It all began in 1752, Christmas Eve, in fact, when my fourth great-grandfather, Lawrence Wesley Rains was born in Virginia, along the banks of the Rappahannock River – not far from Fredericksburg. It is unknown who his parents were, it is believed it may have been "John" - but records were burned during the Civil War and with them – any record of Lawrence's birth.
He would marry Ann McManus in North Carolina and they and their families would move to Ohio, settle there and he would die there in 1823.
Some of John and Ann's family decided to move on to Missouri in the 1820s - and they settled in the general area of Morgan and Benton counties.
My father would be born in Eldon, Morgan County, Missouri - on Nov. 8, 1914, the son of William Franklin Rains and Addie Mae "Hutton" Rains - the sixth of eight children.
My father was named Harry James Rains - though on an interesting note, he was first named John Rains and his mother changed it several days after his birth, but never changed the birth certificate – a fact Harry did not even know until he went to file for social security 65 years later.
Addie would use the name John with her youngest child and last son, John Rains who was born in 1924.
Harry's father wasn't a serious fellow and enjoyed fishing more than he liked to work the farm. They raised tobacco as well as strawberries, among other things.
"My mother always washed clothes on Mondays," said my dad. "Without fail – it was washing day and her clothes were always spotless. Women who didn't do their laundry regularly were considered white trash."
Indeed, Addie Mae was touted by her favorite son as a hard-working, devoted mother. She would, most unfortunately, die from diabetes in 1940, at the age of 57.
William Franklin Rains, frequently took his oldest son fishing and would leave Harry to tend to the farming. He lost the farm after the crash of 1929 - having not saved the receipts from paying the mortgage to the bank. The family was forced to leave their farm, Jolly Hill, behind and go live with dad's grandfather - James Rains.
Dad adored his grandfather and his grandmother, Margaret Dutcher Rains. A memory of Margaret told to my dad by his father is when he once stole one of her pies that was cooling on a window sill. She chased him down, threatening to whip him, until he dove out the window and ran to hide until she calmed down.
Born in 1844, James Rains, served in the Civil War and lived to the ripe old age of 92 - dying in 1936.
Harry cultivated a love for God early on - nurtured by his grandmother and grandfather and he attended the Christian Church.
He decided to go college in Kansas - the Christian Church college so he could become a minister, which he did.
By 1937 he was a Christian Church minister - poor as a church mouse. He had spent most of his college years nearly starving and would often eat soup and other small meals infrequently.
Harry was thin and lean, about 5'11 at his tallest. He was dashing looking, with dimples and merry blue eyes - and a seriously mischievous sense of humor. He could howl with laughter and yet pull out the stern voice when preaching.
And preach he did. There were a number of tent revivals led by Harry Rains in those early years. He was evangelical and loved Jesus with all his heart.
Soon, someone would come along who would steal his heart – Dorothy Vera Rains.
After moving around to a number of churches in Missouri and Kansas, Harry was placed in the Christian Church in Sedalia, Missouri.
Dorothy Vera was living with a family, the Trueman's, who had introduced her to the church a few years earlier.
As Harry described meeting Vera, "she had the most winsome smile, she was so lovely."
The shy couple fell in love and soon became engaged.
Harry proposed to Vera through the screen door of the Trueman home and then ran off – too shy to wait and hear Vera's answer.
However, the next day she answered, "Yes!"
The couple married on March 15, 1939 in front of a huge congregation of witnesses – the bride was given away by Mr. Trueman, due to the estrangement from her own father.
Nine months later, their first child – my older brother, Harry James Rains, Jr., - was born: January 28, 1940 in Larned, Kan. Sure enough, by then, Harry had been transferred to a church in Kansas.
Harry Junior - known as Jim, would become a minister himself, 28 years later.
By December of 1941, the family of three were living in St. Louis, Missouri where their first daughter, Priscilla Noel was born on Dec. 11, 1941 - just four days after Pearl Harbor was bombed.
