Health - Chestertown Spy

Up Close By Jamie Kirkpatrick

April 29, 2025 by Jamie Kirkpatrick Leave a Comment

We see from afar. If we’re lucky, maybe we catch a brief glance, a quick peek, a first impression of something truly wondrous or beautiful, and sometimes that’s all we get. But what if we took the time to really focus our attention and inspect the details, to absorb all that there is to see in something as common as a flower? Would it change anything? Would we see the wider world more clearly, or would we just get lost in reverie like Ferdinand the Bull who would rather sit under his favorite cork tree, smelling the flowers and watching the butterflies, than fight in the great Plaza de Toros in Madrid?

A few years ago, my friend Smokey gifted us with some Bearded Iris bulbs for our garden. Late April is their moment to shine. They’re not in flower for long, but when they do bloom, they are magnificent. Their subtle hues, their hint of fragrance, their graceful sway can create some of my favorite springtime moments. But I’ve always admired them from a distance. So, yesterday I decided to take out my camera to get a closer look. That’s when I began to see them differently. For a moment, I got lost in their hidden inner beauty: their sturdy stalks, the feminine fragility of their pistils, all the delicate pastel shades hidden within the folds of their petals, even the dew drops they wore like jewels in the cool morning sunlight. Everything I beheld led me deeper into the mystery that is the natural world. How, I wondered, in the midst of all this political chaos and human pain, does Mother Nature manage to pull it off so gracefully?

As I’m sure you know by now, Pope Francis died last week. I am not Catholic so I have no particular institutional affection or bias for neither the pontiff nor the Vatican. But when I looked closely at Francis and his life, I saw the personification of many of the qualities I hold most dear in a person: simplicity, humility, empathy, a lightness of being that radiated both joy and affection for everyone around him, especially the weakest among us. He was that lovely flower growing in the garden who caught my attention and made me want to look more closely, and when I held him up to that kind of scrutiny and close inspection, I was all the more impressed with what I saw—a human authenticity that transcended all the power and pomp of his ecclesiastical office. I’m sure Francis had his flaws—don’t we all?—but whatever flaws there were in the man paled in comparison to the way he tended his garden. May he rest in peace.

But back to those bearded irises in our own little garden. It might have been sufficient to enjoy them from afar, but when I took a moment to look closer at their intricate beauty, I caught a glimpse of all I had been missing. I would tell you what that was, but William Wordsworth says it much more elegantly than I ever could:

What though the radiance
Which was once so bright
Be now for ever taken from my sight,
Though nothing can bring back the hour
Of splendor in the grass,
Of glory in the flower,
We will grieve not, rather find
Strength in what remains behind;
In the primal sympathy
Which having been must ever be;
In the soothing thoughts that spring
Out of human suffering;
In the faith that looks through death,
In years that bring the philosophic mind.

I’ll be right back.

Jamie Kirkpatrick is a writer and photographer who lives on both sides of the Chesapeake Bay. His work has appeared in the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Washington College Alumni Magazine, and American Cowboy Magazine. His most recent novel, “The Tales of Bismuth; Dispatches from Palestine, 1945-1948” explores the origins of the Arab-Israeli conflict. It is available on Amazon and in local bookstores.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Victory Garden 101- How Do I Start? By Nancy Taylor Robson

April 27, 2025 by Spy Desk Leave a Comment

Aji Limon in pots

So, you want to start a victory garden. Or your version of it. What next?

“You just put a trowel in the ground,” says Master Gardener Eileen Clements. “There’s almost no wrong away to begin.”

Other Master Gardeners agree. Sara Bedwell is growing in buckets drilled with drainage holes. Deb Silberg starts seeds in reused plastic pots, and plants out her seedlings into raised beds. Others add a few veg plants in a sunny perennial border. Barbara Flook seeds greens directly into raised beds and harvests salads all spring, fall, and often throughout winter. (The Kent County Master Gardeners have directions to make salad boxes, which they offer free). You can stuff a tomato or pepper plant or push a few bean seeds into a tub beside the kitchen door. There are probably as many ways to do this as there are people who want to experience the pleasure and satisfaction of producing food.

Deb Silberg began to grow some of her own fresh vegetables when she moved to Kent County.

“I was inspired by living in a community where people were interested in farming,” she says. “And I got inspired to try.”

