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 By JENNIFER TANGEMAN
Staff Writer
Few people exhibit an enthusiasm about historical artifacts as Jim Bowsher does.
When crews working for G.A. Wintzer and Son Co. started working to build new office space on West Auglaize Street, they came across some interesting finds where a rental home had previously sat.
Jim Kent and others of Kent Surveying began finding pieces of artifacts. They called in local history buff, Bowsher, to try to figure out what the bits and pieces meant.
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Environmental health director improved health of county residents for 34 years |
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Thursday, 31 December 2009 |
 Auglaize County Environmental Health Director Marvin Selhorst plans to retire today after more than 34 years with the Auglaize County Health Department. Staff photo/Karen Campbell By KAREN CAMPBELL
Assistant Managing Editor
Weeks before his college graduation, the Auglaize County environmental health director didn’t know what he was going to do about a job –– he did not have any prospects.
Marvin Selhorst changed what he thought he might do after graduating from Wright State University in late 1975 a couple times while he was an undergraduate but admits he must have found a good fit as more than 34 years later he is retiring after starting work as a general sanitarian for the Auglaize County Health Department on Dec. 15, 1975.
He married his wife, Ann, who was then a nurse at Joint Township District Memorial Hospital in St. Marys, a month later.
“I took my final exam on Dec. 12 and three days later started here,” Selhorst said as he sat at his desk reflecting on the years he spent inspecting food service operations, sewage systems, campgrounds, manufactured home parks, and tattoo and body piercing parlors.
Also as part of his job, Selhorst said he has conducted general water samplings, responded to nuisance complaints and educated the public.
Since he started the job, he said there have been a lot of changes in public health.
Trailer parks are now referred to as manufactured home parks, lead and radon cause more concern, and the flu, whether bird, swine or West Nile, has become a bigger issue. Food service licenses have gone from $15 to $800 at the high end now.
“The cost of everything has gone up,” Selhorst said.
He said he also has noticed that people in general do not make as much of an effort to get along with each other and solve their problems themselves.
But he said the biggest changes have been to sewer regulations.
“Almost 30 of my 34 years, the state has been trying to change the sewer rules,” Selhorst said. “Now they’ve been pushed back again to July.”
He said the main change –– no off lot sewage –– proposed in the bill is something the county plans to adopt for new construction regardless.
Employees of the Health Department also now are required to take more classes on topics such as bioterrorism to prepare for a mass clinic that could be needed. It is something no one thought about when Selhorst first took the job.
Selhorst said there are a lot of rules and regulations to enforce with his job, but it’s not too often that a case gets all the way to the Auglaize County Courthouse before it is settled.
“We want to do everything we can before that happens,” Selhorst said. “Sometimes you need to show some compassion. It’s not just rules, rules, rules. You need to be a little understanding and evaluate each case not just from the law standpoint but the human standpoint.”
The extra classes and trainings and the downturn in the economy, which has led to the need for fewer inspections, prompted Selhorst’s decision to retire before hitting his original goal of 35 years.
“The job isn’t what I originally started out doing,” Selhorst said. “We’re doing less inspections and that is what I enjoy.”
While many of his colleagues got out of the public health field early, Selhorst said he has enjoyed working with the public.
“There are a lot of times you want to speak your mind when you know someone is lying to you, but you’ve got to hold your tongue,” Selhorst said.
Curt Anderson, who has been a sanitarian with the Health Department for nearly 20 years, is set to take over as environmental health director Jan. 1.
Auglaize County Health Commissioner Charlotte Parsons said he was selected as the best candidate after an interview process.
Anderson is to receive a 5 percent pay increase at the beginning of the year and then another 5 percent after a six-month probationary period.
Aaron Longsworth is to be promoted to a higher level sanitarian, up one step from his current position.
He is expected to gain additional responsibilities once Selhorst is gone, Parsons said.
“We certainly appreciate all the hard work he has put into the position,” Health Board Chair Dr. David Nielsen said of Selhorst’s retirement.
Selhorst, who is from Northstar in Darke County, said the position in Auglaize County allowed him to do enforcement work where he could live close to family but not within the same county, which is not preferred because of often having to investigate cases of friends, family or acquaintances.
He said if that happened in Auglaize County, he tried to get another sanitarian to do the inspection so there’d be no conflict of interest.
Selhorst was named supervisor after a retirement in 1984 and has served as such for 25 years.
“We actually have less staff now than when I started,” Selhorst said.
He plans to help ease that burden coming back on an interim basis as needed to perform inspections and fill in for vacations.
Selhorst said it will keep him occupied in retirement and save the Health Department money compared to hiring another full-time employee.
He said he’s been lucky as the people he works with and for have made the job better.
Selhorst said the cooperation and support really helps.
Having the support of county residents has helped to, Selhorst said. Since he started the job they’ve never failed to pass a levy.
The 58-year-old father to Keith, Janette and Kristy, doesn’t plan on immersing himself back into work right away. He’s got to wait at least 60 days per state requirements, and plans to spend time visiting with grandchildren — he’s got four with one on the way –– playing Barbies with his only granddaughter, going to Little League games and making up stories. His wife jokes that she has a new housekeeper starting in January and they have some remodeling on their agenda. Selhorst also would like to travel, particularly to Florida, to get out of the cold weather.
“I’ll wait until the snow is gone and then come back to help,” Selhorst said.
“You’ll never get rich at this job, but it provides a lot of personal satisfaction,” he said. “At the end of the day when you hang up your spikes, you know that you made life a little better and improved public health in Auglaize County.”
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Last Updated ( Monday, 04 January 2010 )
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