Goshen, Ohio – HealthSource Goshen School-Based Health Center at 6696 Goshen Road, located in the back of Marr Cook Elementary School, cut a grand opening ribbon today.
This provides a new partnership to provide expanded quality health care to the community, students, and school staff. There is a separate secured entrance for the public.
HealthSource had already been providing mobile dental care. “With this expansion in the community, care will still be provided at HealthSource Loveland, located on Charles Snider Road,” stated Kim Patton, President and CEO.
According to a release from HealthSource, “The advantage of having a school-based health center is that students can be seen by the clinician the same day. They don’t miss as much class time and parents don’t need to leave work to take their child to the doctor. Parents or guardians will need to complete a permission packet to be seen at the school-based health center.
Photos by Clermont County
The goal is for the health center is to not replace a child’s primary care physician if care is already established. “HealthSource of Ohio will work in conjunction with the existing clinician.”
Darrell Edwards, Goshen Local School District, Superintendent said when the project was first announced, “We are pleased to partner with HealthSource to bring easier access to convenient health care to our students and families. For students to learn, they must be healthy. Having a school-based health care center allows parents to quickly have their child evaluated by a health professional without having to take off work. We have partnered with HealthSource in the past with their mobile dental clinic and our families appreciated the care they received. Our hope is to improve the overall health of our students, improve attendance, and increase academic achievement”.
HealthSource of Ohio accepts most insurance plans, including Medicare and Medicaid, and offers a discounted sliding fee for uninsured or under-insured patients. HealthSource Goshen will be accepting new patients and permission forms for students will be sent out soon.
The HealthSource Goshen School-Based Health Center at 6696 Goshen Road (located in the back of Marr Cook Elementary School) will be open to Goshen students and staff, and the entire community, Monday-Friday, 8 AM until 5 PM, year-round. The community celebrated with an open house and ribbon cutting yesterday.
Goshen and Miami Township (Clermont County), Ohio – A EF2 tornado with winds at 135 mph touched down along a 4.5 mile path in Goshen Township and a EF1 tornado touched down in the Bell Meade Farms neighborhood in Miami Township on Thursday, July 6 leaving physical scars and trauma that will last lifetimes.
Goshen Township Administrator Steve Pegram said he doesn’t believe the outdoor warning sirens sounded and a tornado watch had not been declared. It was the alert he received on his smart phone that first indicated trouble was brewing. He said in a news conference that the outdoor siren at the township fire station did not “go off”. He said they activate the siren after receiving a weather alert and that the storm hit about 30-seconds after receiving an alert on his phone. He continued, “So, there probably wasn’t even time to push the button” which would activate the siren. The station and administration building almost immediately took a direct hit from the storm, resulting in extensive damage and it could not be used for emergency operations. “The building the siren was on was destroyed, and I can’t speak to any other sirens”
Pegram said. He began coordinating emergency responsesusing using only his smart phone to coordinate emergency responses until the Hamilton County fire chiefs provided them with a portable command vehicle, an RV, to operate from. In the early hours of the storm, Pegram used the Township FaceBook page to give regular updates to residents and the media. It’s all he had.
Pegram was in his office when the storm hit and windows had already started blowing out as he and staff were on the steps leading to the basement.
Pegram encourages people to install a weather alert app on their smart-phone and to check with the county Homeland Security websites for more information about alert systems.
In the end, about one-third of the administration and police building was on the ground and had a gas leak that lasted for about five hours, according to Pegram.
Goshen Police parking lot surveillance video
On July 6, Goshen Township reported only 2 confirmed injuries. A state of emergency was declared at 5:43 PM. It has since been reported there were three injuries, two residents hit by falling debris and one firefighter injured while using a chainsaw. There were no fatalities, either in Goshen or Miami Township. Between 150 to 200 structures were damaged in Goshen Township.
A Red Cross emergency shelter was established at Goshen High School at 6707 Goshen Road where emergency oxygen equipment was also available for people’s medical needs. Shelter, bottled water, and food were available. Food donations can also be delivered to the high school.
