Inspirational people I have interviewed
Marilyn Groble
September 2024 - Moultrie News
Many people have seen the beloved movie Rudy, but not many people can say they were at the football game where Rudy was allowed to play in the final moments and was later carried triumphantly off the field. Marilyn Groble was there. To her it was just another exciting Notre Dame game, one of the many she attended over the course of her life. “Nobody around us knew what was going on. The students were chanting to put Rudy in the game, but we didn’t learn of it until we read the newspaper several days later.” Passion for Notre Dame runs deep in the Groble family. Her husband graduated from the University in 1957, having played football there for four years. When they married in 1960, they began going to virtually every home game. “We considered Purdue, Michigan, and Michigan State home games.” Before Groble met her husband, she had graduated from the Chicago City Daley College and then began working as a stewardess. But she had to leave the profession once she got married. “Back then you had to be single, be a certain weight, wear a girdle.” When more men started to become stewards about ten years later the rules began to change, but by then Groble says she was busy raising a family. She was also busy with the Notre Dame Club of Chicago, of which her husband was president for many years. One of her favorite memories is when they would host celebrities at their annual dinner—people such as Bob Hope, Carol Burnett and John Wayne. Groble remembers personally introducing John Wayne to Phil Donahue, a classmate of her husband’s, who Wayne especially wanted to meet. A few weeks later Donahue had Wayne on his newly established talk show. Donahue always expressed his gratitude to Groble for introducing them. But what Groble cherished even more than her love of Notre Dame was raising her family. She and her husband, at the time living on the south side of Chicago, went on to have six children—two boys and four girls. Their fifth child, a little girl named Julie, passed away from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome at just six weeks old. Though it was a hard time, Groble said it brought her and her husband closer. “We were ham and eggs,” she said. “When I was down, he was up, and when he was down, I was up. When you have other kids you have to get up every day and keep on going. You help each other do that.” The loss also helped her fully appreciate the gift of life. “With the other children they had come so easily and they thrived. You don’t see the immeasurable value of a life until it hits you over the head.” When her children were all in school, Groble worked for a few years in a pediatrician’s office. Then, a new interest emerged; she began to coach her girls’ softball team. Even though Groble claims she was awful at the game, she wanted the girls to have as much fun as her boys were having with sports. Groble said she surprisingly became a “womens libber” around that time, remembering an incident at a country club in the early 80’s. Always a lover of golf, one of the rules of the club was only men could play on Sunday mornings up until about two in the afternoon. “We (women) were restricted in all kinds of ways. We could not even be members of the club in our own right. They sued us for playing golf at the “wrong times.” In the end they won because they were a private club and could make the rules.” Groble and her husband eventually made the move to Mount Pleasant. By then three of her children were living here. Groble especially loves the beauty of South Carolina, the weather, and the good friends she has met. But she expressed how it wasn’t always easy to make friends. She definitely had to reach out to people and put into practice what her mother had always taught her. “To have a friend, be a friend.” In 2019, Groble lost her husband to a stroke while he was fighting cancer. “He was such a wonderful man,” she said. “He had a great faith and was never prideful. He didn’t even tell me that he had been drafted by the San Francisco 49’ers until many years after we met. He couldn’t go on to play because he busted up his leg pretty bad his fourth year at Notre Dame.” Two cherished pictures sit across from each other in Groble’s home. One is a picture of husband and the other is a painting of the Notre Dame Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, which was one of his favorite places. Pictures of her children and grandchildren are dotted in between. She is surrounded by the things she loves: God, family and Notre Dame.
