storiesmatter Archives

Beth Brady

By storyhook

We all play different roles in the stories of the people we come into contact with. We might be a minor, supporting character or fill a major role that changes the whole scene. In every story we are involved in, it’s clear that the interactions between us and the information we add to another’s perspective are powerful and can even change the course of a life.

When Beth Brady began filling out college applications, she knew she wanted to pursue some sort of career in therapy, but wasn’t sure of her particular area of study.

Before she was born, Beth’s mother had been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and was bedridden by the time Beth was ten. Throughout her childhood, she helped play a role in taking care of her mom and so had a firsthand experience with different kinds of therapy.

Starting at Nebraska Wesleyan, Beth pointed her studies in the direction of physical therapy, but was rerouted by a simple piece of paper she received in an elective education class. She knew she didn’t want to become a teacher, but wanted to work with kids. So when a flier was passed out in class one day listing the top ten careers in education, the top-listed “Speech Language Pathology” career grabbed her interest.

That one small thing was all it took. By her junior year, Beth had transferred to the University of Nebraska and enrolled in the Communication Disorders program. She immediately loved the scope of her classes and the curriculum’s science foundation.

When she encountered Dr. Mary Pat Moeller, director of the Boys Town Center for Childhood Deafness and Professor of Aural Rehabilitation (therapy to develop speaking and listening skills), her calling was solidified. She became Beth’s first career mentor, and provided a passionate and contagious case for Speech Language Pathology (SLP).

With the completion of her undergrad work, Beth wanted to expand her experience but needed a larger population to work from since deafness is a low-incidence disability.

She enrolled in the master’s program for Speech Language Pathology at the University of Minnesota where she could do research in a large city where there would be a lot of kids, with a lot of different case situations.

With her studies narrowed to aural rehabilitation, she focused her research on deafness. Her clinical supervisor provided invaluable information on how to interact with children who are deaf and their parents, and helped her to understand the parents’ point-of-view.

At that time, technology was less developed and children were arriving in their offices with unidentified deafness at the ages of two and three. The diagnosis at this late stage made it particularly important to consider the responses and worries of the parents.

The rest of her time in Minnesota was filled with learning sign language and cued speech (a method of communication with coordinated mouth and hand movements). She also played an active role on a cochlear implant team at the research hospital, where she helped make decisions on the benefits and risks of surgery and determined if the projected outcome was in the best interests of the patient.

When Beth and her husband Eric completed their respective degrees, they decided to return to Lincoln to be near parents and siblings and to establish roots for their own family. They bought a house in the near-south area of Lincoln and Beth found employment through Lincoln Public Schools.

“At first, I was disappointed with the job because I was working with a large variety of cases and I had thought I wanted to remain focused on my work with clients who are deaf. I quickly found out that the multi-disciplined nature of the work was a gift.”

At LPS, Beth worked with a team of professionals – physical therapists, speech-language therapists and occupational therapists. The team-approach proved to be invigorating and helpful. Together, they made home visits and worked in school settings, expanding their collective experience and knowledge.

“In Minnesota, our clients typically were those who had more resources and sometimes more extensive support systems. At LPS, we worked with all types of kids – those who had many resources and those who had very little.”

Although she found her work with LPS rewarding, Beth began to see the need for a better work/life balance. She had three children, and the limited resources and extensive needs at her job made it difficult to work part-time hours and arrive home with energy left over for her family.

Then she came across Heartland Speech and Occupational Therapy Services. The business had been started by two sisters who wanted to provide excellent care for children while simultaneously creating a work-environment that was family-friendly.

Beth eased into the job, gradually transitioning from LPS to working exclusively for Heartland, where she continues to work today.

In private practice, Beth still engages with a variety of clients and coordinates with a team of occupational therapists and speech-language pathologists who bring unique and beneficial perspectives to the table.

“I’m so glad this is a place where we share knowledge and are actively problem-solving. I believe that if a person ever gets complacent in their job, they are missing out. It’s important to keep learning, to be in a place where you are forced to dig for answers – it makes the work exciting and keeps you engaged and doing your best.”

Beth’s days are filled with collaboration and play. For young children, words create a framework for understanding what to do and how to interact with toys, games and books. Play-based therapy provides an environment where children can learn to match words and sounds to their play.

“The reason I was so attracted to speech therapy was that I love to see progression and I wanted to be a part of each kid’s story. I wanted to be able to be involved from the start to the finish as a child begins to learn to communicate.”

This year, that desire will be met when her first client with a cochlear implant walks across the stage to accept her high school diploma and heads off to college. The moment is significant because Beth had been the one to teach the patient her first word.