“There was a lot of food at Goshen High School yesterday – Pizza, BBQ, and more were free.” (Photo by Goshen Township)
An emergency hotline has been established – 513-735-8500. The non-emergency number is 513-732-2231. Call 911 in an emergency.
Pegram said that each and every structure with damage was being inspected by the Township as well as the Clermont County Building Department and the County Emergency Management Agency. He said that perhaps 25% of the homes in the township had significant damage. He said the Duke Energy estimated that more than one-hundred “power poles” would need to be replaced before they could begin stringing new wires and it will, “take days”.
In a news conference Pegram spoke about Goshen being a tight-knit community and said that by the time he made it home to check on his own house, neighbors had already cleared his street of tree limbs.
There are two, 40 Yard Rumpke dumpsters provided by Clermont County Solid Waste available at the old Green School property on Goshen Road across from McDonald’s and available for residents to dump trash and debris.
“Woody” debris should not go in the trash, tree limbs, brush, etc should be pulled to the curb for pick up which will start Monday morning and continue most of the week.
The Township asks, “Please cut tree debris into small manageable pieces – 4’ is preferred”.
Township Service Director Chad Meadows looked out his office window to see the tornado already on the ground.
“Administrative personnel made it halfway down the stairs as windows exploded,” said Chief of Police, Bob Rose on FaceBook. “Officers in the police department didn’t have time to get to the basement, taking cover in rooms with no windows and a closet. Firefighter/medics at Station 18 took cover in a bathroom as a portion of their firehouse collapsed.” Rose continued, “I put out ‘an all’ call on the radio for any available unit to respond and officers came from everywhere, racing to the many different streets and neighborhoods affected. All of our neighbors that were not dealing with their own storm-related calls responded as well as agencies from much further away. I heard or saw police officers from as far away as Bethel, Batavia, Amberly Village, and many more. The Ohio State Highway Patrol sent troopers from all surrounding counties. The story is the same for fire departments. Engines and ambulances from all over responded.”
From the Goshen Township FaceBook page, “We have a lot of clean up activities scheduled for Saturday including hundreds of volunteers and dozens of Police, Fire, Public Works and Utility companies. The basic message is if you don’t live in Goshen, work here or have ‘official’ business, please stay away.” It is a rural community with an urban traffic problem. A lot of roads will be closed either temporarily or most of the day to help facilitate clean-up and recovery efforts.
WAYS TO HELP
• Donations can be taken to Goshen High School at 6707 Goshen Road.
• Stay away: Emergency services, road crews, Duke Energy, the many tree companies, and more respectfully request sightseers avoid the area. Traffic congestion is slowing work and causing gridlock at times. The basic message is if you don’t live there, work there or have “official” business please stay away.
• Dear Loveland Community:
Yesterday, a community close to us experienced a devastating tornado. Goshen has been declared a state of emergency. We have family that lives in Goshen and luckily they are safe. We would love to have the neighborhood help the families of Goshen in this time of need. Please consider donating bottled water, nonperishable food items, gift cards, new blankets, new pillows, etc. Many of these families are displaced. We are providing our mom’s Venmo account if you are unable to go purchase items, but want to donate money. We will take the money to buy items needed for families.
Please drop off any donations to: 10100 Sleepy Ridge Drive (at the corner). We will take donations by the garage or on the porch. Please look for signs that we will put out. Also, Loveland Magazine will be helping us collect items. You can drop off items at their location at 243 Wall Street.
Venmo: @Amy-Burns-93
Thanks,
Brady and Connor Burns
Loveland High School Students
• Goshen Tornado Relief Fund
A Disaster Relief Fund has been established by Connect Clermont, an IRS-approved 501c3 nonprofit. All donations are to be used for Goshen area disaster relief from recent tornadoes.
Checks are the preferred means of donation. Please make checks out to “Connect Clermont” with Goshen area relief in the memo line, and mail to:
Connect Clermont
c/o Disaster Relief Fund
2400 Clermont Center Drive
Suite 100
Batavia, OH 45103
Cash or check donations can be brought to any Park National Bank location.
Venmo and Zelle deposit capabilities are being organized. Details will be forthcoming.
• Loveland Legacy Foundation is actively collecting tax-deductible donations in support of the victims of the recent tornado in our area. A matching grant has been offered for the first $2500 collected.