Patti Zimmerman
August 2024 - Moultrie News
Most people don’t know what it’s like to have $20,000 worth of popcorn in their house, but Patti Zimmerman does. What began with her son coming home from school one day saying he wanted to be a Boy Scout turned into a full-fledged pursuit in helping boys turn into competent, decision-making young men. “I had no intentions of joining Scouting when my oldest son first expressed interest,” Zimmerman said. “But soon after that first meeting, I found myself signing up for the popcorn kernel committee.” For those not familiar with Scouting, being on the popcorn committee involves the enormous task of sorting, accounting, and managing the logistics of selling popcorn to support the Troop’s costs. Zimmerman and her son began their Scouting journey in 2001 at Pack 150 in New Jersey. But after visiting friends for many summers at the Isle of Palms, Zimmerman and her husband eventually made their way down to Mount Pleasant in 2007. They settled into Troop 215 out of St. Andrews Church, and Pack 470 out of Christ Our King School. By then two more of her four children had joined Scouting. Then, in 2010, The Coastal Carolina Council, along with Father Vincent of St. Benedict’s church, asked if Zimmerman would prayerfully consider starting a Troop in North Mount Pleasant. She answered the call and began Troop 529. Shortly after she started a unit of Venture Crew, also 529, which is high adventure activities for older Scouts. They went to places such as Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park, where they would hike and go white water rafting. In 2014, Coastal Carolina Council wanted to resurrect Sea Scouts in Charleston. The Council Executive approached her husband’s company, Alder Energy, and asked if he would sponsor them. Her husband Don, an avid boater and sailor, felt like it was a natural fit. So Ship 510 began. “Starting out with only a small boat, we eventually transitioned to a donated, 38 Foot Sabre sailboat.” Zimmerman mentioned how many of the youth drop out of Scouting once they reach the pinnacle of Eagle Scout, but Sea Scouts continues to engage youth in positive activities way into high school and beyond. Speaking of becoming an Eagle Scout, Zimmerman has worked both as a counselor and leader in helping over 50 boys achieve this prestigious goal, which only about 4% of Scouts ever go on to earn. “It’s very rewarding,” she says. “It’s not just about helping them with their projects, but watching them make leadership decisions and reach out to the community to find a need they are passionate about.” One of Zimmerman’s favorite projects was working with a young man who built 14 tables for an organization in Mount Pleasant called “Hope to Home,” which settles homeless people into homes. “Everything happens at the kitchen table,” Zimmerman said, “It’s where people come together, pray, and break bread. It is the most important place in the home.” Zimmerman said her most difficult project was helping to build an enormous gazebo for Blissful Dreams, a therapeutic horse farm. “They needed a shaded place to rest while taking care of the horses. That took 18 weekends for the youth to build!” Zimmerman loves helping boys learn skills and become independent. She also wants them to learn to make decisions by not just relying on Google. During one Scouting initiative called Klondike Weekend, boys had to build a sled to assimilate an Iditarod race. “In northern states they do this on snow, but here we had to tailor it to the Lowcountry. The boys had been given precut and drilled wood, ropes and wheels, but they had to figure out what essentials, such as knives and tarps, to include on their sled. They also had to build fires without matches and make shelters without tents.” Zimmerman has also helped numerous youth from the district obtain their religious emblems, which involves meetings, service projects, a retreat, and a board of review. She also works on fundraising, trying to keep the costs minimal. “We recently made a trip to Pamlico in North Carolina where boys sailed, kayaked and paddle boarded for zero cost.” Zimmerman has a full plate which also includes helping her husband with their business and driving up to New Jersey at least once a month to visit her father. Though she has “retired” from helping youth obtain their Eagle Scout rank and religious emblems, she will continue to do Sea Scouting as long as youth are interested in sailing. Zimmerman is also trying to build a legacy by helping new counselors get off the ground. Through Scouting, she has witnessed hundreds of youth carry the skills and knowledge they have learned over to college, graduate school, the Armed Services, and into family life. She strives to mentor not just leaders, but servant leaders who will contribute to the country now and into the future. She is a great witness to the fact that this can only happen when people answer the call to volunteer and give of their time, which she graciously did so many years ago.
Larry Holmes
August 2024 - Moultrie News
There’s just something about Larry. He has an infectious, joyous spirit, and is definitely a people person. Born in Harlem, NY, Larry didn’t make his way down to Mt. Pleasant until 1975. “Mt. Pleasant was my father’s home. He was always encouraging us to visit my relatives in Mt Pleasant, but the first time I came wasn’t until his funeral.” Larry’s family has deep roots in the Snowden Community. His father and mother are buried at Olive Branch AME church alongside many of his relatives, including his great-grandfather who was born in 1847. Though Larry’s extended family owned property in Mount Pleasant, his grandfather relocated the family to New York in the 1920’s where Larry was later born. Larry remembers his formative years in Harlem fondly. “At that time, growing up in a large family, New York offered everything. There were many great educational, cultural and employment opportunities.” Having grown up so close to Manhattan, he felt a “little apprehensive” about visiting South Carolina for the first time. “My cousins immediately put me at ease, showing me true southern hospitality. Up north when you go to someone’s house, they offer you a drink. But here they offer you food!” Through their kindness they demonstrated what Larry’s father had always instilled in him—the importance of family. Having done well in school, and after spending some time in the military, Larry earned free tuition to City College of New York, where he majored in math. After graduation, he began sending resumes all over the East Coast, including South Carolina. It was shortly thereafter that he got a call from the principal of Burke High School in downtown Charleston. Larry ended up taking a job as a math teacher and stayed in the same position for 34 years. As Larry reflected on the path that led him to becoming a