We have the address for the funeral home & the family on file If you're not happy with your card we'll send a replacement or refund your money The family of Mary Turk (nee: Kosmach) created this Life Tributes page to make it easy to share your memories Send flowers to the Turk (nee: Kosmach) family © 2025 Brunner Sanden Deitrick Funeral Home & Cremation Center Made with love by funeralOne May is Lupus Awareness Month. The autoimmune disease means the body’s immune system attacks its own healthy organs and tissues. Symptoms of lupus can include fatigue Elizabeth Kosmach is an elementary teacher in Milwaukee who was diagnosed with lupus when she was in college She was experiencing chronic fatigue and other seemingly random symptoms She got the call that she had been diagnosed while she was at work the fright cause I was reading [my diagnoses] and I was so scared calling my mom and I started crying,” Kosmach recalls There is no cure for lupus yet and doctors don’t know exactly what causes the disease to take hold in a person’s body Dr. Mary Cronin, who specializes in Rheumatology for Ascension Health says that Lupus first started being diagnosed in the 1950s She says that in early days of diagnosing the disease it was often thought to be fatal because there was little research into how to treat it Cronin says it can still be difficult to diagnose patients “One of the more common [tests] is called an antinuclear antibody or ANA and it can be positive in people who don’t have lupus even though we think that it’s specific for lupus it’s not necessarily so — so that’s where some of the subtleties of diagnosing people can be,” she says There are treatments but they aren’t always effective Kosmach was initially given an anti-malaria drug which has proven to help people with lupus but it made her legs weak and she would often fall She has tried to avoid steroid based and IV treatments with worries about the long-term effects Cronin says a problem with lupus treatments is that all have potential side effects “It’s a balancing act in keeping people healthy with these medicines but also trying to prevent the side effects it would be wonderful to come up with a medicine that didn’t have all these side effects that really did keep people in remission,” she notes Part of Lupus Awareness Month is the focus on research Cronin says pinpointing specific genes that cause lupus or creating better medicine would be key in the fight against the disease safer medicines and we need to be able to stratify patients better probably based on their genetic makeup,” she says Kosmach takes a mix of pills she says work to suppress her immune system and to help her joint pain “They say I have nerve damage from my lupus so my arms are like a 60-year-old and I’m 31,” she says Kosmach says she is often frustrated with the fact that she is constantly forced to plan parts of her life around her lupus your weekend to have enough energy to do everything and it’s really hard having an illness that people can’t see,” she explains Kosmach says she has honest conversations about her lupus K," and she uses those moments to teach her kids not to point things like that out because they don’t know what a person is going through She says kids also ask if her lupus is going to kill her yet,” but the fear that her disease could take her life lingers in the back of her mind While the disease does take up a major portion of her life Kosmach says she tries to make sure that living with lupus doesn’t define her entire life and she reminds herself that people with lupus can still do great things "It's an internal battle to make sure you can accomplish things but also know your limit," she admits it’s a big part of my life but I define me my family defines me and my actions define me." This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Editor’s note: This story was written and submitted by Janine Winn of Temple TEMPLE—Privileged to serve as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ukraine (2017-2020) I formed deep ties with my host family and the village where I served  I believe I did some good while I was there addressing issues of littering and pollution  The urge to visit Kosmach is always present I spent the latter half of this September in Ukraine spending time with my host and unofficially adopted sister a long way from fighting but only 90 km from the oblast’s capital city where there is a small military base and take an overnight train (with a berth) to Ivano-Frankivsk  Now I fly into Krakow and take a 12-hour bus trip to my region  Along the way I see a panorama of villages  There are also soldiers at key crossroads and stockpiles of steel “hedgehogs” looking like huge versions of our childhood jacks an English teacher installed an app on my phone that connects me to the Ukrainian Air Raid Alert system The alerts largely impact people in cities to the east but are often ignored by villagers who live far from city centers the teachers must take the children into ground floor hallways until the ‘all clear’ is sounded seriously disrupting both education and peace of mind The alarm is very disturbing even at a distance currently holding the graves of five fighters who were killed in the war brought by Russia One of the men was someone I worked with while I was a Volunteer in the village and I later briefly met his widow when she thanked me sincerely for a donation to a village