• The Wicked Pickle: To our neighbors in Goshen we will be accepting Donations starting tomorrow all weekend long to help support our sister community. Donations can be made at the tiki hut by cash or Credit card. 100% of all proceeds will be sent to the City of Goshen. Please share this post and hope to see you all this weekend at the Pickle.
If you experienced any damage from the storm, the Ohio Department of Insurance has a toolkit that can help you through the insurance claim filing process: http://insurance.ohio.gov/…/home…/severe-weather-toolkit. Have questions? Email consumer.complaint@insurance.ohio.gov OR call 1-800-686-1526.
Move2Loveland: To our Goshen Ohio neighbors, our office is just down the street!
Please feel free to stop in for some cool A/C, power to charge your devices, and internet as well
Our thoughts and prayers are with those that lost homes and any treasured possessions.
We are here M-F from 9-5.
Clermont County Board of DD: We are collecting items for those affected by the Goshen and Wayne Township tornado on July 6. If you have non-perishable food items you would like to donate, you can drop them off at the Wildey Center, Main Entrance Door A-1, at any time the gates are open. Just leave your items inside the door in the vestibule. THANK YOU FOR YOUR DONATIONS!
Here are some suggested items:
• bottled water or water in gallon jugs
• peanut butter
• jelly in plastic bottles
• Nutella
• crackers of all kinds
• canned meat (such as canned chicken that requires no cooking)
• canned soups (water can be heated on a camp stove or grill to make this a hot meal)
• tea bags
• lemonade
• canned pasta (such as Spaghetti O’s or ravioli)
• canned fruit
• cereal
• oatmeal
• powdered milk
• juice boxes
• granola bars
• fruit snacks
• cereal bars
LIFE FOOD PANTRY
RESIDENTS AFFECTED BY POWER OUTAGES—Loveland, Goshen, Milford and outlying areas
LOVELAND LIFE FOOD PANTRY 541 Loveland Madeira Rd. will be open Thursday 10-noon and 4-6:30, Friday and Saturday 10-noon. Please come and let us assist you with food, personal care, diapers, household products. We want to help!
NEWS FROM MIAMI TOWNSHIP
Due to the significant storm event that occurred in parts of Miami Township on July 6th, the Township Service Department will begin limited curbside brush pickup. Due to the large volume involved and the time required to get back to normal, the weekly duties of the Service Department, the curbside pickup will occur in those neighborhoods that had the storm damage and are not intended for general pruning of trees that residents may take advantage of in other parts of the Township. The areas of the Township that will receive the brush pickup will be the neighborhoods along the Branch Hill-Guinea Pike corridor as far north as approximately the Belle Meade neighborhood, to the east as far as the State Route 48/Smith Road area and extending down to SR 28. The areas impacted that will have curbside brush pickup are shown approximately in the area in red on the map, below.
The items will be limited to only tree limbs and brush, not construction materials or trash. Property owners will need to have the brush placed along the edge of the road or back of the curb outside of any lanes of travel.
As always, all Township residents may also utilize the Township’s brush voucher program by picking up free brush vouchers at the Miami Township Civic Center or the Miami Township Police Department and then drop off tree limbs and brush at the Bzak Landscaping located at 931 Round Bottom Road.
For additional information, please contact the Service Department at 513-248-3728 or the Township Administration at 513-248-3725.
CIVIC CENTER OPEN
Reminder to residents that the Township Civic Center is open and has power and public WiFi. Feel free to come up to charge phones or cool off. Please stay safe!
Goshen and Miami Township, Ohio – Loveland Magazine relied on our FaceBook presence last night into this evening to keep readers updated about the tornado that did extensive damage in Goshen and Miami Townships yesterday.
You can read about road closures and openings, how you can help, and the regular updates from township and county officials. Loveland Magazine on FaceBook.
Loveland, Ohio – Dress for Success Cincinnati has announced that The Care Center of Loveland is their new satellite location for the StyleHER program.
For the past 15 years, the Care Center has been assisting families by helping them remove the barriers and build the resources needed to thrive in life. Located at 11020 South Lebanon Road in Loveland, The Care Center will now be offering DFSC styling services to residents of the Loveland and neighboring communities.
