Podcast/ A Marine, 22 Surgeries, and the Power of Asking for Help
Episode 02 - Dialed In Health
A Marine, 22 Surgeries, and the Power of Asking for Help
With Clark Bevens (US Marine Veteran, MMA Fighter), Carly King (Agency Manager, Kore Cares), and Emily Pinkelman (CNA, Kore Cares)
Episode Chapters
Jump to any section
0:00Cold Open
0:26Dialed In Health Intro
0:52Meet Clark Bevens
3:08Clark's Marine Corps and MMA Career
5:04Asking for Help as a Veteran
7:47What Kore Cares Actually Does
10:22Caregiver Matching and Trust
13:15Day-to-Day Life with a CNA
16:40How Emily and Clark Built Their Relationship
19:30The Emotional Side of In-Home Care
22:00What Families Should Know
24:45How to Connect with Kore Cares
Key Takeaways
Asking for help is one of the hardest things for veterans and fighters, but it's also the most important step toward recovery. It takes real strength to admit vulnerability.
Kore Cares operates across 38 counties in South Dakota, reaching small towns and rural farmhouses where care is often hard to find.
Caregiver matching matters. The relationship between a CNA and their client is deeply personal and goes beyond physical care - it's about human connection.
In-home care means meeting people where they are, literally and figuratively. It's about seeing the whole person, not processing a number.
After 22 orthopedic surgeries, Clark found that having the right support system changed everything about his recovery - from physical therapy to emotional resilience.
Being your own biggest advocate means finding the right people who can help with what you actually need. Keep it real. Tell the truth to the right people.
Client Stories
"One of the hardest things was to ask for help, to be vulnerable and to go to the right people and find the right people. You have to be your biggest advocate, and you have to find the right people that can help you with the things you really need."
Clark Bevens - US Marine Veteran, MMA Fighter
Recovery and Advocacy"Having someone like Emily, who's wonderful, in your house is such a personal thing. She's helping me live. For her to have the empathy to come in and help, no matter what I'm going through - that makes all the difference."
Clark Bevens on his CNA
In-Home Care ImpactFAQs About Kore Cares and In-Home Care
What is Kore Cares?
Kore Cares is an in-home care agency based in Sioux Falls, SD, serving 38 counties across South Dakota. They match CNAs and caregivers with clients who need assistance with daily living, companionship, and medical support at home.
What services do in-home caregivers provide?
Services range from help with bathing, dressing, and meal preparation to medication reminders, transportation, light housekeeping, and companionship. Each care plan is tailored to the individual.
Does insurance or Medicaid cover in-home care?
Many in-home care services are covered by Medicaid, VA benefits, and some private insurance plans. Kore Cares helps families navigate coverage options.
How are caregivers matched with clients?
Kore Cares takes time to understand both the client's needs and the caregiver's strengths and personality. Matching goes beyond skills — it's about building a trusting relationship.
What's the difference between in-home care and a nursing home?
In-home care allows people to stay in their own home while receiving personalized support. It's typically less expensive than facility care and offers more independence and comfort.
Can veterans access in-home care through the VA?
Yes. Many veterans qualify for in-home care benefits through the VA. Kore Cares works with VA programs to provide caregiving support for eligible veterans across South Dakota.
How do I know when a loved one needs in-home care?
Common signs include difficulty with daily tasks, falls or safety concerns, social isolation, medication mismanagement, or caregiver burnout in the family. Starting with a few hours a week can make a big difference.
What areas does Kore Cares serve?
Kore Cares serves 38 counties across South Dakota, with their primary base in Sioux Falls. They work to place caregivers throughout the region, including rural areas.
Full Episode Transcript
Read the Full Transcript
Clark BevensOne of the hardest things was to ask for help, to be vulnerable and to go to the right people and find the right people. You have to be your biggest advocate, and you have to find the right people that can help you with the things you really need.
Melissa Goodwin (Host)Health and wellness is confusing. There's a new trend every week. Everyone's got an opinion, and half the time you can't tell what's legit from what's just good marketing. And we get it. We're in it, too. Welcome to Dialed In Health. I'm Melissa Goodwin. Every episode, we bring in the people who actually do this work. Providers, practitioners, the experts who see clients and patients every day. We ask the questions you'd ask if you were sitting across from them so you can find the right people, make better decisions, and feel confident about what's out there.
MelissaWhether it's peptides, gut health, water quality, ADHD, biohacking, or something you've never heard of - we're covering it. So let's get into it. Let's get dialed in. There's a moment that changes everything. The moment that someone who has spent their whole life being strong realizes they need help. For a lot of people, that moment is terrifying, especially if you've served, especially if you've fought, especially if asking for help feels like the hardest fight you've ever had.