fund to support the fighters Her husband had already served in the army during Russia’s original invasion of the Dombas region husbands and fathers being drafted; some of them are a large classroom has been given over to the weaving of camouflage nets are woven through the netting in a random manner until something akin to a lightweight blanket is formed community members and the occasional foreign volunteer produce on average one of these huge nets each day there are school pageants and celebrations of national holidays there are children on the playgrounds and in the library Babies are born; young people go to university shopkeepers and religious leaders do everything they can to keep life running evenly in spite of the war My friend Paraska travels frequently by train to the capital for medical treatment in fully functioning hospitals in a fully functioning city It is not life as usual but is is life as manageable there are demolished cities and crippled regions Their belief in victory goes beyond just hope And Ukrainians are very concerned about the outcome of our November 5th election the safety of all former Soviet bloc nations and ultimately our own safety depends on it My friends are living with this war; the least I can do is bear witness The Daily Bulldog is a completely free, fully online publication dedicated to covering the wide variety of happenings in Franklin County. We aim for timeliness, for our news to go far, and to be a reliable point of information for local residents. For immediate questions and concerns, please call (207) 778-8146 or email thedailybulldog@gmail.com  Daily Bulldog depends on businesses like yours to support our independently owned community paper and news reporting For information on how to advertise please visit our advertising page or contact us at (207) 778-8146 or thedailybulldog@gmail.com A house in Georgetown may be giving downtown Savannah a run for its money as one of the spookiest places around and for the past five years Christopher Kosmach and his wife Dawn Iannacone have worked to turn it into an elaborate Halloween fright-fest What started as a small project with just a few decorations has turned into a yard full of hundreds of motion-activated creatures music and ghosts that haunt visitors from moss-draped trees View more photos of the Georgetown Halloween house "The first year we were here we didn't have one trick-or-treater We just decorated with what we had," said Iannacone "Halloween last year we took a head count and we had just under 1,000 people." including a miniature playground for a set of tiny skeletons a boat full of water-logged pirate skeletons and the newest addition Kosmach used expanding foam to create fake organs and cauldrons of boiling body parts while a skeleton roasts rats over a spit and a skeleton butcher works with his cleaver nearby The kitchen display includes a small table at which a life-sized skeleton enjoys a drink with the "wine" spilling through his exposed ribs and onto the ground as he drinks red liquid bubbles from the waist of half a skeleton wearing a pair of Kosmach's old jeans and work boots The display is designed so the water flows over the skeletons and cycles into the platform on which the display sits but everybody has a good time with it," Iannacone said of the display "Now people drive by and ask when we're going to start decorating … We try to add four or five new things every year You never know what people will catch first." Kosmach said his mother always enjoyed Halloween and after she passed away he continued the tradition but added his own touch It takes the couple about three weeks to get all of the decorations and displays up and running "Halloween was her favorite holiday; so there's no doubt that when she passed … Being silly we tried to come up with a number for how much we've spent and when we came up with the number we thought that was just stupid," Kosmach said with a laugh "And we forgot that was even before we had unpacked the stuff inside the house it's a labor of love and they enjoy giving kids and adults alike a friendly spooking "Sometimes as an adult you forget how much you like to be scared "When you see a bunch of kids in your yard screaming Francis Marion University's award-winning student newspaper a way to make money – it’s a passion.” Kosmach has taught at Francis Marion for four years following a position teaching world civilization at Wingate University in North Carolina She came to FMU after being offered an adjunct position teaching European history and she began teaching full-time one year later She said that she was glad to be able to teach courses more in line with her field She teaches Eastern European and Russian history at FMU and specializes in political and diplomatic history “I am very happy to be at Francis Marion because I’m really doing what I have been doing for a long time in my life in this position – exactly my field,” Kosmach said While the path to history professor might not have always been clear to Kosmach “I have loved history since I was in primary school,” Kosmach said Though she loved history from an early age she focused academically on English studies all the way through her undergraduate studies at Cambridge University in England and at Minsk State Institute of Education in Belarus Kosmach spoke about her undergraduate studies and painted a picture of very intense study like students