According to Data USA, the largest demographic living in poverty in Loveland is currently women ages 25-34. The hope is that through this partnership, they will be able to tend to that community of women living at or below the poverty line and offer them services that will nurture their employment mobility and help them to thrive.
A strong supporter of this mission is Greg Knake, Executive Director of The Care Center, who recognized the opportunity for Dress for Success Cincinnati and The Care Center to help more women through a partnership early on.
“Our mission is about helping people thrive in life, and one critical way we do that is by helping them reenter the workforce,” Knake said. “We also have a high value for not trying to recreate the wheel, and we instantly identified that Dress for Success Cincinnati already had a model that was successful. It is a perfect fit to incorporate Dress for Success Cincinnati’s services in what we do.”
Through this act of ‘not trying to recreate the wheel’ they have formed a partnership that can utilize the successes of both organizations to further benefit women. The Care Center of Loveland is a state-of-the-art resource center offering beneficial services such as childcare and transportation that help to eliminate major barriers that stand in the way of women receiving this support.
As childcare is a service that is not currently offered by Dress for Success Cincinnati, they can now offer it to their clients at The Care Center’s location. Not only have they expanded the range of women they are able to serve but have expanded the accessibility for women to utilize the services as well.
“We want to be a resource for people who want to take advantage of Dress for Success Cincinnati’s resource but may not have the reliable transportation to access the Norwood location,” Knake said. “We are excited to offer Dress for Success Cincinnati’s resources in areas like Milford, Goshen, and Loveland.”
In addition to offering DFSC styling services at The Care Center, the new satellite location will also offer similar career assistance to that of Dress for Success Cincinnati’s Norwood office. Just as the DFSC office has partnered with Cincinnati Works to provide help with resume building, job searching, and more via an on-site Cincinnati Works representative, The Care Center will offer the same opportunity for clients.
“We also offer career development resources through Cincinnati works and even work with the same Cincinnati works representative,” Knake said. “So, clients will have that same opportunity when they come here to be styled.”
Dress for Success Cincinnati said that they are thrilled to launch this new satellite location and to be working with Knake and his team at The Care Center to offer their services, along with the added benefits that come from this new location to more women in surrounding areas.
To learn more about The Care Center or schedule your styling appointment, visit The Care Center’s website here.
Loveland, Ohio – Ohio K-12 schools, including public, private, and career-tech entities, yesterday learned when their teachers and staff necessary for in-person learning are able to begin receiving vaccines.
Loveland City School District is included in COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Week 2 of first doses, starting February 8 as well as Indian Hill, Moeller, St. Xavier, Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy, Forest Hills (Anderson), Great Oaks Career Campuses, and Sycamore.
Included in Distribution Week 3 are, Kings, Lebanon, Little Miami, Mason, and St Margaret Of York.
Included in Distribution Week 4 are, Children’s Meeting House, Goshen, Milford, Ohio Valley Voices, and St. Columban.
Cincinnati Public Schools were able to jump the line and began their vacinations yesterday.
Loveland’s schools remain in hybird-learning at all buildings, a combination of some students and staff attending in-person five-days per week and some students and staff teaching or learning in Loveland’s Remote Academy five-days a week.*
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has said that he is making it clear his “goal of Ohio returning to in-person learning either full-time or in a hybrid model by March 1st.” In order to do this, the governor identified teachers and school personnel necessary for in-person learning as Phase 1B recipients as part of the Ohio COVID-19 Vaccination program.
“Vaccine is incredibly scarce, and we simply don’t have enough to vaccinate everyone at the same time. Therefore, this will be a rolling process, just like it has been during other vaccination phases, with a goal of administering all first doses by March 1st,” said Governor DeWine. “This rollout schedule is a heavy logistical lift that aims to ensure the maximum number of people can be vaccinated in the shortest amount of time.”
In a news release, Dewine said, “The plan also makes the process as simple as possible for staff to be vaccinated and is organized to allow most K-12 staff in a county to be vaccinated within seven days of their assigned vaccination start date. For the limited number of counties where vaccinations will take place over multiple weeks, local leaders will make the logistical and scheduling decisions.”