MelissaToday's episode is about a US veteran and MMA fighter who hit that moment. He needed care. Not the kind you get from a system that processes you like a number. The kind where someone shows up, sees you, and meets you where you are. That's what Kore Cares does. And they provide in-home care across South Dakota and the region for people of all ages and abilities. This is one of those episodes that's going to stick with you. This is Dialed In Health. Let's get dialed in.
MelissaI'm Melissa Goodwin, and we are back here in beautiful Yankton, South Dakota, right off the river. And we are here with the Kore Cares team at the home of Clark Bevens. Thanks for letting us be in your home, Clark.
ClarkThanks for having me.
MelissaAnd I'm here today with Emily Pinkelman. She is a CNA with Kore Cares. And Carly King, you are the agency manager.
Carly KingThat's right.
MelissaSo, Carly, tell us a little bit. Just structurally, Kore Cares is in Sioux Falls, Yankton, and a number of communities throughout the region?
CarlyYes, tons of communities. About 38 counties. We're in Yankton, Aberdeen, Mitchell. We have offices in Gregory, Winner, Burke area - pretty much everywhere. Any small town, any farmhouse in between. We've probably been visited there.
MelissaThat's amazing. Well, we're excited to hear a little bit more about Clark and your story and how you've come into the care of Kore Cares. You've got a pretty fascinating background. So I'm excited to share with our audience today a little bit about you and how you came to Yankton, South Dakota.
ClarkMy name is Clark Bevens. I'm 51 years old. I served in the Marine Corps from 1993 to 2001. And then after the Marine Corps, I ran various businesses. I was also a professional fighter. I had a 15-year career of fighting with 24 professional fights. I was also a jiu jitsu practitioner. I won a couple world titles in the no-gi jiu jitsu class. And through the Marine Corps and through my choice of life, which was very aggressive and put my body through a lot, I never really took care of myself.
ClarkAs a Marine, you don't want to ask for help. You don't want to seem like you're weak or vulnerable. So you learn to just ignore those injuries and continue on with your day-to-day living the best you can. Finally, when COVID hit, I was 45 at the time, and I was in charge of a large organization on the east coast. We had 1,205 employees. It was a health club organization with 40,000 members. My last instructions for the company were to shut it all down. And I decided, you know, I'm done. I decided at that point I was going to retire. I went to Montana.
ClarkIn the last five years since I retired, I've had about 22 surgeries, almost all orthopedic surgeries. Through that, one of the hardest things was to ask for help, to be vulnerable and to go to the right people and find the right people. You have to be your biggest advocate and you have to find the right people that can help you with the things you really need. Having somebody in your house, having someone like Emily who's wonderful, is such a personal thing. She's helping me live. She sees my dirty laundry, she sees me when I can't get up in the morning because the pain is so bad or after I've had a night terror.
ClarkShe sees everything I go through, and for her to have the empathy to come in and just say, it's no big deal, let's just go at it, you know, what do we got to get done today? She helps me with my physical therapy. And, you know, it fluctuates depending on what I need or don't need. Sometimes I need a lot of care. Sometimes it's hard to get out of bed in the morning. Whatever I need, Emily's there to help me get in the shower when I need it. With the procedure I have coming up, I may be in a wheelchair for a short period of time.
ClarkAnd I know I can go to Kore Cares and the team over there - Carly and Emily - they rock. If we had more folks like them in society today, maybe we wouldn't have all the issues we have because they tend to lead with empathy and gratitude. They seem to genuinely be interested in making a difference in their community. So it's been hard to ask for help, but I encourage anybody out there - if you're wondering if you should get help, the answer is absolutely yes. It takes a real warrior to ask for help, whether you're a male or a female. So don't think you're weak by asking for help. It's just the opposite. That shows your strength and your fortitude and your mental toughness. So please ask for help.
MelissaWhat gave you the courage to be able to do that? I think you're right that a lot of veterans might feel shame, saying like, I can't handle this anymore, or like you said, just being able to say, like, my house is not where I'd like it to be, but I just need someone to come in and help me out. What do you think gave you the courage?
ClarkFor me, it was the pain. I have never taken anything more than Tylenol up until six years ago. I had several injuries that I never let heal or address properly. That's part of being a Marine. That's how you're bred. That's how you're taught. And the biggest thing for me was when I couldn't enjoy the things that I always enjoy, like fishing. Fishing is my number one hobby. I would go out there and try to go fishing and I would get these pains in my neck and my shoulder all over my body. I would come home and I would hurt. This is not enjoyable. And hunting was the same way. And all outdoor activities. I'm a very active person at least I was.