World War II had truly begun and the family of four – young and struggling, were doing the best they could to survive.
From St. Louis, they moved to Plattsburg, Mo., and then to Indiana and finally to Creston, Iowa. They moved a lot. After some rather unpleasant experiences in Iowa, dad took a church in Richmond, Virginia - the family was moving the comfort of the Midwest to try their hand at living on the east coast.
Dad built a brand new church in Richmond and increased the membership – but he was disillusioned with the doctrines of the Christian Church and in a very bold, gregarious move – he switched to the Episcopal religion and entered the seminary in Richmond.
Harry was ordained an Episcopal priest in December 1952 and took as his first church, Trinity Episcopal Church in historic Fredericksburg, Virginia.
Four years later, I – Elizabeth Anne Rains – would be born in Fredericksburg ... along the banks of the Rappahannock River, 204 years after my ancestor, Lawrence Wesley Rains was born there.
The cycle had completed.
It also explained my later fascination with Fredericksburg and King George County - along the Potomac River where we would vacation for many, many years – it was in my blood.
Another day ...
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
You can't rewrite history
A few months ago I met this man who was a reenactor in local Civil War skirmishes and battles and spent a few hours listening to his stories, which were fascinating.
I knew who the man was, had met him several years earlier, but now I myself was a small-time historian of local Civil War history and writing my own history of the famous outlaws Jesse and Frank James.
Since I am a writer, I was excited to learn this man was planning a new reenactment to take place two years from now, as close to the actual day the original battle had taken place – it shall remain nameless.
I have a large following and know many descendants of Quantrill's Raiders as well as descendants of the pioneers who lived in this particular area during the years before, during and after the war.
I knew I could cover and write on this reenactment as a preview, with interviews and finally, to cover the reenactment itself and do it well.
The reenactor seemed quite happy with that and promised to call me.
In the months since, he has chosen someone else to cover all of his related talks, press releases, assorted filming for movie crews etc. The reenactor will not permit me to cover anything he is doing, nor talk to me – putting me off and using his girlfriend to contact me.
Did I say he belongs to the "good old boys club" yet?
And so, much to my disgust, a movie crew filmed scenes on this man's ranch here in the little town we both live in and I was not permitted to come and cover the day's activities - all I wanted was to share with the other reporter ... a common occurrence and an exciting event.
After a little investigating, I was told that the reenactor has said he is afraid I will portray the person he is reenacting in 2014 in a bad light, because articles I had previous written told of the soldier's horrific, heinous acts during the Civil War.
I told the truth as history has told it - of William "Bloody" Bill Anderson, who rode with William Quantrill in Missouri and broke off from Quantrill to lead his own men - men he could mold into the bloodthirsty killers he was himself.
And he did.
Anderson was known for scalping his victims and wearing their scalps tied to either his clothing or his saddle. He sometimes cut the heart out of a victim and would place it on the victim's body. He often cut his victim's heads off.
During the Centralia, Missouri massacre, he and his cohorts committed some of the most horrific mutilations to Union soldiers on the train that it is unspeakable - even today ... nearly 150 years later.
Yet - I choose not to rewrite history - I have told it like it was.
There are descendants of some of the victims of Anderson still living nearby – they have told their story, their family stories of the horror and murder.
When Anderson and some of his men were ambushed by Union soldiers in 1864 and killed, Anderson was taken to Richmond, Missouri and supposedly, his head was removed from his body and his body dragged through the streets. His last words were something to the effect of, "I am the worst fiend you will ever meet."
The man himself said it.
How do you change that history? Do you paint roses on the man's grave? Do you sugarcoat it, or make light of the horrific deaths of the soldiers Anderson so brutally killed? Do you blame other Union soldiers and other people for the terrible acts Anderson's own family suffered as a reason for him to mutilate and kill others does that make murder excusable?
No it does not.