Life can change with the smallest of details and also through the large, unexpected ones. Beth Brady is simply grateful to get to play a role – of any shape or size – in the lives of each one of her patients.

February 22, 2017

Love1

Case Maranville

By storyhook

Managing over 200 apartments means that late night phone calls are just part of the job.

There are the usual stories – of good folks paying their rent and friendships that form. And then there are other sorts of tales – of the electricity going out in an apartment because of vandalism or a tenant whose mugshot happens to make the papers.

Fortunately, these are the more unusual situations in residential property management, but Case Maranville recognizes that with each new tenant, there is always an element of risk.

Case has worn many hats over the years, and each venture has had elements of uncertainty. He has been a musician of a nationally known band, has a degree in wildlife management, is an entrepreneur, an audio engineer, and currently co-owns a residential property business with his brother.

Despite the variety of his experiences, each situation has helped inform Case’s perspective and has pushed him to continue to take paths that occasionally involve risk.

Before his property management days, Case played bass and toured with a band he helped form called Vota.

While in the music industry, he and his bandmates understood they couldn’t sit around and wait to be discovered – they had to create their art while simultaneously figuring out how to make it profitable. By devoting themselves to their craft and forging partnerships and connections within the music industry, they were able to tour and perform in front of thousands of people.

“I learned a lot about working within a partnership and learned about self-determination. Those lessons help me now in the business I run with my brother Cole.”

In 2006, Case began to realize that he needed to begin considering a career move when his wife Lindsey gave birth to their first son River. While the band had been a great fit before kids, it soon became apparent that touring and having a family wouldn’t remain sustainable.

Case left the band and he and Lindsey decided to move from their farm just west of Lincoln and into a house in the heart of the city.

“This was in 2008, just before the housing market crashed, so the banks looked at our credit and didn’t think twice about letting us take out a second mortgage. We rented out the farm and I quickly started learning what it meant to be a landlord.”

While he and his family settled into their life in Lincoln, Case found a job working as an audio engineer for a large church in west Omaha. This job provided him with a good baseline income, the ability to use his expertise in sound and music and the flexibility to slowly begin exercising his entrepreneurial mind.

One day, Case’s brother Cole called him up to propose a business idea. He had been reading books about investments and thinking about rental property in Lincoln and in the meantime had found an intriguing opportunity in the form of a duplex for sale near downtown Lincoln.

Neither brother had any idea that this initial purchase would take them to the place they are today, with 236 residential units in 37 buildings throughout the Near South neighborhood.

“We now offer a variety of options. We have a lot of tenants aged 20-30 looking for the interesting old converted houses near downtown. We also have people with fixed incomes and those who need subsidized housing.”

Case said that his work has become a really good fit for his personality.

The job requires him to be a “finder” – one of his favorite things to do – of the right properties to buy and the right tenants to fill those spaces. He likes that he gets the opportunity to provide good housing situations for all different kinds of needs and strives to provide fair, good service for his tenants.

He also finds his interpersonal and problem-solving skills being put to use. From lease agreements to conflict resolution, Case finds that forthright, respectful communication is key to maintaining good tenant-landlord relationships.

“I’ve learned a lot about people in the last eight years. Property management is 50% about the buildings and 50% about humanity.”

Case appreciates the opportunity to work alongside his brother and to be invested in the work together, recognizing that they both bring important things to the table.

One of the elements Case most appreciates about his work is the opportunity for both freedom and control, something that has slowly come as the business has developed.

“Owning your own business is a 24/7 thing. It’s just the way it is. There are eventual perks though – being able to control your own schedule. I want to work hard, but not be a slave to the job. I will work hard for those ends.

“For now, music is on hold and that’s ok. That’s how it’s supposed to be. We still have music around the house. Even the 19-month-old will get on the mike when we’re all hanging out down in the basement. You have to remember that just because things are on hold doesn’t mean it’s over. The things you love will come back around.”

Every business story or idea Case speaks of is laced with a thoughtful approach. He is not simply a straightforward engineer or businessman, nor is he an artist who can’t figure out what he’s about. His self-determination is evident and the ease with which he moves speaks to an inner confidence and peace.

Case isn’t on a crusade, but seems to intuitively understand that the risky things in life are sometimes the most valuable. He works hard to make sure he remains engaged creatively and thoughtfully as he serves the people within his sphere of influence.

February 15, 2017

Love5

Dr. Marty Killeen

By storyhook

Don’t let his calm demeanor and easy smile fool you.

He’s the type of guy who wakes up every Sunday morning to go for a five-hour bike ride for fun.

In dental college, he was one of the few students with only two years of undergrad experience due to all the college coursework he had completed during high school.

