Memorial Medical Center

For a good while I passed by the ongoing construction of an unknown building in Port Lavaca, Texas, almost every day. Finally, I have witnessed its fruition; it is a new medical clinic. But it isn’t just a clinic, it is a state of the art medical facility, fit for year 2016 and many more years to come. It’s name is Memorial Medical Center at 815 N. Virginia Street.

On December 30, 2015, I was pleased to attend the Center’s open house event. I arrived early and was greeted by the Practice Administrator, Danette Bethany, RN, BSN. Ms. Bethany gave me a personal tour, and I was impressed.

The building boasts of twenty four (24) exam rooms! I have never before seen exam rooms as spacious as these. And the design flows perfectly, as it combines each doctors’ specialty and their individual nurses stations. They also have their own in-house lab, which eliminates a patient’s extra trip to another provider for their blood work. And I was shown their X-ray machine, which is the first and only one in South Texas. It’s a new model called Samsung GU60 U-Arm Digital X-ray System. Say that five times without stuttering!

The lobby has plenty of comfortable chairs for waiting patients. As soon as you walk-in you see calming shades of green on the walls, an inviting reception desk, and beamed cathedral ceiling with long lights hanging low.

Patients can be happy that almost any medical need can be addressed. The center provides Internal Medicine; Family Medicine; Senior patient practice; two Nurse Practitioners, one Physicians Assistant, and OB-GYN. And there’s a surprise for future patients – Memorial Medical Center is open Monday through Saturday from 7 am to 7pm. They offer same day appointments and accept all insurance carriers. The Center’s exceptional services, such as these, are almost unheard of!

At the open house I was the fly on the wall. I was blessed to people watch and interact with many of the staff. I soaked in their high energy, warmth and camaraderie. And, I munched on a spinach wrap; only one offering from their large spread of sandwiches and other appetizers.

The Open House Agenda:
Invocation
David Hofford, President of the Ministerial Alliance
Welcome
Jason Angling, Chief Executive Officer, Memorial Medical Center

Physicians and Staff:
Thao Minh Truong, MD
Family Physician
Dr. Bill Crowley, DO., FAAFP
Board Certified Family Practice /OB
Dr. Maia Davidson, OBGYN
Dr. Richard Arroyo-Diez,
Internal Medicine
Traci Shefcik, FNP
Family Nurse Practitioner
Courtne Dworaczky Thurlkill, FNP
Family Nurse Practitioner
Angela Garcia-Dobbins
Physician Assistant

Memorial Medical Center Staff

Yes! Virginia, There is a Santa Claus. Yes! Virginia, There is a God.

I was feeling low on the Holidays because my husband had passed on many years ago, and the 24th of December would have been our 70th Wedding Anniversary. Also, on New Year’s night, our first-born son took his own life years ago.

Then Santa Claus left a very precious gift on my porch – a little log cabin made of cracker sticks with a tiny angel in the window, a tiny lady in an evening gown and a tiny Xmas tree all decorated up inside the house. Also, Santa brought me jars of homemade jelly and my son and grandson took me out to eat a grand meal.

My spirits were lifted up from the gift of their giving.

A great big thanks goes out to them, to Santa, and last but not least, to God, who never lets me down.

Dorothy Geraldine Wilson
Seadrift

County Politics

County politics are different from State and Federal because quite often we personally know some or all of the candidates. I have heard so often, “I have known him/her all their life — they are really a good person. I don’t argue with that EXCEPT!!

Did that person choose to support the Democrat party for the good of the county residents — OR — did they choose that party because it had always been the ruling party and was their best chance to win the election? Is that self-interest? Did they even care what that party platform vowed to make into law? Legalization of drugs – tax-payer supported abortion – gay marriage – removal of all traces of God in our everyday lives?

Each candidate pays money to run on the ticket of his choice and swears allegiance to that party. Choosing which party you support is as easy as going to that County Chairman and filing an application.

Who do you support? The candidate who chose family values or the candidate who chose on the basis of self-interest. Remember the local Democrat party has openly accepted many violations and still support their party faithful.

Connie Hunt

Come and Get It

I would like to say to whomever you are that took my Star Shower Laser Light from my front yard, that you can come back and get the original box to store it in. I have put it out on the front lawn where you removed the light. I will not give you the location because you know it already.

Hope your conscience will let you enjoy it. If not, you could return it – you would be blessed.

Anonymous (to most)

The Dolphin welcomes letters from our readers on any subject that is of general interest to our audience. Letters should be 300 words or less (with exceptions at the Dolphin’s discretion). Letters reflect the opinion of the writer, and not that of Dolphin Talk staff, and we retain the right to determine suitability for publication. It is the policy of this newspaper to promote area interests: therefore, complaints against local businesses should be directed elsewhere. Letters must be signed and include day and evening phone numbers, which will not be published. Your name will be withheld upon request, but anonymous material will not be considered for publication.

Letters to the Dolphin
P.O. Box 777 Port O’Connor, TX 77982
dolphin1@tisd.net

Help Wanted: The Port O’Connor Community Service Club has immediate opening for hard working, fun loving volunteers able to laugh and have fun while serving the community in a variety of roles. You may be asked to work with great people, try new things, support your neighbors or do something that makes a difference. Open hearts and willing hands required. Training provided. For more information or to apply please contact Marie Hawes at 361-920-2322 or apply in person at the club meetings on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of each month, 10:00 a.m. at the POC Community Center. Compensation will be determined by your investment in the position.

