This month, Beth Anne Dorman, CEO of For All Seasons, explores the profound challenges parents face as their children enter adolescence. While parenting is never easy, the teenage years often present the most demanding and emotionally charged phase, particularly when mental health concerns emerge unexpectedly. In this two-part series, Beth Anne offers thoughtful insight into how parents can support their children through this turbulent stage of development. In part two, she reflects on the recent Netflix drama Adolescence, which portrays a family grappling with the unthinkable trauma of a child in crisis.

This video is approximately eight minutes in length. For more information about For All Seasons please go here. To read more about Adolescence on Netflix please go here. 

The opportunity to participate in For All Seasons’ Dare to Lead™ training last month opened my eyes to learning who I am as a leader and how I want my leadership to evolve moving forward. For All Seasons’ Center for Learning is offering community leaders the opportunity to develop bold, authentic leadership through this courage-building program based on the research of Dr. Brené Brown. This January, the agency welcomed 12 local professionals to participate in the four-day training, designed to help us embrace vulnerability, cultivate meaningful connections, and develop a leadership approach rooted in integrity.

As both a community leader/volunteer and owner of my own company, I have had many great mentors over the years who have taught me about the qualities of a good leader. This course helped me to reflect on those lessons and to evaluate how I show up for those whom I serve. While we all have the will to be good leaders, I learned that there are specific skills that, when used correctly, enable us to be more effective in our leadership.

Even though I have been in the field of communications my entire life, this training offered me a new perspective in how to engage in problem-solving with my peers, leaning into vulnerability, and paying attention to my emotional literacy and the emotional literacy of others – showing up with an open heart and mind to discussions, conversations and meetings. I also learned how my body language, how I form my words, and how I organize my thoughts can be powerful tools in effectively communicating with others.

The section on values was particularly valuable in helping me understand the filters I use when making hard decisions. While I lead with my key values, I also learned that I need to be aware of the values of others when problem-solving—whether at home with my family, in the office with colleagues, or in the community.

One of the most confirming parts of the training was realizing that I am a risk taker and that when I take risks, there are often unexpected finds as a writer and as a civic leader/volunteer. Brené Brown uses a quote from Joseph Campbell to explain this concept, saying, “The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.” That quote now holds special meaning for me. Understanding how to navigate the cave, having courage, and not being averse to risk will enable me to have better success in the future as I follow my heart.

One unique aspect of the Dare to Lead training was getting to know the 12 people training with me. I asked a few of them about what they took away from the training, and these are a few that were shared with me.

“The Dare to Lead™ course allowed me to explore my leadership style and to identify my strengths and areas to improve on. There were great takeaways for me to make immediate improvements in communication with my team. My team meeting structure has improved, as has our expectation of one another. I highly recommend this course for any leaders young or old(er),” comments Beth Brewster, Supervisor of Food Services, Caroline County Public Schools.

“The thought-provoking training encouraged me to embrace new perspectives, think deeper about how I engage with others, and helped reshape how I approach leadership,” shares Kelly Simonsen, Director, Corporate Communications for Easton Utilities.

The Dare to Lead program is facilitated by Beth Anne Dorman, President & CEO of For All Seasons, and Lesa Mulcahy, LCSW-C, Chief Clinical Officer, both Certified Dare to Lead™ Facilitators and two of fewer than 300 professionals nationwide authorized to teach Brown’s leadership curriculum. Participants explore the foundational principles of courage-driven leadership, learning to build trust within teams, align their actions with their values, and confidently navigate challenges.

“The courage was contagious during this week of inspiration,” shared participant Sharon M. Pepukayi, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools, Talbot County Public Schools.

For All Seasons will offer another Dare to Lead™ training session from May 13 to 16, 2025, at Anchor Church in Easton. The program is open to professionals from all industries who want to enhance their leadership skills in both professional and personal settings. Each session runs from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. over four consecutive days, with breakfast, lunch, and training materials provided.