No, Dr. Marty Killeen is no slacker, and it’s this fearless determination that has led to an interesting and varied dental career.

At the end of a fellowship in pediatric dentistry, Dr. Marty (as his patients call him) decided to start his practice in Lincoln to be near family. With the economy doing well and a limited number of pediatric dentists practicing in the area, he and a fellow new grad decided to go big and start their own practice, complete with a newly constructed building just south of Southwest High School.

Despite the bold move, like most new graduates, Marty supplemented his growing practice with an assortment of part-time positions.

He picked up jobs at the People’s Health Center and Health Department, and found himself face-to-face with children who had never been to the dentist and who often had a very limited understanding of English. He enjoyed the interactions with the kids and learned new ways to keep uncertain patients and their parents calm.

Two years following graduation, Marty’s dad inadvertently provided him with another unique opportunity when he began asking questions about how to outfit a dental team for a medical mission to Haiti.

“After getting question after question, I finally asked my dad if he wanted me to take over the trip. Nine years later, we’re about to take our ninth consecutive medical mission down to Haiti.”

The first trip to Haiti occurred two years before the devastating earthquake that hit the country in 2010. Over the last eight years, Marty has seen incremental change, but he understands that even the most minor shift can make a great difference in the life of one individual.

“We set up our clinic in the middle of Haiti, in a place called the Kobonal Mission – basically in the middle of nowhere. A lot of people farm and you see them walking around with their machetes and no shoes. When we first went, the place barely had electricity. We had to fly to the location in small Cessna airplanes, circling the landing spot twice in order to scare away the livestock that graze there.”

One of the biggest improvements he’s seen since the earthquake are the roads, which are now semi-paved and allow the team to get there by bus.

Dr. Marty jokingly refers to the trip as the Haitian Vacation, and talks fondly of the results he’s been able to witness from eight years of treating patients with little to no other health care services.

“Mainly, we are doing extractions and fillings, sometimes even dentures. An oral surgeon accompanies us for the more difficult cases. Because they speak Creole, the patient simply points to the areas that are hurting, we take a look, agree on a number and then get to work.”

He goes on, “One of the most rewarding things are the relationships we’re beginning to form. We are starting to recognize families and see that our education efforts are making a difference. During our first year in Haiti, we were able to see 400 patients as a team. This year, with 18 people going down, we anticipate serving 2,000.”

The team has also seen a reduction in tooth extraction and infection.

“There are unique challenges for us in Haiti. We line the kids up and use an interpreter to show the kids one-by-one how to use a toothbrush and talk about reducing their sugar intake. The problem is – these kids usually don’t have enough to eat, so they offset their hunger by chewing the sugar cane that is on the roadside and in the fields.”

Despite the difficulties, they are excited when they see their efforts paying off.

“We were driving along a dirt road when we looked up to see a kid standing in the middle of the Haitian countryside, brushing his teeth with his new toothbrush.”

Though the stories he tells seem like a distant reality from the common American experience, Dr. Marty easily finds connections. He switches between descriptions of his patients in Haiti, those he continues to treat at the Health Department, and the growing practice at his own clinic.

Dr. Marty finds that people in every place have the same basic needs and desires.

He takes pleasure helping the six-year-old in his clinic overcome his fear of a regular check-up. Likewise, he is grateful for the trust he receives from parents commuting from all over Nebraska and even out-of-state when their general dentist is unable to treat a child’s more complicated dental needs. Or the child in Haiti who looks up at him and lays still while the strange dentist from a different country offers comfort and pain-relief during an extraction.

“It’s never just about filling cavities, it’s about the people.”

The combination and the diversity of needs and outlooks Marty is daily presented with create a multi-faceted job that requires patience, persistence, and a great deal of care for the patient. He is grateful he has found a career that allows him to care for people in a way that shows them how much they matter.

February 1, 2017

Love4

Jeremy Tredway

By storyhook

When you live in the midwest, and your job is on the west coast, it seems some reevaluating needs to take place.

Fortunately for Jeremy Tredway, his commute requires climbing a flight of stairs rather than a cross-country flight.

A web developer living in Lincoln, NE, Jeremy has enjoyed the benefits of remaining in a family-friendly and affordable city while working for a company based in San Francisco.

Jeremy is full of confidence and loves creative problem solving. Two characteristics that have been a blessing throughout his life.

Most of Jeremy’s days growing up were spent in some mode of exploration. His band of neighborhood friends sought adventure outdoors or played role-playing games in someone’s basement. When he was alone at home, he lost himself in imaginary worlds found in books.