are required to do in the United States She mentioned spending much more time in class than she might have in an American school and we had 40 hours in lectures each week,” Kosmach said After earning a bachelor’s degree in English she went on to graduate school at the Belarusian State University where she earned her Ph.D and later at the University of Alberta in Edmonton in history last fall; his specialization is early-American history “I think it is interesting that he teaches early-American history in Belarus,” Kosmach said Kosmach explained why she believes history is interesting “We (should) know history because it helps us understand the modern world better,” Kosmach said “It’s very important in my opinion in historical things; we study history to understand the world better The past helps us to see where we came from History solves the problem of self-discovery.” This is the essence of what she wants to teach her students through history “I would love to help bring this understanding to my students,” Kosmach said “I help them in my classes when I talk about European history My purpose is to help them understand other cultures better.” Kosmach has brought understanding to others also through several publications She has published two books on foreign policy regarding U.S The first two books span from 1943 – 1980 and Kosmach looks to bring her studies forward through the 1990s Kosmach traveled last year to present at a conference in Belgium with Associate Professor Dr Kosmach presented on the subject of Communist morality and the notions of private life under Soviet Premier Khruchev from 1953 – 1964 She is currently working on a project that will provide insight into Russian foreign policy toward China and how that policy has been reflected in the Russian press She will present her findings at a conference for the American Historical Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies in Las Angeles She has presented yearly since becoming a member of the organization She also plans to continue loving her job as a professor “For me it’s a pleasure to share my knowledge as I love to say to my students – not only do they learn from me but I learn from them,” Kosmach said It’s a pleasure to work with them.” The war can feel very distant in this part of Ukraine, where the nearest section of the front line is some 500 miles away. But Kosmach became an unlikely flashpoint last month when a group of roughly 100 locals, nearly all women, blockaded the village after a rumour spread over social media that draft officers were on their way to conscript their husbands and sons into the army. Amid the hysteria, a young woman, Ivana Grepiniak, STOW — Eva Scarsella said her career in the schools started as a special education teacher "I found myself talking to the kids," Scarsella said Munroe Falls resident Scarsella decided to become a school counselor she has excelled in this position: Scarsella was recently named the Ohio School Counselor Association's Elementary School Counselor of the Year She will be formally recognized for this honor at the association's annual conference Nov principal at Riverview Elementary School] told me because we each got the email," Scarsella said I did the application in the spring so I'd forgotten about it." Scarsella said she had been nominated by Carly Frey a school counselor at Stanton Middle School in the Kent City Schools "We used to work together at Kimpton Middle School," Scarsella said Her students helped her with a video presentation technology integrationist with the district Scarsella said of the application she had to send in this is Scarsella's 19th year as a school counselor with 15 of those years at Kimpton Middle School she is the school counselor for both Riverview and Indian Trail elementary schools Scarsella said that she loves working with the students "We also have a great staff and administration It's nice; everyone seems to work together so well." the principal at Indian Trail Elementary School said that Scarsella divides her week between teaching five classes on skills such as handling stressful situations and ways to be a better student parents and spend one-on-one time with the students Many things have changed in the counseling field since she first joined the ranks of school counselors There's more emphasis on social-emotional skills There's also more issues regarding technology "It's sometimes easier to write things on their phone they may not say face-to-face," Scarsella said."Kids also spend more time on their phones and technology They need more experience with social skills." someone entering the field does not need to have teaching experience although Scarsella said she would strongly advise future school counselors to spend some time in a classroom first we used to have to be a teacher," Scarsella said "I recommend they go into the teaching field You will understand better the issues of being in a school." LaCoste said that Scarsella also has helped coordinate several other activities she helped the school obtain 25 Thanksgiving Dinner Boxes from St a dinner box from Christ Community Chapel in Hudson helped coordinate Christmas gifts from the Rotary for two families and Christmas gifts for four families through First Christian Church in Stow She helped get five families into Shop with a Cop dinner boxes and grocery store gift cards from St Kosmach said that Scarsella has been