Eligible school employees will learn more about the locations and times of the vaccination sites from their administrators. The following documents list the entities by county in the week when teachers and personnel are able to begin vaccinations.
If you find value in this Voter Guide and the expense involved in putting it together, please…Loveland, Ohio – Below you can read the ballot language for the increase in taxes the Loveland Board of Education is asking you to approve. You can also read the text of current and proposed changes City Council wants you to approve to the City Charter.
Loveland City Council at Large – 3 to be elected – 4-year term
Pat Ahr
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
Warren Co. –
TOTAL –
Kathy Bailey
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
Warren Co. –
TOTAL –
Andy Bateman
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
Warren Co. –
TOTAL –
Kent G. Blair
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
Warren Co. –
TOTAL –
Cory O’Donnell
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
Warren Co. –
TOTAL –
Angela L. Settell
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
Warren Co. –
TOTAL –
Loveland Board of Education – 2 to be elected – 4-year term
Arthur R. Jarvis
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
Warren Co. –
TOTAL –
Kathryn Lorenz
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
Warren Co. –
TOTAL –
Symmes Township Trustee – 1 to be elected – 4-year term
Phil Beck
CJ Carr
Symmes Township Fiscal Officer – 1 to be elected – 4-year term
Joseph C. Grossi
Milford Council at Large – 4 to be elected – 4-year term
Edward J. Haskins
Kyle Mitchell
Benjamin Redman
Sandra Russell
Milford School Board
Emily Chestnut
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
Warren Co. –
TOTAL –
Mike Durkee
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
TOTAL –
Dave Meranda
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
TOTAL –
James Rhodes
Clermont Co. –
Hamilton Co. –
TOTAL –
Goshen Township Trustee
Bob Hausermann
Bill Pitman
Goshen Township Fiscal Officer
Laura Engled
Goshen School Board – Full term 2 to be elected
John Benthien
Julie Casey
Derrick Holmes
GoshenSchool Board (unexpired term) – 1 to be elected
Deborah S. Gray
Miami Township (Clermont County) Trustee
Ken Tracy
Miami Township (Clermont County) Fiscal Officer
Eric C. Ferry
Judge of Hamilton County Municipal Court – 1 to be elected per district – 6-year term (District 5)
Kari L. Bloom
Heather S. Russell
ISSUES
Loveland City Council will ask voters to approve a Revised Charter.
Clermont Co. –
YES –
NO –
Hamilton Co. –
YES –
NO –
Warren Co. –
YES –
NO –
TOTAL –
YES –
NO –
Loveland Board of Education is asking voters to approve a combined Operating and Bond Levy.
Clermont Co.
YES –
NO –
Hamilton Co.
YES –
NO –
Warren Co.
YES –
NO –
TOTAL –
YES –
NO –
Goshen Local School District
Bond Levy 5.24 mills – 34 years
For –
Against –
Milford City
Renewal with an Increase 17 mills – for Fire & EMS – for 5 years
For –
Against
GoshenSchool Bond Levy
Shall bonds be issued by the Goshen Local School District, Counties of Clermont and Warren, for the purpose of site acquisition, new construction, improvements, renovations and additions to school facilities and providing equipment, furnishings and site improvements therefor, in the principal amount of thirty‐one million dollars ($31,000,000), to be repaid annually over a maximum period of thirty‐four (34) years, and an annual levy of property taxes be made outside of the ten‐mill limitation, estimated by the county auditor to average over the repayment period of the bond issue five and twenty‐four hundreds (5.24) mills for each one dollar of tax valuation, which amounts to fifty‐two and four‐tenths cents ($0.524) for each one hundred dollars of tax valuation, commencing in 2019, first due in calendar year 2020, to pay the annual debt charges on the bonds, and to pay debt charges on any notes issued in anticipation of those bonds?