As he entered high school, the theme of exploration continued. Jeremy’s interest in architecture and engineering evolved into a thought that aerospace engineering would be a good career.

Between his junior and senior year, Jeremy decided to attend a summer seminar at the Air Force Academy to test his theory. The military lifestyle presented there quickly turned him off and he decided he would need to pursue a different career course.

That year Jeremy found himself in an unusual place. He followed a friend to a Young Life meeting where people his age were listening to a message he had never heard. He left shaken and full of questions about Christianity and meaning, the direction of his life and relationships.

The questions continued to nag at him. So much so that in the middle of his senior year, he switched enrollment in a chemistry class to a philosophy class.

Even as Jeremy entered college, architecture and engineering were pushed aside and he triple majored in Philosophy, Psychology, and Independent Studies in Church History.

Despite all of his reflection and philosophical pursuit, Jeremy remained unconvinced. He wasn’t ready to commit to any belief that required a significant life change.

Throughout college, Jeremy and his group of childhood friends stayed close and during the summer following their freshman year, began making some poor decisions.

One summer night, the guys set out to make explosives and while Jeremy was holding a piece of pipe, the explosive went off.

What happened next was unimaginable. In the explosion, Jeremy had lost both hands and shrapnel had broken his knee. He was bleeding profusely from shrapnel wounds to his chest, abdomen, arm and upper right leg.

A critical care nurse nearby heard the sound and rushed to the scene. Her presence that day helped save Jeremy’s life.

The next few months wove together as his body stabilized and he adjusted to his new normal. Weeks of therapy at Madonna Rehabilitation taught him how to use his new prosthetics and despite all he had lost, the word to describe how he felt at that time was ‘Optimistic’.

“It’s hyperbole to say I never journaled, but… I never journaled,” he grabbed a book from his bookshelf. Turning the pages, he explained, “I was in a hard place and wrote this eight days before the accident. ‘Dear Christ, I’m still here…trying to hold on to faith…I want to know where I am going.’ After the accident, I wrote again, but it’s a lot harder to read because I didn’t have hands anymore.”

He smiled and read on, “I wonder if this is God’s answer to my question. It has to be more than coincidence.”

As his journal entry implied, he was ready for change and felt he needed to go a new direction. “A new hope blossomed and motivated me. Something that wasn’t there before, was now present.”

Eventually, Jeremy went back to school and finished his undergrad over a span of six years. Throughout this time, he continued to face questions about his identity and new relationship with God.

Toward the end of his program, Jeremy spent a year at Oxford. He ended his time in Europe with a bike trip, following an ancient path through France and Spain.

The El Camino de Santiago was a pilgrimage also known as St. James’s Way. The route had historical origins, but Jeremy was more concerned with the current challenges the path presented a man with no hands.

“During the pilgrimage, I couldn’t repair a tire, I didn’t know if I could afford the trip, I didn’t know the path, and I didn’t know the language. But I felt like God took care of me.”

Jeremy relays each detail with little surprise in his face or voice.

“I finished the pilgrimage, returned home to complete the last few classes I needed to graduate, met the girl I was to marry and then decided to go to seminary.”

Heeding the repeated advice of friends, Jeremy began pursuing his Masters of Divinity and Counseling and the following year, he was married.

“The interesting thing about seminary is that they don’t push you to do one thing. They want you to consider your gifts and personality and use them.”

By now, Jeremy had spent almost a decade pursuing degrees that pointed toward ministry and counseling, but as he began to spend time taking personality tests and thinking more deeply about his calling in life, he felt pulled back to his original interests in applied sciences.

“I knew some careers were no longer an option without hands.”

So he began thinking about computers. And systems and programming and solving problems.

Jeremy was always curious about those things, and that gave him a head start. Throughout seminary, he had earned the nickname “Tinker” because he was always messing around with his computer. “I learned how to network and reconfigure stuff just by messing around.”

It wasn’t until he was asked to set up a computer network at a friend’s law firm that he began to seriously consider a career change. “I began to talk with friends and professors and pray about everything.”

With only two classes remaining to finish his degree, Jeremy completed his Masters in Theology, switched gears and enrolled in an HTML class at the local community college.

And the rest… is history.

“I love the job. Love solving the problems. Love the detail of putting things together. I find so much pleasure in the creative process.”

Although Jeremy’s life has been filled with shifts, twists, turns and the unexpected, so much of his story is about being passively prepared. His natural curiosity and confidence keeps him one step ahead and he’s not afraid to try new things, explore and solve problems.

As for life’s next curve? That’s still unknown, but Jeremy and his wife are always ready for the next curve because they know that somehow, they’ll be ready. And for them, that’s what really matters.

January 18, 2017

Love5