©
MAY 2024 941.312.0665 | 27TH STATE MEDIA, LLC
ROCK-N-ROLL PARTY
Pelican Rescue on Heron Lake! By Paige Packman, Photos by Jeff Packman Last Saturday, a large brown pelican was spotted on Heron Lake, a seabird with a distinctive pouch under its bill and 6-foot wingspan. We knew something was wrong since this species dwells only in salt water. By Sunday, the pelican was sitting immobile on our banks, with a vulture lurking on a nearby roof. Not a good sign! Resident Linda George suspected it was injured, so promptly called Save our Seabirds. Within 30 minutes, rescuer Michele and her daughter arrived; they confirmed that the bird had an injured foot
page
tangled in a blue fishing line. Gayle Ma rava l, a not her Save ou r Seabi rd volunteer, came to fortify the rescue team. Neighbors Frank Pipers and Judi Smith joined the fray to try to surround and capture the bird in a blanket. Unfortunately, that effort failed as the bird continually retreated into the lake. What to do? Call intrepid LMA President Jeff Smith to the rescue! He donned his high waders and launched his kayak into Heron Lake to try to corral the bird from the water. After an hour of group effort, we
were able to capture the pelican with a net and put him into a kennel to transport him to Save our Seabirds hospital. It truly takes a village. We all left satisfied that we helped to save the life of a once-endangered brown pelican. Kudos to Save Our Seabirds organization and volunteers Gayle and Philipe Maraval, who devote two days a week on-call bird rescues! Here is Save Our Seabirds website if you want more information: saveourseabirds.org/
4
TRIPLE TENNIS
page
8
DAY TRIPPING
Volunteers Who Work for You By Dan Bella Dr. John Bruno
page
12-13
FIRE SAFETY
page
19
KID’S CORNER: GEORGINA BURTONMORGAN, 5 ¾
page
20
This is the nineteenth in a series of articles highlighting the special volunteers who help make The Landings such a wonderful community. The Eagle interviewed Dr. John Bruno for this issue. When this reporter called Dr. John Bruno to obtain permission to conduct an interview, and to schedule it for 2 p.m., John agreed, saying, “It will be fun.” John added, “Do you drink wine at 2 p.m. Because I do.” That confirmed this interview would be special, and John didn’t disappoint. Many if not most Landings residents already know John, and his bio from his Landings Free College presentation precedes him: Ph.D., Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Psychology, Psychiatry, and Neuroscience at Ohio State University, former Chair of the Department of Psychology (the largest psych department in the country), internationally renowned neuroscientist, editor of 4 books, and author of over 225 peerreviewed papers. John grew up in a rough area of Pittsburgh, and decided his ticket out rested in academic success. That led to a Ph.D. and a 35-year career at Ohio State University, specializing in the study of mental illness, Parkinson’s disease, and brain chemistry. For 15 of those years, he did double duty, as the faculty athletics representative (FAR) and as the university’s representative to the NCAA. As FAR, John had to sign off on every scholarship athlete in every sport at Ohio State University, to signify he found the athlete capable of handling college
academics. John traveled with the teams, at te nd i ng b owl g a me s, a nd counseled athletes who later became pro players. John also traveled extensively in his NCAA duties. John reminisced, his heavy involvement in athletics probably kept him in the science part of his career longer. John performed his doctoral degree work at Johns Hopkins University and served on the University of Pittsburgh faculty for 6 years before joining Ohio State. John formed collaborations in several countries: Copenhagen, Denmark; Stockholm, Sweden; and Italy; as well as in Baltimore and Chicago. John has given talks in 30 countries. John prides himself on being as good a teacher as a researcher, noting that many are not adept at both. Joh n e n joys t e ac h i ng a nd addressing groups, while as a researcher he received continuous f u nd i ng f r om t h e Nat ion a l Institute of Health to study issues he thought were important to advance understanding of the brain. Designing new drugs and treatments for doctors to use interested him, and he has seen several come to fruition. There are about 1,900 faculty at Ohio State; John has won the Teacher of the Year award 4 times. John met his wife, Valentina Valentin i (Vale) wh ile on an international speaking tour. She was on the faculty in Sardinia, Italy and later worked in John’s lab as a visiting professor. She has a Ph.D. in neurotoxicology. Now they
spend 3 months in Italy every year, where they visit Vale’s three sisters and mom in Sardinia. John has two sons in the United States. John’s affinity for speaking to groups and teaching dovetail well with his involvement in the Landings Free College. John chairs the Free College Committee, consisting of himself, Frank Pipers, Mona Poyta, and Teresa Manteiga. For the last three years, John has annually addressed free college attendees on topics related to brain physiology, psychology, and function. John’s speeches to the Free College have proven very popular, attracting standing room only crowds. John likens his free college presentations to his teaching at the university. John also serves on the Landings South VI board of directors. When he was still working, John would get up every day and prepare three do-lists: one for science, one for athletics, and one for home chores. John reasoned, when all three lists became empty, that would signify he was retired. Toward the end of his active faculty career, he was laying on a beach in Sardinia when he received a phone call from the Ohio State dean. John told her he had just been thinking about retiring. She said, “We won’t let you do that.” She was calling to make him Distinguished Professor and to name him the new Chair of Psychology. It’s no secret that John is battling Parkinson’s disease, first diagnosed in 2005, ironically after he had already been studying the disease. He and others have found that the
way he treats it, especially staying active including playing tennis, has proven to be successful in slowing down the progress of the disease. This experience has enabled him to view the disease from the point of view of both the researcher and the patient. About The Landings, John says he loves it. “It’s an enclave like none I’ve ever seen. You can leave the gate and go a mile in each direction and take care of most of your needs. The participation of older people in activities is like none I’ve ever seen.” He observes, most retirees maintain one or two relationships, not 20 or 30 like in The Landings. He noted The Landings demographic is getting younger. “This place stays young because of the activity of its residents. It’s the perfect place to be.” John still engages in writing and making presentations, but in an amount and on a time schedule of his choosing. His hobbies include tennis, reading (primarily biographies of leaders)… and wine.