Author Ellen Brafford McCroskey

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

Ellen Brafford McCroskey works in the Lawyer Development Department at Orrick’s GOC in downtown Wheeling, where she has been employed for seven years. A lifelong Wheeling resident, she is a graduate of Wheeling Park High School and Wheeling Jesuit University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Human Resources Management. Her hobbies include writing, photography, and crocheting. Her pet causes are educating others on the need for solutions to the opioid crisis and the need for equality for all people, particularly her LGBTQ friends and family. Ellen resides in Warwood with her husband Doug, who is the Ohio County Dog Warden. Their extended family includes four adult children and their significant others; a number of biological and ‘adopted’ grandkids; their dads and sisters; numerous in-laws and outlaws; and a clowder of rescued cats.

Pennies From Heaven … Thanks to Kenny?

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

January 16, 2019

Call it karma, or cause and effect, or the result of living by the Golden Rule. However you label it, good things often come to good people. That was certainly the case this week when Project HOPE received a...

AS I SEE IT: Cold Hands Helped by Warm Hearts

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

January 12, 2019

If you happened to be in the area of 20th and Eoff streets in Center Wheeling recently, you may have spotted something heartwarming through the falling snow showers. Attached to the fencing of the bridge spanni...

Drumming Up Better Health

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

January 8, 2019

“My goal is to help at least one person every day to be positive and focused on their health,” says Kyle Lewis, co-owner of the Healthy Vibes for You nutrition club at 2137 Market St. in the Centre Market area ...

Social Activism Alive and Well in Wheeling

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

January 4, 2019

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. In fact, it is the only thing that ever has." — Margaret Mead Social activism is alive and well here in Wheeling. Nee...

Recovery Center Puts the UNITY in CommUNITY

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

January 2, 2019

“People are making positive choices every single day when they walk through our doors,” says Mary Hess, executive director of the Unity Center in Benwood. The Unity Center is a place of community, support and e...

AS I SEE IT: Farewell, Red D — Jamboree In The Hills ‘Hiatus’ Marks the End of an Era

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

December 22, 2018

For the first time in many years, Santa will not be leaving four-day passes to Jamboree In The Hills in my family's stockings, and for this reason, I feel certain that LiveNation is near the top of Santa’s Naug...

Recovery Coach Certification Now Offered Locally

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

December 12, 2018

“Transformed people transform people.” Those words coined by spiritual author Richard Rohr are the motto of the Center for Addiction Recovery Training’s Recovery Coach Academy, now being offered locally. ...

All Things Under the Rainbow — A Discussion and Support Group

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

November 20, 2018

LGBTQ+ friends and neighbors, meet Heather Sexton, CT (counselor trainee). Heather, a wife, mom and native of eastern Kentucky, has relocated to Wheeling and is finishing her master's degree in counseling. Once...

Good Grief! Dr. William Mercer Unveils ‘Joe Nailer’

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

November 13, 2018

Dr. William Mercer is well known in the local area as a driving force behind the Clean Indoor Air Regulation that banned smoking in most public spaces in Ohio County back in 2005. What may not be so well known ...

When the Spirit Moves You — The Evolution of a Psychic Medium

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

October 30, 2018

Amanda DeShong feels a spiritual connection to the great outdoors. Admit it — when it comes to psychic mediums, you’re curious but perhaps skeptical. How does it work, exactly? Does it work, or is it merely...

AS I SEE IT: Lessons Learned From the Trump Administration

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

October 7, 2018

Anyone who knows me is well aware that I am not a fan of President Trump. But as my husband keeps reminding me, he is my President, regardless of whether or not he has my support. I attended the recent Morri...

HOPE for the Homeless — Street Medicine Team Cares for Wheeling’s Most Vulnerable

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

October 3, 2018

Imagine that you’ve just had your leg amputated. It’s an emotionally devastating and life-altering event that will change the way you go about your daily routine. Staying mobile, performing simple self-care and...

‘Recovery Boys’ Screening Launches Community Discussion on Addiction

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

September 26, 2018

As a mom myself, my heart kept breaking for their mamas — the mothers of these four young men. Jeff, Adam, Ryan and Rush are profiled in “Recovery Boys,” a Netflix film depicting the struggles of recovery in We...

AS I SEE IT: Acknowledging the Addicts Among Us

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

September 22, 2018

By now, most of us are well aware of the enormity of the opioid crisis in our state. But I've noticed that plenty of people believe that their lives haven't been touched by it personally. I would argue that we ...

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

September 18, 2018

“Sometimes, the strength of motherhood is greater than natural laws.” – Barbara Kingsolver No mother plans to raise a child who struggles with substance use disorder; that is not among the hopes and dreams o...

Hope and Community in Abundant Supply at Lazarus House, Mary & Martha House

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

September 10, 2018

Pat Condron, co-founder and executive director of Lazarus House and Mary & Martha House, believes that addiction is a “disease of isolation.” Recovery, he has come to learn, is best achieved in a setting of...

AS I SEE IT: Love Is Love — Especially Between LGBTQ Youth and Their Parents

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

September 1, 2018

It was announced last month that former Vice President and long-time LGBTQ advocate Joe Biden is launching a campaign to promote family acceptance of LGBTQ youth. The Biden Foundation, with the help of Grammy A...

House of Hagar Sees Christ in Each of Us

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

August 21, 2018

“I call them ‘transients,’ but you call them ‘friends.’ And we’re talking about the same people.” Kate Marshall, who operates the House of Hagar-Catholic Worker in East Wheeling, heard these words recently f...

AS I SEE IT: Adventures of the Dog-Catcher’s Wife From the Shotgun Seat

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

August 11, 2018

People either love my husband or hate him, depending upon the circumstances of their introduction. Doug has been the Ohio County Humane Officer and Dog Warden for over 20 years now, so plenty of local residents...

AS I SEE IT: It’s All Good in the Neighborhood

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

July 28, 2018

When I was in first grade, I spent what seemed like an eternity home from school recovering from chicken pox. It was during those long days of boredom that I first discovered the gentle wisdom of Mister Rogers....

Dancing Down Memory Lane (Part 2): Park Dances — the ’70s

Ellen Brafford McCroskey

July 5, 2018

Those were the days — the decade of love, disco, equality, environmental awareness. Those of us who came of age in Wheeling in the 1970s remember that era well. One of the teenage rites of passage here in the F...