whom I've never met in person - but we now share a relationship that includes mutual support and advice.

I primarily use Facebook and Twitter - and heartily recommend both! Many folks tell me they don't have time to add yet another item on their to-do list - but it doesn't have to take a lot of your time! (note - it can be addicting, especially at first. You have to be careful about the pure time-wasters [games, quizzes, etc], unless you have time to waste!)

It’s been three months since a cataclysmic 7.0 earthquake leveled the island of Haiti but for one Stevensville woman and her daughter, the Haiti crisis remains urgent. Their continuing passion seeks to support the quakes most helpless victims, children.

While Roxie Marx and her 17-year-old daughter, Jordan, have participated in various drives, volunteered at a food pantry, delivered holiday gifts to children who have an incarcerated parent and served dinners for altruistic causes, the mother-daughter duo decided to take a leap of faith by initiating the “Haiti’s Children” campaign. By collecting stuffed animals, pacifiers and teething rings, their goal is to offer a small token of comfort for a multitude of Haiti ’s orphaned, injured and displaced children.

While news cameras repeatedly panned a solemn landscape of rubble and death, Roxie and Jordan were inspired by how the survivor’s human spirit refused to crumble. “It was the haunting images of child survivors, hundreds of thousands left all alone, that moved us to start this drive,” says Roxie. “I was already aware that a stuffed animal can be a surrogate for security, and couldn’t help but think of a particular stuffed, pink elephant that never left my daughter’s side when she was younger.”

Training for new Talbot Hospice Volunteers which addresses a variety of end-of-life issues, will take place on March 11, 12 and 15^th, 2010. This comprehensive 18-hour training session meets on three days from 8:30 p.m. to 4:00 pm.

Numerous volunteer opportunities exist with THF including companion care, direct patient care, cooking, gardening, music, delivering supplies and administrative assistance.  There is no charge for Talbot Hospice services and trained volunteers truly are the backbone of the organization.  There are currently over 319 dedicated volunteers!

The rewards for being a hospice volunteer are immeasurable. Please call Susan Piggott, Volunteer Coordinator at 410-822-6681 or email her at spiggott@talbothospice.org for more information.

February 2010 Event/Screenings

Blood Pressure Screenings

Every Monday through Thursday, except holidays, 12:30 pm to 3:00 pm, Diagnostic and Imaging Center, 10 Martin Court, Easton. FREE. Sponsored by the Memorial Hospital Auxiliary. No appointment needed.

Every Tuesday and Friday, 11:00 am to 1:00 pm, Dorchester General Hospital, main lobby, 300 Byrn Street, Cambridge. FREE. Sponsored by the Dorchester General Hospital Auxiliary. No appointment needed.

Breast Cancer Screenings

Day and evening appointments available at Shore Regional Breast Center, Memorial Hospital, 219 S. Washington Street, Easton. Open to uninsured or underinsured women, aged 20-39 and over 64, who meet income guidelines. Call 410-820-9400 to schedule an appointment.

Support Groups         

Cancer Support Groups  

Mid-Shore Pro Bono is urging homeowners to ask for help early if they are having trouble meeting their mortgage obligations. The nonprofit legal assistance agency reported that more than 800 foreclosures were filed in its five-county service area in 2009. It currently is working with about 75 homeowners in Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot counties.

Coping and Caring, a four-week program for people with breast cancer and a loved one of their choice, is being offered in March by Shore Regional Cancer Center and the Wellness Community-Delmarva. The group will meet on Wednesday, March 3, 10, 17 and 24 from      6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at Shore Regional Cancer Center, 509 Idlewild Avenues in Easton. The program is free and open to couples who are spouses, friends and others who are in a care giving relationship.

 “Recent research indicates that women with breast cancer medically benefit from having strong social support,” says Pam Black, LCSW-C, OSW-C, oncology social worker for Shore Regional Cancer Center. “This series of four classes allows people with breast cancer and any loved one they choose to learn a model of communication and problem-solving skills that can be used to address almost any problem.”

 The Coping and Caring program leaders will use the COPE model. “COPE stands for the four key ideas incorporated in the program:  creativity, optimism, planning and expert information,” explains Black. “Couples will learn skills to help them cope with many issues ranging from how to best communicate with a physician to symptom management and how to work out problems with family members that arise during breast cancer diagnosis, treatment and recovery.”

On Wednesday, February 17, the diabetes educators from the Joslin Diabetes Center Affiliate at Shore Health System are hosting a presentation about nerve damage associated with diabetes, commonly referred to as diabetic neuropathy. The guest speaker is pain specialist Jennifer Marks, DO, who will discuss the causes and treatments available for diabetic neuropathy.

The session will be held from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm in the Joslin Diabetes Center at Memorial Hospital, 219 S. Washington Street in Easton. The program is free and open to individuals who have been diagnosed with diabetes and the family and friends who support them.

Board certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation, Dr. Marks practices pain management at Shore Comprehensive Pain Care at Memorial Hospital.

For more information about the Joslin Diabetes Center presentation and to register, call 410-822-1000, ext. 5185 or 5186. 

Imagine that you are having a heart attack or that your child has a broken arm. How quickly would you want to receive medical attention?

That’s what Mareen Waterman asks his friends and neighbors when they want to know why he needs their help to raise money for the Queen Anne’s Emergency Center.

“For many patients who are seen in an emergency room, it’s not a life or death situation,” Waterman says. “But for a number of people, a few minutes will make the difference between living or dying because of a medical emergency.”

Waterman, who lives in Queenstown, heads the community fundraising effort for the Queen Anne’s Emergency Center scheduled to open in Grasonville later this year. He and his wife, Marian, donated $25,000 and are encouraging their friends and neighbors to support the cause.

Give your love something different this year! Sign up now to have a talented barbershop quartet (from the Bay Country Chorus) deliver a long-stemmed rose and a romantic serenade (two songs)!

The romantic treat is available Friday, February 12 & Saturday, February 13 for only $45! Limited Sunday spots are still available for a higher fee. Contact Ed Wadley for details or to purchase, 410-770-9672 or email him.

Bay Country Chorus website.