Sara Bedwell grows tomatoes partly because hers taste so much better than the store-bought kind, which are often bred for transport rather than flavor. Flook wanted a broader selection of Asian greens than she found in the produce aisle.

Plus, growing your own is economical. For example, a $5 packet of Sungold tomato seeds produces enough plants to share some with the entire neighborhood. And each plant can provide about 40 quarts of cherry tomatoes, a huge savings. (Plus, you know, flavor).

Will your victory garden be perfect? Probably not. But it doesn’t have to be perfect to be satisfying. In any new enterprise, there is always a learning curve, but we have no shortage of people here who offer gardening advice. Not always useful,

Silberg harvested greens

but always well meant.

“It’s trial and error,” says Bedwell, who has been the recipient of some of that advice. “What works for one doesn’t necessarily work for everyone, so you learn what works best for you.”

Silberg agrees.

“I failed a few times,” she says. “I talked with a few people at The Mill, who were so helpful. And I pestered the Master Gardeners at the booth so often that they suggested I take the course!” (Which she did).

“Learning by failure is the only way to do it,” agrees Flook. (The old adage is: ‘You’re not really a gardener until you’ve killed at least 100 plants). Flook’s gardens have morphed considerably over the years. “When I began, I double-dug my garden,” she says. (Double digging was then in vogue along with French intensive gardening, both of which are just as exhausting as they sound). “If I had it to do over, I’d just have thrown a carboard flat on the ground to kill everything underneath it and then be ready to start in the spring” she says now.

Regardless of how you approach it, start small. It’s better to have less space than you think you want and expand as you gain knowledge and experience rather than to get overambitious, overwhelmed, and discouraged.

Sara Bedwwell potted garden

“Not having too much space to deal with was kinda my goal,” says Bedwell, who works two jobs and is in the process of clearing a piece of ground for a bigger gardening project. Containers limit the work since they are a snap to weed and water. They also offer an easy way to experiment with positioning. “We’ve started with buckets because pots and buckets can be moved.”

If you’re starting in-ground, south-facing is best – vegetables and fruits need a minimum of six-eight hours of direct sunlight daily.

“Choose carefully where you’re gonna put that garden because you need to have sun and access to water,” Flook advises.

Once that choice has been made, Flook urges gardeners to: “Plant what you like to eat. Lettuce and greens, which are easy to grow, work well in containers and raised beds, and are so good for you,” she says. “They also tend to be ready to eat within about six-seven weeks from seed.”

This is especially good for young gardeners. It’s not instant gratification, but it’s swift enough to be both encouraging and educational. Peas, beans, herbs, (which are often quite expensive), and greens, all of which usually germinate in about 5-8 days, and grow fairly quickly, are great for youngsters to start with. And, if you let the seeds of pole beans dry on the vine then store them in an air-tight container in a cool place, you can plant them next year, another savings.

“I started with a lot of tomatoes and peppers and things that were easier to grow,” says Silberg. “And I kind of expanded because I’m feeling more confident now.”

Determinate tomatoes (often hybrids), which grow to a genetically predetermined size and production, are usually better for pots but will also do well in the ground. Indeterminate tomato varieties (often heirloom) continue growing and producing until frost gets them, but are usually too rangy for pots, though doable if you set up a sturdy support to attach them to and secure it so the pot doesn’t fall over in a wind.

Whatever way you decide to start, know that you’re in good company and have plenty of local encouragement.

“The sense of producing something that you can eat and share was really compelling to me,” says Silberg. “I grow flowers, but I share a lot more of the things I grow to eat, and I have seedlings that I can give away and they can grow it, and that makes me happy, too!”

https://extension.umd.edu/programs/environment-natural-resources/program-areas/home-and-garden-information-center/master-gardener-program/about-program/grow-it-eat-it/

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Spring Cleaning By Jamie Kirkpatrick

April 22, 2025 by Jamie Kirkpatrick Leave a Comment

It’s that time of year: some atavistic impulse kicks in and we all go off on a cleaning tear. Maybe we’re just shaking off the winter doldrums, or maybe it’s all that green pollen that coats everything, our noses and throats included. Or maybe it’s just that we want a clean, fresh start, and what better time to do that than now, when this lovely planet is doing its own version of spring cleaning: trees in bud, bulbs blooming, grass growing—everything is regenerating and rejuvenating after months of dormancy and despair.