YES
NO
Kings Local School District
Shall bonds be issued by the Kings Local School District, for the purpose of site acquisition, new construction, improvements, renovations and additions to school facilities and providing equipment, furnishings and site improvements therefor, in the principal amount of $89,975,000 to be repaid annually over a maximum period of 37 years, and an annual levy of property taxes be made outside the ten‐mill limitation, estimated by the county auditor to average over the repayment period of the bond issue 4.96 mills for each one dollar of tax valuation, which amounts to $0.496 for each one hundred dollars of tax valuation, commencing in 2019, first due in calendar year 2020, to pay the annual debt charge on the bonds, and to pay debt charges on any notes issued in anticipation of those bonds?
YES
NO
Hamilton County
Tax Levy (Renewal) – .34ml 5yr – Family Services & Treatment Programs
For –
Against
Tax Levy – (Renewal) – 4.13ml 5yr – Developmental Disabilities
For –
Against
Sycamore School Bond Issue
Shall bonds be issued by the Sycamore Community City School District for the purpose of new construction, improvements, renovations, and additions to school facilities, and providing equipment, furnishings, and site development and improvements, and all necessary appurtenances therefor, in the principal amount of one hundred twenty-seven million five hundred thousand dollars ($127,500,000), to be repaid annually over a maximum period of thirty (30) years, and an annual levy of property taxes be made outside of the ten-mill limitation, estimated by the county auditor to average over the repayment period of the bond issue four (4) mills for each one dollar of tax valuation, which amounts to forty cents ($0.40) for each one hundred dollars of tax valuation, commencing in 2019, first due in calendar year 2020, to pay the annual debt charges on the bonds, and to pay debt charges on any notes issued in anticipation of those bonds?
David Miller is the Publisher and Editor of Loveland Magazine and a Vietnam combat veteran.
by David Miller
Back in early 2011, I heard that the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 649, from the Batavia area, were collecting torn and tattered American flags. They would have a proper retirement ceremony for the flags they collected. I contacted the organization to see if Loveland folks could participate. As much as anything, it was a selfish question because I had several old flags in my own basement that I never knew what to do with. When they said, “Yes of course.”, I began to think of a way to collect flags in Loveland.
Union Savings Bank is right next door to our office on West Loveland and I had known the Branch Manager for many decades so decided to ask that if I put a collection bin in the lobby of the bank, would it be OK. Marla Simiele thought it would be a great service to offer her customers, and over the last 4-years we have collected perhaps 500 old, torn, and tattered flags. The first batch was taken to the Veteran’s group and those flags were then taken after a retirement ceremony to the Tufts Schildmeyer Family Funeral Homes Cremation Center in Goshen where they were turned into ashes. The ashes were buried in a Goshen Township cemetery.
Simiele and I decided that because of the popularity of the program we would do it year-round and although they have never been counted, I estimate we have collected more than 500. Simiele says it has been very popular with bank customers.
Over the years, every time I spoke to a scout leader I would ask if their troop would like to conduct a flag retirement ceremony to help me properly dispose of all the flags. I put pleas on community bulletin boards and still had no takers until I met a local leader this winter who I was buying a record turntable from. As we talked, he mentioned his son was in scouting and that he would ask at their next scout meeting about doing a retirement ceremony for the flags. After another couple months, I finally got a call from Kirk McCracken a local Cub Master, who said he would like some flags for a project. Kirk visited Loveland Magazine and he told me the story of taking his father on an “Honor Flight” and that one of the favorite things about the trip was when his father received a star from a retired American flag when he returned from Washington D.C. and was greeted at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. Kirk wanted local scouts to have a supply of stars for projects like Honor Flight.
“A nice picture of some of the boys with all of the stars we cut out for the Vets! 2750 Stars in all, and more to come!” – Kirk McCracken
In this LOVELAND MAGAZINE TV interview, I spoke to McCracken and his son Liam, Bob Solimeno and his son Tanner, and Dee Daniels an Ambassador with Honor Flight Tri-State. Both Liam and Tanner helped cut out about 2,800 stars from the flags from only a portion of the flags that have been collected by Loveland Magazine and Union Savings Bank.
Daniels talks about the purpose of Honor Flight, and how local folks can get involved. You can support their trips to the Nation’s Capital as they take Veterans to see the war memorials, and how you may honor your own loved one with a free flight to visit their memorials in Washington, D.C. All World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War veterans aged 65 and older, who served either stateside or overseas, are eligible for the free flights.