The POC Community Service Club is back at work after a short holiday break. Spring Garage Sale, Warriors Weekend, Crawfish Festival, the next edition of the Club Cookbook and Summer fun is all coming up quickly now and POC Service Club has a full calendar with lots of work to do. More recipes are needed for our cookbook, so if you have any to share please let us know. We still need your donations of clothing and quality home goods for the April Garage Sale and pick up is available if needed. We are preparing now to accept scholarship applications from POC Elementary Alumni who will graduate and pursue college or career training this year. Contact your school counselor or one of our club members for more information.

A quick update on the 2015 Toy Run success: it is the 11th year for the toy run project and the 20th for Angel Tree, 2,916 children were blessed by donations in 2015 including children from 10 auxiliary organizations including Foster Care, Adoption Projects, Calhoun County Sheriff’s Brown Santa, Port Lavaca Police Blue Santa, the Harbor, Kid’s Connection, several smaller school districts and others. Forty-six angels were adopted and gifted locally in POC. And thankfully, Toy Run will return next year. What a perfect picture of holiday spirit and generosity! Thanks to all who helped, donated, sorted, shopped, adopted or otherwise participated. Without you all there would be no reach to our run.

Stay tuned for news of happenings in Service Club and in our community. Things like the POC Warriors Weekend Muster, Victoria Muster, Sweetheart Banquet and other great events will be here before you know it. So keep connected, you won’t want to miss a thing.

So, until next time, be safe, live simply, love openly, forgive generously and remember what great writer and inspirer William Arthur Ward said ‘Three keys to more abundant living: caring about others, daring for others, sharing with others.’ Do you need a key to open some new doors in the New Year? We can help.

The year is new. The frantic holiday season and, in fact, the entire past year is now in the past. The year just ended is now only a memory. For some of us the memories might be happy ones, others sad. It seems that the media, both digital and print, always want to hold reflections on what happened during the year past.

Then, of course, there are those who begin to think about what resolutions we need to make for the New Year. If one follows the late night shows, those comedians have had a very good time making jokes about those who resolve to do better in some way during this year.

Most of us, if we resolve at all, make one about losing weight or eating more healthily. One of those late night guys had a very good joke about losing weight. He was either going to lose the weight or rig his scale so it showed that he lost weight. He was not going to bust his resolution. It seems that most who resolve fail to carry the intention through to success. That is a shame.

It seems to me that there is one automatic resolution that we all follow and most of us make it through. It really isn’t a resolution that is renewed from year to year it is just demanded of by life.

The most colorful representation of that is a modification of the British (UK) maxim from Winston Churchill is “KBO”. A translation of that acronym is Keep Buggering On. When you think about it that is what we do all the time. One just doesn’t have an alternative, does one?

When we are young we bugger through the growing pains and diapers and such. Then we have to make it somehow through the school years. Then there is either the college or work and we have to bugger through all of that stuff. Some are either very lucky or very dedicated and make some sort of success in that period.

Most of us bugger through marriage and raising a family and helping the next generation through the same set of cycles. Then we grow into the “Golden years”.

For many, we begin to realize the old saying that all that glitters is not gold could be rephrased to ‘all the gold doesn’t really glitter.’ People, as well as things, that are used tend to deteriorate. Hoorah for those whose deterioration is not as rapid or as much as some others. We all lose a little edge and bounce.

All of this is to say each day is the first day of another year and yesterday was the last day of the past year. We tend to note years by the calendar which fixes the first of a year as one day, but really that isn’t so. It is the convention and even the calendar leap around a little 2016 is one of those leaping years. So my advice is to KBO.

You have heard the saying, ‘out with the old, in with the new…’ True, but hard to do if you don’t take out the trash.

The holidays make lots of trash. Wrapping, leftovers and even discarded trees get thrown out, but that is not the trash I mean.

Many of us have chock full closets in our brains and close packed cupboards in our hearts stuffed with trash. There is no room for the new, the old garbage is busy decaying there. Maybe you have a shelf full of slights and wrongs done to you that you have never forgiven. You have held on to them like some rotting treasure. Throw them out! They are hurting you much more than any person who ever did you wrong. They steal your joy and take up space you need for new friendships and fun experiences that are waiting for you in the New Year.

Are there hooks in that closet where you have carefully hung up anger, resentment, and the desire for revenge against someone? Maybe you have the ‘right’ to get even because they were really wrong. Perhaps you have polished and cleaned the perceived wrong doing regularly until it is shiny bright in your memory and you want to hold on to it. That refuse is robbing you of every good thing.

The person you begrudge has likely moved on, forgotten and gives no thought to your museum of misery. Whether they have ever been sorry or not, you need to make that grudge or grievance into ancient history. Forgiveness is not for them, it is for you!

Empty those closets and cupboards of anything negative or mean. Keep only the beautiful and positive. Once they are emptied you will have room for new gifts, random acts of kindness, offerings of love and concern that will come your way to be stored and treasured in the closets and cupboards of your memory. Those kinds of treasures stored up will bring freedom from bitterness, joy from within, an acceptance of yourself and others and opportunities to bless and be a blessing.

Sometimes forgetting is a gift as well, so when you have taken out the trash, Forget It! Let it Go! like the Disney princess says. Move on and fill those spaces with something better. That is the best way to practice ‘out with the old and in with the new,’ and it can ensure a Happy New Year!