At home, I should have seen it coming. A week ago, my wife said she wanted to touch up a “one or two” spots in the kitchen with some fresh paint. Well, give a mouse a cookie and pretty soon, everything was off the walls and a major project was underway. A few days later, same thing, same room, but in our other home over on the Western Shore, except this time, everything had to come off all the counters and out of all the kitchen drawers and cabinets. All the silverware, all the plates and glassware, the coffee pot, the blender, the toaster oven, the fruit bowl…EVERYTHING. Them, of course, EVERYTHING needed a temporary place to reside which means that the dining room began to look like the Beltway during rush hour—all backed up with no place to go. Fortunately, two professional painters came to our rescue, so my wife was promoted to supervisor and the work got done in just two days. However, three more days later, the mouse and I are still in the process of moving things back to where they were, albeit with a little culling of the herd. Decluttering is good for the soul.

Remember that mouse who wanted a cookie? Now, she wants a glass of milk. This time her target is the porch that’s covered with last year’s dead leaves and this year’s whirligigs and pollen. That means everything has to come off so that our handyman friend can now paint the floor of the porch (we’re still over on the Western Shore, mind you) while we hose off all the wicker furniture which we’ve temporarily stacked in the driveway where the cars used to be. At one point, I couldn’t find something I needed and began to mutter and moan. “What’s the matter?” my wife asked. I said, “Nothing, dear,” never daring for a moment to tell her that what I wanted to do was to stake my claim in the easy chair in front of the television so I could celebrate Easter by watching another golf tournament. Nothing says “Christ is risen!” like watching golf on TV.

Anyway, it’s probably true that once everything gets reassembled and properly stowed away, we’ll feel a modicum of satisfaction because we’ve done our duty and are on track to properly greet the new season. Nope; not so fast. Now that Mother Nature is awake and active again on the Eastern Shore, there’s a backyard full of work to do over there: weeds to pull, edges to cut, mulch to spread, and grass to mow. Fortunately, we know another guy whose back is strong and whose rates are reasonable so, like a baseball manager making his second trip to the mound in the same inning, I’ve signaled to the bullpen for my ace relief pitcher without a pang of regret or remorse. We’ll share the fun!

John Wesley, the father of Methodism, claimed that “cleanliness is next to godliness.” Well right now, I’m feeling especially godly, so on this spring Sunday afternoon, I’m finally going to sit down and watch a few grown men attempt to roll a small white ball into a hole with a flat stick. The mouse and her next spring cleaning project will just have to wait.

I’ll be right back.

Jamie Kirkpatrick is a writer and photographer who lives in Chestertown. His work has appeared in the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Washington College Alumni Magazine, and American Cowboy Magazine. His most recent novel, “The Tales of Bismuth; Dispatches from Palestine, 1945-1948” explores the origins of the Arab-Israeli conflict. It is available on Amazon and in local bookstores.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Up to 100,000 Marylanders could lose coverage if Medicaid imposes work requirements

April 20, 2025 by Maryland Matters Leave a Comment

As many as 109,000 Marylanders could get thrown off Medicaid if Congress follows through on a proposal to impose a work requirement for the coverage, according to a new report.

The report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation comes as some lawmakers are looking for ways to cut billions in federal spending in coming years. One proposal, to require that able-bodied adults work at least 2o hours a week to receive the benefits, would trim an estimated 7% of recipients — 109,000 people in Maryland, and about 5 million nationwide, the report estimates.

“That would be a significant amount of coverage lost,” said Katherine Hempstead, senior policy officer for Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. “And it would have really hard consequences for people who would lose their coverage.”

The study based its estimates on work requirement language in a 2023 bill, the Limit, Save, Grow Act, which would have required Medicaid recipients to work at least 80 hours a month unless they were exempt as a student, a family caregiver or because of a disability.

The report comes as House Republicans and the Trump administration l0ok to cut billions in federal spending over the next decade. The budget resolution recently adopted by the U.S. House of Representatives directs the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees Medicaid, to cut $880 billion over 10 years.

Such reductions would likely require cuts to Medicaid, the joint federal-state health care plan for low-income residents – but exactly how those cuts would be implemented is yet to be decided. Work requirements is one of the options on the table, along with other measures to cut spending to Medicaid.