The training curriculum covers four core leadership skill sets: Rumbling with Vulnerability, which challenges common misconceptions about vulnerability and its role in effective leadership; Living into Our Values, which focuses on aligning personal and professional behaviors with one’s core beliefs; Braving  Trust, which teaches leaders how to build and maintain trust within their teams; and Learning to Rise, which explores resilience, growth, and how to navigate failure with courage.

Participants who complete the training will receive a certificate of completion and the right to display an “I am Dare to Lead™ Trained” badge on LinkedIn. Additionally, clinicians attending the program will be eligible to receive 24 Category I CEUs issued by For All Seasons, an approved continuing education provider for Maryland social workers and professional counselors.

The total cost for the training (inclusive of meals and materials) is $650, with a non-refundable deposit of $100 required at registration. Limited scholarships are available, and payment plans are offered to make the program more accessible. Interested individuals can register or learn more by visiting https://supportforallseasonsinc.org/daretolead or by contacting CenterForLearning@forallseasonsinc.org.

Ian Davis, MD, is the medical director of the Congestive Heart Failure Clinic at the University of Maryland Shore Regional Health and one of the newest providers with the University of Maryland Shore Medical Group-Cardiology.

During our recent interview with Dr. Davis, he discussed some of the signs and symptoms of heart failure and how the transitional care clinic at UM Shore Regional Health can help patients with heart failure transition from a hospital stay back to their home. The transitional care clinic enables patients to be better equipped to stay home, reducing the chance of a future hospital stay while working to improve their quality of life through a long-term care plan. A patient’s long-term care plan may include medication adjustments that will help strengthen the heart, prolong life, and reduce heart failure symptoms. Dr. Davis also discussed some ways to lead a heart-healthy life.

This video is approximately eight minutes in length. For more information about the Congestive Heart Failure Clinic at Shore Health please go here.

For All Seasons is bringing love and generosity with its annual Valentine’s Day Silent Auction, running online from February 8 to February 14.

Featuring exclusive experiences and unique getaways, this exciting event supports the organization’s mental health and victim services, helping those in need. Bid on incredible items like sports tickets, spa packages, luxury vacations, and local experiences—all with starting bids below their actual value! Don’t miss this fun, meaningful way to celebrate Valentine’s Day while giving back.

The Spy chatted with For All Seasons CEO Beth Anne Dorman last week about the plans.

This video is approximately three minutes in length. To preview and bid please go to ForAllSeasonsInc.org

For the Spy’s continued interview series with UM Shore Regional Health, we asked Shannon Temple, their long-tenured forensic nurse coordinator, to stop by the Spy Studio earlier this month to talk about the unique challenges related to helping survivors of sexual and physical assault. Shannon highlights forensic nurses’ critical role in providing compassionate care to those suffering such traumatic experiences while aiding investigations to bring their assailants to justice.

This video is approximately ten minutes in length. For more information about Shore Regional Health’s programs for victims of sexual and physical assault, please go here. 

Pamela Trombero, 68, said it was a like a “slap in the face” when she received the news in 2006 that she was diagnosed with Stage 1 lung cancer.

After her diagnosis, Trombero stopped smoking and went through six months of chemotherapy and surgery. Now, 18 years in remission, she leads a virtual cessation program to help others quit smoking and encourages her friends and family members to regularly get screened for lung cancer.

“People need to do that,” she said “People should not be afraid of it, because it’s better to prevent anything from happening.”

The American Lung Association agrees with her. According to the “State of Lung Cancer” report released Tuesday, screenings are one of the best tools to catch lung cancer early.

“We know that not enough people are getting screened, and I think Maryland falls right in line with that,” said Aleks Casper, the association’s director of advocacy for Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and Washington, D.C. “If we can get somebody screened, we can get them an early diagnosis and you can get them access to treatment.”

Screening and early diagnosis were the two areas where Maryland was weakest compared to other states, according to the report, which looked at data from 2021, the most recent year for which numbers were available. The report said Maryland was 23rd of 50 states and the District for screening, and 26th of 47 states for early diagnosis.

In other areas, Maryland did relatively well. It was 16th for the rate of new cancer cases, at 50.2 per 100,000 residents, compared to a national rate of 53.6 per 100,000. It was 13th of 47 states for the lung cancer survival rate, at 30.1% compared 28.4% nationally.