working toward starting K-Kids at Riverview "It's a children's version of Kiwanis," Kosmach said "We already have 35 kids who have enrolled," Scarsella said "And I’ve heard from more kids who might be interested will be for third- and fourth-grade students interested in community service This will "feed into the Builders Club at the middle school and the Key Club at the high school." "This will go along with what I'm teaching in counseling class," Scarsella said Lacoste said that the school counselors "make such a difference in well-being." "Feeling cared about is priceless," Lacoste said "Eva is wonderful in helping us out with that." Reporter April Helms can be reached at 330-541-9423 Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInHAYWARD (Northern News Now) - We traveled directly to the heart of northwest Wisconsin to learn firsthand what matters most to folks in that part of America’s ultimate swing state This is a county that selected Democratic President Barack Obama by a narrow margin over GOP nominee Mitt Romney in 2012 but chose Republican Donald Trump by wider margins in both 2016 and 2020 the biggest problem facing America is immigration “It’s an unencumbered invasion from all corners,” said Hayward resident Michael Kosmach Kosmach spent his career working in aerospace in Chicago before settling down in Hayward “Our country is not safe right now because of immigration because of Joe Biden’s lack of leadership on the international stage.” Vietnam Veteran Mark Preimesberger will also back Trump mostly because of the former President’s border policies “It was partly instilled in me when I was in the service that the U.S a bit more progressive viewpoint from Margie Leese “I think a woman has the right to do with her own body and what she must do with it if she becomes pregnant,” said Sawyer County resident Margie Leese So you might be surprised to hear who she’s voting for “I don’t believe in anything she stands for except women’s rights Leese lists immigration as her number one issue “Too many coming in that aren’t accounted for,” Leese said for the one staunch Democrat we found in the heart of Hayward what’s happening here is far more important than at the southern border “People struggle in these rural areas and it’s the Democratic party that has really been the most help to us,” Rick St Germaine is a longtime Lac Courte Oreilles tribal leader and teacher He says Harris and Walz are the candidates who will help the people who need it most “They’re both products of middle-class people they’ve had the experiences of people who have struggled in life and need that extra nudge,” St Germaine’s disapproval of Trump might put him in the minority on this day in downtown Hayward but everyone we spoke with agrees that this election will be a pivotal one for rural Northland communities This story is part of a series of reports called “Battleground Wisconsin: The Swing Vote.” We’re visiting key counties and communities across the state where voters have selected the winning candidate before Hear the issues that matter most to them this year and why they may support a different party than they did in 2020— solidifying Wisconsin’s Swing State status The dates displayed for an article provide information on when various publication milestones were reached at the journal that has published the article activities on preceding journals at which the article was previously under consideration are not shown (for instance submission All content on this site: Copyright © 2025 Elsevier B.V. Vincent Reid wakes up every day with one goal – to create a cancer survivor Home / News / Health Care and Medicine Vincent Reid wakes up every day with one goal - to create a cancer survivor the surgical oncologist and medical director at Mercy Medical's Hall-Perrine Cancer Center has wielded a powerful sword The handheld device roots out cancerous cells through the use of radio-frequency spectroscopy allowing the surgeon to analyze tissue and remove any remaining positive margins - tissue with lingering cancer cells - during a lumpectomy flashing red when a cluster of cancer cells are found and flashing blue when the cells are normal This helps cut down on the need for a second surgery sparing the patient from psychological and financial hardships while saving the hospital time and money Data shows that lumpectomies - where portions of the breast are conserved - combined with radiation can be just as effective as a mastectomy for those with tumors under four centimeters But before the MarginProbe was approved by the U.S the 'gold standard” to ensure the cancer was completely removed was by having a pathologist examine the tissues in the operating room That means women would have to come back for a second or even third surgery to eradicate all the cancer cells Reid said - an outcome that would happen between 18 percent and 24 percent of the time He first heard of the tool several years ago after a New York doctor had discovered its success 'I'm always in search of new technology and treatment,” he said He read up on the device and looked at the data in a handful of peer-review journals before deciding Mercy Medical should invest in the technology - which has a hefty upfront cost of about $20,000 the first in Iowa and one of the first in the nation to use the MarginProbe analyzed the outcomes and effectiveness of the tool The results were published in the