“There is this quest to find some budget cuts … Work requirements is one of the options that seems to gathering a little bit broader support than some of the others,” Hempstead said. She believes it’s important to know how work requirements could impact health care coverage, even if Congress decides not to add work requirements.

Proponents of work requirements say the policy would help move people into the workforce and help save taxpayer dollars.

The Foundation for Government Accountability, a conservative think-tank, said that work requirements “move millions of able-bodied adults from welfare to work,” in a post earlier this week.

“This, in turn, would save taxpayers billions of dollars, preserve resources for the truly needy, and put the Medicare and Social Security trust funds on more solid ground,” the foundation said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said in a February interview with CNN that the work requirements would not “cut benefits for people who rightly deserve” them.

“You don’t want able-bodied workers on a program that is intended, for example, for single mothers with two small children who is just trying to make it,” he said. “That’s what Medicaid is for – not for 29-year-old males sitting on their couches playing video games. We’re going to find those guys and were going to send them back to work.”

But opponents of work requirements say that those policies do not reflect the challenges of finding work and proving eligibility to federal officials in order to keep coverage through Medicaid.

The report focused on states that have opted to increase Medicaid coverage through the Affordable Care Act expansion, which allows participating states to provide coverage for households that earn up to 138% of the federal poverty level income. Maryland is one of the 40 expansion states.

The report estimates that some 5 million people who live in those states could lose health care coverage if Congress imposes a work requirement to qualify for Medicaid. That would equate to about 6.9% of all 72 million people on Medicaid across the United States.

For Maryland, a work requirement could result in between 95,000 to 109,000 people losing coverage out of 1.5 million currently enrolled in Medicaid, according to the report.

The state with the largest raw number of people who could lose coverage would be California, with between 1 million to 1.2 million people affected out of the total 14 million current Medicaid recipients in the state. On the other end, between 5,000 and 6,000 of North Dakota’s 104,000 Medicaid recipients could lose coverage due to work requirements, according to the RWJF estimates.

But Hempstead also fears that work requirements will ultimately kick people off Medicaid who may still qualify for it. She said that people can often get caught up in the bureaucratic paperwork, which can be taxing for people who rely on Medicaid, as people have to prove whether they have work, are looking for work, or have a reason why they can’t work.

“Even if you accept the idea that people should have to work to get their health insurance,” she said, “what happens with work requirements is a lot of people lose coverage that are working — or are caregiving or are doing other things — and shouldn’t lose their coverage.”

Meanwhile, Hempstead noted the those who lose coverage due to work requirements would strain hospital systems, as uninsured people seek health care through other means, such as the emergency room or through charity care. That could exacerbate Maryland’s lengthy emergency room wait times, which are already some of the highest in the nation.

“There is a lot of spill-over into the health care system. As the uninsurance rate goes up and people don’t have health insurance, they try to ignore things and try to not get care. And sometimes things go away on their own and sometimes they don’t,” she said. “When things are really, really bad, they’ll go to the emergency room, where people will know that they will get treated.”

Benjamin Orr, executive director for Maryland Center on Economic Policy, said that work requirements are counterproductive and will take health insurance away from people who need it, regardless of employment.

“Our society does better when its members are healthy,” Orr said “The idea that we’re going to deny health coverage to 100,000 Marylanders or more is counterproductive to a healthy prosperous society.”

Orr also added that with talks of a looming recession, people are going to have a hard time finding jobs to fulfill work requirements to maintain health coverage. He noted that Maryland “is particularly susceptible to” layoffs in the federal government and other major institutions impacted by decisions from the Trump administration.

“It’s not a good time to be looking for a job, as we are on the cusp of a state-level recession, if not a national recession,” Orr said. “Even folks who might, otherwise in a healthy economy, be well positioned to find work may struggle to find work.”

Hempstead agrees that the work requirement logic is “backwards.”

“When people are healthy, they can work more,” she said. “It’s kind of a bad theory that you ought to be able to work in order to earn access to health care.”

by Danielle J. Brown, Maryland Matters
April 18, 2025

Maryland Matters is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Maryland Matters maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Steve Crane for questions: [email protected].

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Historical Society of Kent County wins $20,000 Miller History Fund Grant

April 19, 2025 by Spy Desk Leave a Comment

The Historical Society of Kent County (HSKC) is delighted to announce it has been awarded $20,000 from the Miller History Fund, a competitive grant program administered by the Maryland Center for History and Culture. This generous grant will support conversion to a standardized cataloging system in HSKC’s Research Library, to make it easier for scholars, genealogists, schoolchildren, and lifelong learners alike to explore the wealth of information available in the library.