Loveland Magazine and McCracken are arranging for a flag retirement ceremony conducted by the local scouts to be held soon in Loveland. Stay tuned.
FORT McCOY, Wis.—As the sun sets, darkness engulfs the twelve rows of Army green tents until they are no longer visible. A group of female Soldiers meander from afar, their steps confident but slow until they make a sharp right to enter tent 71, their home for the past three weeks. As bulky Kevlar helmets are removed and dirty boots are tossed aside, the Soldiers reach for their cellphones, calling to one another to sit on their bunks and admire photos of their young children blowing kisses, leaving for school, and playing with their toys.
For Capt. Korinn Greeson, a Goshen, Ohio native and medical service officer assigned to the 256th Combat Support Hospital, this camaraderie, although helpful, hammers home the reality that she and her comrades are preparing to deploy.
“This is the call of duty,” Greeson explains, grimacing as she reminisces about her first time in the field as a breastfeeding mom.”
“This is the call of duty,” Greeson explains, grimacing as she reminisces about her first time in the field as a breastfeeding mom. Greeson is a mom of four, including a five-month-old son, and with ten years of service, separation from her children has become an expected, but challenging obstacle to motherhood.
“Rarely is being in the military convenient,” Greeson said, “but I chose to serve in the Army Reserve and I do the best I can to balance being a good Soldier and a good mom.”
This balancing act is further compounded by the fact that Greeson is a breastfeeding mother assigned to an Army Reserve Ready Force X unit. Those units designated by the Army Reserve as Ready Force X are expected to maintain a higher readiness level in order to deploy within days of notification.
Fran Hendrick says moms can become pros at growing girls’ resilience, strength, and happiness
“My goal is to be able to sustain a milk supply so I can feed my baby when I get home,” Greeson said. In preparation for this field training, Greeson transitioned to pumping twice a day, introduced her baby to the bottle, and began supplementing some of her son’s daily feedings with formula.
“I stopped breastfeeding all three of my other children due to various forms of Army field training,” Greeson said. “This time around, though, my son is five months old and I’m not ready to stop breastfeeding him. From the beginning, I knew I would have to leave him at some point for at least two weeks and this was always part of my parent planning.”
According to the Army Breastfeeding and Lactation Support Policy…
According to the Army Breastfeeding and Lactation Support Policy, Soldiers who are breastfeeding or expressing milk remain eligible for field training, mobility exercises, and deployments. Commanders are expected to designate a private space with locking capabilities, an electrical outlet, and access to a safe water source for Soldiers to express milk.
Greeson is one of four women participating in Combat Support Training Exercise 18-03 at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin. The unit commander, Col. Laconnia Dandy, ensured the Soldiers would have the ability to store and ship their expressed milk during the exercise.
“Being a reserve soldier typically requires you to be responsible for one weekend a month and two weeks a year, but you also know there is a chance that you will be called up at any time and expected to serve,” Greeson said. “I couldn’t do any of this if I didn’t have a supportive husband at home, though. We’ve been married for ten years and we often talk and make plans for a situation in which I’m deployed.”
With only four days of training remaining, Greeson says she’s enjoyed this experience but she’s excited to return home and see her family.
“I’m ready to deploy,” Greeson continued. “I’m okay with it but it doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy.”
Please feel free to stop in for some cool A/C, power to charge your devices, and internet as well 
Our thoughts and prayers are with those that lost homes and any treasured possessions.
![[Video Interview] Scouts, Tattered Flags, Stars, and Honor Flight](https://lovelandmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/maxresdefault-3.jpg)
Union Savings Bank is located at 
FORT McCOY, Wis.—As the sun sets, darkness engulfs the twelve rows of Army green tents until they are no longer visible. A group of female Soldiers meander from afar, their steps confident but slow until they make a sharp right to enter tent 71, their home for the past three weeks. As bulky Kevlar helmets are removed and dirty boots are tossed aside, the Soldiers reach for their cellphones, calling to one another to sit on their bunks and admire photos of their young children blowing kisses, leaving for school, and playing with their toys.