teacher, there was a memory that helped solidify his decision. Always an observer of people, Larry was once waiting for his mother to come out of an appointment in the Bronx when he saw three young children, two girls and a boy, all under the age of ten. “Their hair wasn’t combed; they weren’t properly dressed. Across the street their mother was hanging out, shouting and admonishing them. I knew I couldn’t do anything about that situation, but I knew what I could do going forward.” Larry always felt his calling was in the classroom. Eventually receiving a Masters of Teaching in Mathematics from The Citadel, he always strived to take his students further than what was expected, teaching them to pursue life with confidence and determination. He also encouraged them to spread their wings. Larry fondly recalled three young women in his honors class who always stuck close together. When they later came back to visit the school, he was happy to learn that each had branched out in their own way. “One received her Doctorate in Pharmacy, one became an attorney in Atlanta, and one took an engineering position in New Zealand.” Larry says in many ways we are all teachers, all with our own special knowledge to pass onto others. When he retired, he volunteered as a math tutor for eight years at The Safe Zone, an enrichment program in the community center of his neighborhood. When asked if after all this time he ever wanted to move back up north, Larry said no. Though New York will always occupy a large place in his heart, he is firmly established in South Carolina. “I obtained a portion of my grandfather’s property in Mt Pleasant and never wanted to sell it. It’s part of a legacy.” Larry currently sits on the board of the African American Settlement Community Historic Commission. The Commission is currently refurbishing the 1904 Long Point School, a historic African American schoolhouse which moved to the Snowden Community in 2021. It is currently in the process of being restored into a museum and cultural center. Larry has a full life and though his wife, Bessie Allen Holmes, a former Wando teacher, died of cancer in 2016, he still never feels lonely. He is very grateful for his loving family; his children, brothers, sisters, and many cousins. He also cherishes his friends—whether the ones from his early years who always encouraged him to study, even taking the day off from work to watch him graduate college—to the ones he has now with whom he enjoys playing tennis. Larry is a great example of fully appreciating life, putting people at ease with his welcoming smile, and using his strengths and talents to both serve others and preserve history.
Meg Mauro
July 2024 - Moultrie News
The first time I “heard” Meg Mauro I was waiting to have a mammogram. Always a little nervous before each bi-yearly screening appointment, I couldn’t help but relax as I listened to her playing Ave Maria on the piano at MUSC’s Mt Pleasant location. Six months later I heard her again—this time in the form of Christmas carols. After my appointment I went up to the second floor and introduced myself to the woman who had brought me peace as I had been waiting. I recently was able to sit down and talk more in depth to Meg Mauro, who moved to Mt Pleasant from Connecticut when her husband got a job transfer. She began playing the piano at the hospitals of MUSC and Roper St. Francis in a roundabout way. A financial planner by trade, Meg grew up in a medical family and knew she wanted to eventually work in a hospital setting in some capacity. Around the same time Meg moved to Mt Pleasant, she got a little Dachshund named Beasley. It was then she decided to get involved in pet therapy as a volunteer and had Beasley certified. “You bring so much healing and happiness to patients through pet therapy,” she said. “Beasley and I volunteered on the third-floor infusion unit and at MUSC children’s hospital downtown. We couldn’t visit with patients during COVID, so I had a cardboard cut-out of Beasley made during that time with a bark box. It barked when people walked by!” Meg told me one of her favorite memories was visiting with a four-year-old boy who was very sick and had been in the hospital for months. “One day I was surprised when he told me he was better and going home. But then he burst out crying because he said how much he was going to miss me and Beasley!” Pet therapy transitioned into playing the piano when Beasley passed away. “Unfortunately he ruptured a disk in his back when he was only six-years-old and became paralyzed. He had surgery to correct it, but he later got an infection. Shortly afterwards, my husband bought me a baby grand to replace an old piano. Playing helped me to heal, so I thought maybe it could help others as well. And I realized I could reach more people through music.” Meg began playing the piano when she was in fourth grade. She played for about two years but then began to battle with her mother over practicing. She resumed playing when her kids began playing. “By then I had an appreciation for music and wanted to give my kids a musical foundation. I took lessons alongside them.” Meg loves how music travels in the MUSC Midtown location throughout the first and second floor because it’s so open. In spring of 2022 a woman named Wendy Sharp donated the piano and Fox Music was kind enough to have it transported. It was dedicated to Beasley and her picture always sits on top of the piano as Meg plays. “When you lose a pet, they leave behind so many gifts. Beasley left me the gift of music and healing for others.” Almost every single time Meg plays, people come up to her. Though she always opens up and closes with the same songs, some of her favorites to play are Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen, Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel, Make you feel my love by Adele, What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong, and You Lift Me Up by Josh Groban. I asked Meg if she got another dog after Beasley passed and she said yes. “Originally, we planned to get a labradoodle, but one day during Covid my husband looked at me and said, “I’d really like another hotdog,” and I agreed! We now have Olive, who is one. ” Though Meg and her husband love Olive just as much as Beasley, Meg says they have different personalities. She says Olive is still quite timid and Meg is not yet sure if she would make a good therapy dog. So for now, in between playing the piano, Meg trains other dogs to be therapy dogs at Roper St. Francis through a program called The Beasley Foundation. Meg Mauro is a wonderful example of shining her light by donating her free time and generously using her gifts and talents. If you would like more information on either program, visit the MUSC Arts in Healing program at www.muschealth.org, or The Beasley Foundation at www.rsfhfoundation.org.