The Miller History Fund supports capacity-building projects to ensure long-term resiliency for stewards of historical collections in Maryland. HSKC is one of eleven recipients selected from across Maryland this year, along with distinguished organizations including Historic Ships in Baltimore, Goucher College Library, and the Alice Ferguson Foundation. The cataloging project enabled by this grant will help HSKC build a solid foundation from which to manage and share its research collections.

Key Benefits for Members and Community:

HSKC Research Librarian Joan Andersen says “We’re seeing fewer genealogy‑only inquiries and more interest in what daily life was like here long ago. A streamlined catalog will help us answer all those fascinating questions, guide everyone straight to the sources they need, and open doors to new discoveries about Kent County’s story.”

The new system will bring immediate benefits, including:

Faster Research: A searchable digital database will make it possible to pinpoint materials among 1,200 holdings in moments rather than hours.
New Programs and New Audiences: Easier access to materials will fuel new workshops, exhibits, and collaborations, building new audiences and sparking fresh conversations about the community’s shared past.
Long-term Sustainability: Standardized metadata will lay the groundwork for digitization and help to keep the research library materials safe and well-documented.
New Volunteer and Internship Opportunities: Clearly written guides to using the catalog will open up new roles for volunteers and interns to gain hands-on experience and practical familiarity with the Research Library’s collections.

Phase One begins later this spring, when the library holdings will be evaluated and an appropriate cataloging plan identified. Later in the year there will be a temporary pause in access to the Research Library to “freeze the collection” and ensure a full and complete cataloging process. HSKC will provide ample notice, and will welcome users back to a clearer and more user-friendly catalog.

Founded in 1936, HSKC collects, preserves, and shares the vibrant story of Maryland’s oldest Eastern Shore county. Our museum, research library, walking tours, and community programs welcome history lovers of all ages. New members enjoy unlimited, by‑appointment use of the Research Library, discounts in our museum shop, invitations to members‑only events, and more. Learn about membership at www.kentcountyhistory.org or email [email protected].

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UM Shore Medical Group-Nephrology welcomes new provider

April 18, 2025 by UM Shore Regional Health Leave a Comment

University of Maryland Shore Medical Group (UM SMG) – Nephrology recently welcomed Jamshid Amanzadeh, MD, PA, to its practice based at 5 Martin Court in Easton. UM SMG is an affiliate medical practice of the University of Maryland Shore Regional Health, a member organization of the University of Maryland Medical System.

Dr. Amanzadeh was most recently in private practice in San Francisco and previously spent six years with Munson Nephrology Consultants in Traverse City, Michigan. His experience also includes five years as a staff physician with the VA Texas Health Care System in Dallas, Texas, during which he also served as Assistant Professor of Nephrology and Internal Medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern in Dallas. He is board certified in Nephrology and Internal Medicine.

A graduate of Tehran University School of Medicine in Tehran, Iran, Dr. Amanzadeh spent four years as a primary care physician in Tehran, after which he completed residencies in Internal Medicine at St. Francis Medical Center in Trenton, New Jersey, and Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan; and also a fellowship in Nephrology at University of Texas Southwestern School of Medicine. He is a member of the American Society of Nephrology and has co-authored multiple articles on topics related to kidney disease and nephrology.

“We are pleased to have Dr. Amanzadeh join our nephrology team,” said Anish Hinduja, MD, Medical Director of UM SMG-Nephrology. “His experience and expertise are an excellent fit for our practice and will serve our patients very well.”

To make an appointment with Dr. Amanzadeh, call 410-828-9823.

About University of Maryland Shore Regional Health

A member organization of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), University of Maryland Shore Regional Health (UM SRH) is the principal provider of comprehensive health care services for more than 170,000 residents of five counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore: Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot. UM SRH consists of approximately 2,000 team members, including more than 600 health care providers on the Medical Staff, who work with community partners to advance the values that are foundational to our mission: Compassion, Discovery, Excellence, Diversity and Integrity. For more information, visit https://www.umms.org/shore.