Maryland did best when it comes to the number of smokers: The 9.6% of adults in the state who smoke was second only Utah. Nationally, 12.8% of adults smoked in 2022, the most recent year for which that data is available.

Overall, trends improved over the five-year period from 2017 to 2021 that the report looked at. Nationally, survival rates went up and the number of new cases went down, the report said. But close to 235,000 people will be diagnosed with lung cancer this year nationwide, according to the report, and 361 on average will die from lung cancer per day.

Dr. Panagis Galiatsatos, a spokesperson for the American Lung Association National and an assistant professor for Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, says that “more needs to be done.”

“I think we are doing fine, but there’s still plenty of room for improvement,” he said.

The people most at risk for lung cancer are those aged 50 to 80 years old who have a history of smoking or are current smokers. People who fit this category are urged to get annual lung cancer screenings.

“Screening with annual low-dose CT scans can reduce the lung cancer death rate by up to 20% by detecting tumors at early stages when the cancer is more likely to be curable,” the 2024 report says.

Another way to improve the state of lung cancer is to reduce smoking. While Maryland does well as a state in that area, the rate of smoking varies by location within the state, Galiatsatos said.

“In your rural areas and in your urban areas, you still see high rates of smoking occurring, so the state as a whole hasn’t seen a uniform drop,” he said. “It’s rather disproportionate and really falls along the lines of rural status and socio-disadvantaged neighborhoods in cities like Baltimore.”

The 2024 report also looked at which states currently insurance to cover what’s called biomarker tracking, a wide range of tests where blood, tissue or other samples are collected throughout cancer treatment to see if the selected treatment has been effective.

Maryland passed a law in 2023 requiring that insurers cover biomarker testing, one of 15 states that does so. The law went into effect for private insurers in January, and will go into effect for Medicaid enrollees starting July 2025, so long as there is money in the state budget.

Casper hopes that the biomarker law in Maryland will help improve treatment and survival rates for lung cancer patients.

“Biomarker testing is a huge opportunity … that helps determine what treatment will be the best for individuals.” Casper said. “That’s something that we’re really highlighting, that Maryland has really made steps to ensure that people who are living with a lung cancer diagnosis have access to the best treatment available and individualized treatment available through biomarker testing.”

But there is not one solution, she said. Reducing the toll of lung cancer in the state will require a multifaceted approach and that advocates, doctors and policymakers need to “continue focusing on what we can do to make people healthy.”

“We can prevent people from starting to smoke anything … and then ensuring that people have the resources to make them successful when they want to make that quit attempt,” she said. “And then the follow-up piece ensuring that we are talking about messaging, both as a consumer … but also to a provider to be talking to their patients about eligibility and talking about how to receive lung cancer screening.”

by Danielle J. Brown, Maryland Matters
November 19, 2024

Maryland Matters is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Maryland Matters maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Steve Crane for questions: editor@marylandmatters.org. Follow Maryland Matters on Facebook and X.

Domestic violence isn’t always evident; it’s more common than you think, and often those experiencing it suffer in silence.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The Spy recently sat down with Angie Price, CRNP, DNP, WHNP BC, RNC OB/C EFM, a nurse practitioner with University of Maryland Shore Medical Group (UM SMG)-Women’s Health and Jeanne Yeager, who is executive director of the Mid-Shore Council on Family Violence in Easton. Price and Yeager discussed the importance of domestic violence screening during annual well-woman exams and the partnership between women’s health providers at UM SMG-Women’s Health and the Mid-Shore Council on Family Violence.

That partnership includes collaboration and communication to other providers, as well as referrals to ensure patients receive the assistance they need to find resources like transitional housing, pet assistance, legal assistance, medical and mental health assistance, and safe transitions for children, including school enrollment.

Domestic violence is a tragic and traumatizing experience. But you can get through it with a strong support system and a solid plan. If you or someone you know experiences domestic violence, having a safety plan can save your life. Learn more about the Mid-Shore Council on Family Violence at mscfv.org. Help is also available via the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.

This video is approximately 10 minutes in length.