But it is according to this reenactor, who dresses like Anderson when he presents talks on the upcoming reenactment, like he wants to channel the very soul of the evil man. He heralds the fact that two of his ancestors rode with Anderson and this man is proud of it. Proud of the heinous acts that were committed?
Jesse and Frank James reputedly rode with Anderson too, but there has never been any evidence that either one of them committed such horrible acts, the same could be said of some of the others who rode with Anderson. Most of the men were under the age of 20.
Indeed, Anderson himself was just 24 years old when he was killed.
You can't rewrite history - not to market a reenactment, film a movie or write a book for then it becomes fiction.
And this is what this reenactor has become – a producer of fiction - a speaker of non-truths.
Jesus said "the truth will set you free."
And so it will.
I knew who the man was, had met him several years earlier, but now I myself was a small-time historian of local Civil War history and writing my own history of the famous outlaws Jesse and Frank James.
Since I am a writer, I was excited to learn this man was planning a new reenactment to take place two years from now, as close to the actual day the original battle had taken place – it shall remain nameless.
I have a large following and know many descendants of Quantrill's Raiders as well as descendants of the pioneers who lived in this particular area during the years before, during and after the war.
I knew I could cover and write on this reenactment as a preview, with interviews and finally, to cover the reenactment itself and do it well.
The reenactor seemed quite happy with that and promised to call me.
In the months since, he has chosen someone else to cover all of his related talks, press releases, assorted filming for movie crews etc. The reenactor will not permit me to cover anything he is doing, nor talk to me – putting me off and using his girlfriend to contact me.
Did I say he belongs to the "good old boys club" yet?
And so, much to my disgust, a movie crew filmed scenes on this man's ranch here in the little town we both live in and I was not permitted to come and cover the day's activities - all I wanted was to share with the other reporter ... a common occurrence and an exciting event.
After a little investigating, I was told that the reenactor has said he is afraid I will portray the person he is reenacting in 2014 in a bad light, because articles I had previous written told of the soldier's horrific, heinous acts during the Civil War.
I told the truth as history has told it - of William "Bloody" Bill Anderson, who rode with William Quantrill in Missouri and broke off from Quantrill to lead his own men - men he could mold into the bloodthirsty killers he was himself.
And he did.
Anderson was known for scalping his victims and wearing their scalps tied to either his clothing or his saddle. He sometimes cut the heart out of a victim and would place it on the victim's body. He often cut his victim's heads off.
During the Centralia, Missouri massacre, he and his cohorts committed some of the most horrific mutilations to Union soldiers on the train that it is unspeakable - even today ... nearly 150 years later.
Yet - I choose not to rewrite history - I have told it like it was.
There are descendants of some of the victims of Anderson still living nearby – they have told their story, their family stories of the horror and murder.
When Anderson and some of his men were ambushed by Union soldiers in 1864 and killed, Anderson was taken to Richmond, Missouri and supposedly, his head was removed from his body and his body dragged through the streets. His last words were something to the effect of, "I am the worst fiend you will ever meet."
The man himself said it.
How do you change that history? Do you paint roses on the man's grave? Do you sugarcoat it, or make light of the horrific deaths of the soldiers Anderson so brutally killed? Do you blame other Union soldiers and other people for the terrible acts Anderson's own family suffered as a reason for him to mutilate and kill others does that make murder excusable?
No it does not.
But it is according to this reenactor, who dresses like Anderson when he presents talks on the upcoming reenactment, like he wants to channel the very soul of the evil man. He heralds the fact that two of his ancestors rode with Anderson and this man is proud of it. Proud of the heinous acts that were committed?
Jesse and Frank James reputedly rode with Anderson too, but there has never been any evidence that either one of them committed such horrible acts, the same could be said of some of the others who rode with Anderson. Most of the men were under the age of 20.
Indeed, Anderson himself was just 24 years old when he was killed.