About the University of Maryland Medical System

The University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) is an academic private health system, focused on delivering compassionate, high quality care and putting discovery and innovation into practice at the bedside. Partnering with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and University of Maryland, Baltimore who educate the state’s future health care professionals, UMMS is an integrated network of care, delivering 25 percent of all hospital care in urban, suburban and rural communities across the state of Maryland. UMMS puts academic medicine within reach through primary and specialty care delivered at 11 hospitals, including the flagship University of Maryland Medical Center, the System’s anchor institution in downtown Baltimore, as well as through a network of University of Maryland Urgent Care centers and more than 150 other locations in 13 counties. For more information, visit www.umms.org.

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UM Shore Medical Group-Cardiology welcomes three new Providers

April 16, 2025 by UM Shore Regional Health 1 Comment

Dr. Lindsay, Dr. Davis, and Emily Uphoff

University of Maryland Shore Medical Group – Cardiology recently welcomed three new providers: Ian C. Davis, MD; David-Allen Lindsay, MD, and Emily Uphoff, MSN, CNL, RN, FNP-C. Dr. Davis, Dr. Lindsay and Uphoff join Jeffery Etherton, MD; S. Robert Hanna, Jr., MD; Robyn Lanasa, CRNP; Dipesh Ludhwani, MD; JoAnn Mullican, PA; Clare Ross, CRNP; Gabriel Sardi, MD; and Timothy Shanahan, DO, in the practice based at UM Shore Medical Pavilion at Easton, 500 Cadmus Lane, suite 207. UM Shore Medical Group (UM SMG) is an affiliate medical practice of the University of Maryland Shore Regional Health (UM SRH), a member organization of the University of Maryland Medical System.

“We are excited to welcome Dr. Davis, Dr. Lindsay and Emily to UM Shore Medical Group-Cardiology,” said Dr. Shanahan, Medical Director, UM Shore Medical Group. “Our cardiology team is dedicated to meeting the increased needs of our community and bringing quality providers on board. This is a testament to the forward-thinking motivations and the progress of UM Shore Regional Health’s leadership to meet those needs.”

Dr. Davis earned a Doctor of Medicine from the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore and completed his cardiovascular medicine fellowship and internal medicine residency training at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) in Baltimore. He is board certified in internal medicine with the American Board of Internal Medicine and is a member of American College of Physicians and the American College of Cardiology.

Dr. Lindsay completed his fellowship in advanced cardiovascular imaging with New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York, New York, and completed a fellowship in cardiovascular disease at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick N.J. He finished his residency in internal medicine at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Dr. Lindsay earned his Doctor of Medicine from New York Medical College in Valhalla, New York, and his Master of Science with a concentration in physiology and biophysics from SUNY Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, New York. He completed his Bachelor of Arts in biochemistry and molecular biology from Drew University in Madison, N.J., where he graduated with high honors, magna cum laude. He is board certified in internal medicine with the American Board of Internal Medicine.

Uphoff most recently was a family nurse practitioner with Family Medicine Inpatient Services at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital in San Francisco, Cali. Prior to becoming a nurse practitioner, Uphoff worked as a critical care nurse in the cardiac intensive care unit at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and as a critical care intensive care unit nurse at University Medical Center Brackenridge in Austin, Texas.

Uphoff earned her Family Nurse Practitioner post-master’s certificate from the University of California in San Francisco, California, her Master of Nursing in Clinical Nurse Leadership from University of Maryland, Baltimore in Baltimore and her Bachelor of Science in Biological Science from University of Maryland College Park in College Park, Maryland.

About University of Maryland Shore Regional Health

About the University of Maryland Medical System

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Partnerships make a difference in mental health for area veterans and their families

April 16, 2025 by For All Seasons, Inc. Leave a Comment

More than one in four people on Maryland’s Eastern Shore are part of the military community – either active military, guard reservists, veterans, or family members of the military. To help serve the needs of this significant population, For All Seasons has gotten a second matching grant from the Sheila E. Hixson Behavioral Health Services Matching Grant Program to address the high instances of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression, and sexual assault-related trauma among local service members, veterans, and their families.

“We are thrilled to be involved with this partnership with the Veteran and Military Support Alliance (VAMSA) at the Center for the Military and Veteran Family in Stevensville. We are working together to get veterans and their families the support they need. Our Open Access™ program eliminates a waitlist and allows individuals and families to begin mental health services in a timely way. Individuals can select a time window and a location, complete their intake, and meet with a therapist on the same day. It’s the first mental health delivery model of its kind on the Eastern Shore, and is helping area veterans in their time of need,” comments Beth Anne Dorman, President & CEO of For All Seasons.