ClarkBut it was certainly the pain that drove me to do that. And seeing myself not acting like myself. Fishing is hurting. Hunting is hurting. I won't do my chores because it just hurts too bad. And that could be something as little as washing the dishes and all that repetitive motion of folding your laundry. Stuff like that, I would just quit doing. And that's not me.
MelissaWhat brought you to South Dakota?
ClarkVery interesting story. I have a brother that lived here - a military brother. In northwest Montana where I was at, it's quite expensive. With the stage I'm at right now in my recovery back to being me, I need some specialty care. So I needed to move near facilities where I could get the specialty care. And this was the area. The town is small, just like I came from and just like my hometown, which I love. The people are amazing here. Some great food. I love the Latin food here. Really good Latin food, which surprised me. And so I moved down here. It's only been three months, and I've loved it so far. Got a lovely home. I tell you what, my dollar goes a lot farther.
MelissaEmily, tell us a little bit about your background. You are a CNA with Kore Cares. Tell us how you came to Kore Cares. A little bit about you. Are you from Yankton?
Emily Pinkelman (CNA)I am from Yankton. Born and raised here. I guess I kind of fell into CNA work by accident, to be honest. Before that, I was working at a bank. And I just learned that a stuffy environment where you're behind a computer all day is just not for me. I am at my healthiest and my best when I'm up and about taking care of other people, when my day can change day by day. So honestly, home care has been the perfect niche for me because every day is different. I go into different homes and there's always different things that need to be done, different needs that need to be met.
MelissaSo, Clark, when you decided to hire Kore Cares and you met Emily, and Emily, you met Clark, what was that interaction like? How did you guys get to know each other and determine what needed to happen and how to interact?
ClarkWe just talked for the first 45 minutes, showed her around, and, you know, said, here's the things I need help with. I literally had a list of things that are really hard for me to do that I need to have done. And she was just open to it. She goes, oh, I love this. I was like, thank goodness. But to start off, we just chatted and she told me her story and I told her mine, and we made lists.
MelissaEmily, what about you? What was that like for you?
EmilyWell, when you're in someone's home, you can pretty much look around and get an idea, a feel for who they are, what they're into. So of course, my first walking in, seeing pictures of him with his fists up, I'm like, okay, so tell me about this. I had lots of questions based off the pictures in the home. I feel like I'm a people person. It's really easy for me to just kind of get into a groove and feel out a person's personality, probably due to a lot of my customer service experience throughout my life. But it's an honor to be allowed into people's home, and I don't take that for granted.
MelissaAnd, Carly, I'm curious - when you hire, how do you hire for that? That's gotta be something that's not really on a resume.
CarlyYeah, no, it's not. I think it's tricky to hire for home care because it really takes a special person. Someone can come in and say, I just love taking care of people. But then you kind of know if maybe that's not the case. Like when Emily came to interview, I knew right when she walked through the door, looked at me and smiled - you're it. You're gonna be hired for sure. You just kind of know. You go over their experience, stuff like that. You go over how they are personally with people. If you don't get somebody who wants to converse with clients, they're probably not going to be the best fit. So you just kind of go through a checklist of the kind of person we're looking for, but we also have a personal checklist. I know the clients. I've met them. I met Clark before anybody did.
CarlySo it's kind of easy to pick out employees because I know all the clients already, and I know what they need. I know who they're going to want to talk to, who they're going to want to be cooking their meals, who they're going to want in their home. So I think just knowing the personal side of the clients before you hire somebody is pretty special. You can really pick and choose the right employees. You're kind of matchmaking in some ways.
CarlyYes, definitely. Matchmaking their personality side, for sure, and their experience second, because I think your experience definitely comes into play, but you can't really be taught how to be a good caregiver. I think that comes naturally. Just like it came naturally with Emily. And then just being able to support them in ways that they're going to be successful in someone's home. So I would never put Emily with somebody who I didn't think she'd be successful with.
MelissaWell, tell me - walk us through Clark and Emily. What's a typical day? What are some things that you do? And Clark, what happens when you wake up?
ClarkWell, I usually just sit here a lot and do my exercises.
EmilyYeah, so when I walk in, he actually usually has a list of things that he would like done, and usually I have some spare time, so I'll spot things that also need to be done and I'll do that as well. But I do a lot of meal prepping for Clark. Definitely help him motivate to get going on some days and get his physical therapy in every day. I usually have to keep his dog busy while he's trying to do his exercises. It's probably the biggest distraction. And just a lot of general cleaning. Luckily he's really easy to clean up after. Yeah, that's just the general gist. Whatever needs to be done. Oh, I suppose run errands too, but it's a pretty easy day. I'm here for about two to three hours a day.