You can't rewrite history - not to market a reenactment, film a movie or write a book for then it becomes fiction.
And this is what this reenactor has become – a producer of fiction - a speaker of non-truths.
Jesus said "the truth will set you free."
And so it will.
Saturday, March 10, 2012
At the mercy of big hospitals
Recently my husband had a heart episode and took himself to the local hospital in our small town – a member of the HCA network. The next closest hospital would have been over 30 miles away.
Having had two previous heart attacks, the symptoms were nothing one should ever ignore.
What followed his entrance into the emergency room is a perfect example of the horror that is healthcare in our country.
Told he needed to be hospitalized overnight for observation as the hospital continued to run tests to be sure he did not have a heart attack, made sense. We wanted to be sure.
He was admitted at 10:30 a.m. and brought to his room – he had only been in the ER for about an hour or so. He barely saw his doctor over the next 24 hours - indeed - it was only once ... the next morning.
It would be hours and hours before he'd see a nurse, once in his room.
He received a lunch, dinner, breakfast and lunch again the next day.
Around 8 a.m. the next morning, his doctor came in, checked him out, reviewed the test results (no heart attack thank goodness) and told my husband he would be released before noon - around 11:30 a.m.
The hospital starts charging for another day as of noon.
He was never released until around 3 p.m. that day - the hospital's excuse? "We're really busy today," said the check out nurse, who added that she knew nothing of his test results, just that she was the go-round check out nurse.
It wasn't the most pleasant experience at that hospital. Staff was friendly - they always are.
It's the prices that are shocking.
The bill came some time later – $12,000 and some change, over $6,000 was written off, $5,000 and some change was paid, leaving us with a bill for $845 - that included my husband's deductible for this year ($500) – so the $345 over and above the deductible really doesn't sound bad to have to pay for all those tests, MRI, Xrays, blood work, ER services, radiology, food and an overnight in the ER right?
Wrong.
Or - perhaps more interesting, is that the bill we actually received from hospital showed just the first charge, the paid amount, the write-off and what he owed – nothing else at all.
No itemized bill.
How many people out there blindly pay these bills without ever questioning the amount?
How can a hospital - or any other institution – charge any amount for any services and not itemize?
The answer is simple - they don't want you to know their astronomical prices - or to figure out they are charging you for things you don't really need.
I wrote a letter to the hospital biller and requested an itemized bill. To date - it hasn't come - but by law they have 30 days to respond.
Meanwhile, the insurance company's explanation of benefits (EOB) came in the mail. And the breakdown from them was astounding.
Among the charges: general supplies - $652, $488 – but no breakdown of what these included.
Was it dinner, lunch, breakfast? Bandaids? Soap, kleenex, the water they gave him? Sheets?
His room was called: observation room - and he was charged for two nights: $839.80 and $973.14 – really? Two nights - he was there 1 night.
However, since the doctor said he would be discharged before noon and the hospital conveniently didn't come around until 3 p.m., he was charged for a second night - without receiving anything more after the noon hour than the check-out around 3 p.m.
He had lunch before noon, all his tests before noon.
Emergency room charge was $1944 for around 90 minutes to 1 hour of service. Plus, another charge of $443 was added - also called emergency service. So - a total of $1,373 was charge for less than 2 hours in the emergency room. For what? He saw the doctor for five minutes and the staff took blood to run the heart attack tests.
He NEVER received any nitroglycerin - this considering he has had several heart attacks and the hospital does have his records.
It will be interesting to see how the hospital's itemized bill arrives. If it looks like the EOB, we will contest and require more itemization.
And we will contest it.
Additionally, a nurse on the first day kept asking him to have himself a flu shot. He said 'NO!' the first time, but she kept coming back to him and saying, "So, you ready for your flu shot?"
Will he be charged for a shot he didn't have?
It wouldn't be the first time.
We will contest all of this before we pay a dime and see how this plays out.