The grant will help address insufficient immediate access to mental health services and cultural competency barriers that currently exist. Those being served include active-duty service members from any branch of service, veterans from any branch of service, military spouses (both active duty and veterans from any branch of service), and military children and stepchildren (both active duty and veterans from any branch of service.

The agency’s Open Access™ program and financial assistance fund have been enabling veterans to get same-day appointments and to pay nothing out of pocket for the services they receive. Eric Johnson, Executive Director, of Veteran and Military Support Alliance (VAMSA) at the Center for the Military and Veteran Family in Stevensville, has been working with For All Seasons and shares that there have been noticeable changes since the program was implemented a year ago.

“Many people on the Eastern Shore, not just veterans, but from any walk of life, feel like it is a resource desert here when compared with the western shore. So anything we do is going to help this, this community, and the broader community,” Johnson comments.

He points out that the work between VAMSA and For All Seasons has been focused on building credibility for veterans who need to utilize the services, which has been crucial in removing barriers to them seeking treatment. He shares the slogan, “You must know me to treat me,” as an example of the importance of clinicians understanding military culture.

“For All Seasons sought input from the very community that they sought to reach. I don’t think you can put a price tag on that. They allowed us to help shape the messaging to veterans in a way that drew the veteran community to participate. That says a lot about For All Seasons’ genuine commitment to helping this population,” he adds.

For All Seasons also draws on its Trauma Certified Therapists to deliver services to veterans. Last year, For All Seasons Center for Learning, trained 100% of its team in cultural competency around service members, veterans, and their families. The “Trained Military Assistance Provider (TMAP)” training curriculum covered topics such as healthcare providers, helping children of veterans, and crisis response and suicide among military members and veterans.

One of the most significant statistics Johnson shares is the number of suicide preventions since the program started one year ago. To date, there have been 28 veteran suicide saves of veterans who self-identify or are identified as suicidal by VAMSA staff.

Regarding the current needs for veterans on the Shore, Johnson shares, “I think the enduring challenges are the urgent ones. These involve veterans who have survivor guilt which affects their ability to seek and accept care. It’s not something that can easily be fixed, but it starts with an agency’s outward commitment like what For All Seasons has done with its messaging to veterans.”

“The emerging dynamics would be that many folks are losing their jobs right now as often veterans go into civil service or work with a government contractor. Those areas are vulnerable right now to job loss and the stress that comes with that can be a trigger. This is a population who is already struggling, potentially with PTSD, stress, anxiety, or depression, as well as physical issues, so this could create a greater need for treatment,” he adds.

Lei Ellingson, Deputy Director, of the Veterans and Military Support Alliance (VAMSA), shares that many of these veterans have families, and depending on when they served in the military may affect how they approach getting mental health services.

According to Johnson, there can also be waiting periods and interruptions with some other mental health providers. He adds, “We don’t see that at all with For All Seasons. They are our go-to provider for mental health emergencies, particularly helping to serve our suicidal veterans.”

VAMSA sees anywhere between 45 and 60 veterans per month either in person or by phone in Stevensville. Through the new Hixon grant, VAMSA and For All Seasons hope to launch partner-embedded mental health consultations at VAMSA to provide rapid triage and “hot” handoffs for service members, veterans, and their families to For All Seasons’ Open Access™ services. For All Seasons is also working in the coming months to launch intensive alternative therapy retreats for veterans in partnership with Patriot Point in Dorchester County.

For further information, visit www.ForAllSeasonsInc.org/SMVF.