Jennifer Ridgeway
October 2024 - Moultrie News
With October being Breast Cancer Awareness month, I recently sat down with Jennifer Ridgeway, a Physician Assistant who has been with MUSC since 2002. In 2016 she began working in Surgical Oncology, primarily in the Breast Program. My first question was about dense breast tissue. A term used a lot recently. “Dense breast tissue is common,” Ridgeway said. “Approximately 50% of women have dense breast tissue and it is completely normal. Genetics can play a role, and younger women tend to have more dense tissue as opposed to older women who have gone through menopause.” Ridgeway explained that breast density is not a physical exam finding but the mammographic appearance of the amount of glandular tissue compared to fat. An increase in the proportion of glandular tissue leads to greater mammographic density. She went on to explain that there are four categories of breast density. “Approximately 10% of women have fatty tissue, 40% scattered fibroglandular, 40% heterogeneously dense tissue, and 10% have extremely dense tissue.” The FDA recently came out in September and said radiologists must comment on breast density after a mammogram, which MUSC Hollings Cancer Center has been doing for many years. “A woman should talk to her provider about having additional imaging if she has dense tissue. Abnormalities may show up on ultrasounds that a mammogram might not detect.” According to Ridgeway, dense breast tissue affects breast cancer in two ways. 1) Dense breast tissue can decrease the sensitivity to detect abnormalities hence obscuring a cancer and 2) Increased density is an independent risk factor as most cancers develop in the glandular tissue. But Ridgeway added that while increased density can be associated with a higher risk of the possibility of developing cancer, it does not correlate with higher mortality. If biopsies are recommended, she also reassured that about 80% of breast biopsies are benign. “There are a lot of findings that are not cancer, such as cysts or simple fibroadenomas, which carry no risk.” When asked about the risk factors for getting breast cancer, Ridgeway listed: being female, increasing age, family history, overall exposure to hormones i.e., an early menstruation (before age 12) and later menopause (after 55), never having children, having first child after age 35, having known genetic mutations, and being overweight. “Women want to aim for having a body mass index under 30. Having a healthy BMI is important, especially if you are post-menopausal.” Ridgeway recommends 150 minutes of cardio exercise a week. And while there are inclusive factors about supplement recommendations, she did say a Mediterranean diet may be beneficial. Other factors that are helpful in reducing breast cancer risk: not smoking, no more than one alcoholic drink a day, breastfeeding, and reducing stress. “And continue with yearly mammograms. The earlier cancer is detected, the less likely it is to spread and the better the long-term outcome.” The current recommendation from The American College of Radiology is for average risk women to begin having mammograms at age 40. One thing I asked Ridgeway was if women should still do monthly self-breast exams, as there have been conflicting opinions. “I encourage breast awareness. Women should do self-examinations to become familiar with their body and their ‘normal.’ Be mindful of changes,” she said. “Areas of concern are typically persistent and progressive. They don’t move around, and they don’t play hide and seek.” When asked if there is anything else a woman should look out for, Ridgeway mentioned nipple discharge and skin changes—such as swelling, redness, and an orange peel like appearance. “And while breast cancer is typically painless, persistent pain can be a sign.” Finally, I asked Ridgeway what she would say to encourage a woman who has just been diagnosed with breast cancer. “We will be there to walk you through it every step of the way,” she said. “A diagnosis of breast cancer is not a death sentence. With the advances in imaging we are identifying areas of concern at an earlier stage, so the overall mortality rate is improving. The many advances in systematic treatments also improve morbidity and mortality.” Additional support can be found through the MUSC Hollings Cancer Center monthly Zoom meeting, moderated by providers with expertise in the psychological experience of people going through breast cancer. The virtual meeting is held on the third Tuesday of every month from noon to 1 p.m. For more information visit https://hollingscancercenter.musc.edu/patient-care/patient-resources/support-groups