December edition of the American Journal of Surgery 'Looking critically at our own data was the next logical step,” he said He looked at more than 300 lumpectomies done at Mercy Medical Center - 137 in which the tool was used and 199 where it wasn't He found that in the cases where the MarginProbe wasn't used there was a re-excision rate of 14.9 percent the re-excision rate fell 56 percent to 6.6 percent Reid added that re-excision rates likely are even lower today as Mercy's doctors have become more familiar with handling the tool But he cautioned that the MarginProbe isn't the Holy Grail Targeted radiation still is needed after surgery and it is possible doctors have to go in again Created and manufactured by Israel-based Dune Medical Devices And while prior-authorization is needed by the insurer Reid said there have been very few instances in the nearly 250 cases in which he used the MarginProbe where it has been denied 'I think only about three or four patients have been denied,” he said 'And when we explained to them it was denied they offered to pay for it out-of-pocket.” After talking through her options with Reid who recently was diagnosed with breast cancer decided to allow use of the MarginProbe in her Feb who spoke with The Gazette the day before her surgery said her cancer was caught very early during her annual mammogram She anticipates needing a short course of radiation afterward It's been a bit of a whirlwind since diagnosis 'I've never been through anything like this,” she said 'I'm still going through the experience and remaining optimistic.” l Comments: (319) 398-8331; chelsea.keenan@thegazette.com The Gazette has been informing Iowans with in-depth local news coverage and insightful analysis for over 140 years independent journalism with a subscription today © 2025 The Gazette | All Rights Reserved LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — Life Time Athletics' two locations in the valley are hosting father/daughter events this Saturday a Candyland theme at the Summerlin location and a Big Top theme at Green Valley Ranch 2025 at 4:57 pm CT.css-79elbk{position:relative;}Tuesday night's unofficial election results showed Republicans behind in Addison Township That may change as mail-in ballots arrive in the coming days Addison Township's supervisor for the last eight years According to the latest unofficial election returns Democrat Bobby Hernandez received 4,854 votes to Reboletti's 4,587 Democrats are ahead in the race for the township board Joey Moore and Max Ashrafi are ahead for three of the township board's four seats while Republican incumbent Donna Tovello may get the fourth Gus Leventis and Diana Kosmach may have lost their positions DuPage County has moved to the Democratic column in recent elections as has been the case in suburbs across the country the GOP has held on to many of DuPage County's township governments chairman of the DuPage County Democratic Party claimed victory in 48 out of 49 contested partisan races in township elections He called it a "seismic shift" in local politics "Voters have made it crystal clear that they want leaders who will bring transparency and forward-thinking solutions to local government," McCollum said He has lost races for state senator and representative voters passed a referendum to do away with the township road district eliminating the highway commissioner's position Reboletti told voters the measure would save a salary What Reboletti did not tell residents in his public statements was that he would see his pay rise by nearly 50 percent referred to the position as "Supervisor/Highway Commissioner." Patch reported on the pay raise in a January story Patch left a message for comment with Reboletti early Wednesday morning townships have three mandatory responsibilities – assess properties for tax purposes maintain roads in unincorporated areas and provide "general assistance" to the poor in limited circumstances Townships often have assumed other duties as well Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. “Inevitably becoming clumpy wrinkled piles, [folded clothes] are a constant chore to maintain, causing many of us to lose motivation to fold our clothes in the first place,” according to the ThreadStax Kickstarter video ThreadStax claims to be better than competitors because it uses magnets to keep the pile neat Each pack comes with magnetic stacking slides for your clothes that attach to a bracket that hangs on the wall or in your drawer with Command strips That bracket keeps the slides from falling off the rack while the magnets allow you to easily remove a slide to grab a shirt or pants from the pile.The result in the Kickstarter video looks pretty seamless "My girlfriend was always on my case about not folding laundry and keeping my closet and dresser tidy," ThreadStax creator Scott Kosmach told the Daily Dot "As a man I'd rather have the right tools and do things efficiently rather than spend tedious hours re-organizing every weekend over 400 backers have raised nearly $70,000 for the project $20,000 over its original $50,000 goal with 16 days left to go The ThreadStax crew also designed a magnetic folding sheet like some retail employees use in stores that would fit with the sliders and help fold clothes perfectly Currently, ThreadStax packs are expected to be delivered by May 2016. You can see more about the project on KickStarter H/T The Daily Dot