MelissaClark, tell us a little bit about your goals. You're young and pretty vibrant. Like, what are your hopes when you think about Kore Cares in your future? What are you hoping for? Rehabilitation? Are you hoping for services to continue through any potential surgeries and then wind down, or what are you thinking from that perspective?
ClarkYeah, I would like to get back to being myself. I have some great ideas for ventures I would like to get into here in Yankton. And I believe, you know, at 51, I can still get back in the game and live a great life. I just need to get through these orthopedic issues and continue my physical therapy and continue to have great people around me and I'll certainly win the game and I'm looking forward to that.
MelissaWhat advice would you give somebody who is kind of in your same position who might be unsure if they need help or can get help?
ClarkThe advice I give is you can always get help. There is help out there. It may not be how you want it, or you may not be able to follow the path that you initially think it's going to go on. But you need to be open to going down different paths and you need to be persistent and be your best advocate. To advocate for yourself and to get out there and let people know what you're having a hard time with. And if you're not telling the truth and telling the truth to the right people, then the right things aren't going to happen for you. So just keep it real. Everybody needs help at some point in their life and I've been grateful to be in the position I'm in and having the support I have around me.
MelissaEmily, do you have any advice that you would give to anyone who is in a position similar to Clark?
EmilyI'd say just be open and relaxed about it. We do this professionally and nothing is ever that big of a deal, you know, so just be yourself. Be who you are and don't worry about what other people think. There probably isn't a lot that you haven't seen before. Don't worry about other people's perspectives. What matters is your well being and your home. And we're here to help.
CarlyI always tell people who are nervous and like, well, I don't want to start until like five more months. Well, you know, and it's like why? I don't want someone to help me shower. And it's like, well, I just usually make sure people know like our caregivers, this is their career. They've seen it all, they've done it all. Nothing is going to give anybody the, you know, because it's human life. We're all just trying to help our clients live the best life in their house.
MelissaWas there anything that you were really worried about before you had a caregiver come in your home?
ClarkOh, absolutely. Having somebody help me shower or having to wear adult diapers. Sharing that with someone in my house now who has gotta help me bathe myself and do these basic tasks really makes you embarrassed at first. And then when the caregiver starts just doing their thing, you're like, wow, this really isn't that big of a deal. But it was just being embarrassed. I'm supposed to be this big tough guy and I'm walking around in a diaper or I need help getting in the shower or I can't get up off the toilet. All those things have happened. So that was the biggest thing - just my own pride.
MelissaWell, I'm so glad that you did make the call and that you did get the help that you deserve. You know, I do have one last question - fishing advice. Have you been out here on the river? What's the best spots? Can you share?
ClarkI can't tell you that. That's secret. I've been sworn to secrecy. But I tell you the paddle fish in here is real. And I'm very excited to get involved in that once I get back on my feet.
MelissaWill that be one of your ventures - figuring out some paddle fishing excursions?
ClarkI go there, you know, even though I can't fish, I go there three or four times a week, scouting it out.
MelissaYou're going to be more dangerous than anybody when you get out there.
ClarkBringing the heat. That's for sure.
MelissaThank you so much again for letting us in your home and for sharing your story. I know it will help a lot of people who are watching this and maybe not sure or maybe need to muster up the courage to ask for some help. So I really appreciate you sharing that story today.
ClarkAbsolutely. I'd like to say thank you to the team at Kore Cares and everything you've done for me to make my life a bit easier.
MelissaAnd thank you, Emily and Carly, for the work you do every day to help people live their best lives. If you have questions about Kore Cares, go ahead and click on the link in the show notes. We'll have a link there for you so you can reach out to their team and they'll guide you from there. Thank you so much.
MelissaHey, that's our show. If someone came to mind while you were listening to this - if you thought, hey, my sister needs to hear this, or I should send this to my mom or my buddy would get a lot out of this - please share it with them. Just hit the share button and send it their way. You never know what one conversation, one episode, or one piece of information can do for someone who's been looking for answers.
MelissaAnd if you haven't subscribed yet, please do it now. It takes two seconds. It's free, and it means you won't miss an episode. We've got incredible stuff coming up, and I don't want you to miss any of it. And if you're a health or wellness provider and you want to be on the show, we'd love to hear from you. There's a link in the show notes to get in touch. We're always looking for people doing interesting work who want to share what they know.
MelissaOne last thing. I get asked all the time about the products and brands I actually use. So I put together a list of sponsors and favorite products that have worked for me and my family. If you're curious, that link is in the show notes, too. Thank you for being here, and I really mean that. I'm Melissa Goodwin. The line is open. See you next time.