Given a choice - we'd never set foot in a HCA run hospital again.
But then again - every other hospital in the U.S., most likely does the same ... overcharges and expects no one to question the costs.
Gives one a whole new reason to use holistic health for healing doesn't it?
Having had two previous heart attacks, the symptoms were nothing one should ever ignore.
What followed his entrance into the emergency room is a perfect example of the horror that is healthcare in our country.
Told he needed to be hospitalized overnight for observation as the hospital continued to run tests to be sure he did not have a heart attack, made sense. We wanted to be sure.
He was admitted at 10:30 a.m. and brought to his room – he had only been in the ER for about an hour or so. He barely saw his doctor over the next 24 hours - indeed - it was only once ... the next morning.
It would be hours and hours before he'd see a nurse, once in his room.
He received a lunch, dinner, breakfast and lunch again the next day.
Around 8 a.m. the next morning, his doctor came in, checked him out, reviewed the test results (no heart attack thank goodness) and told my husband he would be released before noon - around 11:30 a.m.
The hospital starts charging for another day as of noon.
He was never released until around 3 p.m. that day - the hospital's excuse? "We're really busy today," said the check out nurse, who added that she knew nothing of his test results, just that she was the go-round check out nurse.
It wasn't the most pleasant experience at that hospital. Staff was friendly - they always are.
It's the prices that are shocking.
The bill came some time later – $12,000 and some change, over $6,000 was written off, $5,000 and some change was paid, leaving us with a bill for $845 - that included my husband's deductible for this year ($500) – so the $345 over and above the deductible really doesn't sound bad to have to pay for all those tests, MRI, Xrays, blood work, ER services, radiology, food and an overnight in the ER right?
Wrong.
Or - perhaps more interesting, is that the bill we actually received from hospital showed just the first charge, the paid amount, the write-off and what he owed – nothing else at all.
No itemized bill.
How many people out there blindly pay these bills without ever questioning the amount?
How can a hospital - or any other institution – charge any amount for any services and not itemize?
The answer is simple - they don't want you to know their astronomical prices - or to figure out they are charging you for things you don't really need.
I wrote a letter to the hospital biller and requested an itemized bill. To date - it hasn't come - but by law they have 30 days to respond.
Meanwhile, the insurance company's explanation of benefits (EOB) came in the mail. And the breakdown from them was astounding.
Among the charges: general supplies - $652, $488 – but no breakdown of what these included.
Was it dinner, lunch, breakfast? Bandaids? Soap, kleenex, the water they gave him? Sheets?
His room was called: observation room - and he was charged for two nights: $839.80 and $973.14 – really? Two nights - he was there 1 night.
However, since the doctor said he would be discharged before noon and the hospital conveniently didn't come around until 3 p.m., he was charged for a second night - without receiving anything more after the noon hour than the check-out around 3 p.m.
He had lunch before noon, all his tests before noon.
Emergency room charge was $1944 for around 90 minutes to 1 hour of service. Plus, another charge of $443 was added - also called emergency service. So - a total of $1,373 was charge for less than 2 hours in the emergency room. For what? He saw the doctor for five minutes and the staff took blood to run the heart attack tests.
He NEVER received any nitroglycerin - this considering he has had several heart attacks and the hospital does have his records.
It will be interesting to see how the hospital's itemized bill arrives. If it looks like the EOB, we will contest and require more itemization.
And we will contest it.
Additionally, a nurse on the first day kept asking him to have himself a flu shot. He said 'NO!' the first time, but she kept coming back to him and saying, "So, you ready for your flu shot?"
Will he be charged for a shot he didn't have?
It wouldn't be the first time.
We will contest all of this before we pay a dime and see how this plays out.
Given a choice - we'd never set foot in a HCA run hospital again.
But then again - every other hospital in the U.S., most likely does the same ... overcharges and expects no one to question the costs.
Gives one a whole new reason to use holistic health for healing doesn't it?
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