For All Seasons provides the highest quality mental health and victim services to children, adults, and families across the Mid-Shore and throughout the state of Maryland. Services are offered in both English and Spanish and include therapy, psychiatry, victim advocacy, 24-hour crisis hotlines, outreach, and community education. For information about For All Seasons walk-in hours, contact For All Seasons at 410-822-1018 or visit ForAllSeasonsInc.org.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Masterful By Jamie Kirkpatrick

April 15, 2025 by Jamie Kirkpatrick 1 Comment

I admit it: I spent most of last weekend watching The Masters. I assume most everyone is familiar with The Masters—the first of the golfing world’s four annual “major” tournaments. It takes place at the Augusta National Golf Club, a storied property in Georgia, and it comes at a time when those of us who live “up north” are desperate for spring. The Masters more than delivers spring in all its color and glory. Each of the eighteen holes on the property are named for a tree or flowering shrub, and the lush green fairways are always a promise of better weather ahead. Add to that splendid vernal picture, the history of the game, our nostalgia for its past champions, and the soothing theme music written by Dave Loggins that seems to waft thought the tall Georgia pines that line the fairways, and you find yourself transported to another, more peaceful world, a place without tariffs or even a hint of malice. It doesn’t last forever, but it is a welcome respite from the din and constant chaos of the moment.

And this year, there was another compelling storyline to The Masters. Rory McIlroy, an Ulsterman and one of golf’s most popular superstars, was on a quest to complete the Career ‘Grand Slam,’ a victory in each of golf’s four major tournaments. The Career Grand Slam is the holy grail of professional golf; only five players had ever achieved the prize: Gene Sarazan, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, and Tiger Woods. By 2014, Rory had three of the four majors under his belt, but the fourth—The Masters—has eluded him for the past eleven years. He had come tantalizingly close, only to fail at the last. Would he ever finally reach the summit?

I don’t want to bore you with the details leading up to Sunday’s final showdown. Rory had played well, and at the start of the final day, he had a two-shot lead over Bryson DeChambeau. Other notables—Scottie Scheffler, Ludvig Åberg, Patrick Reed, and Justin Rose—were well within striking distance. Would this finally be Rory’s year, or would he stumble again? We would know soon enough.

When Rory doubled bogeyed the first hole on Sunday and his playing partner Bryson made par, there was suddenly a tie atop the leader board. And there was a feeling in my throat, a lump, that fear of failure that haunt us all. Some people may find golf boring or elitist or both, but the final round of this year’s Masters had all the toppings of a consummate Greek tragedy. The gods on Olympus were once again conspiring to thwart Rory’s dream, denying this mere mortal his dream of joining golf’s pantheon. And even worse: they would make Brash Bryson the cupbearer of defeat.

But that didn’t happen. DeChambeau crashed and burned, while Rory was all grit and resilience. He rose, he fell, and rose again. And on the final hole of regulation play, when only a putt of a few feet stood between him and victory, he fell again. He looked painfully drained, maybe even defeated.

And now Rory is in a sudden-death playoff with Justin Rose, a worthy opponent who had seen his own share of ups and downs over the previous three days. At the end of his round, Rose sunk a difficult twenty-foot putt to reach 11 under par. Twenty minutes later, when Rory missed his par putt on 18, there was another tie atop the leader board. A playoff, sudden-death; the gods could not have written a better script.

On the first playoff hole, both men hit commendable drives and then even better approach shots. Rose had about twelve feet for his birdie; Rory was inside him, only five feet away. Rose’s putt just missed; he tapped in for par. Now it was Rory and history, face to face. The nerves, the lifelong dream, all the hard work and disappointments along the way. But then, with a single sure stroke, Rory’s putt dropped in the hole and it was over. Rory won. He dropped to his knees and buried his face in his hands. It all came pouring out and now there are six members of the Career Grand Slam Club.

Golf is a silly game. If you ever want a good laugh, watch Robin Williams’ monologue on the genesis of golf in Scotland. It’s profane, it’s ribald, it’s maniacal, but it will make you laugh until you cry. Just like the game itself.

Congratulations, Rory!

I’ll be right back.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Let’s Talk About It with Beth Anne Dorman: For All Seasons in All Seasons

April 14, 2025 by For All Seasons, Inc. Leave a Comment

This month, Beth Anne Dorman, CEO of For All Seasons, makes the compelling case that at a time when state and federal budgets are being cut or suspended, the need to support For All Seasons in all seasons is literally true these days.

In their “Give With Your Heart” campaign, running in April, For All Seasons in taking the opportunity to remind the Mid-Shore The campaign highlights how mental health affects everyone—regardless of age or circumstance—through powerful, real-life stories of healing and hope. As Dorman explains, this initiative is more than a fundraiser—it’s a reminder that no one should face trauma, depression, or anxiety alone.

This video is approximately six minutes in length. For more information about For All Seasons, please go here.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

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